This month saw the Fox and the Fiddle, which had been open at the River in Rancho Mirage for less than a year, cut its losses and rebrand / reopen as Dringk. Now, like many, I was a little skeptical about how the new place might be, but I checked it out and it’s actually pretty cool.
A lot of bars in the Coachella Valley fall into one of two categories. Either they are hoity-toity joints full of old people or they are divey, gross shitholes. Now there’s nothing wrong with being a blue-hair bar or a dive bar, but it’s nice sometimes when you find something in between. I’m talking about places like Eureka!, Babe’s, Moxie, and La Quinta Brewing to name a few. And now, at least so far, you can add Dringk to the list.
While the old Fox and the Fiddle didn’t have the most welcoming or exciting atmosphere, Dringk has created a cool, relaxed vibe, with a room full of comfy hang out areas – some couches, some booths, some tables – along with a beer pong table, shuffleboard, darts, pinball, and more. It’s not the type of place you go just to drink, it’s the type of place you go to hang out and enjoy a drink or two while you do.
The vibe is nice – with a bunch of people hanging out while music plays at a fun, but not deafening level. It is actually kind of nice not to have live music as so many bars in town have because…oh…wait…what…YOU CAN’T HEAR ME OVER THE BAND????? That’s not to say that live music is a bad thing, there’s just times where you don’t need it.
The menu is loaded with a bunch of five dollar drinks including a variety of mules, draft beers (Guinness and Sculpin just five bucks!), wine, and more. You can step up a little bit if you want and pay a bit more for some drinks and liquors, but my Moscow Mule was pretty decent and you can’t go wrong with a five buck Sculpin while watching football or, like I did last weekend, playing cards or a board game for a couple of hours with friends.
Dringk serves up food too – with apps starting at 5 bucks (My group shared the fried mushrooms and mini corndogs, which were pretty tasty and did the trick to cure the munchies) and entrees starting at $10 (I have not had a chance to try them out yet).
Fox and the Fiddle clearly wasn’t working out. Props to the ownership and staff for deciding to cut their losses and switch gears to Dringk – which is a cool new option for residents and visitors of the desert.
Dringk, 71800 Highway 111, (760) 888 – 0111 – more info here.
If you check it out, let me know your thoughts in the comments.
