The Yucca Valley music venue formerly known as Awe Bar that shuttered in 2023 has been brought back to life as Mojave Gold by local couple Cooper Gillespie and Greg Gordon, both former employees of Pappy and Harriets. Mojave Gold will be officially opening May 31 with an ambitious spirit while remaining mindful of our local demographic.
Featured on the front window of the updated building, Mojave Gold’s logo is a gold 45 rpm record adapter customized with the branches of the new business’s three pillars: music, food, and wine.
Now that the infamous wavy wooden ceiling of their venue will shelter live music once again, Gillespie and Gordon will bring the fine dining experience up to the same standard as the music they’ll offer, with the help of their partners Dale and Brookelyn Fox of Foxden Hospitality and previous owners of Palm Springs’ Dive Hotel.
With the May 31 opening right around the corner, Gillespie and Gordon spoke in excited breaths, astonished at how fast the whole six-month process has taken. Gordon explained it initially seemed like too much to take on but has since taken on a “no gets you nowhere” outlook.
“I told myself ‘Just say yes.’ I was like, “Hey dude, I’m on board. I’ll put my best foot forward to make this happen––”
“––He was like, “I’m gonna just keep saying yes until it stops!” added Gillespie.
When Gillespie and Gordon met with their partners to discuss a business plan, they thought: “What can we add to the hi-desert without overlapping the bases other businesses have covered?”
“I thought, ‘What we need is good dining.’ Every time I want to take Cooper out to a nice dinner, we drive down to Palm Springs. It just needs to be elevated: a great menu, great service, great atmosphere… let’s bring that here!”
Mojave Gold’s menu will focus on sustainable, fresh, locally sourced, reimagined California cuisine, a wide range of vegan, vegetarian friendly, and carnivorous options made by executive chef Beren Ekine-Huette of Palm Springs’ Workshop and holistic chef de cuisine Williams Grimoldi, who Gillespie raves about keeping a “kitchen grimoire” with an alchemical approach to nutrition absorption that could potentially balance out a patron’s wine buzz.
And with the music, talent buyer veteran Liz Garo (The Alibi, The Echo) will bring her homegrown instincts of investing in local groups opening for national touring acts, as well as her historically packed Monday night residencies where a local band can start a buzz by playing four times a month.
Gillespie and Gordon both worked at Pappy and Harriet’s back when it was more of a locals-centered venue, and they hope to bring that spirit to Mojave Gold; harkening back to the infamous open mic nights that was a melting pot of local musician enthusiasm and collaboration.
“It was just all the musicians coming in together, hanging out, and being like, ‘Hey will you play on my song?’ That community was just awesome, and I would love to do something like that here, even just a residency where we’re all hanging out and it’s like, ‘Hey I’m playing here next week,’ or ‘I saw you last week!’ or something more interactive. There’s so many of us here, so let’s hang out.”
Save the date on Saturday, May 31 for Mojave Gold’s opening night with dinner service and dance party with DJ Kate McCabe.
