The 4 Saints Restaurant is Flying High  

Reopened, Revamped and a New Executive Chef 

By Barbara Beckley

Named after the four mountain peaks you see – and more – from its wrap-around perch atop The Kimpton Rowan hotel, Palm Springs’ highest rooftop restaurant with sweeping views is now the valley’s one-and-only sky-high steakhouse with sweeping views! Serving the finest from petite filet to Tomahawk, with a heaping helping of Southern hospitality.

A New Attitude

If you haven’t been to 4 Saints recently – you haven’t been to 4 Saints.

Under the direction of new Executive Chef Ysaac Ramirez, nothing is the same and everything is better. Combining southern style (he trained at Memphis L’Ecole Culinaire) with a dash of Latin, Chef Ramirez has remade 4 Saints into a friendly, high-end special-occasion favorite worthy of its five-star views.

The views are simply stunning. Panoramas sweeping across downtown, the Coachella Valley, four mountain ranges, Palm Springs Airport to Bob Hope’s party house, Palm Springs Museum of Art, the new Downtown Park and Forever Marilyn for starters. Choose posh inside booths or outside high-top tables that literally hover above the valley.

As Chef Ramirez explains, people come up here to share the view. So he designed the menu accordingly, to increase diner comradery. Along with the finest steaks and fish – perfect for special occasion dining – he features multiple small plates “to create table interaction.” He recommends ordering a main and several shared items such as salad and beet dishes. What if you don’t want a big meal? He’s also added lighter fare including burgers, salads and veggies sourced from the Coachella Valley.

Southern Comfort

It’s the side dishes where Chef Ramirez’ Southern magic shines. Order the cornbread and Oh my! It’s unlike bread or cornbread or anything you’ve tasted. And delicious. Made with heirloom cornmeal from South Carolina. “We’re the only restaurant in SoCal using this cornmeal,” he brags. And his French-style Cheesy Potatoes – voi la! “I use a pound of cheese for a pound of potatoes.” You’ll also discover touches of Latin utilizing his favorite ingredients of beets, garlic, fennel, corns and greens.

Fine wine and unique cocktails enhance the wide array of cuisine. The new “Flamboyance of Flamingos,” a six-to-eight person champagne concoction, epitomizes 4 Saints’ shared dining experience. Not to mention punching up the sophisticated décor with a flock of five huge golden Flamingos on the bar.

The 4 Saints is getting accolades,” says Chef Ramirez. “We’re happy – it’s been a good challenge.”

Did Someone Say Happy Hour?

Outside 4 Saints, also on the seventh-floor rooftop, the open-air High Bar has been revamped, too, with expanded seating, a new menu and new cocktails to be more locals- and visitor- friendly. Comfy chairs and cushions, coffee tables, and high-top-tables are happy-hour perfect to kick-back overlooking the one-of-a-kind view.

“The High Bar is all about making memories for the guests,” says Robert Ramirez, restaurant & bar manager. “Linger longer, a fun setting, great cocktails under blue skies and incredible views.” Look for High Bar specials just for locals, he says. A testament to the High Bar’s local charm comes from waiter Chris. “I came up here as a guest, loved it, and thought to myself ‘I have to work here.’ Now I am,” he told me.

See and Be Seen

Juniper Table, the hotel’s casual indoor-outdoor, breakfast-lunch-dinner venue, is also set for a redo, the better for everyone to enjoy its prime location on downtown Palm Springs’ most see-and-be-seen corner.

Anticipated changes include a wine bar, from-scratch gourmet pizza menu – with 100 percent of Chef Ramirez’ Southern influence; entrée innovations including a ½ chicken cooked in the pizza oven; more small plates, full-service dining at night, new furniture and lush greenery. Look for these, or other concepts, to roll out after the New Year, says Chef Ramirez.

Come for the View! Stay for the Cuisine & Cocktails