One of the popular Route 66 eating places is the Steak and Shake located at St. Louis and National. However, one of the favorite dishes of Springfield is cashew chicken, a pseudo-Chinese dish invented in Springfield and available at any of the numerous Chinese restaurants in the city. It is not, though, available at Steak and Shake!
The Abou Ben Adhem Shrine Mosque in downtown Springfield, Missouri.
Follow Kearney Street (MO 744) to Glenstone Avenue (Business US 65). Turn south to St. Louis Street, turn west and go past the Shrine Mosque (on the National Register of Historic Places) to Park Central Square (a plaque on the west side of the square dedicates Springfield as "the Birthplace of Route 66"). Continue west on College Street to Chestnut Expressway (Business I-44), follow this across I-44 where it becomes MO 266. Follow MO 266 to the junction with MO 96 west of Halltown. At the junction, continue west on "Old 66" (a county road, NOT MO 96) through Paris Springs Junction to the intersection (again) of MO 96. Cross MO 96 onto SR N, turn west on "Old 66" (county road – old bridge is visible), go through Spencer and follow the old road to MO 96 (yet again!). Turn west on MO 96 and follow it through Phelps and Avilla. Watch for an older highway on the right side of the road (non-drivable) in Jasper County. Where this road appears to swing across the highway, turn left onto Old 66 Boulevard. Follow this road back to MO 96 and continue on MO 96 into Carthage. At Garrison Street (MO 571), turn south, then west again on Oak Street. This road will cross US 71 and reach a V-intersection (take the left road). Follow Old 66 Boulevard (the road back outside the Carthage city limits) past the 66 Drive-in. Cross over Business US 71 to Index Road and follow Route 66 Boulevard west. The road will turn left onto Pine Street at an old cemetery and intersect with Main Street in Carterville. Follow Main Street into Webb City where it becomes Broadway (at the fork near the city limits, go left) and follow it to Jefferson Avenue. Turn south on Jefferson, west on MacArthur Boulevard (get into the leftmost lane), turn south again on Madison Avenue (Business US 71). Madison Avenue will become Rangeline Road in Joplin.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Route 66
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Route 66 - updated May 2024
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Route 66 Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
