Rooster and the Pig

This place has such amazing food that I came two days in a row with an hour drive round trip. Get the tea leaf salad, the crispy spring rolls, and the F.O.B. They are all out of his world! Trust me on this. Decently priced food with the most amazing umami flavor I’ve ever had. Such unique and spectacular flavors. I was blown away. The food is relatively light as well and not overly sauced or sweet/​spicy/​salty. My new favorite place in Palm Springs.

Delicious food, clean, & super friendly staff! My fiancé & i shared the f.o.b. (& we had other foods too.) & it was just the right proportion for us. We werent stuffed but definitely full & extremely satisfied. I highly recommend this place & the next time Im back at palm springs, i will definitely come back here.

Something different in the desert with some fun Vietnamese dining.
The fact that this place is always busy is testament to how great it is, even though it’s tucked off the street in a shopping strip (behind Rio Azul restaurant).
The handsome man with the tan and silver hair will greet you with enthusiasm and seat you. Then you get a complimentary appetizer of chicken soup with rice. You only get a taster but we could have eaten a full bowl of it and left happy.
The must tries are the shrimp crêpe and the caramelized chicken.

Awesome place to eat! Tasty, friendly and fresh. Hubby and I shared the Brussels sprouts, chicken rolls, and lemongrass beef bowl. We wish we were locals because we would come here more often. You’d be crazy not to give it a try.

This place was on Unilocal with high reviews, we waited about 10 minutes outside but it is so worth it since the location isn’t too big. There is a mini bar. The food is exquisite with a smile and the owner literally walks around and talks to everyone, he’s super friendly. We started off with the Vietnamese rolls and the sauce is beyond good. The marinated steak with watercress and pickle watermelon and rice was the highlight. Such flavor and sauce and the they compliment each other, definitely recommend this place!

Food was ok at best portions where small and the waiter/​manager was pretentious. I would have to say the best thing about this place is the ambiance. I’m a local to Palm Springs always trying the new restaurants for the next best thing and I can honestly say this is not it. I do not recommend and will not be returning to this establishment.

I’m blown away by the ambiance, food, service, value and creativity. When I see Asian Fusion, I hesitate but after trying this place, I will be more open. The décor here is just perfect; a touch of Asia from different parts. Then menu is well thought out with fresh ingredients and a nice twist on things. The starter soup was great (although a dash heavy on the pepper), it was a nice rice porridge stopped with scallions. The charred brussel sprouts with garlic and chinese sausage was so flavorful. One of the best brussels I have had so far. The Jasmine green tea salad was similar to a Burmese one and is excellent. The fresh shredded tangy napa cabbage served with seeds for texture was tastefully healthy. The cod dish was a new flavor that made my tastebuds happy. This was because of the dill and tumeric. Dipping sauce was served on the side but not really needed. The jasmine iced tea was refreshing and thank goodness for the free refills. Dessert isn’t served here but lots of ice cream shops around to get a scoop. I will definitely be back!

Table for 2 on a Sunday night (memorial day weekend) was easy to get, but larger groups were waiting for a while. Rice porridge to begin with was flavorful and a perfect amuse bouche (enough for multiple spoonfuls though). Kitchen was backed up so our waiter kindly brought us a jasmine leaf salad on the house. The flavors were complex, bold, and delicious. Service was great, prices are a bit inflated.
Bahn mi burger:
Good flavors, served on ciabatta bread. Patty had a heavy dose of onion mixed in and appeared more like a meatball than patty. This caused a lot of excess bread without meat to go with it.
Sweet Potato fries:
Amazing. Fried perfectly, not greasy. Sauce (aoli) was perfect pairing.
Crispy beef noodle bowl:
Delicous enough to get again. Not much beef for the price, but cooked perfectly. Noodles were flavorful with a garlicky sweet sauce. Served without garnish… Probably due to kitchen trying to rush food out.
Will be back again.

