Curtis Anderson

Johnny Costa’s Ristorante

Welcome to Johnny Costa’s Ristorante a Palm Springs locals’ choice for years. Johnny Costa, the founder, has been a chef and restaurant owner in the Palm Springs area since 1976. Chef and owner Johnny Costa became good friends with Frank Sinatra in the 1960s and the years that followed, while cooking at various local haunts where the crooner liked to dine. He even worked as Sinatra’s personal chef at his desert home. On the menu today at Costa’s are two of the performer’s favorites — Steak Sinatra (New York strips with vegetables in a red wine sauce) and the linguini and clams in garlic oil and white wine. Around the time he worked at Sinatra’s home, Costa opened his eponymous restaurant, which started in Desert Hot Springs and then moved to Cathedral City before landing, permanently, in Palm Springs.