On the Road: Native Foods, Palm Springs, CA

I recently took a mini road trip to California with a friend. We managed to visit a few vegan and vegan-friendly restaurants on our trip. Our first stop was Native Foods in Palm Springs, the very first Native Foods restaurant. I am a big fan of the Chicken Run Ranch Burger they have and always need one whenever I visit Cali.

Here's what we ordered.

Watermelon Fresca and Native Seasoned Fries

The Watermelon Fresca was very refreshing. It was the perfect light beverage. Not too much like juice, but not too watery either. The fries were pretty tasty. I don't know what all the spices were on them, but there was definitely some paprika.

Chicken Run Ranch Burger (comes with a side of edamame)

I love the Chicken Run Ranch Burger. Fried chicken-style seitan and the best vegan ranch... mmmm! And underneath that mound of greenery, carrots, and onions is the other bun making this an official sandwich. But I do have to say the Costa Mesa location does it better. I have no idea why.

Oklahoma Bacon Cheeseburger

I'm really not sure why I have never ordered this sandwich before. It's right up my alley. The suprise ingredient on this burger is fried pickles. This sandwich is big, and very tasty. I can see why it doesn't come with a side, but I still think it should.

Strawberry Shortcake Parfait

My friend is (not-so) patiently waiting for me to take the [damn] picture so she can dig in. This was ok. The problem with strawberry-based desserts is that you really have to have quality strawberries, fresh and perfectly ripe, in order to do them right by me. Sadly, 90% of the time, they're not good enough for my high strawberry standards.

Apple Cobbler

I'm not 100% on the name of the Apple Cobbler because it is not listed on the online menu. I do know that you can't find it at all of the locations. I believe it is special just to the Palm Springs location, which is why I ordered it. I was beyond full by the time the cobbler arrived. It was fine, but it tasted a little bit on the healthy side instead of the rich desserty side.

Overall, a pleasant dining experience in the middle of the desert. I'll probably try to make this my regular food stop on most trips to California. Too bad it's a bit farther off the I-10 than I would like.

Native Foods (Palm Springs)

Ranking: ****

***** awesome! Highly recommended.
**** hey, this is pretty dang good.
*** not bad at all.
** eh.
* bad. Keep looking for alternatives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Native Foods (Palm Springs)
Smoke Tree Village
1775 E. Palm Canyon Drive
Palm Springs, CA 92264
(760) 416-0070
http://www.nativefoods.com/

Summer Hours
Monday- Friday  11AM-9PM
Saturday-Sunday  12PM-9PM