Interesting fusion food. Diversity of flavors with some hints of Asian herbs and just enough pungency from the fish sauce to give someone a taste. The food is very approachable and definitely made for the «Americanized» palette or the person who enjoys California rolls. Service was quite attentive and the host and waiters were very warm and welcoming but we found ourselves waiting for our order and drinks.
Three, not four stars because the wine menu was not robust and the menu was a little off color when describing the categories of food, «You likey my spring roll…»

This is now my favorite place in Palm Springs. My mom and I have never had Vietnamese food other than phở so we tried out this gem.
The complimentary chicken soup with rice, green onions and fried onions is packed with flavor! My mom and I started with the braised pork and date spring rolls which was so delicious since it was savory and sweet. Then we had the colossal shrimp which was lightly battered and covered with coconut curry and pineapple slices. Next, we had the marinated steak which was tender and packed with flavor.
Our waiter, Roberto, and the host (never got this southern gentleman’s name) were so friendly! Such great customer service.
This place is reasonably priced and I will definitely be coming back to try more Vietnamese dishes.

I was bit reluctant about trying a hip fusion Vietnamese joint, especially in Palm Springs. But I’m glad I did because they do fusion well!
I loved everything we ordered, from the lap xuong (chinese sausage) Brussels sprouts to the Chicken Claypot with shishito peppers and king oyster mushrooms. They serve a small complimentary taster of rice porridge during your meal, which is the tastiest rice porridge I’ve ever had. The steak was also a nice twist on the bo luc lac (shaking beef), with familiar flavors seared to perfection topped with traditional watercress.
Honestly, this is food I would make. Traditional flavors with a modern twist update. Another amazing gem in the desert!

Delicious food that finds the middle ground between traditional and reinvented Vietnamese cuisine. The Jasmine tea leaf salad was wonderful (and interesting), and the crispy spring rolls were familiar but far better than the usual. The crispy cod was good, but not mind-​blowing — but I think that’s because I’m attached to a similar dish at another restaurant.
Great cocktails, a pleasant room and good service — definitely a keeper!

By the name of Rooster & Pig you’d think the primary meats used would be chicken & pork, but pig seems to be totally off the menu. Actually, the name of this restaurant should be Rabbit & Hare since many of the dishes are mostly garnished w/​fresh, healthful mixed salad greens.
The look is the standard early 21^st Century minimalist, low budget look of spartan, hard wooden seats, small bare, square tables, cement floor, but this time it’s decorated w/​Vietnamese looking objets d’art.
For that mid 20^th century look influenced by traditional Japanese architecture, the wide folding wall across the front of the restaurant opens up so that the interior & exterior merge into one on those balmy Palm Springs nights.
I would consider the food here to be a modern, influenced by more subtly Americanized vision of Vietnamese cuisine on a gastropub level: Uncomplicated cooking to be paired w/​beer or wine. Unfortunately no premium cold Sake (sah keh) which associates well w/​East & South East Asian influenced cuisine.
0) Amuse Gueule: Overly mushy, pasty rIce porridge /​gruel soup.
1) Vietnamese Crispy Rolls: The wrapper almost charred in spots seems made w/​rice & wheat flour and is thick & lightly fried in high heat to make a very rough textured, crunchiness filled w/​savory thinly ground chicken, wood ear fungus, glass noodles sauteed possibly w/​Nuoc Mam/​fish sauce, black pepper, garlic.
Simple healthful garnish of cabbage, purple cabbage, & sprig of cilantro. The dipping sauce is Nuoc Cham which is sweetened diluted Nuoc Mam. These tasty rolls look rustic & unrefined. This may be distantly related to the «Imperial Rolls» found at Cordon Bleu in San Francisco.
2) Crispy Calamari: Not crispy. The finely scored squid meat is dusted in a thin covering of either rice or wheat flour & fried. There are 8 small rectangles of the squid in a humongous stack of mixed greens w/​very non-​Vietnamese fresh dill leaves that seem to have a resinous, turpentine, green scent as the strongest tasting salad component which in this case worked. Accompanying the greens, that don’t seem to be tossed in any dressing, are crispy fried shallots & purple onion pickle. Least impressive of the dishes due to its lack of generosity of squid.
3) Jasmine Tea Leaf Salad: Sounds exotic, but the Jasmine tea leaf has been steeped to the point they have lost all jasmine flower fragrance so is undiscernible. This is like a chopped raw salad of refreshing watery yet crispy, fibrous Nappa cabbage, mixed salad greens, cilantro, purple Vietnamese «Shiso» leaf that exudes a very strong basilesque fragrance.
The special element that rounds out this salad is the medley of nutty seeds such as peanuts & sunflower seeds. A light dressing of Nuoc Cham adds that undertone of fish based Umami.
4) FOB Crispy Cod: White cod pieces fried in a flour batter that may have been crisp originally, but the addition of a sweet turmeric glaze made the coating rather soggy.
Again the robust resinous, turpentine dill leaf reared its head which was too strong & overwhelmed the delicate fish flavor of the cod. Decorative, airy, crispy fried ‘mai fun’ thin rice noodles festooned the dish for a bit of whimsy.
1−4a) Yona Yona Pale Ale was a great pairing to the Nuoc Mam based dishes. It has a glowing golden orange gold & cloudy w/​yeast like a German Weissbier which means it is probably unfiltered to be able to ingest healthful beer yeast.
Flavour is bold w/​refreshing white smoke, floral, hops bitterness, but has rounded sweet notes inflected w/​orange peel to bring balance.
Food here is good, but careful consideration in using such a powerful tasting herb such as dill which adds a hefty medicinal flavor should be calculated. Also don’t describe something as crispy when the end result is not.
Our waiter was great in that he was enthused about serving the food here and so has first hand experience & knowledge about the dishes when clarification is needed. The host is jovial & quick witted w/​a touch of Paul Lynde style humour.
3+ Unilocal stars for an adventurous if uneven trip to the leading edge of avant-​garde Vietnamese based cuisine located in the western extension of the Sonoran Desert.

