This year, Hanukkah starts at sundown on December 10 and runs through December 18. The Jewish celebration centers on the lighting of the menorah, and food plays a big role, too. Check out these Valley restaurants offering special menus to commemorate the holiday.
Honey Salt
The farm-to-table favorite has a special menu for dine-in (with limited seating and reservations required) or takeout. Start with matzo ball soup and a crispy potato latke, and choose either a slow-braised brisket or roasted Red Bird organic chicken for a main. Then finish off on a sweet note with raspberry-filled doughnuts. Served a la carte, with a family package for four ($180-$195) also available. 1031 S. Rampart Blvd., 702-445-6100, honeysalt.com.
Rooster Boy Cafe
Sonia El-Nawal’s Desert Shores café also has traditional latkes and matzo ball soup, along with homemade gravlax, a caviar dip with homemade potato chips and a cucumber dill salad. There’s brisket, chicken and salmon for main courses, and for dessert, it’s hard to pick between rugelach, chocolate babka, noodle kugel, challah bread and sufganiyot. Good thing you have eight days to try them all. 2620 Regatta Drive #113, 702-560-2453, roosterboycafe.com
Siegel’s 1941
If you happen to be Downtown, stop by El Cortez for a three-course Hanukkah meal at Siegel’s 1941. For appetizers, choose chopped chicken liver, matzo ball soup or a tossed green salad. Entrees are straightforward enough: brisket/beef or a roasted apricot chicken, served with potato latkes, kasha and bowties, and steamed broccoli. Dessert is sweet and simple, either a sweet raising kugel or ice cream. With a player’s card, the meal’s a steal for $20. 600 Fremont St., 702-385-5200, elcortezhotelcasino.com
The Stirling Club
Those lucky enough to be members of the city club, which welcomed new executive chef Dan Rossi in May, can enjoy such Hanukkah specials as challah bread, matzo ball soup, latkes, citrus-glazed Skuna Bay salmon, roasted Jidori chicken breast and red wine-braised brisket. And if you haven’t been in a while, now’s a good time to revisit the Stirling Club, which unveiled a complete renovation in 2019. 2827 Paradise Road, 702-732-9700, thestirlingclub.com.
Burnt Offerings
Last year, Hanukkah fell on Christmas, and since it’s common for Jewish people to go out for Chinese food on Christmas, Burnt Offerings offered an Asian-influenced menu. It proved to be so popular that the restaurant, which specializes in New Yiddish cuisine, is bringing back its “Chinakah” menu this year, featuring dishes like beef and broccoli and chow mein. 3909 W. Sahara Ave. #10, 702- 848-2876, burntofferingslv.com.
Freed’s Bakery
Cut to the chase and go straight for the sweets. Freed’s Bakery has Hanukkah items to satisfy your sweet tooth all eight nights. If the chocolate babka speaks to you, order ahead of time, but otherwise, stop by several locations for little treats like coconut macaroons, rugelach, matzo brittle and cinnamon walnut delco. You’ll also find challah in four flavors—plain, raisin, sesame seed and poppy seed, and a sweet Hanukkah House sure to delight the kids. Multiple locations, freedsbakery.com.