Vegas, baby!
Eat your way through one of the best culinary destinations of the U.S.
People of the world, I will be in LAS VEGAS next week! I know what you might be thinking…José, what are you even doing in Vegas? Well, besides being here for the World’s 50 Best (happening next Wednesday!) I came here to EAT! Don’t you? Whether it’s your first time or 50th time in Las Vegas, if you don’t already know about the food here, then let me tell you...this place stands out. Where else can you go from restaurant to restaurant and try amazing food from some of the best chefs around the world, all in one weekend? Or, if you’re really adventurous, a day? Do I recommend this? Have I done this? What do they say…what happens in Vegas…stays in Vegas? Not for me…I have to share!
Las Vegas holds a very special place in my heart when it comes to food. Besides being able to see and taste so much in such a short time (and distance), it is for me the people who work in this city—from the chefs, to the bartenders, to servers, to dishwashers, to hosts—who put hospitality and showmanship at the center of everything they do. It is a place for new chefs to realize a dream, and for those of us who have been doing this for a little while (not too long, people! I’m not that old!) to bring our cooking to people visiting from all around the world.
It is also one of the most unique cities on the planet. Here, you can enjoy a cocktail in an old casino vault, taste paella cooked over an open fire, buckle in for an hours-long omakase menu, and maybe digest a bit on the drive over to see the Hoover Dam…and then turn around and have a completely new adventure the next day!
I’m telling you, people, Las Vegas has everything you want and so much more, and you owe it to yourself to try some of the amazing places beyond the Las Vegas Strip. Sure, the Strip is so iconic, and the lights and people watching are always bigger than life. But while you may be here for the entertainment, I promise, it is the food that will keep you coming back for more.
So here are some of my favorite places and experiences in Las Vegas. Of course some of our restaurants are on the list, but I promise—I am not biased! I want to celebrate everyone who makes this city such a unique and wonderful destination. One organization worth mentioning is Green Our Planet, a non-profit based in Las Vegas schools that helps build gardens in Las Vegas and brings together the educational and restaurant communities. They’re doing amazing work, so you should check them out!
To me, a fun day in Vegas would be to go from one of our restaurants to another…and another…and another, and try many different things! If you walk between them you can work up your appetite for the next restaurant. You could start at Bazaar Meat at the Sahara, at the top of the Strip—man, do we have some special plates for you to try here! You all know that I love a good José Taco—or really, anything featuring jamón—but we also have some really special bites like the cotton candy foie gras or a Wagyu philly cheesesteak!
If you’re feeling a little stuffed after Bazaar Meat, good job! You can take the monorail or walk off your meat feast down the strip for your next stop, Bazaar Mar, which is opening this summer at The Shops at Crystals! It’s a restaurant I’ve loved from its early days in Miami, so I am so excited to bring it to the Strip!
Now…if you decide to keep going from there, é isn’t much further, just down the Strip. I love going to é, which is behind a secret door from Jaleo at The Cosmopolitan…where, by the way, you can get paellas cooked over open fire, the way they do in Valencia! And then once you’re at Jaleo, you’ll have to poke around a bit to find é, but once you do…you’re in for some great surprises. Okay, okay people. Don’t worry, my list isn’t ALL my restaurants. There are cocktail bars I love, Thai, Spanish, and Mexican restaurants…if I haven’t told you before, Vegas really is one of the best cities for eating right now. But I do have one more recommendation for one of my restaurants, and it’s the place that almost every single employee who works in my company would choose as their favorite…! Let me tell you…