Here is the latest roundup of restaurant news from around the Las Vegas valley:
1. Ri Ra Las Vegas is celebrating National Cheese Day on Jan. 20. Their baked goat cheese ($14) features hot goat cheese, red onion jam, piquant pepper relish, honey, almond and walnut pesto and toasted crostini. The Pub Mac & Cheese ($16) features mushrooms, garlic with a herb toasted crumb topping. Guests have the option to add grilled chicken ($5) or grilled shrimp ($8).
2. Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto brings his celebrated ramen restaurant Momosan Ramen & Sake to MGM Grand for a series of pop-up dinners Jan. 23-26. Guests can enjoy a taste of the ramen-forward concept through an exclusive a la carte menu, available only in the Morimoto lounge. Menu highlights include Tokyo chicken ramen, soft shell bar, crispy mimiga and more. The dining experiences will begin at 4 p.m.
3. Vetri Cucina at Palms hotel-casino will host a 6-course tasting Jan. 23 featuring Chefs Frederic Morin and David McMillan from the celebrated Montreal restaurant Joe Beef. The dinner is in honor of their latest cookbook, “Joe Beef: Surviving the Apocalypse: Another Cookbook of Sorts.” The $150 meal will include signature recipes from the book as well as a copy for guests to take home.
4. Celebrate National Peanut Butter Day on Jan. 24 with Reese’s Cheesecake from Grimaldi’s Pizzeria. It’s made with creamy vanilla cheesecake and chunks of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
5. Public Works Coffee Bar on Water Street is hosting a pop-up event feature Ruse Vegan Kitchen from noon to 4 p.m. Jan. 24. Dishes include spicy Italian sausage, lamb gyros, tofu satay tacos and more.
6. Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill is opening inside the Red Rock Resort on Jan. 25. The all-new Japanese-style restaurant and bar will feature indoor and outdoor dining, a 12-seat walnut sushi bar, a roofed cocktail bar with patio seating, a festive outdoor beer garden and more. Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill will offer guests contemporary Japanese cuisine with a carefully curated menu showcasing the Bromberg Brothers’ dedication to the tradition of pristine quality fish and family style Japanese fare. Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill will be open daily, Sunday through Thursday from 4:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Friday through Saturday from 4:30 p.m. to 12 p.m.
7. Distill Centennial Hills is celebrating its 2nd anniversary with a red-carpet themed party Jan. 26. There will be a gourmet dinner buffet, live music costume contest and more. Menu highlights include capers salad, antipasti skewers, vegetable and chicken flatbread, stuffed shells, braised short ribs, roasted chicken scampi, wild mushroom risotto, gnocchi, roasted parmesan cauliflower and broccolini, zeppoles and tiramisu.
8. The next Taste & Learn event on Jan. 26 at Ferraro’s Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar will feature wines from the Malvira vineyard. Menu highlights include octopus with buffalo mozzarella, spiced duck breast, and a special winter chocolate dessert. $65 per person.
9. Several restaurants are celebrating National Chocolate Cake Day on Jan. 27. Tom's Urban at New York-New York will feature their Campfire Brownie + Cookie + S’mores made in a skillet with brownie batter in one half and chocolate chip cookie dough in the other. Robert Irvine’s Public House at the Tropicana is inviting guests to try the dark chocolate cake served with ice cold milk. Oakville Steakhouse, also at the Tropicana, will be tempting diners with their Chocolate Oreo Lava Cake featuring vanilla gelato, Oreo cookies and warm chocolate sauce.
10. Old Homestead at Caesars Palace will host a special evening with Orin Swift Wines Jan. 31. Wine maker Dave Phinney will share the stories of six selective wines while diners enjoy yellowfin tuna wrapped versus crab, roasted duck, dark chocolate mousse cake and more. $295.
11. Smoked Burgers & BBQ at The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace is now open. Signature dishes include smoked chicken wings, pig candy, loaded BBQ nachos, buttermilk fried chicken blueberry sliders, chopped beef brisket, Louisiana hot links, smoked pork sandwiches, salted caramel banana pudding and more. Specialty cocktails include the smoked BBQ Bloody Mary and Smoked Manhattan.
12. SecretBurger.com has arrived in Las Vegas and is making the connection between chefs looking for opportunities to be more creative and foodies craving unique culinary experiences. Each event is one day only will feature a SecretBurger dish and only 50 of that dish will be available for pre-purchase at SecretBurger.com. Participating restaurants include Good Pie, Honey Salt, The Goodwich, Sparrow + Wolf, District One, Other Mama, Esther’s Kitchen, Forte Bar and Tapas and more.
13. Sharky’s Modern Mexican Kitchen and Silent Savasana founder Dray Gardner are celebrating the introduction of the Dray Bowl to the menu with a Silenty Party on Jan. 26 at Sharky’s in Summerlin. Guests will party in silence with state-of-the-art wireless headphones and a local DJ onsite, raffle prizes, $3 sangrias, $3 beers and $12 Dray Bowls, with a portion of the proceeds from the Dray Bowl going back to Three Square.
If you would like to submit an item for a future #13Things, send an email with details and photos to joyce.lupiani@ktnv.com.
