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Best Restaurants in Palm Springs, CA for 2026
- The Muse Hotel
- 41 minutes ago
- 12 min read
The best restaurants in Palm Springs, CA cluster around two spots: the Palm Canyon Drive corridor downtown and the hotel dining rooms at properties like The Parker and Colony Palms. For 2026, the standout is Rooster and the Pig, named USA Today's Restaurant of the Year in 2026, with Workshop Kitchen & Bar close behind as the city's MICHELIN-recognized fine dining anchor.
Key Takeaways
The MICHELIN Guide currently lists eight Palm Springs restaurants, including Colony Club, Workshop Kitchen & Bar, Bar Cecil, and Cheeky's, giving the city more Michelin-recognized dining than most Coachella Valley towns of similar size.
Rooster and the Pig earned USA Today's 2026 Restaurant of the Year title, a rare national honor for a casual Vietnamese-inspired restaurant outside a major metro.
Norma's at The Parker Hotel is famous for a $1,000 caviar frittata, but the more practical order is the Upstream Eggs Benedict or the Super Blueberry Pancakes.
Cheeky's and Lulu's California Bistro do not always take reservations the same way; Cheeky's runs first come, first served while Lulu's recommends booking ahead even on weekdays.
Several patios, including Boozehounds and The Tropicale, welcome dogs on the patio, a detail that matters for travelers road-tripping with pets.
Guests staying at The Muse Hotel Buyout in Warm Sands sit roughly 5-6 minutes from the downtown restaurant corridor covered in this guide.
Planning where to eat in Palm Springs in 2026 means sorting through a small but genuinely strong restaurant scene, one that punches well above its population size. At The Muse Hotel Palm Springs, guests ask us for dinner recommendations almost as often as they ask about the pool schedule, and the answer changes depending on whether they want a caviar frittata or a $12 taco plate.
This guide organizes the best restaurants in Palm Springs, CA by what actually matters when you're deciding where to eat: meal type, price point, whether you need a reservation, and whether your dog can join you on the patio. The guide also covers practical logistics that most restaurant roundups skip entirely, including parking realities on Palm Canyon Drive and how far in advance to call Norma's during Modernism Week.
Every pick below reflects either a MICHELIN designation, a documented national award, or a specific reputation among locals and long-time visitors. None of these picks are guesses. If a restaurant made this list, the restaurant earned its spot, and if this guide mentions a downside, that downside is honest, not filler.
Where Do Celebrities Go to Eat in Palm Springs?
Celebrities dining in Palm Springs tend to favor Colony Club at Colony Palms Hotel and Norma's at The Parker Hotel, both prized for privacy and old Hollywood history rather than crowds or spectacle. Colony Club offers quiet poolside seating away from downtown foot traffic, while Norma's draws a mix of low-key regulars and visitors chasing its famously extravagant tasting menu items.
Colony Club at Colony Palms Hotel sits at 572 N. Indian Canyon Drive, inside a hotel with a history tied to Palm Springs' old Hollywood era, and Colony Club remains the city's most talked-about spot for a low-key dinner away from crowds.
Specifically, the outdoor poolside seating at Colony Club is the better call over the indoor dining room; the poolside setting is quieter and gives the property's mid-century courtyard room to breathe. The crispy pork belly appetizer and the salmon plated with grapefruit slices are the two dishes that come up most often in local recommendations.
Norma's at The Parker Hotel, located at 4200 E Palm Canyon Drive, is the other name that comes up in this conversation, largely because of its infamous $1,000 Zillion Dollar Lobster Frittata topped with 10 ounces of caviar. As a result, Norma's draws a mix of visitors chasing the novelty dish and regulars who come back for the Upstream Eggs Benedict with salmon and caviar, or the Super Blueberry Pancakes. Reservations are required, and during Modernism Week or peak winter weekends, book at least a week out through Norma's reservation booking page.
What Is the Highest Rated Restaurant in Palm Springs?
Rooster and the Pig is currently the highest rated restaurant in Palm Springs by national recognition, having been named USA Today's Restaurant of the Year in 2026, with Workshop Kitchen & Bar close behind as the city's most consistent MICHELIN-recognized fine-dining option. Together, the two restaurants represent the city's strongest dinner claims for 2026.
Rooster and the Pig's award is covered directly by the Desert Sun's coverage of the award. That recognition is a rare national title for a Vietnamese-influenced restaurant of this size, and the title puts Palm Springs on a shortlist most desert towns never reach.
Additionally, Workshop Kitchen & Bar at 800 N Palm Canyon Drive carries the city's most consistent fine-dining reputation, with MICHELIN recognition and a Californian menu built around vegetable-forward small plates under executive chef Michael Beckman. The restaurant has operated in its current form since 2022, occupying a converted industrial-style space with an outdoor patio that stays busy through the cooler months.
