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[Night Bites]

Chef Luke Palladino brings new flavors to Salute

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Delicate pastas await at Salute.

A year and a half after Salute Trattoria Italiana opened its doors, Clique Hospitality has tapped celebrity chef Luke Palladino to revamp the Red Rock Resort restaurant. Having worked with Emeril Lagasse and Todd English, the New Jersey-bred chef opened Onda at the Mirage (now Portofino) and recently operated restaurants along the East Coast.

For Salute’s menu makeover, Palladino dug deep, channeling his celebrated past in Venice, Rome, Piedmont and Tuscany to breathe fresh air into the resort’s luxurious Italian eatery. The result is as hip and bold as it is refined.

Grab a seat at the bar for a pre-dinner cocktail while soaking in Salute’s chic ambiance—white and gray marble with rich wood accents and hints of burnt orange, with modern lighting fixtures and exposed bulbs with golden trim.

That mixture of comfort and cool is reflected in Salute’s updated cuisine. Start with the crespelle, an Italian take on the crepe, filled with baked taleggio cheese and wild mushrooms, or opt for a bianco pizza to share, with pecorino and buffalo mozzarella cheeses, sun-dried-tomato pesto and toasted pistachios.

Palladino’s most valuable players are his hand-crafted pastas, like the truffle ravioli—truffle sottocenere and ricotta-filled agnolotti, foie gras-cognac crema and shaved parmigiano—or Salute’s signature Cacio e Pepe (which literally translates to “cheese and pepper”), spaghetti served tableside from a pecorino cheese wheel. Just make sure your camera’s handy. And you can’t go wrong with the Bistecca Alla Fiorentina, a 32-ounce prime porterhouse for two, served with crisp fingerling potatoes and black garlic-porcini butter.

Salute at Red Rock Resort, 702-797-7311; Sunday-Thursday 5-10 p.m., Friday & Saturday 5-11 p.m.

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