I haven’t written a review in quite some
time but I really felt the need to this time. Let’s get this out of the way first: I’m a Vietnamese-​American from the SF Bay Area (where authentic Vietnamese cuisine is available in just about any neighborhood). I grew up eating a lot of Vietnamese food both at home and out with my friends, and I am still learning of new dishes all the time. My husband and I are here in beautiful Palm Springs on holiday with friends and saw this place on Unilocal.Food looked promising and, of course, we were suckers for the ambience.
When we got there I was taken aback by the blatant racism in front of the restaurant. A sign that reads «Why you no wait here» is where you sign your party in. We had to wait quite awhile so we took a peek at the menu. One of the categories was «you likey my spring roll». I get it, it’s meant to be cheeky. I’m no prude by any means, and I was surprised at how offended I was. This is a restaurant in the trendy downtown area that caters to mostly non-​Vietnamese clientele without a single Vietnamese employee. I felt so misrepresented. I brushed it off, and hoped the food made up for the bad taste in my mouth.
I ordered the rice noodles with lemongrass beef (at home, this would be called «bun thit nuong» which you could get for $ 7-​$ 10) and the «Vietnamese» egg rolls to share. The egg rolls came out first, and I was impressed that they used rice paper instead of wonton paper, but the flavor was not right. Although there was a good amount of filling, it was bland to me. It should also be served with much more nuoc mam and lettuce to wrap the egg rolls and the rest of the greens for dipping. Then the noodles came out and I couldn’t help but think, «wtf is this…» the noodles were obviously undercooked. «al dente» isn’t a thing in Vietnamese cuisine. Again, not enough vegetables to accompany the dish — no sprouts and only two mint leaves. the flavor overall was also very bland.
They get two stars because their rooster and pig logo is cute and the nuoc mam (fish sauce) wasn’t bad. Overall, the menu and food are a complete misrepresentation of Vietnamese culture and cuisine.

There’s a certain danger in writing a review a month after visiting — so I’ll be careful and generous as I go!
I’ll generalize — the food was good. There are many interesting, unusual dishes to choose from. The courses struck me as being on the smaller side, but portion control is an issue for many of us so not sure I’d consider that an issue, just be forewarned and order an additional dish if you’re extra hungry!
It wasn’t a stainless visit though. When you arrive, you write your own name on their waiting list — and from what I understand, there’s always a wait. We did that — and after 45 minutes we stopped someone (they seemed pretty short staffed for a Friday night) and they informed us that they’d called our name and we hadn’t replied. That wasn’t true — there were two «David’s» on the list and they scratched both off — we were constantly 20 feet from the list and they hadn’t called us. They said they’d get us in right away — and after another 20 minute wait, they did so.
The food was good. The wait was not. I’d experience this once for sure, but there are so many good places in Palm Springs that unless you are truly smitten, I’d venture to some of the others as well.

