Before Buena Park had roller coasters roaring overhead, it had a much simpler attraction: a really good chicken dinner. In 1934, Cordelia Knott began serving meals at the family’s berry farm. People came hungry, told their friends and kept coming back.
The food became so popular that waiting for a table turned into a problem. Walter Knott’s answer was wonderfully ambitious. Instead of simply adding somewhere to sit, he created somewhere to wander. Construction of Ghost Town began in 1940, giving dinner guests an Old West diversion while they waited.
That is the delicious twist in Knott’s history: one of Orange County’s best-known attractions grew partly from a restaurant line. Next time you stroll past the weathered storefronts, picture the earlier visitors waiting for their names to be called. They came for supper and helped launch a theme park. Sometimes a big idea begins with a small business and a very busy kitchen.
