Armand

There is a bit of history at this location, as it used to be a Don the Beachcomber, which opened in March of 1953. Bootlegger has the better drinks of the tiki bars in the Palm Springs area. A mixologists approach to the cocktail is taken, as fresh ingredients are prepared in-house daily. I've always had a good time whenever I've visited. This is due to the good helpful friendly staff! The location is small, so consider making reservations or arriving early, as they accommodate walk-ins, depending on how busy their schedule is. There are 5 seats at the bar, and additional indoor and outdoor seating is available as well. The menu changes periodically, and there is always something new to try. This spot is drinks only, so plan solid nourishment accordingly! As I said, the better of the tiki bars in the Palm Springs area. Drop by, relax, and enjoy a cocktail. I'll see you there, cheers!

+7

EW EW

Of the 3 tikibars of Palm Springs this has the best cocktails. Also note: no kitchen. Andrea was our bartender and she was very knowledgeable and fun to talk with. The bar has 27 seats and reservations are required. I had 4 drinks and an Uber, enjoyed every last of them and I'll be revisiting before my stay here is over. 2nd visit: pineapple glass: Rum Runner Tall glass: Mai-Papaya

+2

Akash Behl

Very cool interiors! We sat at the patio and had a Haboobanana (delicious). Service is awesome. Will definitely go back for their awesome cocktails!

Jose Castellanos

First time in Palm Springs and my wife and I loved the Bootlegger. We didn't have reservations but they sat us at a table until it was needed. We had a drink and then moved to some stools before those were gone. I had the Iced Thai Tiki and it was my favorite cocktail of my vacation. Although not fully packed with tiki decor, it was simple and intimate and we loved it. Very small bar but it was great. My wife wasn't feeling well so she ordered non-alcoholic cocktails, Mai-Papaya and Pod Thai and she loved them. A lot. I can't wait to return to Bootlegger with a reservation. Great place.

Dayne Cody

What a super fun little Tiki bar, and I do mean little! Make sure you make reservations ahead, as this place is very small. Drinks are delicious, staff was great, would recommend if you are in the desert looking for a fun place to hang out for a drink for an hour or two.

Sierra R.

This place is a must visit in Palm Springs. The atmosphere is so cool, very much the classic tiki experience. Drinks are fantastic and pretty reasonable for tiki. They don’t serve food, and you MUST have a reservation, the only unhappy people we saw our whole visit were those who were not aware of those facts. Our waitress was very polite and attentive and you can tell from the drinks alone that the bartenders like their jobs. we will definitely be back, I think I need to try the whole menu

+1

Leah White

Bootlegger Tiki has amazing cocktails. Each one is handcrafted behind the bar. Reservations are definitely recommended. We were lucky enough to get the last walk in spot right before 6pm on a Friday night. Right after we were seated, about 25 people were turned away over the next hour since they were at capacity unless you had a reservation. They have a good sized patio with seating and a smaller space inside with blowfish lamps and other tiki memorabilia on the walls. They change their menu seasonally but you can't go wrong. The Cobra's Bite is strong, the Queen's Chair is delicious, and the Topless Beach showed me that apricot liquor is amazing. And my favorite of all was my dealer's choice drink, one of the best Tiki drinks I've had! A throwback from a previous menu, the bartender made me a Clothing Optional with tastes just like a passionfruit creamsicle!! No food on the menu so plan to eat somewhere else before or after.

Christine

Joe was our bar tender and he was a genius, cool and down to earth. All I requested was tequila and gave him the creative canvas. Drinks were smooth and delicious. Hubby and I had a great time sitting at the bar. FYI no appetizers or food. Hit Denny's after, down the street lol. Place was super small, that's not a negative at all, we went on a Monday. I can imagine on the weekend you need the reservations. There's also outside seating.

Very busy tiki bar. We had the foam party and the peach please, both were excellent!

A great place to grab a drink. The signature cocktails are fantastic. The music cool as well. For some reason they take reservations even though I think it is a bar without food so do some research beforehand do you can get in especially with a bigger group

Tom S

Bootlegger Tiki is a nice little Tiki bar in the general downtown Palm Springs area. Since the indoor seating only holds about 20-22 people, reservations are highly recommended. The outdoor seating under the covered patio is good for maybe another 30 or so. The service was good, as were the drinks. I had the Blackbeard’s Booty and the Rum Runner. Both drinks were well executed and plenty boozy. There is no food listed on the menu and I’m not sure if they will let you have food brought in. All in all, it was a pretty good experience.

Mark Pitts

One of the best little local bars in the uptown area of Palm Springs to enjoy a few cocktails! We have been here with friends many times! It’s a unique and fun place, although with limited indoor seating. A patio is available for outdoor seating, with great mountain views. It’s a busy and popular destination for locals and tourists alike, so be absolutely sure to reserve a table on their website, or expect to wait a long time for a no-show or cancellation to get a seat, especially on the weekends. Service was very good and friendly, and the specialty drinks were delicious. The bartenders are pretty awesome! We will definitely return here again.

+8

Amy M

We paid a visit here late afternoon. We did not have a reservation but a small table next to the door was available as well as seats at the bar. Initially we sat at the table. However it was located right under a speaker and the music was too loud so we moved to seats at the bar. The majority of the seating is large booths which just don't seem to work well within the small space. It seems we did not hit it off with the bartender from the get go possibly due to the fact we asked for mai tais from the happy hour menu one minute prior to happy hour ending. The mai contained quite a bit of crushed ice and not enough actual drink. I followed my mai tai up with a Foam Party drink. It was just ok and definitely not worth the high price as it was served in a small martini type glass. We noticed that a couple of other parties near us were enjoying complimentary pretzels. However we were never offered any. We did not get a friendly vibe from either the bartender or the hostess. The music being played was anything but tropical, tiki or Polynesian themed which one would usually expect would be played at a Tiki Bar. We left disappointed and un-impressed.

Terrible service and staffing. you can only make a reservation for one hour, they charge you $30 per person to cancel which is fine - but there is literally one bartender working, making all the drinks, for 50 people, at a place that ONLY serves drinks. As I write this we’ve been sitting here forty minutes and not a single person in the bar has a drink. Unbelievably poor execution and experience.

Brian Bottomley

I'd take a hard pass on this one; quire routine and trite - nothing too authentic at all. Pasting some grass and bamboo on the walls as a justification to up charge some rather ordinary drinks does not created a Tiki experience. And if that's not enough to kill ones buzz, you'll be forced to suffer through some contemporary top forty pop being played so loud that will want to quickly close your tab and find a escape to better times elsewhere.

Adam Simon

Came here to grab an after dinner drink over the weekend after hearing about Bootlegger. We did not have a reservation, but figured we would see if there were any seats available. Upon walking in and speaking to the hostess, we were told there was not any open space for us. No problem. We asked “do you have a waitlist?”, but were told they don’t have a list. Sure…so we then asked “in that case, do you have any recommendation or idea of wait time?” We were told, “no, there’s a bar next door.” We kind of chuckled at such a rude response, and clarified “do you have any recommendations on getting seated AT YOUR BAR?” The answer was still ‘no’, so we walked outside laughing. Quite a salesperson for the business to be the first person greeting customers. Don’t feel any need to come back here after this experience. The best part, was after grabbing our drink next door and walking back past Bootlegger approximately 30 minutes later, the space was almost completely empty with 20+ seats available. Had they quoted us a wait time, which was clearly minimal, we would have waited or come back to Bootlegger. Oh well. On a side note, Tailor Shop next door is excellent and the service was fantastic!