Tempe will hold several celebratory events Tuesday in honor of Arizona’s 100th anniversary.
Tempe's oldest restaurant, Monti's La Casa Vieja, will treat the first 100 customers in line to a steak dinner at the price it would have been in 1912.
The special will begin at 9:12 a.m. and the early-bird customers will each receive a one-meal voucher. The voucher is valid for the week of Feb. 12, or until the restaurant runs out of steaks ordered for the promotion.
The dinner includes a slab of steak, two sides and bread for 75 cents, not including tax.
The historical landmark is located at 100 South Mill Avenue and was built as a home in 1871 by Charles Trumbull Hayden, a freight tycoon and one of Tempe's founders.
The building became Monti’s in 1956, general manager Dan Klein said.
Klein said the special was created to recognize Arizona’s history.
“The building has been around since before Arizona was a state,” Klein said. “We feel it’s important to recognize Arizona’s history along with Tempe’s history.”
Tempe celebrations will continue on Feb. 18 when the Tempe Public Library hosts the World Wildlife Zoo & Aquarium Desert Animal Show.
The show is designed for kids and families and is part of a series of centennial-related programs hosted by the public library.
The library will also partner with the Southwest Society of Botanical Artists to demonstrate watercolor crafting to families on Feb. 25.
The Tempe Historical Museum will also host several centennial events this year.
The museum hosted a children's essay contest awards ceremony after partnering with the Tempe Elementary School District Saturday.
More than 500 essays were submitted, said Tempe History Museum manager Amy Douglass.
Douglass said the essay contest was special because students were learning and thinking about their state's history.
"That is the sort of effect that, as a history museum, we look to these types of anniversaries to have on the public," Douglass said.
The museum will also host musical events during the months of March and May in partnership with Classical Revolution PHX including Siroccan Winds and composers from Arizona
Douglass said she couldn't decide which event she was looking forward to most.
"I get satisfaction out of seeing so many people focused on Arizona's history at this time," she said.
Nursing sophomore Melanie Medica said she knew Feb. 14 was Arizona's birthday, but was unaware of the centennial events Tempe is hosting.
"I think if I heard more about it (centennial events), I would have something planned," Medica said.
Reach the reporter at aklee8@asu.edu
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