The Neon Mohawk

Brian Newman After Dark Before getting into the glitz and glamor of Las Vegas (such as Brian Newman, pictured above), we kicked off this week’s episode at Las Vegas’ longest-running cheese shop, Valley Cheese and Wine on Horizon Ridge Parkway in Henderson. The shop’s owner, Diana Brier, was kind enough to serve as this week’s guest co-host. As I ran down Diana’s amazing resume, I noted her cheesy positions at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, and at Oregon’s famed Rogue Creamery . We then got into our discussion of places we’ve recently visited, and Diana told us about her staycation at The M Resort . She loved the oysters Rockefeller, filet and crustaceans Louie at Anthony’s Prime Steak & Seafood . (I chimed in to note my love of the oysters Rockefeller at The Broiler in Boulder Station .) Rich shared some excerpts from his Oscar Goodman dinner series at Oscar’s in The Plaza. If you want to hear more of that, tune into The Plaza’s in-house podcast, produced by Rich, On The Corne

A second Nobu is coming to the Las Vegas Strip – inside Paris Las Vegas. Plans for a Nobu restaurant in the Paris hotel and casino were revealed Tuesday, in a joint press release from Caesars Entertainment and Nobu Hospitality announcing new collaborations in three cities. In addition to launching a new Nobu restaurant in Paris Las Vegas (which is owned by Caesars), the two companies are also planning new Nobu Hotel experiences within Caesars Atlantic City and the Caesars-owned Harrah’s New Orleans, as well as “a refresh of the first Nobu Hotel at Caesars Palace Las Vegas.” Artist rendering of Nobu Restaurant and Lounge at Paris Las Vegas (STUDIO PCH, Inc.) “We are excited to take this next step in our growing partnership with Caesars,” Nobu founders Nobu Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro and Meir Teper are quoted as saying in the release. When the new restaurant debuts in early 2022, it will be one of three Las Vegas Nobu restaurants – although it will be the fourth ever to open in our va

I kicked off this week’s episode with guest co-host Justin Kingsley Hall, and his business partner Kim Owens. They are, of course, the creators of Main St. Provisions in The Arts District, which (as I mention) is where I’ve had one of my three favorite meals of 2021. We recorded the first segment at Peyote – a new spot coming to Ferguson’s Downtown on Fremont Street. During Justin’s intro, I run down some of the places he’s worked in the past. They include: Comme Ca (no longer open in Las Vegas) The parking lot of Dino’s Lounge (an awesome dive bar and karaoke spot on Las Vegas Boulevard between The Strip and Downtown) Sparrow + Wolf (also one of my top three meals of 2021) The Kitchen at Atomic on Fremont Street (where Hubert Keller and I joined him on an episode of PBS’ Secrets of aChef ) The Whiskey in the Wilderness festival I also pointed out that Kim is a veteran of the national steakhouse chain Del Frisco’s . Since I was mentioning that Main St. Provision

Casa Playa begins seating customers this weekend at Encore, utilizing the space that briefly housed Chef Enrique Olvera’s short-lived Elio. I had the chance to sample several dishes and take in the remodeled dining room during one of the pre-opening “play dates” the team held this week. Like its predecessor, which was in operation for just five months in the second half of 2020, Casa Playa offers a contemporary style of high-end Mexican cuisine that’s a step above what many Americans are used to seeing. (Olvera’s Pujol, in Mexico City, was ranked as one of the world’s top-25 restaurants every year from 2013 through 2019.) To continue that level of quality and creativity, the new restaurant is helmed by Elio’s executive chef, Sarah Thompson. The Culinary Institute of America graduate worked in several top New York City kitchens, including the Michelin-starred Marea and Wylie Dufrense's Alder, before she was recruited by Olvera and Chef Daniela Soto-Innes for their New York restaur

