A&W Restaurant

Visiting the Lodi A&W feels like a culinary pilgrimage, as this site marks the historic first-ever location of the storied brand. I was genuinely surprised to find that the establishment wasn't packed to capacity. The menu features burgers that are consistently tasty and seasoned well. Accompanying the mains are the crunchy fries, which provide a perfectly crisp texture. Of course, their famous root beer float, a signature item that demands your full attention. Served in their iconic, heavy-duty big glass mugs. The carbonation is remarkably lively, causing the foam to erupt from the mug like a volcano if you aren't ready to catch it. You would be wise to keep a stack of napkins within reach, as that "volcano" effect can quickly lead to a sticky cleanup mission. Despite the potential mess, the creamy blend of soft serve and spiced root beer remains an unparalleled treat. It is a rare delight to experience a piece of food history that still delivers on its original promises of quality and charm. For anyone passing through Lodi, this location is an essential stop for a legendary frosty mug.

This is the OG A&W and it is amazing. When you dine in you get the best root beer ever in a frosted glass. The staff here is super friendly and the food is great but I was a little tiny bit disappointed because back in the day the A&W I went to had crinkly fries. But no worries this place rocks and it's like a museum. If you are in Lodi, CA it's a must go even if it's just for a frosted mug of root beer 🍺 😋 👍👍

Clean and quiet. Came during their last hour, used kiosk to order. This was our first time trying this chain. With all the upgrades it came to about $20 per person, quite pricey for fast food. Everything came out fairly quickly, hot and delicious!

Visiting the original A&W stand in Lodi, CA, was such a treat! I loved seeing all the memorabilia on display, it’s like stepping back in time. The food is classic comfort fare, with lots of fried options that are absolutely delicious and served piping hot. It’s a must stop if you’re in Lodi, whether you’re a history buff or just craving some great eats. Don’t miss out on this iconic spot!

This is the original and best A&W restaurant with classic menu and rootbeer that is the absolute best

Old skool restaurant, in the middle of a "downtown" district of a rundown ag town. The trophy case has hundreds of articles of A&W paraphernalia, including limited edition souvenir mugs, labeled by year. There's a drive thru and a drive-up (don't know if it operates like Arnold's from Happy Days, but it's skating waitress-ready.

This is the original A and W. Yes, they actually were originally a few blocks away. They have a great memorabilia exhibit there. Worth going to see

A very historic restaurant. This is the very first A&W Restaurant in the U.S. I haven’t had A&W food for several years and it was AWESOME. The staff were super friendly. Clean place with LOTS of cool vintage A&W memorabilia on display.

I hadn't been to A&W in years. It was a childhood favorite of mine. I was surprised that my wife had never had a root beer float before and had to change that! Where better than the birth place of A&W! The restaurant was quaint and a throwback! The service was stellar and the root beer floats came out in a frosty mug of goodness! The food was the biggest surprise! The burger was delicious and onion rings rocked! This is now in the rotation!

I believed it was the original but not so . A collection of memorabilia from the original was a nice touch. Papa Burger and fries not good at all . I threw it in the trash can without eating half of it all . Sorry ...

On a Saturday morning in Late March at 10:30am we finally arrived here for early lunch. There was only one person before us. The ambiance was nice like I was in the 60's. It has 2 glass shelves of nostalgia a&w merchandise and everywhere. The staff person was nice and took our orders. I ordered double cheeseburger combo with fries and large glass mug of A&W root beer. The root bear taste so fresh in a frosted cup compared from a can. The burger taste good with crispy fries. I got full and couldn't finished my mother's onion rings. Nice place to check out if you are in Lodi or on the way to Sacramento.

Everything was very fresh and delicious! This is our second visit within the last couple of weeks. We had brought our kids the first time and they loved how you get a free cone with the kids meal. Staff is always friendly and I like how they bring your food to your table. They also have a lot of A & W memorabilia which is pretty cool.

Great food in a neat environment with lots of memorabilia. Workers were cordial. Neat place to stop

The food was hot and fresh. Juicey burger, hot & delicious fries & onion rings. Their chicken tenders are amazing! Great tasting Root beer floats. They make the root beer there! Huge A&W collection, which was cool to look at. Friendly staff.

The A&W was great. It had a lot of old stuff. Nothing beats a good root beer float. It's always better that McDonald's.

