Businesses That Demonstrate Sustainable Practices

The Gold Star Award is given to food-related businesses that demonstrate the sustainable practice of consistently closing their dumpsters to protect the local community and wildlife. These awards demonstrate an interest in resolving wider social and ecological issues, and The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens is thrilled to honor the commitments made by these owners and staff to keeping our desert home clean, healthy, and thriving.

Support thriving human and wildlife communities by supporting a Gold Star Restaurant. Recipients are listed below.

Maintaining closed dumpsters is critical to reduce the unnaturally large numbers of ravens now in Southern California. Ravens have proliferated around our human developments because we indiscriminately provide food, water, and nesting resources. When people forget to cover their trash, it invites predatory ravens to thrive as open dumpsters and trashcans provide an especially reliable food source. In the Mojave Desert, the raven population is now 800% larger than it was 40 years ago. These inflated raven populations decimate native wildlife – especially the threatened and iconic desert tortoise.

Food-related business managers and staff are encouraged to apply for their own Gold Star Award by contacting Katie Shaw at kshaw@livingdesert.org.

Support One of the Following Gold Star Award Recipients

Gold Star Recipients in Joshua Tree:

• Royal Siam Cuisine Thai Restaurant
• Roadrunner Grab+Go
• Boo’s Organic Oven
• Pie for the People! Pizza di Circo
• The Dez
• Natural Sisters Café
• Crossroads Café
• Joshua Tree Saloon
• Subway
• Country Kitchen

Gold Star Recipients in Twentynine Palms:

• Andreas Char-Broiled Burgers
• Bamboo Garden Chinese Restaurant
• Burger King
• Campbell Hill Bakery
• Cold Stone Creamery
• Denny’s
• Edchadas Mexican
• Fosters Freeze
• Fuji Restaurant
• Jack in the Box
• Kitchen in The Desert
• Las Palmas Restaurant
• Papa John’s Pizza
• Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory
• Rocky’s New York Style Pizzeria
• Surf City Squeeze
• Subway
• The Rib Co.
• Top 100 Chinese Restaurant

Gold Star Recipients in Yucca Valley:

• 2 Guys Pies Brick Oven Pizza
• All-Star Burgers
• Del Taco
• Frontier Café
• IHOP
• KFC
• John’s Place
• Larry & Milts Café
• Grandma’s Italian Kitchen
• Pizza Hut
• Sonic Drive-In
• Arby’s
• C&S Coffee and Breakfast
• Denny’s
• Papa John’s Pizza
• Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen
• Route 62
• Yucca Kabob and Hookah

Gold Star Recipients in Desert Hot Springs:

• Maricocos Culiacan #2
• Del Taco
• McDonalds
• Burger King
• Sushi Bella
• All Star Burgers
• Vons
• Rocky’s New York Pizza
• Thai Palms
• Kam Lun Chinese
• Las Palmas
• The Spread
• Tan’s Pizza
• Delicias Mexican
• Playoffs
• Escapade Tavern
• ampm
• Taco Bell
• Castaneda’s Mexican
• Walgreens
• Grocery Outlet
• Starbucks
• Zapopan
• Valero
• All Star Burgers (Desert Edge location)
• Golden Lantern Market