The fact that the Bagdad cafe doesn’t mean much to most Americans is perhaps exactly why it means so much to the rest of the world.
Every day, international film buffs venture into the middle of the Mojave Desert by the busload to visit this dinky Route 66 roadside cafe.
The set location of German filmmaker Percy Adlon’s 1987 indie cult-classic of the same name, the Bagdad Cafe is the Mojave Desert’s cinematic claim to fame. It wasn’t always the Bagdad Cafe. Until the producers selected it for the location of their film, it was known as the Sidewinder Cafe. The name “Bagdad” was employed in reference to a ghost town 50 miles east on Route 66 called Bagdad, a nod to its situation in the driest corner of the contiguous United States.
The understated comedy-drama—which is titled Out of Rosenheim in Germany—tracks the unlikely friendship that emerges between two women, a German tourist and an African-American cafe owner, and how that bond rejuvenates the crumbling eatery into a vibrant meeting-point for a town of quirky characters. American audiences largely overlooked the quiet charm of the low-budget work.
European audiences birthing pilgrimages among international fans who, to this day, come to pay homage, even in the heat of July and August.
In 1995, the cafe’s real-life owners leaned into the film’s pull, officially changing the name to the Bagdad Cafe.
The cafe’s interior tells of the busloads of visitors received over the years. Flags from countries the world overhang from the ceiling, stickers cling to every inch of wall, and guest books overflow with comments (mostly in French) stretching back several decades.
To log in this virtual, you will have to go to the published coordinates and take a picture of yourself (your face is not required in the picture) with the legible EXTERIOR Bagdad Cafe Sign behind you, to upload to your log. Alternatively, a picture will be accepted with the same exterior Bagdad Cafe Sign and with your GPS, your smartphone or your favorite geocaching companion.
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.