When the newly opened Resorts World announced its restaurant lineup, the list was impressive, just as you’d expect from a $4.3 billion resort. There are 40 food and beverage options, including the Famous Foods Street Eats food hall, an ode to Southeast Asian hawker stalls. But for those who follow the local culinary scene keenly, one name stood out: the return of James Beard Award semifinalist Nicole Brisson, who has two concepts at the property: coastal Italian eatery Brezza and its more casual, soon-to-open sister next door, Bar Zazu.
Brezza, at the north end of the section known as the District, benefits from its location within the resort—it’s far enough away from the bustle of the gaming floor to feels like an intimate space while still benefiting from the glamour of it all. The dining area is an open thoroughfare that starts with a few indoor-patio tables, expands into a main dining area—with a gorgeous bar and an open kitchen—and then extends onto a large outdoor patio with olive trees, evoking a Mediterranean vibe.
Which brings us to the food, described as modern coastal Italian. “It’s very much what people who have followed me for years know as my food, but we’re taking it in a little bit of a different direction where we have a couple of components that are really driving the menu,” Brisson says. “We have a great handmade pasta section—we’re doing stuffed pasta, garganelli, tagliatelle—and we’re doing some extruded pastas as well, fresh-made ragu, and simple clean, bright preparations.”
On a recent visit, the creamy Ricotta Corzetti ($21), with crispy artichokes, basil and tomato basil, contrasted nicely with another pasta dish (not on the regular menu but a special that night)—beef cheek ravioli, drizzled with Aceto Manodori, a 15-year aged balsamic made from trebbiano grapes.
But before you even get to the pasta selections, there’s much to rejoice about among the antipasti, including an heirloom tomato salad with a unique presentation: seasonal pureed tomatoes alongside fresh ones, accompanied by buffalo mozzarella and crostini on a bed of pesto. It captures the taste of summer beautifully. For those with an adventurous palate, the warm lamb’s tongue ($18), with arugula, poached egg and black truffle sherry vinaigrette, is a texture-rich hit of umami. And since this is coastal fare, don’t skip the crudo, particularly the abalone ($19), with rhubarb mignonette and citrus emulsion. Taste it and you’ll imagine the ocean right beyond the patio doors. The same holds true for the Nduja Bay scallops ($35) as a main course or the market fish (a lovely halibut on this evening).
Brisson, who famously helmed Carnevino at Palazzo, wields her knowledge of all things carnivorous here. From lamb chops ($75) and pork chops ($48) to dry-aged steaks ($72-$165), the chef offers up some of the best cuts you’ll find anywhere. After all, she learned from the best in business.
“You’ll see influences from Dario Cecchini and Fabio Pecchi, Mario Batali [and] Bill Benson, one of the chefs that I first worked for, in upstate New York,” Brisson says. “This really gives me a chance to take all those influences from my entire career and articulate a menu around them and also around seasonal ingredients and well-sourced ingredients.”
Brezza’s beverage program is equally thought-out, says managing partner Jason Rocheleau, a veteran of the Mina Group with a background as a sommelier. “We really wanted, out the gate, something really fun and unique,” he says. “Being Brezza, we’re Italian, and we wanted to bring in all different regions and all different styles. The key to our cocktail program is a section of negroni variants. It’s hard to beat the original classic, but we have sparkling negroni, a sour, a mezcal negroni. You’re going to be able to come in and try a little different spin on different ingredients.”
BREZZA Resorts World, 702-676-6014. Lunch, Saturday-Sunday, 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; dinner, Sunday-Thursday, 5-10 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 5-11 p.m.; brunch, Sunday, 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (starting soon).
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