For a nightcap after either restaurant, Truss & Twine, the sister cocktail bar next door to Workshop, pours drinks from the same hospitality team and rarely gets the crowds Workshop does on a Friday night. If you only have one big dinner in your trip, split the difference: Rooster and the Pig for the more talked-about experience in 2026, Workshop for the more classically "fine dining" one.
10 Best Food Restaurants In Palm Springs, California, USA 2026 Top Places To Eat
Where Do Locals Eat in Palm Springs?
Locals in Palm Springs eat mainly at Cheeky's and Boozehounds, two no-reservation, lower-priced restaurants that skip the hotel dining room formality tourists gravitate toward. Cheeky's covers scratch-made breakfast and brunch, while Boozehounds handles casual, dog-friendly dinner with a Filipino-influenced menu rarely found elsewhere in Palm Springs.
Cheeky's at 622 N Palm Canyon Drive is the clearest example of this local pattern. Cheeky's is farm-to-table, made from scratch, and runs strictly first come, first served, which means locals show up early on weekends to beat the wait.
The must-order item is the bacon flight, six different bacon preparations on one plate, with the apple cinnamon flavor consistently singled out as the standout. For example, arriving before 9 a.m. on a Saturday is the difference between a 10-minute wait and a 45-minute one. The patio is pet-friendly, which adds to Cheeky's local following.
Boozehounds at 2080 N Palm Canyon Drive is the other genuine local favorite, notable for a separate dog-dining area complete with a "weenie-tini," chicken broth topped with chicken-flavored whipped cream, served specifically for dogs. The adobo chicken is the dish to order for the humans, and the International menu leans Filipino-influenced in a way that's rare for Palm Springs. In contrast to Colony Club's polish, Boozehounds is loud, casual, and exactly where a local takes an out-of-town friend who wants "the real Palm Springs," not the postcard version.
Is There a Michelin Star Restaurant in Palm Springs?
No Palm Springs restaurant currently holds a Michelin star, but eight Palm Springs restaurants appear in the MICHELIN Guide's official directory as recommended selections without a star rating. The eight are Colony Club, 4 Saints at the Kimpton Rowan Hotel, Alice B., Bar Cecil, Workshop Kitchen & Bar, Boozehounds, Tac/Quila, and Cheeky's.
This distinction matters because MICHELIN inclusion without a star still signals a level of quality control and consistency the inspectors look for, things like ingredient sourcing, service standards, and menu coherence. Specifically, Bar Cecil, named after style icon Cecil Beaton, represents the newest addition to this Michelin-recognized group and has been picked up by outlets like Eater as one of the city's more culturally interesting new openings.
4 Saints, housed inside the Kimpton Rowan Hotel downtown, rounds out the list with rooftop views over the San Jacinto Mountains, a detail that separates 4 Saints from ground-level competitors. If Michelin star status matters to your trip planning, note that Palm Springs' fine dining scene as of 2026 is built on this recommended tier rather than starred restaurants, which is honestly consistent with a desert resort town this size.
Which Palm Springs Restaurants Fit Breakfast and Brunch?
Palm Springs brunch culture centers on three restaurants that rarely overlap in style: Cheeky's for scratch-made farm plates, Norma's for spectacle dining, and Lulu's California Bistro for dependable, all-day service. Each restaurant serves a different kind of morning, so the right pick depends on whether you want speed, novelty, or flexibility.
Lulu's California Bistro sits at 200 S Palm Canyon Drive and serves breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner every day of the week, which makes Lulu's the most flexible option if your group can't agree on a time.
The Eggplant Parmesan at Lulu's is the standout recommendation, an unusual choice for a "brunch" restaurant but one that shows up repeatedly in local write-ups. Notably, Lulu's recommends reservations even on weekdays given its central location and steady foot traffic on Palm Canyon Drive.
For something sweeter after brunch, Lappert's Palm Springs at 130 N Palm Canyon Drive serves the city's signature date shake, a Coachella Valley specialty tied to the region's date farms further out toward Indio. Try the Dole Whip or key lime pie flavor if the date shake isn't your speed. Pair a Lappert's stop with the bacon flight at Cheeky's for a two-restaurant brunch crawl that covers both savory and sweet in under two hours.
Restaurant | Best For | Reservations | Signature Dish |
Rooster and the Pig | 2026 award-winning dinner | Recommended | Vietnamese-influenced small plates |
Workshop Kitchen & Bar | Fine dining | Recommended | Californian vegetable-forward plates |
Cheeky's | Brunch, locals | First come, first served | Bacon flight |
Norma's | Special occasion brunch | Required | Zillion Dollar Lobster Frittata |
Boozehounds | Dog-friendly casual dinner | Walk-in friendly | Adobo chicken |
Colony Club | Quiet, upscale dinner | Recommended | Crispy pork belly |
Lulu's California Bistro | All-day dining | Recommended | Eggplant Parmesan |
What Are the Best Restaurants for Happy Hour and Dinner With a Patio?
