What: The Santa Fe New Mexican egg rolls
Where: Cowboy Cantina, 72620 El Paseo, Palm Desert
How much: $12
Contact: 760-773-9009; cowboycantinapd.com
Why: It’s fried and meaty.
When you first walk into Cowboy Cantina—a new Southwestern restaurant that opened late last year in the space most recently occupied by Pueblo Viejo Grill—you may feel like you’re inside a chain restaurant. I mean that as a compliment: It’s nicely decorated, with a clear cowboy/Southwestern theme.
But, no, it’s not a chain; it’s the brainchild of “Santa Fe Chef” Johnny Vee, who—according to the website—wanted to bring “authentic Southwestern cuisine, old school supper club vibes, a lively bar and plenty of country music” to Palm Desert.
Based on our recent dinner, it seems he’s succeeded on the Southwestern cuisine part: We enjoyed our meal, and the undisputed highlight was our Santa Fe New Mexican egg rolls appetizer.
Here’s the menu description: “Spicy chicken, corn, black beans, Hatch green chiles, onions and melted cheese, served with avocado cream and salsa.” The spicy chicken was the dominant flavor, complemented by the corn and the beans. Green chiles are one of my absolute favorite ingredients, and I would have loved for them to have more of an obvious presence—but that’s a minor complaint, because these egg rolls were indeed delicious.
Cowboy Cantina is off to a rather successful start; we went there on a Monday, and even though the place is quite large, almost all of the tables were occupied. After our dinner there, we understand the popularity. The service was good; the menus have a nice variety (ranging from chicken enchiladas mole to burgers to steaks and even pasta); and the food we had was tasty.
We’ll be back—but whether we’re there for lunch, dinner or weekend brunch, you can bet the first thing we’ll order will be the Santa Fe New Mexican egg rolls.
I went to cowboy cantina and had the egg rolls and they were so disappointing. They were dry and no spice at all. It was not what I expected at all.