Alice B. Permanently Closes: What It Means for the Palm Springs Dining Scene

It was with great sadness today that we received the news that Alice B. will not return after its summer hiatus. According to this morning’s release, the Palm Springs restaurant is now permanently closed.

The high-profile venue—opened in December 2023 by James Beard Award-winning chefs Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken—has permanently shuttered its full-service dining room. Located at 1122 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way in Midtown Palm Springs, the restaurant sat on the corridor connecting Downtown to the Palm Springs International Airport, situated inside the Living Out community. The closure comes as a bittersweet surprise. The restaurant was most recently added into the Michelin Guide, having built a reputation for fresh, creative, and high-quality cuisine.

Why Alice B. Closed — And Why It Wasn’t About Performance

While the news of the closure came as a surprise, it’s important to clarify that Alice B. was not a struggling restaurant. By all available indicators, the dining room was performing well: strong local support, consistent reservations, and the recent inclusion in the Michelin Guide, which validated the caliber of the kitchen and its creative direction.

The decision to close was driven instead by a strategic shift within Living Out, the LGBTQ+ senior community where the restaurant operated. Living Out is reportedly refocusing on resident-centered programming and scaling back externally operated hospitality concepts. In that transition, the full-service dining room at Alice B. no longer aligned with the property’s long-term plans — even though the restaurant itself had built a loyal following and earned critical recognition in a short time.

Culinary Royalty in Midtown: The Legacy of Chefs Susan Feniger & Mary Sue Milliken

Alice B. came to the desert with a strong reputation and introduced us to two of California’s most acclaimed chefs. Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken are true royalty in the American food world — pioneering female restaurateurs who fundamentally altered the West Coast dining landscape.

After meeting in a 1970s Chicago kitchen, the duo launched LA landmarks like City Café and CITY Restaurant, introducing Southern California to global street food long before it was trendy. They built the Border Grill empire, starred in Food Network’s Too Hot Tamales, and competed on Bravo’s Top Chef Masters.

Their industry acclaim is staggering, earning the 2018 Julia Child Award as the first women and first chef duo ever honored, alongside major recognition from the James Beard Foundation for culinary innovation and industry equality, and the LA Times Gold Award for lifetime achievement in West Coast cuisine.

Bringing that caliber of talent to Midtown Palm Springs elevated the local food scene overnight. Their seasonal menu paired refined Mediterranean-Californian flavors with approachable comfort, anchored by signature dishes — like their famous cornmeal cheddar drop biscuits — that made the spot an immediate neighborhood staple.

The restaurant itself was named as a nod to Alice B. Toklas — the California-born author, cook, and life partner of Gertrude Stein. Conceptually conceived as a modern interpretation of the pair’s legendary Parisian salons, Alice B. sat within Living Out (a luxury active-adult resort designed for the LGBTQ+ community), quickly building a reputation as a warm, inclusive hub where food, art, and community intersected.

Some elements of the concept will remain. Gertie’s Salon & Bar, the lounge and bar area at Alice B., will remain open inside Living Out under the property’s internal management.

The Impact on the Palm Springs Dining Scene & Michelin Guide Standards

If you’ve asked me for a dining recommendation anywhere in Palm Springs over the last year, Alice B. was almost always near the top of my list. The kitchen brought an undeniable creative flair to the valley, backed by a commitment to freshness and originality that felt genuinely distinct. And, like many of you, I was utterly hooked on those cornmeal cheddar drop biscuits — thankfully, I managed to snag the recipe before the doors closed for good.

Seeing a restaurant of this caliber close so quickly is a tough hit for those of us who track, write about, and eat through this city every day. Yet, even as we lose Alice B., the overall trajectory of the Palm Springs restaurant scene remains on a steep upward climb.

When Alice B. earned its nod from the Michelin Guide, it joined an elite group of local benchmarks — including Bar Cecil, Workshop Kitchen + Bar, 4 Saints, Tac/Quila, Cheeky’s, Colony Club, and Boozehounds — that continue to elevate our desert into a legitimate culinary powerhouse.

Alice B. was a short-lived chapter, but its impact raised the bar for what dining in Palm Springs can be. While we’ll miss sitting at their table, the local dining scene is stronger, more competitive, and more vibrant than ever.