Rick’s Desert Grill

A chill joint. Food is simple and tastes great. Our waitress was Valery and she was amazing! Excellent customer service, kind, funny, and attentive.
$ 3 bloody Mary’s and $ 8 bottomless mimosas

Valerie is the best! She has the upmost customer service skills, and knows how to engage with customers in a positive way. She literally made our day, especially after walking out of Cheeky’s due to their rudeness.
Valerie is respectful, treats you like a human, she’s very upbeat and fun, and shared beautiful stories with us.
Bottomless mimosas for only $ 8, and $ 3 Bloody Mary’s. Yum!
We had the chorizo and black bean plate, and the California omelette with home potatoes. Delicious! Ask for Valerie if you want to have a fun loving experience!

Stopped by for lunch out of curiosity while coming into town. Being Puerto Rican, Cuban food brings similar memories of home. I was surprised to find that Rick’s turned traditional down home cooking into a fine dining experience. The inside is very nice and smells amazing and the staff is friendly and professional. I ordered the stuffed tostones which you can have filled with ropa vieja or picadillo. I had it with picadillo. The plate came with 2 small tostones and the picadillo on top, a cup of black beans and rice, and 2 small slices of sweet plantains. The rice seemed like instant rice, but I wouldn’t know since I’ve never cooked instant rice before. It was passable, but the beans made up for it in flavor. It was a perfect portion for lunch, but small for the price. Not that $ 10.99 is unreasonable, but I guess since my mom would call this a «poor man’s meal,» I was expecting a larger portion or a lesser price. I also ordered the yucca frita and they were fried perfectly. Slightly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Imagine a thick french fry. It came with a garlic mojo on the side for dipping, but it was very bland. I ended up adding salt to it and wishing the garlic was more prominent as I’m used to. Over all, I was pleased with my experience and would probably return if only to try their mojitos!

Very good food! Good service! We got tostones with beef, very different and tasty. The cuban flan was also very tasty

We had breakfast at their other location. It was wonderful. Dinner was very disappointing. My sister and I ordered three items. One item was a Cobb salad. We asked if they could split the salad for us. The waiter said he would ask the chef and let us know. He never did come back with an answer. He came back with a big salad and two little plates. I really dislike messing with a salad that is already overflowing the bowl (it was a beautiful salad) It would have ended up all over the table. If he had said that the chef would not split it for us, we would have ordered separate salads. When I eat at a nice restaurant, I like a nice presentation. This was a $ 13 salad. I would have gladly paid a split fee or ordered two salads. That salad went in the trash. I would think that a restaurant would cater to reasonable requests or communicate better. This might explain why we were the only ones in the restaurant at dinner time.

Came here because we need a pitstop and to eat. We really enjoyed it. We got 2 rounds of free deviled eggs. And I got the poached salmon which was delicious. My friend got the $ 6.99 all you can eat soup, clam chowder which was really good. It was pretty crowded. Would def eat here again. I really wanted the fried chicken, but they were already sold out. Bummer.

We ordered the media noche, the petit fried chicken, and side of mash potatoes …
Ok so here is the break down
Media noche: the sandwich was excellent but the rice and beans were a huge disappointment. The rice tasted like minute made and they basically have me soup instead of rice and beans, my plantains weren’t fully cooked!!!
No Caribbean person would be caught making that rice or undercooking something so simple.
The fried chicken: decent
The potatoes: decent
Maybe they were having a down day… The flavors are almost there its the delivery and in some dishes quality is perhaps what is lacking.

Drove all the way from Yucaipa because we were craving a Cuban Sandwich and this place popped up! Left quite satisfied! It’s not as good as some of the Cuban Mixs I’ve had in Key West Florida but it sure hit the spot. The rice and black beans were good and the plantains were not too mushy. Just like I like them. I will defiantly be making the drive back out.

I give Rick’s a solid 3 Stars. Essentially, a notch above Denny’s. Okay for a casual family meal, but we’re on vacation, and were looking for a bit more of an experience – great food and a little ambiance. Food at Rick’s was okay, and service was fine. But not more than that. My mushroom ravioli tasted like frozen ravioli with a somewhat greasy alfredo sauce over it. The garlic bread tasted microwaved, and my daughter’s fries (which I stole a couple of) were bland, but not terrible. The range of microbrews on tap was good, and I enjoyed my 20 oz. local blonde ale. But the 4 Star reviews I read and the Rick’s Web site description of home made meals with fresh ingredients didn’t hold up. Nothing special here. Just okay.

