Not wanting a super long drive home from Sedona, we decided to make an overnight stop. Idyllwild immediately came to mind, but this was in February. After discussing options for a bit; we decided on staying a night in Palm Springs. The last time we had been to Palm Springs was waaay back when we lived in LA. We recalled being treated quite rudely by both the tourists visiting and by the folks working there, so we never returned. So, we were quite interested to see that if almost three decades of time would have changed our opinion.
We decided to stay at the Casa Cody, which I read was the oldest continuously operating hotel in the city. I thought we’d enjoy the location, which was close to the heart of the city, but still tucked a few blocks away. We had enjoyed our stays at Marina Riviera in Big Bear, which is a sister property of Casa Cody. And we did enjoy our stay in the almost Adobe/Hacienda style motel. Even though the parking is on the street, JJ liked riding in the wagon that we used to take our luggage to our room.
We enjoyed staying at Casa Cody, which had a nice, retro-relaxed vibe to it.
The staff were really friendly as well.
Casa Cody
175 S Cahuilla Rd.
Palm Springs, CA 92262
Of course, as soon as we checked in….well JJ kept throwing hints that we needed to get on out and explore a bit.
So, the Missus got to do some shopping.
There were some interesting places……
There’s also quite a bit of public art around the city.
It was getting close to dinner time, so we decided to walk up North Palm Canyon Drive to a really dog friendly restaurant named Boozehounds. The menu seemed interesting with everything from Shrimp and Grits to Chicken Adobo to Maguro Tataki. But the Missus really didn’t seem interested. So, we headed back down…..
And finally settled on a Japanese-Sushi styled restaurant named Ponzu Sushi which was just a block from where we were staying.
The menu here is also somewhat fusiony and I understand that the Chefs are Thai. Though there seemed to be some interesting menu items. There were the usual suspects beerwise; but I decided to try the “Old Timer Tokyo” a version of an Old Fashioned which was also smoked.
Which was pretty good; not overly sweet.
First to arrive the Miso Black Cod, which lacked decent carmelization…a big no-no for me.
The flavor seemed a bit watered down; though the fish was quite tender.
Next up was the Uni Hotate Yuzu which was $28. It was basically two scallops sliced lengthwise into three piece portions and two uni divided the same way.
Basically two bites made into six. This was fine though the yuzu and citrusy tones pretty much ruled the dish.
We got two A5 Wagyu Nigiri ($12 each), which was served with one of those tabletop smoke infusers.
While it looked like the beef was a bit overly cooked, it was very tender and velvety; the smoke flavor wasn’t overwhelming and added a nice savory layer to the beef.
The rice was a bit too chewy; but this was by far our favorite dish on the evening.
The Bluefin Tuna Tartare ($28) was a close second.
Not super fond of those won ton chips; but the velvety quail egg added a nice creaminess to the chu-toro which was texturally good; not mushy or too chewy. I actually enjoyed the thin slices of black truffle which didn’t overwhelm the dish.
I saw that they had Kinmedai on the menu so we got two orders of nigiri ($17 each).
I like kinmedai because it’s usually a bit more creamy-fatty than tai, but this was on the drier and chewier side of the scale. Again, the rice was a bit harder than we prefer.
The service was professional and the place filled up pretty quickly. It’s obviously quite a popular restaurant it seems.
Not a bad dinner.
Ponzu Sushi – Palm Springs
100 West Tahquitz Canyon Way
Palm Springs, CA 92262
And if you think this looks good. I recently read that Ponzu will be opening here in San Diego at Liberty Station, where El Jardin used to be. I’m thinking they might do well at that location.
We took JJ to a nice after dinner stroll. Palm Springs has a long history of being a retreat for the Hollywood Elite. In fact Elvis himself spent an extended honeymoon in Palm Springs! And of course, Marilyn Monroe obviously has a history here as well! And there’s a 26 foot tall statue of her in an iconic pose. It’s named Forever Marilyn.
Of course, in this pose, it seems like Marilyn has pooped a pup!
We had a nice night of rest. Our accommodation served breakfast and coffee, so after getting my caffeine fix; we took JJ for a nice morning walk.
This was an interesting looking home. It’s called the Aluminaire House. You can read about it here.
Lots of photo-ops for JJ…….
Before we headed back to pack and head on home. Another road trip in the books; though we’d be headed back out again in a couple of weeks.
Thanks for stopping by!