Palm Springs Bar Crawl: The Bar, Desert Fox and Tonga Hut

 

Off season in Palm Springs could be paradise. You get all the sun, fun and pool time without gobs of tourists. But it also makes bar hopping interesting. Some bars close early and some aren’t even open. Luckily, we made it to The Bar the second night I was in Palm Springs.

The Bar has some cool murals out front and a little birdie told me they occasionally allow patrons to paint their walls. I don’t know about that as I was more about checking out the drinks (maybe they should do a drink and draw night).

Everyone was getting tequila cocktails that evening but I felt a bit more tropical in the still desert night.

 

So I went with a Trinidad Sour. Occasionally I like “inverted cocktails” as they’re low-proof (well, lower) and you can bar hop quite easily. The base is Angostura bitters with a bit of rye, orgeat and lemon juice. It’s refreshing and tangy.

 

The Bar

 340 N Palm Canyon Dr., Palm Springs, CA 92262  —  (760) 537-7337

 

There’s a beauty to dive bars. Not that I think the Desert Fox is really a dive. It’s a locals bar that opens early in the day that draws everyone from residents to those wanting more than hotel bars. Or if The Bar just closed on you like it did us the first night we were in Palm Springs.

The decor was an interesting mix of lava lamps, art and things straight out of the movie, “Cocktail.”

 

We all went with whiskey on the rocks. There was a decent selection of American whiskey but you’re out of luck if your whiskey taste runs more towards Scotland.

Desert Fox

224 N Palm Canyon Dr., Palm Springs, CA 92262  — (760) 325-9555

 

Also on the same street is Tonga Hut. It’s an outpost of the tiki bar from North Hollywood and does a fine job in the desert.

 

The extensive list of tiki drinks lured us in and we tried a couple of drinks. I opted for the La Floridita #2 made with Selvarey rum. La Floridita is basically a daiquiri with maraschino. Tonga Hut’s #2 seems to feature orange juice. On the menu, it’s described simply as rum and orange juice. I suspect the maraschino has been dropped considering how tart it was not that I minded on this hot, still night.

 

I mentioned the Pina Colada with Selvarey before I wanted to add one more thing. This was made with the white but I think this would be even better with the cacao infused Selvarey.

The bar hope was very successful considering how close all these bars are to each other and they’re not too far from Workshop Kitchen + Bar which is considered one of the best bars and restaurants in Palm Springs.

Tonga Hut Palm Springs

254 N Palm Canyon Dr., Palm Springs, CA 92262  —  (760) 322-4449

 

© The Minty  2014