If you’re one of those wonderful people who subscribes to our podcast, you may have noticed that Episode 14 arrived a little early. What can we tell you? Rich and I were excitedly chatting via emails and texts, and at some point we just couldn’t contain ourselves!  (I mean, we’ve all been there, right?) Rather than try to cover it up, clean it up, or pretend it didn’t happen, we are embracing the premature release. The truth is, we chat quite a bit about Life is Beautiful in this week’s episode, so having some info a day or two early might come in handy for concertgoers. That’s probably all I’m going to say about it for now. I’ll start doing my usual promotion on Friday. But feel free to take a listen. HOWEVER, if you haven’t heard Episode 13 yet, please don’t overlook it. We’re very proud of both of them. Remember, you can stream all of the episodes on t he Podcast page , right here at The Neon Mohawk.

My friend Rick Moonen served as this week’s guest co-host. He kicked things off by bringing us up to date on the work he’s been doing as Master Development Chef for Perry’s Restaurants , including the creation of the company’s new concept, Carve American Grille . We then went into a great conversation about whether seafood belongs on pizza, and whether cheese belongs with seafood. While Rick didn’t have a problem with either of the above, our producer Rich Johnson shared a horror story about a shrimp pizza he had at a Shakey’s in Beaverton, Oregon when he was a child. (He then told us about some pizza he had in Estonia, although we didn’t get the name of the place.) From there, we moved into our segment about where we’ve been. Rick began that conversation with some positive words about the new La Neta Cocina y Lounge in Downtown Summerlin. He also gave a shoutout to Mariana Alvarado from Masazul , who provided the tortillas he enjoyed at La Neta. And while we were on the topics

Are you psyched for the Hell’s Kitchen season finale? Do you have a favorite chef you think really deserves to win it all?  How’d you like to cheer on your favorite, while watching the finale with him or her (and a few of this season’s other contestants), at one of Las Vegas’ best barbecue spots? Final 3 chefs Trenton, Megan, and Kiya   Courtesy FOX If you’re a fan of the show, you already know that the last two seasons were shot in Las Vegas. And for the Season 20 finale, six of the contestants (including the three finalists) will be back in town for a watch party. On Monday, September 13, Big B’s Texas BBQ will host the official Hell’s Kitchen “Young Guns” Season 20 finale viewing party at its Fort Apache Rad location, and a half dozen of the show’s chefs are expected to be in attendance. Antonio Ruiz, Emily Hersh, Kiya Wilhem, Megan Gill, Trenton Garvey, and Victoria Sonora will all be returning to town for the shindig, which will run from 6:30 to 10:30 pm at the Big B's loca

Are you a little bitter?  More importantly, do you enjoy a cocktail that’s a little bitter?  If so, prepare to celebrate -- because Negroni Week is nearly upon us, and the team at Al Solito Posto is opening up its patio for a kickoff party. For the uninitiated, the Negroni is a classic cocktail made with Campari, gin and vermouth. It’s generally considered an aperitif, making it perfect for trendy aperitivo hour menus. But the folks at Imbibe magazine (along with the Campari team) are looking to expand its influence, by dedicating an entire week to rediscovering its bitter appeal. And dozens of local watering holes are joining them in that effort, raising a little money for charity in the process. “(Negroni Week) was launched in 2013,” explains Campari rep Anthony DeMaria. “It started off of a Negroni social up in Portland Oregon, and then it got picked up by Imbibe magazine.” This year’s event is a national campaign, with bars throughout the country creating special Negroni me

“I feel so great,” Chef Stacey Dougan said, a huge smile on her face as we stood in front of Good Morning Kitchen on Rainbow Boulevard on Saturday evening (September 4). “I feel amazing -- it’s finally come together." The it she’s referencing is AYÉ: her new line of vegan, cannabis-infused edibles, and an accompanying “premiere cannabis experience events company.” To officially celebrate the company’s launch, the chef was hosting a cannabis-infused dinner party for a restaurant full of invited guests. Dougan has long been one of Las Vegas’ most prominent vegan chefs. Her Downtown Container Park restaurant, Simply Pure, has served celebrities such as Usher, Senator Cory Booker and former President Bill Clinton, and been featured in People magazine. Yet earlier this year, she shuttered the pioneering Downtown eatery, telling her legion of fans that she was “ready to expand.” When I spoke to the chef at the time, she mentioned her desire to take Simply Pure’s brand of plant-ba

