The California desert may be known for sun, fun and some weird-looking plants. But it’s also got some great bars.
So we were glad — but definitely not surprised — to see one of our favorite local spots, The Tiny Pony Tavern in Yucca Valley, earn some much-deserved recognition as one of USA TODAY’s 2025 bars of the year.
But including only one bar from our fair desert still feels like giving it short shrift.
So we decided to put together our own list of eight other spots we wish could’ve been included in USA TODAY’s illustrious list. Let it serve as a testament to and celebration of the bar bounty we are blessed with here in the desert.
Pool bar at the Ace Hotel, Palm Springs
It doesn’t get any more Palm Springs than enjoying a few drinks by the pool while the palm trees rustle in the breeze overhead. While practically every hotel in the city worth its salt will serve you a piña colada poolside, we’ve yet to find one that can match the vibey atmosphere of the pool bar at the Ace Hotel. So while we’ve been disappointed by the overhaul that in our eyes mangled the classic appeal of the hotel’s indoor bar, the Amigo Room, that just means we can now recommend with a clearer conscience that bargoers only linger inside long enough to order a drink (although there is also an outdoor poolside bar adjacent to the pool that serves its own menu of drinks and bites) and head straight to the pool deck, where on spring nights it can sometimes seem like everyone who is anyone is either kicking back or splashing in the pool.
Details: 701 E. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs; acehotel.com/palm-springs/Rosemary HiFi
This choice definitely won’t be for everyone. But we love a good dive bar, and none in the Coachella Valley gets the lovably grungy alchemy as right as this longtime favorite tucked into an industrial corner of the Sunny Dunes neighborhood. Needless to say, the Fireside gets the simple things right. The beer is cold, the bar impressively stocked and the staff friendly. Plus, there’s usually a pool table open, and the whole place feels like it could’ve been the inspiration for Brooks and Dunn’s “Neon Moon.” Better still, Big Earl’s BBQ is also currently serving its smoked meat platters and sandwiches out of the bar; albeit with more limited hours than the bar itself has so call ahead.
Details: 696 S. Oleander Road, Palm Springs, 760-327-1700.
Owner Michael Murphy once told The Desert Sun he chose to open this bar in an unassuming Cathedral City strip mall rather than downtown Palm Springs because he wanted it to be a destination and not just another stop on a bar crawl. Nearly, a decade later, it’s clear he’s succeeded in that endeavor. The bar’s name is both a portmanteau of the words “bar” and “art” and an indication that this place is unlike anything else in the area. The pink, birthday hat-wearing skull that greets customers as they enter is a preview of the many cartoon-like, sometimes psychedelic visuals that await further inside, where moody lights, arcade games, DJs and regular themed events combine to ensure a dependably colorful experience.
Details: 67555 E. Palm Canyon Dr. Unit 124, Cathedral City, 760-799-8800; bartlounge.com.
A wrap-around half-booth seating area is seen at the Red Barn in Palm Desert in 2025.
Despite only being open a few months (too few, in fact, to be eligible for consideration in USA TODAY’s 2025 Bars of the Year), this glitzy spot is already leaving quite an impression. In creating the latest iteration of one of the area’s most iconic (and sometimes infamous) bars, new owners Cyrus and Marcie Tahamasebi have done away with nearly everything from its dive bar past — except the bright red paint that still adorns the exterior. Venture in and you’ll find yourself in a space filled with luscious fabrics and eclectic, often quirky art pieces that make for a memorable setting for drinking high-end cocktails and watching a stage where country crooners and DJs alike get people dancing.
Details: 73290 Highway 111, Palm Desert, 760-688-0955; worldfamousredbarn.com.
Little Bar, Palm Desert
There might be no better spot for whiling away a laid back evening than this comfortable little haunt in a strip of businesses fronting busy Highway 111. Owned by Skip Paige, a longtime executive with Goldenvoice who helped develop the Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals, Little Bar’s interior is filled with touches that pay tribute to his life in music (check out the bathrooms decorated with scans of tickets and backstage passes from rock shows). But our favorite part of the bar is the outdoor patio area, where we love to sink into one of the couches and enjoy a warm night spent noshing on favorites like the Firebird chicken sandwich or carne asada fries in the open air.
Details: 73560 Palm Desert Drive North, Palm Desert, 760-565-1965; http://www.little-bar.com.
The turntables on the main bar top are seen with the speakers and record collection behind at Rosemary HiFi in Indio.
Rosemary HiFi, Indio
No visit to Indio’s burgeoning downtown is complete without a stop at what might just be the Coachella Valley’s coolest bar. The word “HiFi” in the name is a reference to the high-fidelity sound system that is used to play music from the two turntables built into the bar. They’re both the physical and spiritual center of the space. And this is a bar that looks as good as it sounds: Couches, plants and, of course, records help cultivate a vibe that make you feel like you could be drinking in someone’s hip Brooklyn apartment.
Details: 45120 Oasis St., Indio; www.rosemaryhifi.com.
The Chairman’s Mexican Lager is one of several beers brewed in-house at Taproom 29 inside Spotlight 29 Casino located at 46-200 Harrison Place, Coachella.
When we think about great places to have a drink, casinos don’t usually come to mind. Except, that is, when it’s the comfortably polished taproom inside Coachella’s Spotlight 29. Your snobby craft-beer-loving friends should be satisfied and maybe even impressed by the house-brewed beers, but there’s also several drafts from other SoCal brewers and even Bud and Coors on draft for those who prefer to stick to the classics. The 35 TVs make this a great place to watch pretty much any game, yet the sports vibe doesn’t feel as in your face as it does at some of the other big casino sports bars. A nice added touch: the icy-cold “frost rail” that wraps around the bar so you can keep your mug chilled at (what else?) 29 degrees.
Details: 46-200 Harrison Place, Coachella; spotlight29.com/dining/.
The Joshua Tree Saloon, in downtown Joshua Tree, has an old-timey vibe.
The Tiny Pony Tavern may be our current fave bar in the high desert, but it’s far from the only standout in an area that has no shortage of vibey spots. And if the Tiny Pony is offering a fresh and funky take on the desert dive, then the saloon is the cool, classic version. The Old West desert aesthetic is pervasive here, with nearly every inch of the wall space adorned by old license plates, cowboy art and other ephemera. The food offerings, meanwhile, cater to both cowboy types and yuppies stopping in from LA by mixing bar staples like burgers and Buffalo wings with more elevated offerings such as the fish tacos and the funnel cake fries dessert. But it’s the vibe that really makes the experience here. It’s no wonder this is where Post Malone and Morgan Wallen filmed the music video for their hit collab “I Had Some Help.”
Details: 61835 Twentynine Palms Highway, Joshua Tree, 7600-366-2250; joshuatreesaloon.com.
Paul Albani-Burgio covers growth, development and business in the Coachella Valley. Follow him on Twitter at @albaniburgiop and email him at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Palm Springs and desert bars we wish made USA TODAY’s best of