Three new places to eat and drink in Palm Springs
When the weather in Palm Springs cools to ideal desert temperatures in late winter and early spring, the sun and the air make the crush of tourism bearable. But there is something wonderful, too, about visiting Southern California’s famed resort town in the off-off-season: No crowds, plenty of parking, a general sense of calm and, if you’re like me, an odd pleasure in short bursts of extreme heat that bake the stress right out of you.
Ahead of a busy fall, I hid out for a week in Palm Springs — but wherever I am it’s hard to turn off the curiosity to seek out the latest culinary happenings. I wound up visiting two new restaurants and one hidden bar that I’d suggest for visitors looking for some fresh additions to the scene, no matter the time of year.
Le Petit Dejeuner
On a recent night of heavy rains, two of us showed up at Le Petit Dejeuner in Cathedral City 45 minutes before their posted closing time … and saw that the “Open” sign had already been turned off for the night. No one was showing up, chef Latrice “Triecy” Hudson told us when we rapped on the restaurant’s door just to be certain. But Hudson took pity on us and agreed to gather a takeout feast of the menu’s soul food dishes that were already prepared or easy to warm.
We walked away with shrimp and grits, ribs, macaroni and cheese, greens threaded with pulled smoked turkey, candied yams, creamy fried corn and the last of the evening’s peach cobbler for dessert. Carryout containers diminished none of the goodness of the cooking.
Owner Tina Motley soft-opened Le Petit Dejeuner this summer as a spinoff of the original Detroit location she started in 2015. Per the name, the restaurant focuses on breakfast five days a week, with the addition of dinner service on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
On the strength of dinner — the grits and mac-and-cheese textbook in their creaminess, the ribs taut, the yams not too sweet, the corn kernels sweet and mild and textured — we returned for a Sunday noontime meal. The menu is designed to be family-style, encouraging diners (including solo ones) to choose multiple dishes for a flat price. The good news is that the server works with you on whatever you want among eggs, pancakes, waffles and side meats for an affordable combination. Fried chicken wings, deeply seasoned without veering into over-salted and uniform in their battered crunch, were excellent, as were the thin, custardy pancakes.
I’d recommend either breakfast or dinner, though it’s the nighttime sides, with ribs and wings, for which I’m first returning on my next trip back. 67-778 E. Palm Canyon Dr., Cathedral City, (760) 880-3303, instagram.com/lepetit__dejeuner
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Zadie Cafe
Reservations for Bar Cecil, my favorite restaurant in Palm Springs, remained difficult to claim even in the 115-degree heat of late August. Twice, though, we scored open bar seats by arriving in the 6:30-to-7:15 window, some advice that lead bartender Avery Underhill had passed along in January. On both visits last week, though, I noticed Underhill wasn’t around.
Another Cecil staffer finally tipped us off: He and his wife, Lauren, were busy opening their own restaurant, called Zadie Cafe, in the lobby of the Hilton Palm Springs. Zadie, more commonly spelled “zayde” in phonetic English, is Yiddish for “grandfather.” The easygoing opening menu of starters, sandwiches and bowls bills itself as “modern Mediterranean.” I swung by on its inaugural week but I’m betting the most popular item will be the chicken schnitzel sandwich layered with roasted eggplant, whipped feta, tahini and matbucha, the Sephardic Moroccan condiment of roasted tomatoes and peppers. Two more sauces on the side — a spicy harissa-based one and a riff on the Yemeni-Israeli herbed hot sauce zhoug — ratchet up flavor and heat.
Even better: a farro salad tossed with sweet potatoes, zucchini, carrot, scallions and mint. Its date-honey vinaigrette was in no way cloying, and a swipe of labneh brought in a nicely dense creaminess that stood up to fluffy-chewy farro. It was exactly the kind of light, nourishing lunch I want in the heat.
Underhill has of course dreamed up some compelling cocktails: His lemony, hibiscus-tinged Desert Rose makes good use of the Sipsmith gin I favor in martinis I’ve watched him stir. When even bar seats at Cecil prove too difficult to snag, I’ll know where to duck in as an alternative. 400 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs, (760) 507-1797, zadiecafe.com
Evening Citizen
Local friends were excited to introduce my partner and me to the speakeasy opened earlier this year by Dean Lavine, the owner of Blackbook in the often-rowdy Arenas District. Yes, the notion of a bar shrouded in Prohibition era-style secrecy has been overplayed nationwide during the cocktail renaissance of the new millennium — but it’s Palm Springs. Camp and fun are always in fashion.
It turns out the undisclosed location, revealed as soon as you make a reservation, is the kitschiest aspect of Evening Citizen. The space brims with midcentury glamour: dark, shadowed, velvety wallpaper, rows of booze bottles aglow in backlighting, a marble bar so polished it mirrors its surroundings as hypnotically as a reflecting pool. The most tongue-in-cheek touch? In the center of the bar hangs a portrait of actor Udo Kier, a friend of Lavine’s, captured with an intimidating expression that conjures mobsters and Mario Puzo.
Neil Goetz, previously the head bartender at Blackbook, sets a jolly, welcoming tone. Hunt for cocktail descriptions in a book disguised as newspaper classified ads of yore, which also gives you an idea of the thematic tone to the drinks. Goetz and his crew make a stellar version of the Scofflaw, a concoction credited to Harry’s Bar in Paris in the 1920s. Rye whiskey, vermouth, grenadine, lime juice and orange bitters sounds counterintuitive but lands smooth and savory.
Note that Evening Citizen serves no food — only drinks and a low-key escape, including from the crowds that will again soon descend on the town. theeveningcitizen.com
Have your Food Bowl tickets yet?
The 7th annual L.A. Food Bowl is in full swing! Dinners celebrating Restaurant of the Year Holbox and the 2023 Gold Award winner, Jenee Kim of Park’s BBQ, have sold out, but you can still jump on tickets for the Night Market that will be held on the Paramount Studios backlot Sept. 22-24. Cooking demonstrations from local and global chefs will include Virgilio Martinez from Central in Peru, Bricia Lopez of Guelaguetza and Timothy Hollingsworth of Otium, plus exclusive bites from restaurants such as Awan, Camphor, Caviar Kaspia, Ditroit Taqueria, Evil Cooks, Jitlada, Kogi BBQ, n/soto, Saltie Girl and many more.
There are also still seats for the Four Hands Dinner, where Chef Ton, a.k.a. Thitid “Ton” Tassanakajohn, will collaborate with chef Marcel Vigneron on an East-meets-West menu with custom cocktail pairings at Lemon Grove restaurant in Hollywood on Sept. 25.
While you count down to the events, learn how to make Malcolm Lee’s mom’s chicken curry and Tassanakajohn’s khao kluk kapi recipe at home. We’ve also invited 2023 Food Bowl participants into The Times’ test kitchen, including Kim Prince of Dulanville food truck, who shared a Nashville hot shrimp and grits recipe, and Anajak Thai’s Justin Pichetrungsi, who walks us through the process of making laab moo.
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Also ...
- Speaking of Food Bowl, Danielle Dorsey has gathered the stories and videos showcasing this year’s array of talent on one handy page.
- The Godmother, but so much more: Jenn Harris shares her picks for the best Italian subs across Los Angeles.
- Stephanie Breijo has details on the Airliner, a century-old Lincoln Heights bar that has returned with new owners and a fresh menu.
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