The Mythic Cafe of the Mojave

As we left Bakersfield, we were excited to be back on the road. The goal was 300 miles a day, and so far we were hitting our mark. We’d already made the 300-mile run from Browns Valley to Bakersfield—a good start. Today’s plan was Bakersfield to Needles, California, just under that same distance.

The weather was perfect, the truck ran smooth, and the road stretched out in that endless California way. Somewhere east of Barstow, we started talking about pushing a little farther—maybe past Needles to Kingman, Arizona, just an hour more. And then maybe even to Williams, outside of Flagstaff. Spirits were high, and the desert felt open to possibility.

After several hours, Mary handed over the wheel. We skipped Barstow’s maze of onramps and overpasses and drove on to Newberry Springs to switch drivers. That’s where the story changed—from a routine road trip to something quietly cinematic.

The Movie That Dreamed the Desert

Newberry Springs has a special place in our hearts. It’s home to the Bagdad Café—a mythic place, like Twin Peaks or Shangri-La. A place that feels real because of the story behind it.

The 1987 film Bagdad Café was filmed in Mojave for it’s sense of emptiness—and found poetry. The story begins with a German tourist, who quarrels with her husband on a lonely desert road, then wanders into a rundown café-motel run by Brenda, a tired but formidable woman trying to keep the lights on.

At first, the two clash, but through coffee and conversation, the café develops into a community. The film was shot at the Sidewinder Café in Newberry Springs, its sun-bleached surroundings becoming both stage and character. The desert, in its quiet way, taught the lesson that loneliness can turn into connection.

And then there was the song. “Calling You,” sung by Jevetta Steele, floated through the film like a prayer—spare, soulful, and full of yearning. “A desert road from Vegas to nowhere,” she sang, and somehow it sounded like hope.

From Movie Set to Roadside Legend

After the film’s release, fans went searching for the real place. They found it about fifty miles from the ghost town of Bagdad, at the modest Sidewinder Café. They showed up asking if this was the Bagdad Café. Eventually, the owners gave in and changed the sign.

In the early 1990s, Andrea Pruett and her husband bought the property. They had planned on running a simple café but visitors came from Germany, Japan, France, taking photos and signing the walls. Over time, the café filled with foreign bills, postcards, and scribbled notes—proof that a story filmed in the desert could reach across oceans.

When her husband passed away, Andrea thought about closing. Instead, she stayed and kept it open for more than three decades,

Survival on Route 66

Keeping a café alive on the bypassed stretch of Route 66 isn’t easy. The interstate took the traffic years ago; the pandemic took what was left. Then came roof leaks, storms, vandalism. The building sagged, the kitchen broke down, and the regulars dwindled to a trickle of truckers and film pilgrims.

But Andrea refused to give up. In her eighties, she launched a fundraiser to rebuild the roof and kitchen. Donations poured in from people she’d never met—travelers, Route 66 fans, film lovers. Volunteers came from nearby towns to patch walls and rewire lights.

Our Visit

Today, the Bagdad Café feels part museum, part memory. Since the pandemic, it no longer serves food, but you’ll find T-shirts, stickers, and stories waiting inside.

We didn’t meet Andrea but we met Brenda. Brenda is a greeter at the cafe who embodies the spirit of the place. She explained the history and took a picture of Mary and I behind the serving counter holding a Baghdad Cafe sign. She had that rare mix of docent and friend—the kind of kindness that feels like part of the landscape.

Outside, the wind carried the smell of sagebrush and gasoline. The highway stretched toward Needles and beyond. We had miles left to drive if we wanted to reach Williams by nightfall, but it was hard to leave.

Because some places aren’t just stops—they’re stories that keep retelling themselves.

Why It Endures

The cafe stays open because people keep showing up. Every visitor brings something—a postcard, a memory, a bit of wonder—and leaves with proof that kindness still matters.

In its own quiet way, the Bagdad Café has become what the movie imagined: an oasis of connection in a landscape built on solitude. It’s a place that reminds people they’re not alone.

If You Go

Location: Newberry Springs, California, roughly halfway between Barstow and Needles on Historic Route 66
Hours: Generally open mid-morning to late afternoon (call ahead; hours shift with the desert seasons)
What to Expect: A slice of movie history, plenty of dust, strong coffee, and walls lined with postcards from around the world. Bring cash, curiosity, and time to linger