The Workz
Deep in the Mojave desert is a secret diner cloaked as a fast food restaurant
A few weeks back I found myself raving in the desert at a place called Jawbone Canyon, a spectacular desert landscape in Southern California that’s popular among dirt bikers and off-roaders. Hidden in a ravine, out of sight from the hyper masculine beer-chugging adrenaline-seeking dirt bike bros, I came across a troupe of Los Angeles circus freaks wearing Renaissance garb and frolicking in the sand to the painful distortions of noise music and hardcore techno.
In addition to rave music, the event included some excellent performance art and such wholesome activities as “the spanking of the witch.”
You find some very strange things in the California desert. It’s one of the main reasons I love California, despite its dearth of diners and delis. But I am beginning to question the former. Because it was here in the desert, far away from civilization, that I found one of the best diners I’ve yet encountered in California. Even more intriguing, this diner does not even identify itself as a diner.
It’s a secret diner disguised as a fast food joint. Come a little closer, and I’ll whisper in your ear this close-kept secret of the Mojave.
The morning after the rave, the gang was feeling hungover and sleep-deprived, having taken little nourishment the night before. So we set off on a hunch to seek out a diner by the highway in the town of Mojave.
“It’s, like, by the main road where it intersects the highway, I think,” they told us.
As an investigative journalist, there’s nothing I love more than tracking down a good lead. So we loaded up our trucks and headed out to discover what Mojave had in store.
But first, on our way out of Jawbone Canyon, we went on a sick truck adventure.
We made it out of the canyon and arrived in the small town of Mojave, where we drove to the specified intersection and found not a diner, but a fast food joint.
“This must be the place,” we thought.
The Workz Mojave - as it is known - could not have looked less interesting from the outside. It looks like your typical California burger joint of which there are thousands in this state.
Entering the establishment, we beheld a takeout counter with a big menu displayed on a large flatscreen TV. There are no servers, it’s cafeteria style. But they do have cushy diner booths, the kind with overstuffed red vinyl cushions.
One thing you probably know by now is that diners should have expansive menus covering multiple types of cuisine (American, Italian, Greek…) and they cater to every type of meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, afternoon tea, midnight coffee, etc.)
The Workz is certainly not an east coast diner - no souvlaki or gyros on this menu - but in addition to classic American fare, they serve Mexican as well.
The menu is what I would call “full-send American.” Not unlike the fat sandwich (which I reviewed in Seattle), these menus are America-to-the-max: chicken fingers, steak, cheese, sausage… everything comes “loaded” and probably tops 2000 calories per meal. Which makes sense for the area - gotta keep those burly dirt bikers fed!
But where this place really shines is the breakfast. I ordered “the Workz signature breakfast” ($12.99) which comes with 3 eggs, sausage, bacon, ham, and pancakes. I was feeling extra hungry, so I asked for melted cheese on my hashbrowns. And I’m glad I did.
Behold the breakfast extravaganza that is The Workz.
Heaping pile of salted meat? Check.
Super crispy hash browns smothered in cheese? Check.
3 eggs overeasy cooked to the perfect level of runniness? Check.
An absolutely unnecessary stack of pancakes that you can barely finish but can’t say no to because they come with the meal? Check.
A pat of warm whipped butter and a cup of artificial maple syrup made from high fructose corn syrup? Check. (Yes, real maple syrup is better, but if you’re at the diner, it’s gotta be the fake stuff.)
Everything about this menu item is a success. It’s simple, salty, cheesy, delicious, and CHEAP. Exactly what you need to soak up the excess PBR swirling around in your belly.
The most outrageous part was probably the huge meat pile. Do you really need sausage, bacon and ham? Probably not, but I hate having to choose so give me all three, baby!
I could not have been more pleased with this tremendous offering from Workz.
One thing about the pancakes though, they had a strong sourdough punch to them. I really enjoyed this element, it tasted like real buttermilk. But one of my friends disliked them, commenting that they were too sour and pancakes should be sweet. Each to their own.
Now, let’s take a look at what else the gang ordered.
The Nachos Supreme ($12.99) was an obvious winner too - just look at that perfectly ripe avocado, that huge helping of sour cream, and the generous portion of carne asada.
Also on the table were two servings of chilaquiles (pictured left and right of my Workz).
This is a great option that - like the nachos - came with an extremely generous serving of perfectly ripe avocado, beans, cheese, eggs, sour cream and green salsa on a bed of tortilla chips to soak up the juices.
Should this not be enough, you can also order breakfast burritos, skillets, pancakes, waffles, French toast, omelettes, buffalo wings, loaded fries, and a range of sandwiches that puts most delis in Los Angeles to shame.
The best part: everything on the menu is between $10 and $15.
With our bellies full, we walked out intending to drive south back to Los Angeles, but the group was in such high spirits after this fantastic meal that we changed course and headed north to find some hot springs - just because.
The adventure continues. What a joy to live in California.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Workz Mojave serves cheap, simple, delicious food that comes out fast and tastes great. There’s no table service so you don’t even need to tip if you don’t want to. Coming from La La Land, where every “diner” looks like a Hollywood movie set and charges $30 for a grilled cheese, The Workz Mojave is a welcome reminder that there are excellent roadside diners in California. But they might not all look like diners. Sometimes, you just need to get off the beaten track.
WEST COAST: 9.5
EAST COAST: 8.5
