Wally’s Desert Turtle

This is what fine dining is supposed to be.
Came here with the wife for restaurant week. We were seated right away (even though we were a few minutes early for our reservation), and started with a cocktail while we looked over the menu.
I decided on the braised pork belly for my appetizer, and it was delicious. For the main course, I opted for the filet of beef, which was among the most tender and tasty I’ve ever had; there was not a speck of fat on it, and I didn’t leave a morsel behind. For desert, I had the pear tart, which was also quite tasty, and light enough that I could eat the whole thing, despite the feast I had already devoured. We also had a nice bottle of French wine, which was an excellent complement to the food.
Throughout the meal, there was wait staff everywhere, filling water glasses, clearing empty plates, etc. Our main waiter, Jim, was friendly and efficient, and certainly not snooty. I did not touch our bottle of wine for the entire meal, as someone was always there to make sure our glasses didn’t run too low. It seemed that every patron in the place was made to feel as if they were a V.I.P.
Everything about this place — the décor, the food, and the service — were top notch. To be able to experience all of this for the restaurant week pricing of $ 38 per person was indeed a special treat. We will most certainly be returning.

It has taken me two days to calm down and regroup from our unpleasant experience with Michael. We, and another family seated next to us, both had purchased
certificates. Going by the certificates we understood we could use them. Lol-​not so. It really wasn’t funny as Michael was overtly rude refusing the certificate and belittling us like we were criminals or something. We are customers of Wallys for over twenty years and have never used this promotion before. I am sorry Michael misunderstood our intentions-​which was not to cheat him at all.

Restaurant week is in full force so we tried Wally’s and were wonderfully surprised. Michael, JB and crew took very good care of us… The food from the prix fixe menu was also very good. Pork belly, rack of lamb and sorbe trio w/​fruit was very well prepared and presented. This is without a doubt a neighborhood gem. We’ll be back. Oh another plus for this place is Mr. John Bolivar on reeds.stellar.

Where do I begin? My best friend and I came here for Restaurant Week because we have lived in the valley for many years and had never tried Wally’s Desert Turtle. All of the staff was so welcoming and accommodating. Service was impeccable. The décor is plush, gold and glass accents. The music was relaxing. We started with the pork belly which was beautifully presented and tasted just as lovely. Our main course was the filet and I have never had such a tender cut of beef. Practically melted in my mouth. The accompanying potatoes were delicious, too. Dessert was profiteroles for me and lava cake for my friend. Absolutely everything was gorgeous and tasted amazing. Our entire experience was wonderful and I can’t wait to come back.

Old school, stuffy place with intentionally slow service.
Food was very good.
Recommend for special occasions.

Ate last night with 3 girlfriends… food was amazing, service impeccable and ambiance was lovely. Had the filet mignon.. have rarely had meat that tasted so good. The grand Marnier soufflé was perfect. We also had an excellent wine, from a well researched wine list. Will try to make this a yearly tradition.

Dinner and dessert was delicious. The soufflés are to die for! This pretty restaurant had a relaxing ambiance and attentive service. The staff were really nice and professional. Loved this place! We did have a gift card we used though, as this place was really expensive. I’d come back, but I’d save it for a special occasion.

The absolute best service and best restaurant we have been to in a long time. From Chicago, we frequent many high end steakhouses and Wallys really went the extra mile beyond the food/​service. The soufflés are a must and I personally loved the Dover sole.

Food: I am writing this review for one reason. It was the BEST lamb I have ever had. It was one of the most tender perfect cuts of meat. This is what you should order.
Service: Great, all the staff was very nice and friendly.
Ambiance: Upscale Palm Springs restaurant. Clean.
Summary: If you are wanting a nice quite upscale meal this is your place.
TIPS: Order the Lamb
TIPS: They are known for their Souffles

I had the amazing pleasure of having my birthday dinner here. First thing you notice is OLD SCHOOL customer service. Beautiful restaurant with an impeccable staff. They made the night super special. Excellent place to enjoy a perfectly made martini. I ordered the rack of Lamb which was prefect. This is the kind of place you MUST get dressed up, trust me, you’ll fit right in.

