The Most Visited Cafe in the World!
We hear that the above statement was made in an episode on the National Geographic Channel, and judging from the number of tour buses, motorcycles, and cars with out-of-state license plates, it is true.
In 1987 or 1988 the wonderful film, “Bagdad Cafe,” was released to the world and found a huge European market, largely because one of the stars, Marianne Sagebrecht, was a huge favorite in Germany. Others were Jack Palance in perhaps his only comic role, and CCH Pounder who has starred in many tv series including NCIS (one of them). It’s a great movie!
Harold and Andree Pruett found out about the movie when they bought what was then the Sidewinder Cafe in 1995. They immediately changed the name to Bagdad Cafe and began building up a big tourist trade.
Popularity of the Bagdad was spread by word of mouth, according to Andree. A couple visiting Newberry Springs from the French island of Corsica (remember Napoleon stayed there) saw the sign, stopped, and loved what they found. Once back home, they spread the news. In 2003 a tour bus stopped and that was the beginning of a continuous flow of visitors ever since. About 75% of the visitors are French, so Andree learned to speak it enough to get by. People left their names, cards, souvenirs, shirts, etc., tacked on the wall and signed one of the guest books to record their visit.
Recently the Bagdad has fallen on tough times, but it is making a comeback! The buses and Harleys or Indians once more line up daily, and visitors are welcome to come in, take a look, and chat with others from all over the world!