Minerva's, Sonny's and steaks: Here's what's new on Coachella Valley restaurant scene

It’s hard to beat the start of a new year in the Coachella Valley.

The temps are (finally) comfortable, the just-arrived Canadian snowbirds are still jubilantly high off their first exposure to Vitamin D in months and you might even still be able to cling to the desperate hope that you won't be disappointed by the headliners when the Coachella lineup drops sometime in the next few days.

Heck, you can even still tell yourself you won’t let your sweetheart down yet again by forgetting to book one of those forever coveted Valentine’s Day tables at Bar Cecil the moment the reservations open.

But even that inevitable failure shouldn’t get you down. That’s because the final days of the year brought several new restaurants to the Coachella Valley, including some buzzy, special occasion-worthy spots that could make your partner forget all about those $50 Bar Cecil martinis come Cupid Day. (To be fair, they come with caviar and other goodies on the side.)

Of course, we also lost some spots, but what is New Year’s all about if not letting go of the old to make way for the new? Before we fully turn the page, however, here’s a look at the restaurants we gained and lost at the close of 2023. Just don’t ask us how to score an easy table for the foreseeable future: It's tourist season, baby!

Minerva’s

1700 South Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs

In a city where it sometimes seems like every new restaurant and bar is working overtime to “out Palm Springs” the last, Minerva’s seems calibrated to serve up just the right ratio of desert whimsy and cool.

The restaurant is located poolside at the newly opened Life House Palm Springs hotel and seems to owe much of its ethos and vibe to that setting — the website states that Minerva’s “is made to feel more like a friend’s pool party rather than a bar or restaurant.”

Its name, meanwhile, is a tribute to the Minerva Hamilton Hoyt, the activist whose love for the desert’s unique flora eventually led her to push for the creation of Joshua Tree National Park and the preservation of other desert lands. So it's no surprise that plants are everywhere here, from the floral-pattern adorned walls to the menu, which skews toward salads and plant-focused dishes like a mushroom-and-truffle-pizza and a veggie wrap.

But carnivores, too, can find their place among the plants here: The menu also includes a burger, halibut, short rib and other meat and fish entrees.

Alice B.

1122 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way in Palm Springs

December was a big month when it came to the opening of new Palm Springs restaurants named after influential and unconventional women. Joining Minerva’s in that category is Alice B., a splashy new spot that unites Los Angeles megachefs Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken, who found fame on the Food Network in the 1990s, with Chef Lance Velasquez of Palm Springs' now-closed Biscuit & Counter.

Alice B.’s moniker is a tribute to Alice B. Toklas, the life partner of avant-garde writer Gertrude Stein. The couple were known for the salons they hosted for literary luminaries like Ernest Hemingway as well as their large art collection.

The restaurant has an art collection of its own consisting of pieces from local artists that adorn its walls. Toklas and Stein’s flair for the stylish is furthered evoked by the several “statement chandeliers” that hang in the space. While Feniger and Milliken (who are business partners and not a couple) are best known for their pioneering role in LA’s Mexican food scene, the menu here skews more Mediterranean with entrees like a branzino and grilled lamb shank.

Sonny’s Bar & Grill

214 E. Arenas Road in Palm Springs

Can benedicts, biscuits and gravy and other morning staples lure breakfast and brunch lovers to Arenas Road while the night owls that typically roam the iconic street are still hours away from waking?

That’s the question being posed by Sonny’s, where bottomless champagne also provides a worthy option for starting the party well before noon. The dinner menu, meanwhile, includes fancier fare such as a lobster roll, ribeye and shrimp pomodoro. There’s also three types of cake for dessert, a menu of appetizer foods that are available all the time and a daily happy hour from 3 to 6 p.m., all of which seem aimed at making Arenas an all-day destination on a nightlife-focused block.

Longhorn Steakhouse

79705 Highway 111 in La Quinta

While the Coachella Valley is home to no shortage of places to get a prime cut of beef, it's never had a Lornhorn Steakhouse to call its own. Until now.

The Florida-based chain, which boasts more than 500 locations nationwide, is known for its line-dancing wait staff, somewhat classed-up take on the cliched Texas ranch aesthetic and, of course, the seven steaks on its menu.

Even those with the heftiest of appetites may meet their match in the 22-ounce Longhorn porterhouse. Less ravenous buckaroos, meanwhile, can choose from a range of non-steak offerings that includes salmon, shrimp, a burger and four entrée salads that prove even cowboys need to eat a vegetable every once in a while.

But regardless of what you order, you might want to save some room for desert: The aptly-named Chocolate Stampede consists of two slices of cake containing six types of chocolate accompanied by two scoops of ice cream. It promises one heck of a sugar rush.

Restaurant closures

KFC in Palm Springs and Yucca Valley

So long, Colonel. The KFC locations in Palm Springs and Yucca Valley shut their doors at the end of December, leaving diners to make the trek to the still-open locations in Cathedral City or Desert Hot Springs for their next finger lickin’ good fix.

Antigua in Palm Springs

This dinner and dancing spot appears closed and is listed as such by the restaurant review site Yelp. Phone calls to the restaurant were not answered and the website is no longer live. The closure leaves a vacancy in a high-traffic section of downtown Palm Springs.

Le Petit Dejeuner

This Cathedral City breakfast-and-soul-food spot only opened in June, but it has closed its doors. Yet owner Tina Motley said she's far from done cooking up food for valley customers. She has been doing catering, plans pop-ups and is looking for a place to reopen a full-scale restaurant.

Desert Sun staff writer Ani Gasparyan contributed to this report.

Follow Paul Albani-Burgio on Twitter (X) at @albaniburgiop and email him at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: New restaurants that opened in Palm Springs area in December