The 10 Best New Restaurants in Las Vegas to Check Out in 2019
It's an exciting time for restaurants in Las Vegas. Although fine dining might not necessarily be the first thing you associate with this rowdy partying city, Las Vegas has recently undergone a major dining makeover to become a serious global culinary destination.
From world-renowned chefs like Gordon Ramsay and Wolfgang Puck opening Vegas restaurant locations to the many vibrant, fast-casual street-food outposts popping up, this city is rapidly reinventing itself and becoming a major globally inspired culinary mecca.
To be clear: The classic, old-timey steakhouses with their massive seafood towers, leather banquettes, and pre-theater crowd vibe are still certainly there. After all, let's remember that Las Vegas is a city built entirely on entertainment. As such, it's a city that has had (and will always have) a certain love of kitsch. You must, too, embrace the kitsch factor to fully enjoy it. However, there are a ton of newly opened restaurants that are upping the ante on Sin City's dining scene and highlighting the best parts of the city - no kitsch whatsoever.
I paid a recent visit to Las Vegas to check out some of these new restaurants, and this is my consensus: The new vibe in Vegas is focused on one thing and one thing only: Really f*cking good food!
Here are the best restaurants in Las Vegas to check out in 2019.
CATCH at the Aria Resort & Casino
Celebrity-favorite seafood restaurant CATCH opened its Las Vegas outpost inside the ARIA Resort & Casino in October 2018. An amped-up and even more whimsical iteration of the original Los Angeles location, CATCH is not just a restaurant - it’s a culinary acid trip. From the dramatic, twinkling garden pergola-style entrance tunnel that greets diners to dreamy birdcage-enclosed banquettes, CATCH Las Vegas is a sensory treat.
Known for its Asian-influenced sushi, seafood, and steak, the Vegas menu is extensive albeit slightly clunky, with over three entree sections in addition to hot and cold appetizers, skewers, sushi, and sashimi. The standouts: Their aromatic Signature Truffle Sashimi, a spicy tuna Hellfire Roll, hot sesame oil-kissed Catch Style Sashimi, and a tarragon-infused tiki cocktail called The Pineapple Trainwreck. Go to Catch for date night or a bachelorette party, and get your phone ready for the prettiest seafood in Vegas.
CATCH is located at the ARIA Resort & Casino. 3730 S Las Vegas Blvd.
Gordon Ramsay's HELL'S KITCHEN at Caesars Palace
If you’re already a fan of Gordon Ramsay, HELL’S KITCHEN at Caesars Palace is a restaurant experience not to be missed. Opened in January 2018, this massive 300-seat restaurant draws inspiration from Ramsay’s reality television show with a full view of the open kitchen so diners feel like they’re in on all of the juicy action. There are plenty of signature dishes on the menu that have been featured on the show, and the pan-seared scallops, crispy-skin salmon, and sticky toffee pudding are particularly spot-on.
It’s kinda cheesy but really fun, and it fits nicely in the adult playground that is Las Vegas. Come here for lunch or dinner with a big group of friends and be prepared to get loud.
Gordon Ramsay's HELL'S KITCHEN is located at Caesars Palace. 3570 S Las Vegas Blvd.
The NoMad Restaurant
The vibe: Plush red velvet banquettes, a moody, stunning three-story mahogany library, and ethereal chandeliers. Famed Chef Daniel Humm and restaurateur Will Guidara opened their NoMad Restaurant in Las Vegas in November of 2018, marking one of the most exciting restaurant openings in the city’s recent major dining makeover. In connection with the luxury hotel, pool, casino, and bar of the same name, the new Vegas-based NoMad Restaurant is every bit as stunning as the original New York location. Similar aesthetically to The NoMad’s other luxury properties in New York and Los Angeles (but with just a touch more of theatrical flair, of course), no detail goes missing here.
Signature entrees including their 80 Day Dry-Aged Ribeye and legendary foie gras-stuffed whole-roasted chicken can be found on the Vegas menu, along with communal salads, pastas, and sides. Be sure to check out the adjacent and more casual NoMad Bar to try Humm’s clever carrot tartare, originally served at New York’s Eleven Madison Park.
The NoMad Restaurant is located within The NoMad Hotel. 3772 S Las Vegas Blvd.
Scotch 80 Prime
If you thought classic steakhouses were a thing of the past, think again. Sleek new steakhouse Scotch 80 Prime at the Palms Casino Resort opened in May 2018 to rave reviews - marking another major opening in the booming Las Vegas restaurant scene. Anchored by a truly impressive $3 million whisky collection, the restaurant’s expansive whisky program features 500 bottles from around the world.