We were visiting from out of town and learned that this A&W location had a collection of memorabilia from through the years. Having grown up on A&W in the 1970s, this was a must-see. The staff at this location are not just professional, but genuinely friendly and enjoying their day. The food was of exceptional quality. Stop in, you won't be disappointed.

Nothing better than a Root Beer float in a frozen mug Brings back memories from long ago...when in Lodi, it's a can't miss stop.

This was the first time coming to A&W drive thru, not once during our transaction, before or after, say that we have to drive up to a sign that we never even saw! If i could give negative stars i would. The woman who brought our items out was very rude and disrespectful saying "next time park infront of the sign". Trust me there will never be a next time. The food was delicious, it's sad that the service isn't up to par. It really affects the vibe of the whole drive thru experience.

On the way home from a king overdue vacation my wife and I stopped at A&W. As long time Root beer fanatics we were excited to stop by one our way home. The place has awesome cool eclectic decorations everywhere. You can buy huge bottles of Root Beer. So understand that when you order a root beer float it's gonna be an experience. I went with the double bacon burger and regular fries. My wife went with the chili cheese dog and chili cheese fries. Everything we got was perfect and the topper was that huge root beer float in a chilled mug. This place is a must try.

Food tasted fresh. Friendly service. A cool nostalgic collection of A&W items on display in the dining area.

Tasty food, great ambience nice old school with mugs on the wall. Decent price like I said before very tasty fully recommend.

Very nice friendly staff! A must visit fast food location with old school traditions. Root beer float is the best. Clean, sanitary an great memorially!

Everything is just amazing! Cheese curds! Root beer float! And customer service was on point

They weren't allowing indoor dining at the time of our visit but there was a lot of past memorial decor that was nice to look at while waiting for our food order. The drive thru was pretty busy but the food was good and they took the coupons we had. Root beer float was our main reason for the visit. Hot dos are pretty small for men so grab 2 haha

I went inside to place my order cause I have bad hearing and cannot use the drive thru due to not hearing so well. I left my two dogs in the car windows down its Hot. After placing my order I said I need to go back out to my car can you bring my order out to the car. The green haired lady behind the counter said no I have to use the drive-thru to get outside service. My reply was I spent nearly $150 in your establishment for food to go and you can't bring it out to the car and she said no. So I said give me my drinks now I'll drink them and she took her time getting me my drinks saying you'll get that with your order I said if I'm going to be standing here I want my drinks I practically had to argue with this green haired lady to get my drinks while waiting for my food. After getting my drinks and sitting with my dogs after walking back inside to get my food which I'm disabled I can barely walk I had to carry four bags of food out to my car by myself with no help except for the dirty looks I got from the green haired lady this is the last time I'm ever going to spend money or be a customer at A&W as far as I care A&W go to hell.

Love this place. Milkshakes are amazing. AMAZING customer service. Favorite worker is some random dude named Aiden. But they're all very kind. 10/10 recommend!

Great place for Fast food the fish & chips are very tasty & good as well as their burgers! If you're tired of Jack in the Box or McDonalds..... hit this place up for a change !

Cool stop. Tge originsl A&W Rootbeer. Next Tim through, I'll have to get a growler! Fresh brewed every day! #spicemeister approved!

I have been going to A&W since I was a little girl. Though I miss how it used to be, I still really enjoy their food and, of course, rootbeer. My food is always fresh and hot. They don't skimp on toppings or fries and everyone is always so friendly.

Fantastic experience! This was like a step back in time, with awesome burgers, Tasty hot fries, REAL soft serve ice cream and delicious root beer served in frosted glass A&W mugs! They even had cheese curds. if you're in Lodi, stop here. You will not regret it!

Amazing food. Amazing service. Aesthetically pleasing. Clean. Friendly. This location far surpasses all other local A&W restaurants. The decor inside makes you go back in time and remember your youth. It is a happy and magnetizing environment. Please go and pay it a visit.

Great burger, fries and especially root beer! BUT THEY DON'T PARTICIPATE IN A&W PROMOTIONS! Went in for the first time when I see a sign saying they don't honor A&W promotions. BUMMER!

Safety concern of heavy glass bottles and thick glass root beer mugs lining the shelves RIGHT OVER the booths. When I approached the owner regarding the danger, he did not seem to think it was a very big deal. I hope there is not an earthquake anytime soon because someone sitting in those booths will definitely suffer a head injury or worse and, of course, he will be sued.

