Popular in the Palm Springs area since the 1930s, date shakes combine the simple sweet goodness of the region’s famous dates with milk. Particularly on a hot Southern California day—what is not to love?
Where: Our date shake is from Shields Date Garden (80-225 U.S. Hwy 111, Indio), the kitschy retail store of a century-old Indio date grower with a dedicated milkshake counter. The 17-acre date farm includes a garden path past all manner of biblical statues, and a 2010-opened cafe as well (where the shakes are also available).
When: Daily, 8am-2pm
Order: A date shake ($9.15). Here, they are made—somewhat controversially—with date crystals rather than fresh dates, along with low-fat vanilla milk. The dry crystals, made from a blend of dates, were allegedly invented by Floyd Shields in 1936 to make it easier to cook with dates. The end result is a thick, sweet, indulgent treat dotted with little candy-like bits, making it reminiscent of a Heath Bar shake (if that’s a thing!). Plan on sharing it with someone—or perhaps not eating for the rest of the day.
There are, however, a lot more dates to try on the cafe menu here, from date pancakes and omelets to stuffed dates and a signature date burger!
Alternatively: Sadly, the other century-plus-old date farm around here, Oasis Date Gardens, permanently closed in 2024—all the more reason to make your way to Shields. But other options exist for a good date shake in Palm Springs. Further west is a family-owned spot called Great Shakes (160 S Palm Canyon Dr., map) that opened in 2013 and serves a popular classic date and date-banana shake (along with a host of other shakes). Nearby is Palm Springs Fudge & Chocolates (221 S. Palm Canyon Dr., map), which uses date puree (from fresh dates) and ice cream in its shakes.
If you’re west of Palm Springs, it’s still not hard to find a popular date shake: In the town of Cabazon, some 40 miles west of Indio, you might try Hadley Fruit Orchards (48980 Seminole Dr., map), which has an original date shake, a date-banana shake, and a vegan option on the menu. The local tourism board has more date shake recommendations as well.
Updated: May 2025
