Rocks Lounge

Suzie Q’s Fun Facts:
There are three different types of rocks, based on the way they form: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic.
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My friends and I were driving around Palm Springs on Christmas Night 2015, searching for a reasonably-​priced meal with a reasonable wait (in short supply, since even casual restaurants were serving only overpriced «prix fixe» menus, and even then had hour-​plus waits).
With the assumption that the Renaissance Palm Springs Hotel would have at least one restaurant open even on Christmas Night, we decided to check it out.
At 8 pm, the hotel’s main restaurant had just closed, but we were told the bar (Rocks Lounge) was still open.
The bar was nearly empty. However, trays of dirty plates were scattered in stacks near the bar, and at least ¹⁄₃ of the tables were covered in dirty glasses and dishes. With no one greeting us, we sat ourselves at a table, and bussed the dirty glasses ourselves (moving them to an adjacent table).
After about 10 minutes of being totally ignored, a server came by to assist us.
While the bar was serving a fixed price menu for Christmas Night (soup, salad, entrée and desert for $ 35+ tax and tip), the lounge allowed us, instead, to order from the very limited bar menu.
I ordered the $ 12 Coyote Burger and a Diet Coke. One friend ordered a side salad with chicken added, another friend ordered a side salad and the fish taco plate, and the last friend ordered a club sandwich.
By this time, we’d been driving around a while and were fairly hungry. So we were unhappy when the waitress delivered the two salads without bringing the rest of our food (one salad, to which the person ordering had added grilled chicken, was supposed to have been an entrée). Nearly 30 minutes went by before the rest of our entrees arrived.
The waitress had clearly assumed, erroneously, that the salads were intended to be served as a first course, and that the rest of us were OK waiting for our entrees… but she should have asked, rather than assumed!
To add insult to injury: While we were hungrily waiting for our entrees, we watched as the table next to us — who had arrived a good 15 minutes AFTER us — received all their hot food before we did.
When our food finally arrived, I noted unhappily that my burger and fries were practically cold; clearly, they had been sitting for a while. This made the long wait even more irritating in retrospect. And by now, my glass of Diet Coke was empty, but the waitress never offered to refill it.
Consensus was, our meal was mediocre at best — both the food and the service. If it hadn’t been Christmas Night, with alternatives so scarce, this review would have been even less kind.

Someone call the cops please. $ 22 for a Stella and a frozen daiquiri must be illegal.
But hey, the bar is huge with tons of seating. Plenty of room for the expense account crowd I guess.
They did offer a taco Tuesday and a wine tasting Wednesday, so some more affordable options are there.
But that $ 22 bar bill galls me.

This is the lounge located inside the Renaissance Palm Springs.
The lounge has an indoor and an outdoor area. Also, lounge services pool area. Outside area has fire pits and we saw one lit, despite it being around 90 degrees outside.
On the first day, we sat at the bar. We decided to have a couple of drinks before getting on the bus to head to Coachella. Husband had a beer and I tried their Gilligan’s drink (juices & vodka). The drink was refreshing for the hot weather and I ended up drinking them all weekend.
Second & Third Day, we ordered drinks by the pool; Bloody Mary’s (spicy and good), Gilligans, lemonade/​mint vodkas (refreshing in heat) and I tried the Virgin Pina Colada (very sweet, but my daughter and her friend loved it).
Servers were friendly and overall a positive experience.

This place is unbelievable. I ordered a turkey burger and club sandwich for a friend and myself at 11:50am. The restaurant was empty aside from one group of 6 who had just sat down. After 40 minutes of nothing, I finally went up and asked, noticing many other people who had arrived after me were receiving their meals. My server assured me that our meals would be right out. Five minutes later they brought out the sandwich, but no burger. Waited a little longer, then went back in and asked 3 different people if they could help track down my burger. After an hour and ten minutes, we finally got the manager to go in the kitchen (for like 5 minutes… I’m pretty sure the poor guy cooked it himself) and get my burger. They did end up comping our meal, but we were late for our afternoon conference. If I had not already paid for the meals, we would have left in a heartbeat.

If you like twelve dollar drinks that have a drop of alcohol in them, this is your place! My Cosmo was strictly fruit punch. I never drink that much so booze effects me quickly. I could have had twenty of these and driven 3000 miles afterward with zero repercussion at any sobriety checkpoint! Expensive and ridiculous! Walk to Palm Canyon Drive for the good restaurants and bars where you truly get what you pay for!

Hey, I was impressed with a place inside a hotel that has a nice lunch menu that has maybe 5, 6 things on it.
The burger for lunch was pretty simple but delicious. Well presented, juicy, and the fries were excellent. Had a drink (whiskey) and it was $ 10. I mean, I guess, since it’s in the hotel lounge.

Excellent happy hour

You have to ask for the Happy Hour Food Menu. Not cool. It’s a great deal. Why have the specials if you are going to hide the menu. Otherwise, the food is delicious and the atmosphere is resort style.

Has a South Beach overall vibe. Bartender makes a good martini. Spinach & artichoke dip needs more seasoning. The crème brûlée is worth the price and looking out over the fire pit near the pool makes for a nice evening. Just a little too «hotel bar» for my taste.