White House Saloon, Randsburg, CA. The desert can be a thirsty place, but if you’re visiting Randsburg, California, the White House Saloon will slake your thirst on many levels.

Randsburg is part of a cluster of ghost towns in the Mojave Desert close to the junction of Hwy 395 and Hwy 14. There is a functioning general store, antique shops, museum, and the White House Saloon. It’s a saloon of the most satisfying sort with a high stamped-tin ceiling, well-worn plank floor and a long wood bar. There are even some swinging doors. Whole families of dirt bikers come here in the fall and spring for beers and bar food, and this place is on the tourist circuit a few times a year with other folks coming through for the sheer charm of it. When we stopped July 4 weekend, we had the place to ourselves with the exception of Billy Ray, a Randsburg resident who had invented some gold prospecting equipment he was glad to tell us about. The bartender looked just like you might want the bartender to look in such a place, an old timer with a flannel shirt, long white beard, and no nonsense yet friendly nature. The icy cold Mojave Red beer he served up in a chilled glass pitcher hit the spot before we headed back out into the blazing desert heat.

Mojave Red

Where: Between Hwy 14 and Hwy 395 on Redrock Randsburg Rd, Mojave Desert, Randsburg, California