Special highlights of the whisky program include themed Scotch flights, a nice selection of Japanese whisky, and a section of Macallan Fine & Rare Vintage collection picks that date back to 1937.
With Executive Chef Barry Dakake in the kitchen, Scotch 80 Prime turns out dishes including Japanese Kobe beef, a tomahawk rib-eye steak, and a droolworthy, ribeye-filled ravioli served atop a bone marrow shank. The service staff here is trained in-house to recommend whisky and food pairings and help guide diners to the right dram - I recommend you hit them up for their spot-on suggestions.
After dinner, be sure to also check out the newly opened Camden Cocktail Lounge for fun, Insta-worthy craft cocktails and take the elevator up to Apex Social Club for a killer view of the Strip.
Scotch 80 Prime is located at the Palms Casino Resort. 4321 West Flamingo Road.
Block 16 Food Hall
A food court with a vibrant cultural mix of fast-casual restaurants from all over the country, Block 16 Food Hall at the Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino is well worth a visit (or two or three). Highlights include Southern favorite Hattie B’s Hot Chicken, Portland-based sandwich shop Lardo, and cult-favorite Thai wing spot Pok Pok, District Donuts from New Orleans, and a slick hidden outpost of New York’s funky mezcal bar Ghost Donkey, decked out in pink neon lights.
Best bets: Hattie B’s hot chicken and Lardo’s killer Porchetta sandwich (it’ll help soak up that nasty hangover of yours).
Block 16 Food Hall is located at the Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino. 3708 Las Vegas Blvd S.
Primrose
Opened in September of 2017, Primrose at Park MGM feels like you stepped into a cozy country home with its drawing room, dining room, and unexpectedly lush poolside garden terrace. The Provence-inspired all-day menu includes a little bit of everything, from omelettes and buttermilk pancakes to fresh salads, sandwiches, and pasta.
The house cocktails have a straight-from-the-garden feel and are all quite beautiful - we recommend the refreshing Lavender Sgroppino for a late afternoon treat.
Primrose is located at Park MGM. 3770 Las Vegas Blvd S.
Cleaver
From the team behind Vegas cocktail bar and steakhouse Herbs & Rye comes Cleaver, a new American steakhouse just off the Strip. Opened in September 2018, this restaurant has a cool, man-cavey vibe with plush leather couches, dim lighting, and cheeky nods to bro-beloved actors like Chris Farley throughout the space. The extensive menu has everything from a raw bar and seafood platter starters to massive butchered cuts of meat (including an almost-unfathomable 20-ounce Cleaver rib-eye steak that feeds five to eight people) with a wine-heavy drinks section and Prohibition Era-inspired cocktails.
Come here during their happy hour with a group of friends to share the oysters on the half-shell, split a massive steak, and get your buzz on at the handsome bar.
Cleaver is located just off the Strip at 3900 Paradise Road, Suite D-1.
Spago
Perched right in front of the famous Bellagio fountains, Wolfgang Puck’s Spago opened in June 2018. With lunch, dinner, pre-theater, and bar menus that include classic Wolfgang Puck dishes like spicy tuna tartare, côte de boeuf, and Wiener schnitzel, Spago offers classic Wolfgang Puck cuisine, plus a view that can’t be beat. Be sure to try the pastas - particularly the Porcini Mushroom Agnolotti.
Spago is located at The Bellagio. 3600 Las Vegas Blvd S.
Best Friend
Korean street food legend Roy Choi just opened his first Vegas restaurant at the Park MGM, and this is basically the best news for anyone with a case of the late night drunky-munchies. Inspired by the food, music, and culture of LA’s Koreatown and designed to look and feel like a Los Angeles liquor store, Best Friend features colorful neon lights, a slushy machine, and a DJ booth. This is the spot for tangy, spicy, satisfying Korean street food staples like kimchi fried rice, Kogi short rib tacos, and a crispy shrimp dish called Slippery Shrimp that already has people hooked.
Best Friend is located at Park MGM. 3770 Las Vegas Blvd S.
Vetri Cucina
Award-winning Philadelphia chef Marc Vetri opened his namesake Italian restaurant in November 2018 at the top of the Palms, with a view of the city you need to see to believe. The house-made pasta is the star of the menu here - the wild boar ragu with chestnut fettuccine and Vetri’s signature spinach gnocchi with brown butter are standout dishes.
Vetri Cucina is located at Palms Casino Resort. 4321 West Flamingo Road.
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