Iconic Restaurant Turned Eyesore Stands No More in Tuxedo, New York

Today news broke of the end of a reststop institution. I don't believe anyone ever thought that the old Red Apple Rest building could be restored to its grander days but knowing it has been torn down seems to come as sad news.

For years people have driven old Route 17 and past the dilapidated broken-down Red Apple Rest but many of us who are nostalgic I think hoped one day it would magically spring back to life with all its retro deco diner design. As of today, that dream is over. The Red Apple Rest has been leveled.

Orange County New York Iconic Restaurant is Truly Gone Forever

Before you could get on the New York State Thruway to get to the Hudson Valley and the Catskills people took old Route 17 up through Tuexedo and Harriman passing through Southfields. Red Apple Rest was a stopping-off point. Open 24 hours a day every day of the year it was a destination similar to South of the Border when you travel to Florida.

The restaurant opened in May of 1931 according to the Wikipedia post and remained busy until about the 1970s. The Freed Family the original owners reportedly sold it 53 years after it opened in 1984 to a new owner who ran it until September of 2006 when it closed for multiple reasons.

SEE Also: Red Apple Rest has become an Eyesore

A member of the Freed family, Elaine Freed Lindenblatt has actually published a book "Stop at the Red Apple". It is a memoir of the 50-plus years the restaurant was run by her family. It covers the Red Apple Rest in its heyday.

I can remember many friends whose family would always stop there on their way up from New York City. I am sad I never got to stop in.  Rumor was the food was great and the place was a true throwback.

Red Apple Rest Video from 2023 from YouTube

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