During the first segment of this episode , Rich and I are joined by a guest co-host, DW Bistro ’s Bryce Krausman. As usual, we speak about where we’ve been recently. After sharing some home cooking stories, Bryce tells us about his visit to a friends and family “play day” at the new Downtown Summerlin restaurant La Neta Cocina Y Lounge, which comes from the same people who operate Mas Por Favor in Chinatown. I tell you about a new dish I sampled at 8 East (wagyu you cook on a hot rock), which you might see sometime soon either at that Circa restaurant, or at its Fremont East sister spot Le Thai . I also offer a quick report on my first full meal at Brezza , in Resorts World. Speaking of Resorts World , Bryce offers his impressions on that restaurant and some other Resorts World eateries, including Sun’s Out Buns Out, Viva! By Ray Garcia , Wally’s  and Famous Foods. We went on to speak a bit about our strategies on vacation dining – referencing my recent trip to Cabo San Lucas.

During the top of the show , I shared my experiences dining at the recently renamed Nomad Library , followed by Brian Newman’s After Dark show. (I also whined a little about not getting a Louis XIII Cognac.) A bit later, I shared an interview with Marienna Mercer Boarini about the cocktails she’s created for Overlook Lounge in Wynn Las Vegas. I shared an interview with Astronomy Aleworks ’ Matt Brady, about the Nevada Beer Bash in The Front Yard at Ellis Island . And Rich discussed a rather frightening product called Baozza. For our discussion of the Las Vegas craft beer scene , we headed to Crafthaus Brewery ’s tasting room in the Henderson Booze District . We were joined for that segment by Crafthaus’ Dave Forrest and Las Vegas’ top beer journalist, Bob Barnes , who discussed the history and the state of the scene with us while we all enjoyed some flights of Crafthaus. That discussion included mentions of Craftahus’ Booze District neighbors: Grape Expectations , Vegas Valley Win

Our recording sessions for Episode 9 included so many great guests that we had to break them down into two episodes. But the overriding theme of both is pizza – specifically The International Pizza Expo . So we’re combining all of the pizza places mentioned in the both of them, and any other cool businesses we mentioned, in a single blog entry. Enjoy! Ep 9 begins with Jason, Rich and I in Good Pie on Main Street, during a Las Vegas Pizza Alliance party to benefit Slice Out Hunger . But before we get into the pizza talk, we run down some of the things we did over the past week. Jason and I both attended friends/family/media dinners at the recently re-launched Valencian Gold (photos below), which is offering Spanish cuisine in the southwest corner of our valley. We compare and contrast it to another Spanish spot we love, EDO Gastro Tapas & Wine in “Chinatown,” and mention some of our favorite dishes.   I also mention a visit to a brunch spot on Ft. Apache Road near Russell

Before Jason, Rich and I start our conversation about where we’ve been , Jason shares some listener recommendations for cheesesteaks: the always popular Pop’s , and a spot none of us has been to, Lucino’s on Tropicana and Eastern. I venture back into a topic I once covered professionally: Las Vegas topless clubs. In this case, it’s the new show, A Touch of Burlesque , at Centerfolds Cabaret . Jason speaks about a very strange wagyu tasting he attended at Sparrow + Wolf . Rich discusses his anniversary lunch at Wally’s in Resorts World. That leads into a conversation of the lunch I had with Jason at that casino’s food hall, Famous Foods, during which I mention my preference for Marigold’s when I’m looking for something casual at Resorts World . I recount a story about a house party I attended that was catered by John Church of Johnny C’s Diner .and make quick mentions of Osteria Costa at The Mirage and a tea spot called Queen of Hearts in Henderson. Rich fills us in on where h