Rooster and the Pig is a small and trendy Vietnamese restaurant in the Downtown Palm Springs area. It’s a short walk away from most of the major hotels in the area but not on one of the main bustling streets which is so nice.
Everything is served family style so come with a group and share! My friends that I was with ordered the braised beef with butternut, crispy beef noodle, and the lemongrass pork with vermicelli. Everything ordered was DELICIOUS. The braised beef was so tender it was practically shredding itself and it paired so lovely with the butternut. The egg noodles were delightfully crisp and flavorful. I have a peanut allergy so I didn’t get to taste the lemon grass pork with vermicelli, but it was completely finished, so it had to have been good.
One of my favorite things is they give you a little bit of rice porridge after you order. It’s made with sweet rice, there’s some ginger in there, pepper and crispy shallots.
Overall, I loved the little touches in décor such as the tea cans they use to hold the chop sticks and napkins and the mismatching plates. I’d love to come back to this place when I’m in Palm Springs next.

Ok, I am not sure why this place got such good reviews?! I don’t mean to be a food snob, but I thought it was just okay :\ I mean, if you’ve never had Vietnamese food, this place may be amazing (since vietnamese food in general is really good), but if you have, this place was not that special in my opinion.
I came here MLK weekend with my bf during our trip to Palm Springs. Rooster and the Pig was one of the first places to pop up because of the high reviews. It looked good, so we settled on this place for dinner. We came around 6pm on Sunday (before MLK weekend) and got seated within 10 – 20 min. I would come early because the crowds do build up closer to 7pm.
We sat at the bar. The restaurant was dim and the ambience was pretty hipster and not really Asian themed. This place is definitely more of a fusion place and not an «authentic» vietnamese restaurant. They gave us some porridge as a complimentary appetizer. This might have been the best part of the meal since it was tasty and free!
We shared the tea leaf salad, the crispy beef noodles, and the lemongrass pork and shrimp noodles. The portions were pretty small. This wouldn’t be a problem if the food were amazing, but it just wasn’t. The tea leaf salad doesn’t even compare to the salads I’ve had at Burmese restaurants (like Burma Superstar); I could barely taste the tea leaves. It’s still good, but I don’t think I’d pay $ 12 to eat it again. The crispy noodles… sigh. I was expecting much more. There isn’t much besides the crispy beef and the noodles. I couldn’t really taste the beef in the crispy beef; there seemed to be a lot of breading. The sauce was a little too sweet in my opinion. This dish kind of reminded me of panda express. Don’t get me wrong, I like panda express, but not for $ 14!
And then there is the lemongrass pork and grilled shrimp noodles. It’s good. The quality is there. If you’ve never had vermicelli noodles from viet/​phở places, then you might be blown away because this is one of my favorite dishes to order. But I didn’t see anything special or different about this dish compared to other places I’ve been to, which is half the price with larger portions.
I don’t know what kinds of restaurants there are in Palm Springs and how this place compares to the other restaurants in the area, but if there are a lot of vietnamese restaurants near your home already, I wouldn’t recommend coming here… this place has good food, but it is pricey and overrated (to me).

This place was so busy on the day that I went, it must be a good sign. The wait is based on a sign in sheet at the front and you just wait to be called. Your entire party must be present or you will be skipped. All this said, the wait outside is pretty long, but everyone stayed, meaning the food must be good.
It was.
I ordered the Banh Mi burger, which was very flavorful and juicy. The pairings of the herbs and pickled vegetables gave it that Banh Mi flavor, without it being a Banh Mi. I actually prefer this burger to Banh Mi because it seems to have more meat and flavor than traditional Banh Mi which is heavy on bread.
The party sitting next to me had a whole fish that they devoured and they said it was amazing. The atmosphere was very casual, yet still classy. The bartender was very helpful and let me know what her preferences were on food choices. They also have a small, but good selection of beer and cocktails.
I will be coming back here to try more stuff, but overall, good experience. The wait was the only negative, but it meant that it was something worth waiting for.

