Maleza — Restaurant in Palm Springs

Excellent food, friendly staff, but very weird vibe.

We stopped in on Sunday, Sep. 28, and we're greeted by the valet who asked if we had a reservation. We did since we stopped in the night before and couldn't be seated. The question by the valet seemed a little bit odd since the restaurant was almost empty and staff were sitting in a small alcove.

Speaking of which, it also appeared the alcove seemed to be the staffs' breakroom and lockers with their bags and water bottles, many strewn against the wall and on the benches.

In our reservation we asked to sit at the bar but changed our minds and asked the "host* (he was wearing an apron so not sure if he was a bartender, a cook, or some other position) if we could sit at a table. That caused some questions to staff hanging out in the alcove and was resolved with us having a table, however, I opted to stay seated at the bar.

We ordered drinks and some guacamole and tostadas to start. We tried to order a couple of large plates but we're told that of the 4 only 2 were available. They were out of the steak and chicken milanese. Disappointing.

We ended up ordering the fried oysters and striped bass to share. The striped bass is misspelled in the menu as "stripped" which means something very different. All the food was excellent and beautifully presented. I loved the smokey sauce served alongside the trout.

I'm not sure I would return and felt let down that the restaurant and staff seemed to think they should operate differently on a Sunday night. I would encourage the manager to provide the staff with 1) a place to store their personal belongings outside of the public restaurant/bar space and 2) train staff to work/operate as if the restaurant/bar was at full capacity...

Words feel inadequate to describe our experience at Maleza but I will attempt here. This was a layered, thoughtful, and joyous meal made all the more compassionate by the amazing staff. The passion for ingredients is felt throughout the plates - order the fried artichokes and the panela cheese - and the protein in the main plates sings - we got the carnitas and the flank steak. The chef and kitchen staff here honor each ingredient and their contribution so the varied and dynamic flavor of each dish harmonize on the table. Don’t overlook the poblano rice. Desert is a must here if you want your life changed. Get the churros - they alone are incredible but the coffee ice cream is truly a game changer and will ruin all over coffee ice creams for you. Trust us, it’s worth the transformation. What truly enhanced the meal was the the attentive and kind staff - from the hostess at the host stand who was exceptionally kind and warm to the wonderful server who heard our dietary restrictions with such compassion and kindness going so far as to suggest optional replacement sauces and work on elevating a dish that lost a factor due to an allergen. This was the first place I’ve been to in my life where the runner even acknowledged the allergies at the table and in the midst of bringing out a dish and bringing back dishes remarked “I’m not sure if they used a new spoon for that and there may have been cross contamination let me bring out a fresh scoop”. This was a whole new level of hospitality - underscored by the warm and inviting atmosphere and made so memorable by the delicious food and incredible service. Thank you for making our celebratory night that much...

Visiting town on a Sunday night. We ordered two sodas, two appetizers (ceviche, hearts of palm), 5 orders of tacos, and two sides each of rice/beans. Server tells us kitchen is backed up because only one guy on the grill. Fine. Returns with our sodas, tells us there's no guacamole, they'll substitute salsa verde instead. Fine. Then the wait. Approximately half an hour later, he comes out with one bowl of rice. He says "this is the last rice left in the kitchen, you'll have to share it. I'll take the other order off of your bill." He walks away and leaves us with this lone bowl of rice, nothing else. My partner is getting upset, but I say let's give him a few minutes, maybe there's more food coming. Ten minutes later, nothing. We are two very hungry people staring at a bowl of rice. Are we supposed to eat this? We try to get server's attention, he spins around at one point, but then goes back to kitchen. We're done. I threw a $20 bill on the table to pay for our two sodas and untouched, rapidly cooling bowl of rice and we leave. We were about to spend over $160 on a meal that clearly was going off the rails, so at least we stopped the bleeding by getting out of there and finding something else for dinner. This restaurant is pathetic. Message to owner - you've got big problems in the kitchen and your server absolutely does not care either. See if he pocketed the $20 bill I left, I doubt that made it into your register. I hope you get the pleasure of dining somewhere that makes you hungry enough to eat a bowl of rice instead of the delicious food you...