The «mixed greens» salad was more like salsa, with its diced tomatoes, onions, sweet peppers, chopped black olives and croitons, none of which was larger than a quarter-​inch cube! I was very tempted to ask for a spoon!
As disappointing as the salad was, they more than made up for it on the main course. I ordered the Santiago Rib-​Eye, medium with Carribian rice + beans. The steak was a good 14oz and griiled to perfection. Very tender and tasty. Stir fried veggies were a perfect al-​dente and the rice + beans were tasty with a hint of cinnamon. The bonus fried plantains were delicious.
I decided to forgo finishing the rice + beans so I’d have room for Cuban Flan… AWESOME! As good as it looks. If not for the bad salsa salad, I’d have gone 5 stars.

Came here while on my vacation with my wife. We came on a Saturday evening and there was no wait which was nice. The place itself is of good size. Plenty of parking. The greeter was very pleasant. The waitress was knowledgeable and friendly since this was our first time we had a couple of questions.
I ordered a prime rib and my wife got the ropa vieja I think that’s what it’s called. It’s a Cuban plate. Both plates didn’t disappoint. They were both delicious and fulfilling. Great portions and taste.
We ended the night with a dessert. A Cuban Flan and it was delicious!
I recommend this place to anybody who doesn’t want to pay for overpriced food at the hotels. Restaurant was clean and friendly.

So many fake reviews worse food i ever had don’t waste your money here
French dip had soo much fat terrible place

We tried this place for dinner.
Mediocracy at it’s best.
Sherman’s Delicatessen & Bakery does it better, and for less $.
The chicken dish tasted like the rice (some of which was under cooked) and veggies were from a package of rice pilaf at Ralphs, or from SYSCO Foods. Prepared, certainly didn’t taste fresh. The peas were tiny, shriveled, and tasteless.
While we’ve dined at several Cuban restaurants, other than the pulled pork, nothing here tasted special…
The sandwich had pulled pork, but the ham was sliced deli cuts (Ralph’s?) and it was difficult to taste the pork over the pickle and salted ham.
The pulled pork taco was tasty, but the fish taco was … meh.
Plantains were good.
Staff was friendly, service was quick, and the restaurant was clean (though there was an over charge on the bill which was corrected).
A one time place.

Rick’s will certainly be a new regular stop on my restaurant rotation when visiting Palm Springs. Before leaving town, we wanted to have breakfast. Instead of going to our usual haunt, we decided to go somewhere new, and Rick’s ended up being the perfect pick.
We arrived right at opening time. The interior is clean, modern, yet preserves the nostalgia of the rich history of Palm Springs. The walls are adorned with old photos of the city and Hollywood movie stars that once flocked to Palm Springs when it was fashionable in that way. I loved absorbing it all while I was waiting for my breakfast.
Rick’s Desert Grill has a respectable breakfast offering. I chose the California Benedict and a short stack of the blueberry pancakes they had on special that morning. My benny hit the spot, and I really liked the Canadian bacon it came with. The pancakes were also a hit; the blueberries were fresh and the pancakes themselves were moist and fluffy.
My dining companion went in a different direction and, instead, had lunch. He chose the Cuban Sandwich. After having a bite of it, I almost wish I had ordered the same. The sandwich is stuffed full of tender pork and ham that catapulted my taste buds into sensory overload. Plantains were served on the side.
Food comes out fairly quick, and the customer service was on point. Prices very reasonable. I highly recommend making Rick’s part of your PS visit.

delicious.
had the cuban sandwich for breakfast. tender pork. yummy fries. excellent blueberry pancakes. great coffee. decent prices.

Had to go into PS to our tax lady… Decided to grab some lunch on our way home to DHS. We were going to go to Denny’s but I really wanted to try a local and better tasting…
Saw Ricks and so we pulled in to try the place out… Totally pleasantly surprised!!! Yummmmmers very very good… Very nice décor, clean and great oldies music playing… All the staff very friendly and polite… Our waitress was totally on top of things…
I had eggs Benedict with home fries YUMMY
My husband loveddddddd the burger he got he said it was like a steak burger and raved about the fries!
Everything very fresh tasting.
Definitely will be back…