It had been a while since I've visited an A & W. I am quite familiar with A&W as my uncle owned a franchise from the late 1960s thru the 1980s, when I was a teen spent much time in the summers when visiting - not too many teen guys wouldn't mind helping out for free burgers and root beer for some help at the restaurant. I loved help making the root beer in the morning before the store opened. Anyway, I stopped by to get what was called a "teen" burger back in the day - or a bacon cheese burger now. So I took a bite and the first real taste I got was a bit of bun with bacon, tomato and mayo - first bite was more like a BLT than a bacon cheeseburger- but that's not bad. It tasted really good. As I got further into the burger, it tasted like a good burger added to a BLT. The cheese was not too noticeable to me but I wasn't disappointed. I was enjoying the tasty burger in the middle of a BLT with a bit of onion ( I had the pickles taken out during the order). The beef tasted great, the bacon was awesome, it wasn't greasy and the tomato tasted decent for the middle of the winter. All in all, I was very happy and left with a smile. I'm going to have to come back for another teen burger. The place was clean and employees nice and speedy. Great job A&W!

I just stopped here to grab the best cheese curds ever made anywhere in the history of cheese, and I cannot believe I have never reviewed A&W! I have been coming to this restaurant for over 40 years (that is unfortunately not a typo) and they never disappoint. Their classic burgers, delicious fries and root beer shakes are a part of my childhood. When I was young, I used to love that they had a firepit inside the restaurant (which has since been remodeled) and have the fondest memories of getting their little 25 cent root beer suckers to go. I remember attending classic car shows in their parking lot as a teenager and even now this place is full of memorabilia. A & W is the ultimate nostalgia restaurant! When my son was young he would devour their fish and chips and always ask to buy a gallon of their root beer to bring home. If you are a fan of root beer this place is a must try; there is nothing else like it. Now that I don't eat meat, I still visit A&W regularly for their cheese curds and fries. They are absolutely the best anywhere. Anyone who knows me knows I ALWAYS post photos of food but I literally scarfed those curds down so fast there is nothing left, so forgive me. If you haven't already, you should stop in. They have something for everyone and you won't be disappointed. The staff have always been friendly and helpful and this place just feels like home!

The food is typical fast food. This place is about A&W history. This A&W is built almost on the site of the VERY FIRST A&W! The root beer is the best I've ever had and the items here take you back decades. It's fun and has JUGS of THE ABSOLUTELY BEST root beer!

I love how this A &W kept its traditional look and doesn't have the franchise feel to it. Certainly reminds me of my days growing up in the Sacramento area and going to the on on Freeport Blvd. at that one, we used to see the guys making the hamburgers himself on the grill! However, my wife and I's go to are the chili dogs and A& root beer. Well worth the trip and the taste has not failed us yet.

The quality of thier food here is so underrated. Everything here is made to order and comes out super fresh and taste amazing. The number 3 is what i usually get. Better than any fast food burger joint I've tried im the Central Valley.

Slow!!! Waited almost 20 minutes in drive thru! Workers going out to to take payment looked lazy and unprofessional. Zero stars!!

I really wish there were more stand alone A&Ws in my area. But I guess this one makes it more a treat. I've become a big fan of any place that serves Hands Breaded Tenders (which sadly aren't included, ironically, at A&W/KFC Restaurants) and truly have yet to be disappointed by A&Ws tenders. As well as the cheese curds Everything has always been fresh and satisfying, making the trips from Stockton and Manteca worth the drive.

Our first time in Lodi and this place came up in their history! Wouldn't have ever known this is where A&W originated from. It was a cute little spot and definitely had some cool old vibes. They also have a drive thru you could use. We got the chili cheese fries, double cheeseburger, cheese curds, the root beer sundae floats, and their hotdog! The cheese curds were amazing! Wisconsin cheese apparently. The cheeseburgers definitely fill you up and the floats....huge and definitely make sure you have room for it!

So, I was surprised today at the service. We come here often enough and my family loves it, but clearly there was some sort of issue today. They mixed up part of our order with someone in drive thru- they came in after we informed them of the mistake. They took back the chili cheese fries from my daughter and said they would make our large cheese curds The lady was at the counter with the cheese curds that was supposed to be ours - they said don't worry you can keep them we'll make your chili cheese fries now. No consistency! Literally with us right there!! Not that I wanted free food- but that was rude.

