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From the sound of things, I'd say the experience that one used to get at Zin is now being delivered in spades at Cuistot. The price points are quite similar, but both the food and service (as well as the ambiance) were far better at Cuistot. Zin seemed to be getting a bit rough around the edges. I don't have anything to compare it to because this was my first visit, but I trust your and Andy's taste so I can't imagine Zin being quite the same as it used to be.

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Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

My parents retired several years ago to La Quinta (about 30 or so minutes from Palm Springs), so I'm out there at least a few times per year. And while it's typically easy to find a restaurant with a beautiful outdoor dining area, I find it much harder to get a really good meal, particularly one with anything that could be described as contemporary. And while there's Asian food, there's nothing I'd really call worthy.

But one place definitely worth talking about is the very recently opened Figue Mediterranean Restaurant in La Quinta. My parents made the dinner reservation without my input, but in reviewing their website, one thing immediately caught my attention. The chef at Figue, Francois de Melogue, was previously the chef at Pili.Pili here in Chicago, a restaurant I loved but now miss terribly. He was also a chef at The Bakery here in Chicago.

In any event, Chef Melogue seems to be putting out much of the same outstanding food he did at Pili.Pili. In fact, I might have enjoyed this meal more than any at Pili.Pili.

As for food, we shared a few appetizers: a terrific Margherita pizza, which offered a beautifully charred crust and excellent quality fresh tomatoes and basil. There was also an excellent Mediterrano salad - feta, red onion, red pepper, olives, pine nuts and date leather (like a fruit roll-up in texture) - which had a nice sweet, salty, briny flavor combination and great quality ingredients. My favorite appetizer was either the pizza or the seared scallops served in a delicious carrot-saffron sauce.

One other item on the menu that really caught my attention was the chickpea frites served as an accompaniment to the chicken tagine dish. One of my very favorite items at Pili.Pili was the panisse (i.e., chickpea frites). I asked if we could get them as a side, and they happily obliged. Interestingly, the owner was making rounds, and when he came over, he mentioned that no one had ever asked for the chickpea frites on their own, and he was curious what led me to want them as a side. I explained that I loved them at Pili.Pili and I knew the chef was from there. Shortly thereafter, Chef Melogue came over and said hello and was very appreciative of the kind words and talked about how he's essentially recreating and improving upon what he did at Pili.Pili in Chicago at Figue.

More importantly, the panisse were every bit as great as I remember them being at Pili.Pili - thick, with a soft interior yet lightly crisp exterior, and with just the perfect seasoned chickpea flavor. I suggested they make these a separate item on the menu - they're just so addictive.


crappy cell phone pic of the chickpea frites (panisse)



But to simply focus on the panisse would be a disservice to what they're doing at Figue. For my main course, I had the Fideua and it was also terrific. A very generous portion of perfectly cooked lobster, along with perfectly cooked shrimp and clams, rouille, all atop a saffron scented pasta.


crappy cell phone pic of the Fideua


I also tasted some of my dad's gnocchi, which were light as a feather, and served with a delicious and rich pork and porcini ragu. Overall, a really outstanding meal and a must visit if you're in the area - a very short drive from the La Quinta resort and the Indian Wells resort, and less than 15 minutes from the Marriott resort.

So although I continue to miss Pili.Pili, I'm happy that I'll once again be able to enjoy Chef Melogue's food, and probably a few times a year.

Figue Mediterranean Restaurant
47474 Washington St.
La Quinta, CA 92253
Phone: 760.698.9040

Years ago, there used to be Palm Korea, who served very decent (tho overpriced) Korean food to the local shop owners. They closed a few years ago: http://www.yelp.com/biz/palm-korea-desert-hot-springs

I also found the revamped Morgan's menu very edible, even though people mostly associate it with resort food. Nothing on the menu is innovative or "street" or "global" or whatever the catch phrase is these days, but it was all surprisingly decent, more than it had to be.

I just ate there too. Those in the Midwest might be familiar with the chef, Jimmy Schmidt. And my understanding is that he is in the kitchen nightly - he was there on my visit. You're correct that it's not really innovative, but what impressed me with Morgan's on this visit was variety and quality of locally sourced vegetables, including artichokes, asparagus, morels, beets, favas, etc. In particular, I had an excellent risotto with asparagus and morels.

I'm actually headed to Palm Desert this weekend for my niece's high school graduation (hooray for 100+ degree temperatures all weekend...). My only dining plans outside of In-N-Out is to try King's Highway at the Ace Hotel. It is described as an updated roadside diner with local or artisanal ingredients.

King's Highway
701 E. PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS, CA 92264
http://www.acehotel.com/palmsprings/dining