The Tropicale and Liv's stand out as Palm Springs' best patio destinations for happy hour and dinner, each built around the desert's sunset hours between roughly 5 and 7 p.m. The Tropicale wins for cocktails and dog-friendly seating, while Liv's suits daytime dining paired with a museum visit.
The Tropicale at 330 E Amado Road opens Sunday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m. for dinner, and its patio is consistently cited as the best happy hour setup in the city, thanks to the blueberry vodka mojito and Ramos Fizz cocktails.
For food, order the Margherita pizza or the Southern fried chicken sandwich; skip the calamari unless you like your appetizers genuinely spicy, a detail regulars mention often enough that it's worth the warning. The patio at The Tropicale is also pet-friendly, another reason The Tropicale draws a loyal local crowd rather than a purely tourist one.
Further Uptown, Liv's inside the Palm Springs Art Museum offers a daytime dining option that pairs naturally with a museum visit, ideal for travelers combining Desert X's outdoor art installations with a cultural afternoon. Eight4Nine, at 849 N Palm Canyon Drive in the Uptown district, rounds out the Uptown dinner scene with a Miso Marinated Chilean Sea Bass and an Ahi Tuna Poke Bowl that regularly show up on locals' short lists.
Which Restaurants Work for Groups, Bachelorette Parties, and Special Diets?
1501 Uptown is Palm Springs' strongest option for larger groups, seating 10 or more without a private room around a shareable-plates menu. Chef Tanya's Kitchen best serves special diets with a complete vegetarian and vegan takeout menu, and both restaurants require advance notice for bachelorette-sized parties of 12 or more.
1501 Uptown, a gastropub at 1501 N Palm Canyon Drive, handles larger parties well with a menu built around shareable plates, wings, a cheese and charcuterie board, and the 1501 Burger, best ordered medium rare on a brioche bun with cave-aged cheddar.
For dietary restrictions, specific local spotlights aside, Chef Tanya's Kitchen, a takeout-only vegetarian and vegan restaurant, is the most complete option in Palm Springs proper, with a Moroccan roasted cauliflower dish and an eggless egg salad that satisfy plant-based diners without a compromise menu tacked onto a meat-focused restaurant.
If your group is planning a bachelorette weekend, note that most Palm Springs restaurants seat parties of 12 or more only with advance notice, particularly Norma's and Workshop. As a result, groups booking a full hotel buyout should call ahead the week they book lodging, not the week of the trip. The concierge team at The Muse Hotel Buyout already tracks which restaurants can seat 18 people on a Saturday night and which brunch spot runs late enough for a slow-moving group.
What Should You Know Before Booking a Table in Palm Springs?
Booking a table in Palm Springs successfully means understanding three things: reservation culture varies wildly by restaurant, parking on Palm Canyon Drive gets tight after 6 p.m., and summer hours shrink due to extreme desert heat. Cheeky's and Jake's Palm Springs, at 664 N. Palm Canyon Drive, both run limited seating with no guaranteed reservations, while Norma's and Workshop require them outright.
Specifically, metered street parking along Palm Canyon Drive fills quickly on weekend evenings; the public lot behind the Uptown shops on Palm Canyon Drive near Amado Road is the more reliable backup most locals use instead of circling for street parking. Additionally, many Palm Springs restaurants trim their hours or close entirely for a few weeks during the hottest stretch of summer, so calling ahead in July and August is worth the extra step.
For visitors timing a trip around group travel planning, Palm Springs Restaurant Week is a recurring local event, historically held in the cooler months, when participating restaurants offer prix-fixe menus at a lower price point than their regular a la carte pricing. Confirm current dates directly with Visit Greater Palm Springs before building a trip around it.
A Quick Checklist Before You Go
Use this five-point checklist to avoid the most common Palm Springs dining mistakes: missed reservations, long weekend waits, card-only assumptions, summer closures, and pet-policy surprises. Each item below addresses one of those specific risks, based on the restaurant details covered throughout this guide.
Call ahead for Norma's, Workshop Kitchen & Bar, and any group of eight or more, ideally a week in advance during peak winter season.
Arrive before 9 a.m. at Cheeky's on weekends if you want to skip the wait.
Bring cash as a backup; smaller counter-service spots along Palm Canyon Drive don't always take cards for smaller purchases.
Check for reduced summer hours if visiting between June and September.
Confirm your dog is welcome on the specific patio you're targeting; Boozehounds and The Tropicale both allow it, but not every restaurant does.
How Does Palm Springs' Restaurant Scene Compare to the Rest of the Coachella Valley?