I have read that Vietnamese people always greet with, «Ban da an chua», or «Did you eat yet?» Better than an hollow «How are you» greeting, especially if I knew I was going to eat here, I would most certainly say I was starving, suck in my fat cheeks for visual confirmation, and go find a seat.
I would not be lying if I said, this meal was possibly one of the best Southeast Asian Fusion meals I have ever experienced. And even though the menu was quite limited and we only tried 4 things, my suspicions are you could do no wrong eating here. Our waitress advised us that the common practice is to order an appetizer, maybe a salad, and 2 entrees for the two of us. Good, because I had already picked out four things, exactly that. She advised that these would come out progressively so we would not be bombarded with food all at the same time. The kitchen’s timing was perfect.
First came a tiny bowl of the most delicate rice porridge, full of flavor, but just a few sips. This is not something you order, it is on the house.
Next, the Whole Marinated Shrimp in Wonton, Fresh, tender, deveined shrimp wrapped in a fried wonton wrapper, accompanied by a ginger-​soy sauce that had been delicately seasoned with 5 star anise. The sauce was delicious. But an uneven count of five shrimp? If I had been on a first date, what was that silliness about?
Secondly, the Jasmine Tea Leaf Salad. I have had something similar in Burmese restaurants. This one I loved beyond words. It comes with each ingredient featured in its own little pile, pretty to look at, and you toss it at the table. But what it does in your mouth is the clincher. The explosion of generous amounts of toasted sesame and sunflower seeds, crispy shallots, fermented tea leaves, young leafy greens, mint and cilantro, with a light Asian dressing is incomparable. If you try nothing else, this is the one dish you *must* order.
My other complete favorite was the Crispy Beef Noodle, an egg noodle dish with thinly sliced, lightly coated, crunchy beef, tossed in a most flavorful, slightly sweet, brown sauce that had me scratching my head. No figuring out the ingredients here, I simple dived in and never looked back. Absolutely wonderful, I will definitely be ordering this again!
The Lemongrass Pork and Shrimp starts with a pile of rice vermicelli noodle topped with cucumber, shredded carrot and mild turnip, fried shallots, toasted sesame seeds, and a generous portion of grilled marinated pork and shrimp. It comes with the traditional, sweet, lemony fish sauce to dump then toss. Delicious and familiar to me, it is a good choice.
This is a «No Reservations» restaurant, small but quite chic. First here, first seated, a line already forming by 6 pm on a pre-​holiday weekday. There were a dozen tables or so inside. We sat at one of three small tables outside, in the semi-​chill of a December desert evening, romantically staged with vibrant stars ablaze and a nearly full moon. There were outdoor heaters, but a jacket might be preferred. Inside was tight seating, much warmer, but maybe even a bit too warm.
The service was beyond reproach. Super hustling, non-​uniformed servers with upbeat attitudes and warming smiles, we were made to feel very welcome and special. The owner was also highly visible, not particularly outgoing, but very focused and single-​minded in making this a fabulous experience. Forgiven.
One thing for sure, this is definitely one of Palm Spring’s best, maybe one of Southern California’s best. This will be my measuring stick for Southeast Asian cuisine.

4 ½ stars Vietnamese fusion. I was seated asap after parking in the shared parking lot on a Wednesday evening. The menu changes frequently because I asked for the lemongrass wings but they weren’t offered on the current menu. I heart the décor and open view venue of my table which had a view of wide open front patio which was comfy on a October evening.
The staff here was friendly, efficient and there was no lack of help. I was helped by several different waitresses which was pleasant but not overbearing. Complimentary rice soup or porridge, followed with summer rolls with fish which was light and the dipping sauce was awesome. For my main entrée I selected the lemongrass pork, shrimp, ground peanuts, herbs and fresh noodles. The combination of all the items was just amazing — not greasy and just excellent. Of course I requested dessert and my waitress said the offering that evening was the purple yam topped with crispy rice, mixed with thin sliced mango — I’m not a fan of yams or sweet potato, but this was insanely delish and not overly sweet which I really enjoyed. The dessert portion was large enough to share but it was so yummy I ate it ALL.
The Coachella Valley finally has a legit Vietnamese fusion restaurant that I’ll be returning to for sure in the future.