Top 2 eats of Sin City…

Of all the places we have eaten in Las Vegas, 2 stand out as superb. I like to rate restaurants on the following:

• How quickly I’m sat (Note: I typically NEVER go out for dinner without a reservation)
• Cocktails
• Food
• Service
• Ambiance and overall feel
• Cleanliness

I feel that both Yardbird and Hell’s Kitchen hit all the marks. These two establishments were on our itinerary because we are HUGE fans of Hell’s Kitchen and we have dined at the original Yardbird in South Beach, Florida, many times and enjoyed each experience there.  The Yardbird is located within the Venetian and Hell’s Kitchen is a free-standing building in front of Caesars Palace.

For Yardbird we had reservations for 11am brunch seating on a Saturday. In our normal fashion we arrived 15 minutes early, and were seated promptly.  The decor is very similar to the Yardbird in Miami and their sister restaurant Swine also located in Miami. Very modern southern, dim lights, and leather-bound seats. Our server greeted us promptly.

For drinks my husband opted for the Blackberry Lemonade, and I a Watermelon Sling. The Watermelon Sling is phenomenal and truly one of my all time favorite drinks. I’ve even made it at home. Interesting though how the Sling is served in Miami vs Vegas is completely different. Miami serves it on ice in a large mason jar, whereas Vegas serves it with a large cube in a highball glass. Both work.

For our appetizer we ordered the deviled eggs and they were awesome! Piled high and topped with trout roe, they were magnificent. For our main, my husband and I split the chicken and waffles platter.

It’s meant to be shared as it is HUGE! Our son had their chicken biscuits. The chicken is very moist, perfectly seasoned and fried crisp. They provide you with their in-house made hot sauce as an optional condiment. Whatever seasoning they use on their chicken should be available for sale… IJS… The waffle is a cheese waffle and is accompanied with warm bourbon maple syrup. The watermelon is cut into cute squares, seed free, and sprinkled with some sort of goodness. Our son’s chicken biscuit was great as well, chicken seasoned the same and he dunked his sandwich in the hot sauce. You can say he’s a big fan.  Our drinks were never empty, food came out piping hot, and everything tasted great. If you are ever in Vegas definitely stop in for brunch, lunch or dinner at the Yardbird.

The next meal that stood out for us was dinner at Hell’s Kitchen. As fans of the show this was a must to visit. We had reservations for 5:45. After about a 5 minute wait we were seated.

The place looks very similar to the show. When you walk in there is a big wall with all the winner’s of Hell’s Kitchen’s photos framed. After we were seated our waiter came over promptly to tell us about their restaurant.

He informed us that like the show there is a blue side and a red side, however unlike the show they do not compete here. Each side has a different job. The red side was entrees and appetizers, while the blue side was desserts and sides. Our server also informed us that Michelle, prior season’s winner, was working tonight and he would see that she stop by and say hello since we were such fans.

For our cocktails, my husband and I both ordered the “Rum Donkey”. “Donkey” is a phrase often used by Gordon Ramsey so we HAD to have this drink for the laugh. For our appetizer we went with the scallops and the scampi prawns. Both were absolutely delicious. I especially loved the plating of the prawns, they came out on a hot stone still cooking. Super cool.

My son ordered the crispy skin salmon with lentils and the husband and I opted for the beef wellington. Let me state this first, my son is 12. He ate crispy skinned salmon with black lentils. Nothing modified, not from a kids menu. He ATE IT ALL! My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed the wellington, it was so tender and very flavorful.

Now my regret. We did not have room for the sticky toffee pudding….. and now my ultimate highlight! We got to meet and chat a bit with the prior season’s winner, and head chef Michelle! She was super sweet. She was very humble and frankly honored that she had the ability to train with Gordon.

Even if you are not a fan of the show, I highly recommend this place. The food is excellent and the drinks were great as well. Service was on point with some personalization since we were fans of the show.

An honerable mention I must say is Hash House a Go. A must for breakfast while in Vegas. It is located within the Linq. We visited in 2014 and in 2018. Both times the service and food were delicious. The place has been recently remodeled as well. The food is excellently seasoned well, comes out piping hot, and in gigantic portions.

What are your favorite eats while in Vegas? I can’t wait to hear!

xoxo,

Liz