Ritz Carlton Rancho Mirage - State Fare Bar & Kitchen

StateFare Bar & Kitchen is the main restaurant at the Ritz Carlton Rancho Mirage.  Their steakhouse, The Edge, is not yet open and is scheduled to open sometime in October as well as the Club Lounge.

The restaurant prides itself on locally sourced ingredients, working with local farms and ranches. 

I booked my stays through a Ritz Carlton Stars Agent, which includes a room upgrade upon availability, daily breakfast for 2, a welcome amenity, a contact person within the hotel for any needs, and a guaranteed late check-out.  Some of these benefits are similar to those for Marriott or Ritz Carlton Gold or Platinum members, however these do not apply to Rtiz Carlton stays, so the benefits are actually useful in this case.

With the daily breakfast there is a limit of $70 per day, which is quite generous, and can be taken via room service if you prefer. 

The weekend buffet, which is rather limited and will be expanded in October for Sunday Brunch from what I have been told.

Breakfast Buffet

Breakfast Buffet

Breakfast Buffet

Breakfast Buffet

Breakfast Buffet

Breakfast Buffet

There are a variety of hot options including scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, French Toast and an egg station with cooked to order eggs.  Cold options include meats, cheeses, fruit, yogurt, cereals, breads, pastries and smoked salmon.

Summer Menu

Fall Menu

Summer and Fall Menus.

Omelet

For my breakfasts, I had the three egg omelet with ham, spinach and mushrooms which came with a side of potatoes and toast.  The omelet was well made and the eggs were light and fluffy.  The roasted potatoes are good but could use a bit more seasoning.

Pancakes

The pancakes with fresh fruit is one of my favorites.  The pancakes are light and fluffy, and come with vanilla bean butter and real maple syrup.  These are some of the best pancakes that I have ever had.

Whipped Cream

I was also given a side of whipped cream with blueberries on one occasion, which was a nice gesture.  The fact that the kitchen could not remove the stems from the blueberries before serving them seems like a big oversight.

Steel Cut Oatmeal

The steel cut oatmeal comes with a side of strawberries or bananas.  I chose the bananas but did not know that it also came topped with granola and dried blueberries.  The granola and blueberries added a textural crunch and a hint of sweetness.

Sticky Bun

The sticky bun is one of their signature breakfast items, but it was very dry on the several occasions I did try it.  I would probably avoid it again in the future.

Pastry Basket

The Pastry Basket includes a croissant, chocolate croissant, blueberry muffin and a Danish which is fresh and well made.

Chilled Pea Soup

The Chilled Spring Pea Soup with Dungeness Crab and Preserved Lemon ($11) is like a bowl of spring.  The sweet peas are offset by the sweet and briny crab.  The lemon adds a hint of citrus.

Ancho Tortilla Soup

The Ancho Tortilla Soup ($10) is a play on the classic chicken tortilla soup.  The bowl is brought tableside with pieces of chicken, avocado, cabbage, black beans and radish inside of the bowl.  The broth is then poured into the bowl which wafts the southwestern ingredients into your nostrils.  The soup is good, but is not at all spicy.  I would not have guessed there were ancho chiles in the soup if I hadn’t read the menu.  Unfortunately, this version of soup does not hold a candle to the chicken tortilla soup at The Mansion on Turtle Creek when Dean Fearing was manning the kitchen.

Lasagna

The Cast Iron Lasagna with Lamb Bolognese, Ricotta and Mozzarella ($16) is a fairly large portion.  The dish is overpowered by tomatoes and mozzarella.  The sheer amount of cheese overpowers the lamb Bolognese.  There was also very little ricotta to the dish.  It was good, but very unbalanced.

Roasted Chicken

The Roasted Chicken with mushrooms and vegetable ragout ($30) is a half-chicken which was unfortunately fairly dry.  The peas were also very starchy, and almost tasted like rehydrated peas.  As I came here during the summer, it was fairly apparent that spring had passed.

Cod

The Pacific Halibut came with ratatouille and a fried squash blossom ($32).  The halibut was cooked very well and remained flaky and moist.  The ratatouille was good, but the squash blossom was undercooked and almost had a raw batter taste.

Beets

Beets

The side of roasted beets ($9), red and yellow, is topped with goat butter.  The yellow beets were tender and slight sweet, while the red beets were much firmer and almost had a starchy texture.  I would definitely choose the yellow beets if given the opportunity.

Asparagus

The Grilled Asparagus with Olive Oil ($9) was slightly overdone so the asparagus was not firm and had become a little dry.  There was also very little olive oil, and was missing salt and pepper as well.

Meatballs

 

The State Fare Meatballs ($10) come 6 to an order and are topped with bread crumbs.  The meatballs are very tender and fall apart easily.  The feta cheese is sort of lost in this dish, as the amount of tomato sauce is plentiful.  The only thing missing is a loaf of bread, as this would make a killer meatball sandwich.

Avocado Fries

The Avocado Fries ($11) are nicely cooked and remain crisp.  I am not a fan of dish in theory.  Deep fried naturally fatty avocado?  Something I just don’t understand.

Tomato & Burrata Salad

The Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Cheese Salad ($14) is a take on the classic Tomato and Mozzarella salad.  The tomatoes were slightly under ripe and a little firm, while the burrata was perfectly rich and creamy.  The basil added a nice anise bite.

Short Rib

The Ale Braised Short Rib ($30) is fall apart tender.  The horseradish added a nice spicy punch.  The mashed potatoes are good, the onion rings crunchy and the carrots sweet.  The short rib was glaringly missing in seasoning however, and could have taken a good dish to a great dish on another level.

