Tuesday, January 3, 2023
Vacation day 25 of 30. Trip vacation day 1 of 6. Rode Uber Comfort with Patrick to SFO. We knew that ours was a short flight that would not include a full meal, so we purchased a chicken caesar wrap from Plant Store post-TSA. Alaska Airlines flight to Palm Springs. Patrick bought us first class tickets to alleviate some of his travel anxiety and because he says it didn't cost that much more. The flight was uneventful except for an accident in which a sandwich dressing spilled across my lap. We rode Uber Comfort to Santiago Resort. Charles checked us in to room 206. We unpacked and refreshed. We walked to Palm Springs Cleaners (760-325-8578, 425 S. Sunrise Way) to drop off my pants then visited CVS for some toiletries. Walked back to Santiago. Rested. We walked to dinner at Bar Cecil: San Pell sparkling water; Oaxaca old-fashioned (tequila ocho reposado, Ilegal mezcal reposado, house agave syrup) for Patrick, The Brock (Campo Azul tequila blanco, Cointreau, fresh lime, float of St. Germain foam) for me; we shared the colossal shrimp cocktail (Mexican blue diamond shrimp, dill, cocktail sauce, lemon); Patrick had the smoked bone-in Duroc pork chop with seasonal chutney, potatoes au gratin, and broccolini; I had the Beaton burger with comté cheese, aioli, onion, tomato, lettuce and side of dill pickle and French fries. All food and drink and setting were excellent. On a future trip if we return, Patrick said he would want to try the bread rolls and the burger, and I would want to try the onion tart (if in the mood for something rich) or the bibb lettuce salad (if not) and either the half chicken (if very hungry) or the jumbo scallops (if the vadouvan curry beurre blanc is not too spicy) or the pork chop (if very hungry). All adjacent tables' food looked excellent. The pasta in the cacio e pepe was spaghetti—the menu doesn't say what kind of pasta. We were too full for dessert, but the pavlova seems like the standout of the four choices. Service by Holly T was excellent. Afterwards we visited a nearby dispensary where everyone was friendly and helpful. Patrick was helped by Emilio. We walked back to Santiago Resort. Too tired to do anything else, we went to bed.