Entry No. 37 — the Phoenix file — filed under: secret history

El Molino Mexican Cafe at the Scottsdale Elks Lodge (former POW Officers' Club)

This building was Building #40 of Camp Papago Park — the camp's officers' club — near where German POWs staged their December 1944 tunnel escape. It survived the camp's demolition and now houses both Scottsdale Elks Lodge No. 2148 and a modest Mexican cafe (El Molino); a map of the old prison camp hangs inside the lodge.

The move: Get carne asada plates at El Molino on a weekday morning, then ask to see the framed camp blueprint on the Elks Lodge wall — you're eating lunch inside a WWII prisoner-of-war camp building most of the city has forgotten existed.

• 📍 South Scottsdale
• 💸 $$
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Indoors

Where: 6398 E Oak St, Scottsdale, AZ 85257

Hours: Added 2026-07-19 — confirm current hours before you go.

⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Further reading: arcadianews.com · eastvalleytribune.com · waymarking.com

last checked: 2026-07-19