Since June 14, 1971, the Hard Rock Café has been serving burgers, ribs and chocolate sundaes to starving musicians and tourists alike. It’s the original café that has spawned a major worldwide group, and it all started when Eric Clapton hung a guitar over his favorite bar stool. A week later, The Who’s Pete Townshend sent his guitar to mark his own special spot, and a tradition was born. Certainly the Hard Rock Café has got an amazing selection of memorabilia to gawp at. Gold albums and much more literally cover the walls, so you might be sitting next to Janis Joplin’s black shawl as worn on her 1967 LP Cheap Thrills or Lenny Kravitz’ smashed up black Gibson Flying V guitar. The most prized possessions are kept in the Vault, including a Gibson guitar strummed by Jimi Hendrix and John Lennon’s hand written lyrics to “Imagine.” Housed in a former bank vault, located under the inevitable Hard Rock shop, the collection is open until late every evening, and entry is free. The Hard Rock Café is a very popular destination all day, every day, so don’t be surprised if the doorman tells you it will be up to a two hour wait to eat. The waiting staff is hard working but sometimes swamped by sheer weight of numbers; the restaurant seats 300 at a time, plus extras outside in good weather. If that all seems too much, drown your hunger in the Basement Bar which serves cocktails from 5 p.m. to late. Oh, and the food is rock-solid American, usually well-prepared and certainly filling.