Gavin's guide, on SPOT
Where Anthony Bourdain Ate in the Desert
6 spots · Palm Springs, United States
The two desert episodes Anthony Bourdain filmed, laid out as a drive east from the pass: No Reservations season 4, episode 15 in 2008, running the San Gorgonio Pass and the Salton Sea, and No Reservations season 7, episode 13 in 2011, through the high desert with Josh Homme as his guide. Every entry cites its episode, and everything here is still open. He never actually ate inside Palm Springs city limits, so this guide orbits the town rather than sitting in it, from a roadside taco stand in Banning to a bar 223 feet below sea level in Bombay Beach. Lord Fletcher's in Rancho Mirage and the Sky Village cafe in Yucca Valley were both on those episodes and have since closed. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the estate of Anthony Bourdain.
#1
Crazy Coyote Tacos
Banning, Palm Springs · Mexican · $
Interstate 10 through the San Gorgonio Pass is the road everyone takes to the desert and almost nobody stops on, which is exactly why a stand like this survives on locals rather than traffic. The burrito is the thing, wrapped tight enough to eat standing beside the car. Take the exit even if you were not hungry when you passed the sign.
Order this
burritocarne asada tacosal pastor
#2
JT Country Kitchen
Joshua Tree, Palm Springs · Diner · $$
The 2011 desert hour of No Reservations, season 7, episode 13, stopped at this counter on the Twentynine Palms highway for eggs, bacon, toast and hash browns, filmed plainly and without ceremony. Josh Homme came along, and the town has eaten here since long before the rental boom found it.
Order this
Bacon and eggsToastHash browns
#3
Pappy & Harriet's
Pioneertown, Palm Springs · BBQ · $$
Season 7, episode 13 of No Reservations brought Bourdain out to Pioneertown in 2011 for ribs off the mesquite grill and a few rounds at the roadhouse. The building was a biker bar before it was a honky tonk, and the Sunday house band has a long history of picking up famous strays.
Order this
Spare ribsSanta Maria tri-tipChili nachos
#4
Shields Date Garden
Indio, Palm Springs · Café · $$
No Reservations ran through the American Southwest in season 4, episode 15, and the 2008 stop in Indio was for one thing, the date shake, which he put closer to chocolate than to fruit. The farm has grown and sold dates here since 1924 and still screens its own film about how they reproduce.
Order this
Date shakeMedjool datesDate crystals
#5
Ski Inn
Bombay Beach, Palm Springs · Bar · $
Bourdain ordered a patty melt and a beer here for No Reservations season 4, episode 15, the 2008 Southwest hour, in what is the lowest bar in the western hemisphere. He was not especially impressed, which somehow makes Bombay Beach an easier sell rather than a harder one.
Order this
Patty meltCold beer
#6
Crossroads Cafe
29 Palms Highway, Palm Springs · Diner · $
No Reservations spent season 7, episode 13 crossing the American desert in 2011, and breakfast in Joshua Tree came off this griddle. The chorizo is made in house, the doors shut at 2:30pm, and the climbers heading for the park gate plan around both.
Order this
Chorizo and eggsBacon pancakesBeef hash with eggsFish tacos
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