Last Tuesday, the guys and I ventured out to try Rick’s Desert Grill. I thought to myself, why does the name «Rick» sound familiar. After thinking a bit more harder about it, I eventually realized that Rick is the owner of the breakfast and bakery down the road and this grill here! Duh Titus! Same theme as the breakfast spot. Old school paintings and oldies music.
The place is nicely laid out. Seating is comfortable as well. We ended up seating towards the rear, in a lounge booth. This night, we were served by the lovely Becky. She was very patience with us and knowledgeable about the menu items. It’s cool that the menu offers a smaller version of a main dish just in case one person has a smaller stomach than another person.
I ended up choosing the sweet meatloaf. It is what it states. Sweet to the tongue! Two large slices. Very soft and easy to cut. But with being soft, its too soft. It breaks too easy and doesn’t hold. One of the guys, tried the (limited quantity) fried chicken and said it was really good! But be conscious, that it may turn out super greasy.
Our evening here was very enjoyable. Another place to eat through Rick! So now you have two options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
fin.

Let me use the «I am of Cuban descent «disclaimer before my review.
We have been in the desert over four years now so this was a long time coming. A restaurant that serves some Cuban fare is always a consideration when in the area. Finally, we gave Rick’s a chance yesterday right when they opened.
The four of us entered and were seated at a booth in the back room close to the bar. The digs are clean and ample with a couple of TV’s for your viewing pleasure. They had the Michigan/​Michigan State game which ended up being a doozy.
We ordered lemonade all around before we looked over the menu. I had a preconceived idea of what I was looking for and I should have stayed on course. The children requested the mini-​slider with fries and the chicken tenders with fries. You just can’t mess that up unless there is a major malfunction. The kids enjoyed their meals and ate heartily.
My wife and I decided to split a couple of appetizers. We asked for the Mini Media Noche sandwich and a Cubano Trio. The sandwich is comprised of ham, pork, cheese and a pickle. It also comes PRESSED. This sandwich was packed with meat and reminded me of the new Arby’s commercials. «We’ve got the MEATS «(I still can’t believe that is Ving Rhames) The sandwich was good but it comes on a roll in lieu of the regular sandwich which is normally on a lighter, sweeter bread. (Think a big King’s Hawaiian Roll without the air) It also came with fries and two Platanos Maduros. (Fried Plantain) These are fried once and they are sweet like a dessert.
The Cubano Trio are plantains that are fried twice (Tostones) and are cupped and covered with different fillings. You have a choice of Ropa Vieja (Shredded Meat), Lechon (Pork Chunks) or Picadillo (Ground Beef).
We agreed we’d try one of each. IMHO this was a mistake. The Picadillo had so much flavor and brought back childhood memories. A definite staple in the Cuban diet that you can mix with white rice. This one just BLEW the other two out of the water. It was seasoned to perfection which included garlic, onions, green olives and raisins.
After dinner, our server Becky surprised us with a Flan for dessert. Something about making up for the time they had us waiting when we arrived. Nonsense, the service was very good and Becky was attentive and sweet.
Unfortunately, we already had plans to visit Great Shakes after our lunch. Oh, and my wife and kids do not eat Flan. You KNOW what THAT means. It was good but my mother’s was much better. Not only that, I know some Dominicans that make an OUTSTANDING Flan Cheesecake.
Overall, it was a decent meal although I will try the regular Media Noche the next time out. This is not JUST a Cuban Restaurant. There are items Cubans are programmed to eat but American selections exist as well. I also found the pricing of this very simple food to be a tad on the high side.
Back in L.A. I could eat like a king at a Cuban Restaurant for the same we spent on split dish appetizers. This is not a critique but merely a fact.
We will return. It is in MY BLOOD!

This restaurant was okay when it came to the authenticity of Cuban food.
The service was good, our waitress was very attentive. I’m not sure if if was because we went around 9pm that it was very empty for a Friday. The drinks were also okay nothing special.
The food was good I felt like it needed just a little bit more seasoning to make it taste better.

Sehr gutes Essen. Wir wurden freundlich empfangen und ein «guten Appetit» brachte uns zum schmunzeln. Die frische Suppe zu jedem Essen (oder Salat) war total lecker und erinnerte uns an die Heimat. Steaks brachten eine willkommene Abwechslung zu Burger und Co. Der Mojito zum Abschluss ist auch unbedingt zu empfehlen!

Cuban was tonight’s choice and we enjoyed it.
A meatloaf, a tostones meal and Lechon Asada was the dishes we chose.
All was enjoyed and the Mojito was delicious.
Happy hour until 7 with drink and food specials (some great deals on apps)
Great service friendly staff and a clean dining room rounded out my rating.
Will be back.