Steak Frittes

The Steak Frittes ($29) pairs a perfectly cooked medium rare flat iron steak with extra crunchy fries.  A surely winning combination.  The arugula salad helps to cut down on the richness of the dish.  Now if only the steak could be a little bit bigger….

Peach Melba

The Peach Melba is the classic peach, vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce.  What could be a great dessert was ruined by the amount of unripe and crunchy peaches.  Even the staff admitted that serving unripe peaches should not have gone out to customers.

The Funnel Cake is a take on the classic carnival/state fair classic.  Oddly served with a tube of toothpaste, this is actually chocolate that can be added to the dish.  The chocolate is overly sweet and detracted more to the dish than it added.  What could be a fun and whimsical addition misses the target.

Brownie

The Chocolate Brownie with Vanilla Ice Cream is supposed to be a take on the molten chocolate cake, but like many desserts at State Fare this one falls short as well.  The brownie was not oozing chocolate in the middle as one would expect.  Unfortunately, it was a little dry that could not be saved even by the melting ice cream.

State Fare Bar & Kitchen is great in the farm to table concept, but many dishes were poorly executed, not well seasoned and not using the best and most ripe produce.  Hopefully things will change and improve as the kitchen gains more experience.

Ritz Carlton Rancho Mirage

I recently had the opportunity to have multiple stays at the newly re-opened RitzCarlton Rancho Mirage.

I will break down the hotel in three posts: the rooms and property, the food and finally the welcome amenities since I booked the room through a Ritz Carlton Stars agent.  I was told that the hotel does want to be part of Virtuoso, but has not yet been accepted into the program.

The hotel is located up in the hills, which is a semi-private road in that the only houses in the neighborhood are part of the Ritz Carlton Residences.

As you pull into the driveway of the hotel, you are immediately greeted by the friendly valet staff.  Luggage assistance is gladly provided.

As you enter the hotel, the lobby looks like a warm and inviting living room rather than a hotel lobby.  There are large sofas surrounding a fireplace.

Lobby

Lobby

The front desk is to the right.  There is usually no line to check-in as the property is somewhat small with 244 rooms.  Check-in is generally very friendly and quick.  There are also flavored waters at the front desk, which is rather refreshing on hot summer days.

There are two basic room types, which only differ in the set-up of the bathroom which does affect the rest of the room to one extent.

Deep Tub

Shower

Toilet

The first room type has a separate tub and shower.  The shower is on the smaller side.  There is a glass encased toilet.

Sink

The sink area for both room types are identical.  There is somewhat limited counter space, which is helped by the addition of a shelf to add more room for smaller objects.

With this room type, the closet is next to the bed which decreases the size of the bedroom a little.

Shower/Tub Area

The second room type has a tub with shower area next to it.  The shower area is much larger, but there is only a partitioned piece of glass separating the shower from the rest of the bathroom so water tends to flood the bathroom area if not directing the water towards the tub.

The tubs in both bathrooms are so deep that you can almost go scuba diving in there.

Toilet

This bathroom has a separate toilet area.  What I noticed in some of the rooms is that the toilet paper holder is so close to the toilet that you have to sit somewhat sideways so the holder doesn’t stab you in the leg.  Not a very well thought out plan.

The now standard Asprey bath amenities are provided.  What I have noticed at the Ritz Carlton Rancho Mirage is that razors, a toothbrush or slippers are not provided in the room, which comes off as the hotel is cutting corners even though they just opened.

Closet

Closet

With this room type, the closet is located in the hallway.  The closet is large and also contains a set of drawers.

Desk Area

Coffee Maker & TV

Once in the bedroom, there is a long desk and counter area in which the TV and Nespresso coffee maker are located.  There are two complimentary bottles of water, with a third hidden bottle in the drawers underneath the coffee maker where the ice bucket is held.

Desk

As previously mentioned, the desk is long but not deep so working space can be somewhat limiting.

Sitting Area?

There is a chair next to the desk which doesn’t seem to serve much purpose other than another place to store things.

There is also a small refrigerator in the room which comes in handy, which is located beneath the coffee maker.

Sitting Area

There is a sizeable chair and ottoman in the corner.

Bed

The bed is very soft and luxurious, something one expects at a Ritz Carlton.  The bedding is high quality and ones just melts into the bed.

View

Views from the room vary depending on room type.  Views can either overlook the Ritz Carlton Residences and valley or the resort.

Terrace Fire Pit

Terrace Fire Pit

The Terrace Firepit room is located on the ground floor, and comes with a large patio area and two lounge chairs.  There is a firepit located forward of the patio which is gas.  You have no control of turning the firepit on or off, but could be used to roast marshmallows at night.

Gym

Gym

Gym

Gym

Gym

The air conditioner in the room is not very strong.  There is only one vent in the room, and while the room would get cool, it would never get cold.  This is a huge disappointment during the summer when temperatures can get over 110 degrees.

The gym is located away from the main hotel building and is located next to the spa.  The gym is fairly large and was surprisingly busy at times.  There is a variety of equipment including weight machines, treadmills, bikes, elliptical machines, gym balls and a small free weight area.  There is also a “studio” of sorts with spinning equipment.  There is a small refrigerator which sometimes held cold, wet towels while other times held bottles of water.

There is a Club Level at the hotel which is not yet open.  I believe it is scheduled to open in October along with their steakhouse, The Edge.

The Club Lounge is rather small but most club lounges that I have been to have never been overcrowded so I do not think this will be an issue.

This is a great addition to the hotels in the Palm Springs area.  The only downside of the hotel is that there is a $30 resort fee, along with $30 for valet parking which is mandatory as there are no self-parking options.