When Danielle Ulian moved to La Quinta from Los Angeles about five years ago to be closer to family, she quickly fell in love with the community’s unique charm and natural beauty.
It soon became apparent to her, however, that something was missing from her beloved new town.
“I was like, now that we live here, where’s the local ice cream parlor?” she said. “Where do you go to, like after games and after school? Doesn’t every town have that?”
Ulian’s bemusement only grew when, sometime later, she went to go get a donut for her dad, who was asking for one, only to be unable to find a donut shop nearby.
So Ulian decided she would fill those needs in her community herself.
The result was 1/2sies Co., a colorful new combined new ice cream and donut shop that is turning La Quinta into a sweet tooth’s haven.
Here is a closer look at 1/2sies Co. and the other new places to eat and drink that have opened across the Coachella Valley recently, which include new spots for donuts and wings, along with a reincarnated version of an old favorite.
1/2sies Co.
50921 Washington St. Suite C-1 in La Quinta
So what is a 1/2sie, anyway?
That was one of the first questions I asked Ulian upon entering her shop’s whimsical space, which is filled with colorful wall murals and furniture.
The answer, I would soon learn, is that 1/2sie has a couple of meetings. It’s a half-sized donut Urias came up with after having one too many experiences of bringing a box of donuts to meetings only to later be left with a box full of half donuts, sliced by people who didn’t want a whole one.
But it’s also a reference to her shop being “half ice cream and half donuts.”
It’s a combination that has also given birth to another novel creation — “the 1/2sies Treat,” which consists of a generous scoop of ice cream topped with one of those 1/2sies donuts, in a sort of reverse a la mode style.
“You can have the best of both worlds,” Ulian said.
Papa Dan’s
73011 Country Club Drive, Suite F
It’s been a long road back for this Palm Desert pizza mainstay after its longtime home was destroyed in a fire over two years ago. But owner Ira Mosley said he was “thrilled” to reopen the 40-plus-year-old-restaurant in a larger space within the Plaza De Monterey Shopping Center that Papa Dan’s has long called home (it’s now on the other side of Bristol Farms).
Papa Dan’s is serving up its expansive menu of pizzas, pastas, subs, salads and desserts. But it has now expanded to offering breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays until 2 p.m., with offerings that run the gamut from omelets and benedicts to pancakes and breakfast burritos.
H&H Bagels
73131 Country Club Drive #C10 in Palm Desert
If you’ve ever watched a character bite into a classically chewy bagel in a New York-based sitcom, there’s a good chance it came from one of the locations of this prominent Manhattan bagel shop that has seen its products featured in shows ranging from “Seinfeld” to “Sex and the City.”
Now, H&H Bagels has come to Palm Desert as part of a nationwide expansion, with this new outpost near Papa Dan’s in that same Plaza De Monterey Shopping Center. H&H offers all the classic bagel varieties, which can be enjoyed plain, with cream cheese or as part of a bagel sandwich.
Desert Wing Shack food truck
At Food Trucks on Recqua and various other locations
This new food truck is the latest addition to the growing collection of them at Food Trucks on Recqua, Indio’s new food truck park, which is open on weekend nights. The truck serves up wings in varieties ranging from standard Buffalo to teriyaki pineapple to coco (coconut) chili. Not in the mood for wings? They also offer “loaded fries” that come topped with nacho cheese bacon and other toppings as well as sides of mac and cheese and garlic parmesan fried corn.
Dutch Bros. Coffee
41906 Jackson Street in Indio
This popular drive-thru coffee chain has added yet another outpost to its fast-growing ranks. Dutch Bros. is known both its flavored coffee drinks and a variety of non-coffee beverages such as lemonade and sparkling sodas. The new location is just north of Interstate 10.
What’s coming soon
Paul Albani-Burgio covers growth, development, business and, sometimes, music festivals in the Coachella Valley. Email him at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: New restaurants to try in Palm Springs area include bagel, wing shops
Reporting by Paul Albani-Burgio, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