Best Christmas day turkey dinner ever last night. Service was unobtrusive yet omnipresent. I thought about asking for less ice in my Arnold Palmer because there was no liquid. Never got the chance. It was always full. Must have been refilled 8 times… that I noticed. Turkey was flawless. Staff was so friendly!

Our Killer Restaurant search took us to Wally’s and it was spectacular. The ambiance and service are top shelf, and the food is magnificent. They have an extensive choice of soufflés. Their wine list is great, and they make a killer margarita.

Phenomenal. Impeccable service with top notch quality food. Enjoyed an anniversary dinner with the love of my life. Never felt rushed for the entire 3 hours we spent dining there. Foie gras, French onion soup, ricotta gnocchi, prime New York steak with crispy short rib cannelloni and ended with a soft and moist chocolate lava cake.
We will return, money well spent.
One tip: the atrium is a «nice» seating area but if you are wanting to be romantic, the booths that overlook the entire dining room are much more intimate and in my opinion far better then the table tops they have. I enjoyed the booth I requested as it allowed us for more intimacy.
See you soon wally’s!

Our second time here and the last. We are not unaccustomed to fine dining. The ambiance is great and the service was there. When I say «there», they were always there. Asking us about ordering, if we were finished, etc. It was done in such a way that you felt hurried and they were «just doing business». When we drop almost $ 200 for dinner, we want to feel important. I don’t want to feel rushed or hurried along, like they need to turn the table. I want the waiter and staff to engage with me and make it an experience. There are too many other good restaurants in the desert who’s staff wants to talk to the customer, not talk at them.
And the food, for the most part was good. I did get sick, though. I think from the mussels. A little too rubbery. Again, another reason not to return.

Wow — what a nice surprise! Wally’s is certainly an institution and I was prepared to be underwhelmed… lucky for our group that we were not. The décor is a little old school and dated, but the service and food are standouts for sure! I had the french onion soup to start (yummy!) followed by the pan fried whitefish with butternut squash purée, brussel sprout leaves, smoked bacon and a pomegranate gastrique… ooh la la, so amazing! That fish was seriously one of the best dishes I have tasted in a long time… seriously, that good! We sampled several desserts and all of them were to die for. I don’t think you can go wrong with anything you order at Wally’s!

Step into Wally’s and you are transported to the hey day of fine dining.
Executive chef Richard Pelz blew us away with his Foie Gras, his mushroom soup and his tuna tartare to start. I had the lamb and my date had the chicken. Absolutely divine.
You come here for the Soufflé that you must order at the beginning of your meal! We had the bananas foster — amazing!!!
James was our waiter, what a gem. He was so knowledgable and filled us in on the history of the place — so cool!
The manager walked around checking up on every table RatPack style. So neat.
Best dining in the desert!

