Lemon Bowl Cinema-Dine

6800 Federal Boulevard,
Lemon Grove, CA 91945

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davidcoppock
davidcoppock on October 5, 2018 at 9:59 am

CA 94 runs through the center of the former drive-in site. The front and back parts are now Edco recycling Center and a portion of College Grove Shopping Center.

rokcomx
rokcomx on November 4, 2015 at 6:47 pm

The Lemon Bowl Cinema Dine was San Diego’s second drive-in theater, opening shortly after the Midway DI. The 1948-49 Theatre Catalog lists its original owners as C.E. Norcross, Suburban Theatres Inc. of Loma Linda, California. Ira Durham and Oliver McNeel operated the theater through 1953, before leasing it to Sero (which had opened San Diego’s third DI, the Rancho) for one or two final seasons. The lot included a restaurant, where snacks and dinners were served, as well as prewarmed bottles of baby formula, delivered for a time on carts that could only navigate horizontally along the lot’s flat surface aisles. With no local advertising after September 1954, it appears this ozone was torn down even before the nationwide atrophy of drive-ins began, to make room for access to the 94 freeway, with a portion of the property eventually housing a Toyota dealership.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on September 22, 2015 at 6:12 am

Located in Lemon Grove, but the screen tower and the menu that has been uploaded to the photo page both advertised it as the Lemon Bowl Cinema-Dine.

Drive-In 54
Drive-In 54 on September 21, 2015 at 11:00 pm

Updated with a 1953 aerial with 2014 highway overlay. So it was gone by 1956.

rivest266
rivest266 on April 6, 2012 at 6:49 pm

This opened on November 22nd, 1947. I posted its grand opening ad.

rivest266
rivest266 on August 9, 2011 at 4:50 pm

Correction, the link povided by CSWalczak states that it closed in 1953.

rivest266
rivest266 on August 9, 2011 at 4:48 pm

Picture is at http://www.historicaerials.com/aerials.php?scale=2.88184505225325E-05&lat=32.7392941215329&lon=-117.0549555088&year=1953

It’s gone by 1964.

Ret. AKC (NAC) CCC Bob Jensen, Manteno, Illinois
Ret. AKC (NAC) CCC Bob Jensen, Manteno, Illinois on November 25, 2010 at 4:33 pm

PLEASE ADD TO ADDRESS:

6800 FEDERAL BOULEVARD

Could use more info and photos.

CSWalczak
CSWalczak on November 24, 2010 at 3:25 pm

There is a picture of the Lemon Grove Cinema Dine on p.83 of this online book (you may have to scroll up or down to see it or use the tool at the top of the page): http://tinyurl.com/244x8wh.

There is reminiscence about the theater here: View link and its gallery page at Drive-ins.com has a small picture of the eat-in-your-car menu that will enlarge a bit if clicked upon: http://www.drive-ins.com/gallery/catlemo