Last updated: October 29, 2020
Place
Keene Café
Courtesy of Keene Cafe
Quick Facts
Location:
30256 Woodford-Tehachapi Rd, Keene, CA 93531
Significance:
An eatery frequented by Cesar Chavez from the early 1970s until his death in 1993.
MANAGED BY:
Amenities
6 listed
Audio Description, Food/Drink - Bar/Alcohol For Sale, Food/Drink - Coffee, Food/Drink - Restaurant/Table Service, Parking - Auto, Restroom
Located at the Keene exit off Highway 58, the building housing this rustic diner dates back to 1920. Still open each day for breakfast and lunch, its great food and country atmosphere draws customers from throughout the Tehachapi Mountains and Central Valley.
Cesar was friends with the café's previous owner, Ruby Woods. They jokingly greeted each other, Cesar asking Ruby if she would sell him the Keene Café and Ruby asking Cesar if he would sell her La Paz. After Cesar's passing, Ruby approached his son Paul Chavez, president of the Cesar Chavez Foundation, about acquiring the diner.
Although the Keene Café is not part of the César E. Chávez National Monument, it is owned and operated by the National Chavez Center, part of the Chavez Foundation.