Wally’s in décor & much of its food is a throw back to the glorious fancy dining days of the 1950’s & 60’s. The fancy foods in those days were often called «continental cuisine». Veal Oscar, Lobster Thermidor, Chicken Cacciatore, or Kiev w/​herbed butter oozing out when cut, Steak au Poivre w/​a bordelaise sauce are some of the examples.
The over-​the-​top sumptuousness of late 1970’s is the theme for their interior design motif. The venerable, formal, pretentious Perino’s on Wilshire Boulevard, & Scandia’s on the Sunset Strip come to mind. For me, Wally’s is not so much an exercise in partaking of sophisticated, nuanced, well thought out cuisine as much as it is an exercise in reveling in the glitzy opulence of the décor, service by numerous black vested waiters, & silver plated ice buckets table side. It seems more like a self-​congratulatory toast to tell others that you have «arrived».
Wally’s carries on the traditions of an «all American» restaurant”. Portions are super sized since in much of our American thinking, «Nothing succeeds like excess». Therefore, I did not order an appetizer since the main dish & dessert would be more than sufficient even for a big eater like me. However, just want to add that various forms of Foie Gras are back as grille, torchon, mousse which tempted me badly.
1) Skillet-​Sauteed Hercules Ranch Prime New York Steak was thick, meaty, lightly beefy in taste that I requested medium rare, but was closer to medium so that the meat’s texture was a bit more dense, tough & dry than expected. There was a deconstructed «steak au poivre» concept by scattering crushed black peppercorns, which seemed sautéed in a bit of olive oil, around the negative white space of the dish so that one had the option of eating the steak w/​the smoky, piquant black pepper.
1) Crispy Cannelloni stuffed w/​short ribs seemed like a great partner to the steak, but the fried Cannelloni pasta was leathery, tough, & overly chewy. However, the braised short ribs had an excellent au jus & buttery flavour. The potato purée was smooth, thick, buttery which went well w/​the steak. Kale seemed blanched & sautéed in some more butter & a bit of broth, & rubbery, mushy Porcini mushrooms without much forest flavour were a garnish. Sauce Bordelaise made from Merlot was presented as a side. All the elements presented for this dish may not have complemented each other in a finely tuned manner, but overall, this dish was hearty, robust, & would satisfy a healthy Mid Western appetite.
1a) The waiter thought that a Merlot would pair w/​the NY Steak so I chose the Swanson Cygnet Merlot, Napa Valley 2011. Black cherry, blackberry, touch of blueberries & vanilla w/​light cinnamon. Good acid to balance the slight jamminess & smooth tannins for structure.
2) I craved a retro dessert, & the Baked Alaska was visually a feast for the eyes. It was a high crested hill of white sculpted, whipped egg white Meringue slightly caramelized a light brown in parts by the high oven heat. Texture of this meringue was pleasantly gooey encasing coconut pineapple, strawberry, & vanilla ice cream. Surrounding the perimeter of the towering Baked Alaska was a decorative mélange of various fruit infused jellies of green, red, orange. Chopped strawberries, & cherries which tasted of being braised in a French tarragon infusion. Perhaps Gelati or more creamy ice cream may have made for better mouthfeel than the rather hard, stiff ice cream that was provided, but the Baked Alaska was an interesting flashback to what our parents or grandparents may have eaten on those special occasions.
2a) Coffee was served in an old-​time, small, weighty, sliver plated lidded pitcher, & is rustic w/​heavy, slightly smoky, yet mellow richness. It reminded me of the Mexican Café de Olla sans the spices. It was a good foil to the sweetness of the Baked Alaska. Wally’s is very generous w/​refills.
Waiters here are good natured, friendly, & courteous, but they seem to lack intimate culinary knowledge associated w/​the food here. I am ever curious about food so I would ask the gracious waiters what was the sauce & its basic ingredients or ask if the cherries were braised in a sauce infused w/​Estragon. But I could not get an informed answer although he did offer to ask. It seems that the management is not into educating the staff, & that may be because the customers in general lack interest.
Also, there is no one who is expertly knowledgeable in charge of suggesting wines that fit the customers’ tastes & budget. This is why I am going to say that Wally’s is a high-​end restaurant, but not necessarily a fine dining establishment. For most people out to have a fancy meal, Wally’s would rate high, but for those who are more aware of finer dining points, Wally’s looks & feels great, but the food somehow lacks in sophistication, nuance, & well thought out cuisine. 3+ Unilocal stars for a high end if not fine dining meal.

Well I
Must say an amazing experience. Service food ambiance very very nice. Shrimp cocktail, burata salad, Endive, Dover’s sole, salmon, whitefish and the filet were all amazing fresh ingredients. Really
Nice soufflé too. Nice bottle of Duckhorn probably the best fine dinning in the Desert by far!

There are many choices in the Coachella valley that offer fine dining but Wally’s should be option number 1 if you want the best.
Wally’s has been established here for many years and for good reason. The service is upscale, elegant and top notch.
Granted it is not in the lower price range for those who are price conscious but if you want to experience the highest standards in cuisine, class and service make a trip to Wally’s for that special time you want to treat yourself to gourmet chef dishes that set the gold standard for the area.

Wow! This place was amazing. I brought a group of clients to this restaurant and boy did they deliver. Some of the highlights are below.
–Great round table where all six people in our group could talk to each other
–Amazing service
–Good and reasonable wine list
–The tuna tartare was amazing!
I know everyone recommends the duck but I went for the special which was lobster pasta. I’ll have to go back for the duck.