Pals Cabin, the iconic steakhouse at the corner of Eagle Rock and Prospect Avenues in West Orange, is being torn down after 81 years in business .

The rumbling of construction equipment filled the site of the longtime dining staple on Friday as the demolition began.

The restaurant that was a favorite of Babe Ruth was paying $20,000 utilities a month and nearly $200,000 in property taxes a year, the owners previously told the Star-Ledger.

Pals opened in 1932, when friends Martin L. (Marty) Horn and Bion Leroy (Roy) Sale joined forces. It started off as a modest hot dog stand, 10-by-12 feet, in the midst of the Great Depression.