las vegas westside

[sav]

hello,
husband and i are coming out on a climbing trip in early june, we are staying at the red rocks resort (on the west side of town). we have done this a few times previously, but about 5 years back (pre-kids), and enjoy climbing all day and then eating at great restaurants at night. this year it is a great splurge for us as kid is with grandma. the two spots that we really enjoyed previously are rosemary's and i love sushi. we really enjoy good food and especially drinks and wine and are looking for some new places to try. we don't mind splurging a little on a meal (ie rosemary's) but the 800 tabs i see listed on some of the posts here would be more than we'd like to spend.

any west side places that are recommended? we'll have a car but don't really want to venture on to the strip.

[sav]

First off, a big THANK YOU to all of the replies. You all are a very friendly group and I appreciate the responses. I printed them all out and have some great ideas. I will report back after our trip (early June, hot, I know).
We will check out Nora's Wine Bar and Vintner Grill. I love wine bars and used to live outside of Portland, Oregon, we now live in Idaho which is great for the climbing and outdoor recreating, not so much for the food and drink!
Climberdoc's comments have me more intrigued about staying closer to the trip, but we kind of hate driving and i think vegas will come as enough of a shock to us from rural idaho where we live.
you all have left me dreaming of the sunshine and tasty eats, here from the cold of Idaho. Thanks again!

[janetofreno]

Kai Sushi on the corner of Durango and Flamingo isn't too far (head east on Charleston and hang a right on Durango, its about a mile or two south of there...)..

I had lunch there today and enjoyed it; look for a separate review...

[westie]

Martinis also offers excellent breakfasts plus Mon-Fri between 11PM and 11AM all food and beverages are 1/2 priced. Here is my write-up on our breakfast:

Ms. Westie ordered a coffee and almond crusted French toast – a croissant dipped in vanilla rum flavored batter, topped with pastry cream and raspberry sauce and served with maple syrup. Not to be outdone, I ordered a large OJ and eggs Florentine – poached eggs over spinach on top of an English muffin and topped with Hollandaise sauce. My dish was accompanied by country grilled potatoes. Both dishes were outstanding.

Cafe Deia serves wonderful tapas at a reasonable price. My write-up:
We started off Baba Gandoush – baked eggplant pureed with olive oil and lemon juice and served with warm pita bread (3.5 Forks). We next ordered Shrimp a la Diabla – marinated shrimp sautéed with garlic, red pepper and white wine, spicy and delicious, and bacon wrapped figs. (4.5 Forks for each) Our last order was spinach stuffed mushrooms topped with béchamel sauce and Swiss cheese (3.5 Forks) and Classic Paella – saffron rice mixed with black mussels, shrimp, calamari, peas and carrots. (4.5 Forks) Service was very attentive and knowledgeable.

[Dave Feldman]

Westie,

I think it's safe to say that only a certain percentage of Deia's offerings are traditional tapas items, and a significant percentage aren't even Spanish dishes.

[westie]

Dave - I agree, the chefs at both Cafe Deia and RE Tapas in Henderson are charting a different culinary course than that found at either Firefly or Cafe Ba Ba Reeba.

[kjs]

btw - if you hit Sen ( since you love sushi, it's definitely worth a visit ) , if you try the omakase, you have 2 options $55 and $75 ( or is it $85 ) - i didn't think there was a big diff between the 2. the $55 option includes a decent sushi selection/course.

[kjs]

the places mentioned - vitner, marche, rosemary's for the higher end food/wine, nora's for a slight notch below on the food yet an amazing by-the-glass wine selection.

i was surprised by Agave - very colorful interior, hit happy hour for some decent margarita's, decent food, very reasonably priced.

if you're willing to go a little south from red rocks - i just tried La Madonna ( higher end mexican food ) and was very pleased with the food and drinks. I've been to JR's 3 times in the last month - they make a serious meatball !! Very good traditional italian and how about a $5.95 panini with homemade chips - excellent !
another lunch spot i enjoyed ( they also serve dinner but i've yet to try ) - Martini's - I tried the Kobe sliders with homemade ranch flavored chips and i rate them the best sliders i've tried in the valley ( and trust me, i've tried MANY ) - they also have a lunchtime $5 martini ( sorry, i'm not a martini fan so not sure how good, but damn, the place is called martini's, they better make a decent martini ! ) they had other drink specials.

At red rocks - another burger place - LBS - i found t to be ok. I think salt lick has improved each time i've been there. I've yet to try T-Bones.

Happy eating !

[Dave Feldman]

I'll third most of the recommendations above. I do think that Agave and Nora's are a step below Sen of Japan or Vintner's Grill. Red Rock is a beautiful resort but I realize I've never eaten a single meal inside the hotel other than an indifferent lunch at the coffee shop.

[climberdoc]

I didn't claim that Nora's was on the level of Vintner.

The OP mentioned that she enjoys wine. I don't think there is a better place for wine on the westside. I tend to choose dishes that go with the wine I've ordered rather than the other way around.

[climberdoc]

Nora's Wine Bar is excellent especially if you're into wine. Their by-the-glass selections are really great.

I'll second the rec for Vintner Grill. Again, the wine selection is very good.

I'm much like you in that I'm a climber who can't get enough of Vegas for the climbing and the great restaurants. We go to Vegas on average once to twice each month during the non-scorching months. Unlike you though, I seem to stay on the Strip where the best restaurants lie (not just the $800 ones). Despite the 15 minutes longer drive to Red Rocks, we are still usually the first ones to the Gallery. Lately, we've been getting dirt cheap rooms at the Trump which are large suites with two bathrooms and a full kitchen.

[vegasjlt]

Vintner Grill is great & just down the street from Red Rock casino. Agave is a good mexican place, basically across the street from the casino (killer margaritas & guacamole). Sen of Japan is our go to local sushi place. Rosemary's is still a great choice. Heard good things about Hachi & T-Bones chophouse in Red Rock. And finally Nora's wine bar & Marche Bacchus for your vino fix.