Palm Springs concentrates its best restaurants along a roughly two-mile stretch of Palm Canyon Drive, unlike Palm Desert, where dining spreads out along El Paseo. Guillermo's Restaurante, technically located at 72850 El Paseo in Palm Desert rather than Palm Springs proper, is worth the 20-minute drive for its margaritas, ceviche, and pescado del dia served with a signature Diablo Sauce, but Guillermo's location is a genuinely different neighborhood than the walkable downtown corridor covered in this guide.
In 2026, that concentration works in visitors' favor: staying in Palm Springs proper means most of the restaurants on this list are reachable within a 10-minute drive or a manageable walk, rather than the 20 to 30-minute drives required to reach Palm Desert's El Paseo district. Il Corso, at 111 N Palm Canyon Drive, and LG's Prime Steakhouse in the Vineyard Shopping Center at 255 S Palm Canyon Drive, both sit within this same walkable core, offering authentic Italian cioppino and a New York strip or ribeye, respectively, without leaving the downtown footprint.
According to AirDNA market data, Palm Springs short-term lodging saw an average daily rate of $476 per booked night in 2026, reflecting a market where visitors increasingly prioritize proximity to dining and walkability over sprawling resort campuses further from downtown.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the highest rated restaurant in Palm Springs?
Rooster and the Pig holds the most notable current recognition, having been named USA Today's Restaurant of the Year in 2026. Workshop Kitchen & Bar and Colony Club also rank among the city's most consistently praised restaurants, with both appearing in the MICHELIN Guide's Palm Springs selections.
Is there a Michelin star restaurant in Palm Springs?
No Palm Springs restaurant currently holds a Michelin star. Eight restaurants, including Colony Club, Workshop Kitchen & Bar, Bar Cecil, and Cheeky's, appear in the MICHELIN Guide as recommended selections without a starred rating.
Do I need a reservation for the best restaurants in Palm Springs, CA?
It depends on the restaurant. Norma's and Workshop Kitchen & Bar require reservations, especially during Modernism Week and peak winter months, while Cheeky's and Jake's Palm Springs run first come, first served with limited seating.
Which Palm Springs restaurants are dog-friendly?
Boozehounds and The Tropicale both offer dog-friendly patios, with Boozehounds going a step further by offering a specific dog menu including a chicken broth "weenie-tini." Cheeky's and Jake's Palm Springs also allow dogs on their outdoor patios.
Where do locals eat in Palm Springs?
Locals tend to favor Cheeky's for scratch-made breakfast and brunch, and Boozehounds for casual, dog-friendly dinner with an International, Filipino-influenced menu. Both restaurants skip the hotel dining room formality that draws more tourist traffic.
How much should I budget for dinner in Palm Springs?
Casual gastropubs and cafes like 1501 Uptown or Lulu's California Bistro generally run in the mid-range price tier per the MICHELIN Guide's $$ symbol, while fine dining destinations like Workshop Kitchen & Bar and Colony Club fall into the higher $$$ tier. Norma's caviar frittata is a notable outlier at $1,000, not a typical menu price.
What's the best neighborhood to stay in for easy access to Palm Springs restaurants?
Warm Sands is the best neighborhood for easy access to Palm Springs restaurants, sitting close to the downtown Palm Canyon Drive corridor with most restaurants in this guide reachable in roughly 5 to 10 minutes by car. As a result, Warm Sands offers a quieter home base than staying directly on the main tourist strip, while still keeping Rooster and the Pig, Workshop Kitchen & Bar, Cheeky's, and Boozehounds within a short drive. For example, The Muse Hotel Buyout in Warm Sands sits roughly 5-6 minutes from that same restaurant corridor, which is why the concierge team there tracks reservation policies and group capacity across the downtown restaurants covered in this guide.
Final Word on the Best Restaurants in Palm Springs, CA
The best restaurants in Palm Springs, CA in 2026 span everything from Rooster and the Pig's award-winning dinner service to Cheeky's no-reservation bacon flight, and the right pick depends entirely on the kind of night you want. Fine dining seekers should prioritize Workshop Kitchen & Bar or Colony Club; locals-first travelers should head straight to Boozehounds or Cheeky's.
Whichever restaurant corridor you land on, staying close to downtown makes the whole trip easier to plan around. Palm Springs rewards a little advance planning, especially around reservations and summer hours, and having a home base minutes from Palm Canyon Drive means you're never fighting traffic to make an 8 p.m. table.
If this guide has you thinking about a weekend built around Palm Springs' restaurant scene, The Muse Hotel Buyout puts your whole group about 5 to 6 minutes from the downtown Palm Canyon Drive corridor covered above, with the concierge already familiar with which restaurants can handle a Saturday night group of 18. Check current dates and pricing here.
Written by Maggie Williams, Owner & Operator at The Muse Hotel Palm Springs
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