Palm Springs' most beloved breakfast and brunch restaurant — a tiny, reservation-free spot on North Palm Canyon Drive with a weekly-rotating menu, famous bacon flight (five varieties of bacon, the most discussed single dish in the city), house-made cinnamon rolls, and a line out the door every morning that forms before the 8am opening despite the wait being universally agreed to be worth it.
Why It Belongs on the List
Cheeky's has been the city's most discussed breakfast since opening in 2011 — a small, airy space on North Palm Canyon Drive where owner Tracy Hunton changes the menu every week to reflect the California seasonal produce available from local farms, and where every variation of the menu still anchors itself to the things that make Cheeky's worth queuing for. The bacon flight — five varieties of bacon (rotating selections include maple-glazed, applewood smoked, sriracha, peppered, and other preparations) served on a wooden board for solitary tasting — is the single dish that the most people in Palm Springs have recommended to the most other people. The house-made cinnamon rolls (warm, fresh, glistening with icing) are the secondary essential. No reservations are accepted — arriving early (7:30am to join the queue that forms before 8am opening) is the practical wisdom. Open Thursday through Monday, closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Michelin has placed Cheeky's on its recommended list, which is the recognition that Cheeky's regulars treat as less significant than their own weekly return.
What Stands Out
- Weekly-rotating menu: the seasonal commitment that distinguishes Cheeky's from every breakfast restaurant in the city
- Bacon flight: the most discussed single dish in Palm Springs — five varieties, ordered by consensus as the first thing
- House-made cinnamon rolls: warm, fresh, glistening — the secondary essential at a restaurant of essential things
- No reservations: arrive at 7:30am for the line that forms before 8am opening — the wait is universally confirmed as worth it
- Michelin recommended: the recognition that Cheeky's regulars treat as secondary to the queue they join every week