We have been going to this Original A&W for years, we went again today, something changed, the burgers have gotten smaller reminiscent of a small burger at McDonald's, no lettuce or tomatoes, and not to mention , they no longer have the special meal deal, we were told that only the ones associated with KFC had the deals. Overall not worth the trouble. Oh by the way, no more jukebox.

This place has been around as long as I can remember. Always have good food and of course their root beer is my kids favorite.

This is one of my favorite places to eat. The service is outstanding as always!!! Ladies you ROCK!!! Food is served up in a hurry. Definitely a satisfied customer

This is as American as apple pie! Fantastic menu and the best staff ever, being the whole family and kids will love this place !

Our big Memorial Day adventure ok blew the keto but it was so hot and needed to get out of the house! Did you know the 1st A&W is in Lodi, Ca. I didn't until I was out in Jan/feb/March so we came for ice cream

Saw this A&W Restaurant featured on a food show. This was the place where root beer was born. Had to come down to try it. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic shelter-at-home order, the restaurant only offered take-out. We drove-thru & ordered. A staff member came out to process our payment & food came out on a tray. There was no human contact at all. We got to try the basic cheeseburger, a Coney Island hotdog, fried cheese curds & chili cheese fries. Of course, we had to try a root beer soda & a root beer float. Root beer is made the old fashion way, with cane sugar. Food was good and the root beer drinks were super delicious! This was a fun outing! Will go back again in the future!

I have been coming here for over 20 years, and the food has always been consistently yum worthy , the owner is always in a good mood, the staff is always friendly and the milkshakes are my favorite , oh and they have Cheese Curds that are super greasy and cheesy and delicious and if your watching your weight , order the calorie free curds , my favorite item on the menu is currently a Mushroom Onion Melt made with Beyond Meat , and everyone should try one the beyond meat is complimented with the onions and mushrooms making for a really good eating experience , it actually tastes so close to real that my tastebuds were like "order another!" Also, this location is Darling and traditional, a staple in the Lodi Community. Serving families for decades !

I heard this was the original 1919 A&W. Went there for 2 root beer floats after a nice Sunday. bike. We were thinking, this is like old times. When we got there. a sign on the window said dining room closed, no problem. We rode our bikes into the drive through. A staffworker came out and yelled to us we couldn't be in the drive through for safety reasons. Only 1 other car in the whole parking lot. I said can't we just tell you what we want. She said no and closed the door. Rude and crazy that she refused to accommodate us. we won't be back. Shame on A&W. Rich N.

I guess this is the site of the original A & W root beer. I am a bit confused at the original A & W you could order from your can and they would bring it out to you hanging the tray from your car window. They had a large display case with some memorabilia from day past. We were in town so my companion had to see it as he enjoys root beer floats. The service here was was Ok but fairly lackluster. I ordered an item with cheese and it came to me without cheese so I took it back to the counter witht the reciept and they put in in the back as I watched it being rehandled and rewrapped then given back to me. The french fries were really not very good and tasted a bit like the fish. I think that they must cook them in the same oil. I don't live in town but if I did I don't think I would return.

GOT DAMN! That root beer is next level, it's so addictive what do they put in it... cigarettes?!?

Might not live in Lodi anymore but when I come visit my mom we always stop here. One of the only real A&W's around. Not the ones that are paired up with another restaurant. During these times the drive through was perfect with no contact pickup. Thank you and support your small local business!

Our 1st time here and it was a cool experience!! Inside was very cute and vintage. I did not mind the wait at all as long as our food is hot that's all that matters to us:)! The root beer was the best I ever tasted FOR SURE!!

Closed the inside dining at 7:30 told me to drive through the drive though with my 170 sprinter van. Mouthy employees!

Go inside for the first time in a long time and the girl behind the counter tells us we would have to wait due to the kitchen being backed up so we proceed to stand there then she walks right in front of us to take our order (We thought) and says how can I help you, I start to tell her my order and she shakes her head no and points to her headphones, okay for ONE why walk right in front of a waiting customer and do that??? And TWO why would you take the next order even at the drive thru while a customer is waiting and THREE at least not be rude, be a little nicer. We used to come every week but will not be back because of one rude employee that could learn customer service before working with customers.

i've been looking for a good veggie burger for so long! it was delicious & the veggies tasted very fresh

Had the bacon double. If you want meat, order the double, the patties are thin. The bacon was good, flavorful. Nostalgia factor for being the first A&W is cool, too.