Like, as in outside: A guide to the best outdoor dining Grape Street Café
7501 Lake Mead Blvd. 228-9463.
This longtime locals favorite features a gigantic outdoor patio and is noted for serving a staggering variety of wines by the glass, which, as of this writing, totals more than 75 choices sold from $8-$15 per glass. Salads, such as a sumptuous steak salad and a blackened-salmon Caesar, are popular at lunch, as well as any of the thin-crust pizzas. Evenings, try penne all’arrabbiata, steak specials and fish, such as ahi and fresh halibut.
Mon Ami Gabi
Inside Paris. 944-4224.
The coolest patio on the Strip belongs to Mon Ami Gabi, a Parisian-style steakhouse with terrific, crunchy fries and several cuts of steak similar to what you get in real Paris bistros, not to mention fresh oysters, a wine cart and other extras. The restaurant belongs to Chicago chef Gabino Sotelino and his partner, Richard Melman of Lettuce Entertain You group. The patio literally hangs out over the sidewalk, which makes for some of the coolest people-watching—and listening—in the city.
Marche Bacchus
2620 Regatta Drive. 804-8008.
Located in a bucolic complex landscaped with an actual lake (complete with ducks), Marche Bacchus is a big draw with the wine community and local chefs. Half of the property is a wine shop, and the other half a country French restaurant. Wines can be purchased in the shop and then drunk for a $10 corkage fee, and owners Gregory and Agathe Verge have exquisite tastes. Lunches run to entrée salads such as the Nicoise, and at night there are several French bistro choices.
Kona Grill
750 S. Rampart Blvd. 547-5552.
The young, restless Summerlin crowd can be seen three-deep at the bar or crowding the outside patio, with their silly tropical drinks or sushi hand rolls present. The menu is Asian fusion; spring rolls, sesame-crusted tuna, various types of Asian meats barbecued with heady spices. Pacific Rim fare is served at a counter inside, and the sushi bar has a complex compendium of the latest Japanese-American specials.
Sapporo
9719 W. Flamingo Road. 216-3080.
A Scottsdale import, Sapporo offers perfect one-stop shopping for the Pacific Rim crowd. The glacial silver-and-blue, ultramodern design recalls the Jetsons, and there are drinks such as the Octopussy—no kidding—to slug down. Sushi and edamame soybeans are all fine here, but the heartier dishes, such as Mongolian barbecued ribs and delicious lamb chops, are even more memorable.
King’s Fish House
In the District at Green Valley Ranch. 835-8900.
King’s, part of a Southern California seafood chain, offers good value for the money and creative cooking to go along with a nice list of freshly caught fish. The small but cute patio is invariably full during the hot months. Start with the excellent sourdough bread, and then try homey soups such as salmon and white bean chowder. This is one of the few local restaurants in which to eat sand dabs, a delicate, sole-like fish done with an addictively delicious Parmesan cheese crust.
Border Grill
Inside Mandalay Bay. 632-7403.
Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger, the Too Hot Tamales of Food Network fame, own and operate this pan-Latino restaurant, which has redefined the genre and spawned many imitators. Cool down with one of these refreshing minted lemonades, and then try any of the house specialties, a great black bean soup, sandwiches stuffed with barbecued meats laced with south-of-the-border spices, or any of the justly celebrated desserts, the tres leches cake being just one. The huge outdoor dining space faces the Mandalay Bay resort pool.
Bouchon
Inside the Venezia Tower at the Venetian. 414-6200.
Thomas Keller owns this Adam Tihany-designed restaurant, whose outdoor dining area is situated under an open sky between two of the casino’s massive towers. Breakfast is served Monday through Friday and features amazing pastries and French-style omelets. Dinners show why Keller won this year’s Beard Award for Restaurateur of the Year, and also his French training. Rillettes of salmon, wonderful lamb and boudin noir, homemade blood sausages, are just a few of the many specialties here.
Simon Kitchen and Bar
Inside the Hard Rock Hotel. 693-5000.
The Hard Rock attracts a boisterous, happy sort of crowd, and chef Kerry Simon caters to their inner children with a menu of comfort foods, such as his terrific meatloaf, Tuscan salads and goofy desserts—a Junk Food plate stocked with a mock-up Hostess Snowball, peanut brittle and even cotton candy. The intimate outdoor area has communal tables for revelers, usually seen slurping their mojitos and making loud noises.
Verandah Restaurant
Inside the Four Seasons. 632-5000.
Think three-meal restaurant at this poolside venue, which offers power breakfasts for local bigwigs, a spa-type lunch menu and Italian-tinged dinner entrees, from the hand of executive chef Michael Goodman. Flatbreads, pastas and salads are all winners here, as are the homemade pastries by celebrated French pastry man Jean-Luc Daul. Weekends there is a sumptuous, all-you-can-eat brunch with an actual doughnut station.