The Tropicale opened in Downtown Palm Springs in 2007, built around the feel of a vintage 1960s supper club. Chef Tony Di Lembo, who has spent decades cooking around the world, runs a menu the restaurant describes as comfort food from around the world — a mix of childhood favorites and more global flavors that rotates with weekly specials.
The room centers on a 50-seat mid-century-style bar that wraps into the dining room and out to an outdoor bar, one of the few in town. Outside, guests can sit in a covered patio lined with olive trees and fountains or on the open-air Tiki patio with date palms and fire torches, both fitted with misters and heaters for the desert seasons. The calamari has become a regular order among returning customers, and the patio scene is as much a draw as the food.
Regulars note that the exterior undersells what's inside, and service is consistently called out as a strength. Palm Springs Life named The Tropicale to its Best of 2025 list.
The room centers on a 50-seat mid-century-style bar that wraps into the dining room and out to an outdoor bar, one of the few in town. Outside, guests can sit in a covered patio lined with olive trees and fountains or on the open-air Tiki patio with date palms and fire torches, both fitted with misters and heaters for the desert seasons. The calamari has become a regular order among returning customers, and the patio scene is as much a draw as the food.
Regulars note that the exterior undersells what's inside, and service is consistently called out as a strength. Palm Springs Life named The Tropicale to its Best of 2025 list.