Welcome to the RJ’s new Taste section
Guess who’s coming to dinner? You are.
You’re also coming to breakfast, lunch, brunch, tea, cocktails, late-night grazing or just for a cold one.
Today, the Las Vegas Review-Journal relaunches its Taste section, and readers are invited to join us as we bring the tasty from across Las Vegas, now one of the world’s great food and drink cities.
We’ll cover restaurant and bar openings (both haute and humble) and the growing beer and wine scenes. We’ll take you behind the lines at only-in-Vegas events, and into the kitchens of family places that add richness and texture to the town. We won’t forget to celebrate the local institutions that built our culinary culture, or the hardworking food and drink professionals who sustain it every day.
Two columns will lend depth to our coverage. “On the Side” rounds up the best industry tidbits and buzz. “Served” features dishes and drinks we think deserve to be showcased.
Greg Thilmont and Johnathan L. Wright — the RJ’s restaurant, food and drink reporters — will be your guides.
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Chef Scott Commings, who first made a memorable mark in Las Vegas as the winner of “Hell’s Kitchen” Season 12 and subsequent top-toque roles at Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill at Caesars Palace, Freedom Beat at the Downtown Grand and Lake Las Vegas, has opened his own galley along the picturesque shores of Lake Jacqueline.
At his Daily Bread Bakery Cafe at Lakeside Village in the Desert Shores neighborhood, Commings specializes in upscale yet affordable sandwiches, flatbreads, crepes, quiches and salads. Fresh-baked baguettes are available daily, as are hand-crafted pastries.
“This is something that I thought would be great for this community,” Commings says of bringing the casual gourmet concept to Desert Shores.
“It’s got great foot traffic, and the area’s beautiful,” he adds, noting that he’s seen substantial support from the neighborhood in his first weeks after an under-the-radar springtime opening.
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Sammy Hagar is on the Las Vegas scene so frequently that it’s almost like he’s a local. He has his popular Cabo Wabo Cantina on the Strip, and recently concluded a sold-out residency at The Strat. Now, the guitar shredder is the author of “Sammy Hagar’s Cocktail Hits: 85 Personal Favorites From the Red Rocker,” which contains recipes for adult beverages like the citrusy Santo Sunrise, a tropical Guava Martini and an island-time take on the classic Kir Royale.
Hagar returns to Las Vegas with his band the Circle (which also includes Michael Anthony, Jason Bonham and Vic Johnson) in early July — plenty of time to pick up his mixological tome and whip up some rock star-level drinks.
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We All Scream — a prismatic mashup of an ice cream parlor and a nightclub — has opened its funky doors in the Fremont East Entertainment District. In a cool community-building move, the creamery part of the operation is a nonprofit that benefits local artists. Now that’s a cherry on top.
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Through May 15, China Poblano by José Andrés in The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas is presenting its annual Tequila Mezcal Festival. This year, the Piña Poblano is the featured cooler; the spicy-sweet cooler features Creyente mezcal, pineapple juice, poblano pepper, lime and sal de gusano (yes, that means “worm salt,” and yes, that means salt made with ground, toasted worms).
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Get ready for cacio e pepe with a side of glamour as RPM Italian premieres this weekend in the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. An outpost of the Chicago original, the restaurant is the first collaboration between partners RJ, Jerrod and Molly Melman of Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises and celebrity couple Giuliana and Bill Rancic.
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Locally founded Pinkbox Doughnuts continues its partnership with Care Bears with a pink-frosted Cheer Bear available Fridays to Sundays through May. Other characters will be featured in the months ahead, all in honor of the multicolored characters’ 40th anniversary.
Contact Greg Thilmont at gthilmont@reviewjournal.com. Follow @gregthilmont on Instagram. Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ItsJLW on Twitter.
