Restaurant review: 1501 Uptown Gastropub, Palm Springs

Who among us doesn’t struggle to find a restaurant that matches everyone’s mood? Determining the type of cuisine that will satisfy both you and your dining mates is challenging enough, but what about the restaurant’s atmosphere? Do we want fun, loud, and trendy? Or relaxing, quiet, and chill? Upscale dishes or comfort food? Inside or out? They’re charging how much for an espresso martini?!

A restaurant will rarely be all things to all people, but Palm Springs’ 1501 Uptown Gastropub gets exceedingly close.

A cozy vibe radiates beneath 1501’s high wood-slat ceiling. A wraparound bar anchors the restaurant’s center, with sporting events playing on TVs (quietly) as patrons share charcuterie boards and giant Bavarian-style pretzels over drinks. A lengthy roster of craft brews, cocktails, and wines includes a thoughtful, fruit-forward mocktail selection.

Crunchy, panko-crusted onion rings served with an herbaceous dill-forward dip seem to land on every other table. Sauce-doused barbecue wings are sticky, sweet, and scrumptious. Laced with meaty mushrooms and sizable, tender chunks of New York strip steak, the peppery, gravy-coated beef stroganoff is outstanding.

The showstopping burger The Gregor flavorfully stacks beef patty, short rib, velvety beer-cheese sauce, and tangy tomato-onion jam on a soft brioche bun.