Which bars and restaurants to try as Fontainebleau opens

Big Bleau is debuting big flavor.

Fontainebleau Las Vegas, the 67-story, blue-glass hotel-casino tower, launched late Wednesday on the north end of the Strip. Twenty-one of the 36 bars and restaurants, previously announced, are set to open for launch week. The remaining 15 will begin operating over the next several months.

Thirty-six food and drink options is a big number, even for a $3.7 billion project, even on the Strip.

“We are not missing anything. We are really covering every cuisine and every dining opportunity,” said Anthony Olheiser, senior vice president of food and beverage for the Fontainebleau.

Given the attention engendered by the property’s turbulent 18-year journey to opening, going big with food and beverage (and everything else) feels like the right move.

“The anticipation has been building, and being here so long, there’s a pent-up feeling: This better be great, this better be fantastic,” Olheiser said.

Here are some highlights when tasty gets Bleau:

Trying to say thank you

Before they opened the first KYU restaurant, in Miami in 2016, the owners were text-storming names for the new spot. Because of an auto-text glitch, a “thank you” became “thankyu.” The glitch stuck; a name was born.

“It all originated with a typo,” said Christopher Arellanes, corporate executive chef for KYU group. The restaurant showcases American barbecue with Asian influences, so the name also nods to ’cue. Arellanes, who grew up in a Buddhist monastery in Northern California and is classically French trained, is ideally suited to a menu where East meets West.

Sunlight slants through soaring dining room windows that frame views of the Strip. The natural light and a wall of decorative moss and ferns conjure a garden vibe.

The kitchen sends out signature KYU dishes, such as roasted cauliflower, goat cheese and shishito-herb vinaigrette, tossed and chopped tableside. Or tuna crispy rice: batons of seasoned and fried sushi rice topped with tuna tartare. Or beef short ribs marinated 24 hours, smoked at least eight hours and endowed with a crust of spicy sesame crumble.

But Vegas-only showstoppers appear, too, such as the Royal Golden Chicken presented in two parts. Part one features leg and thigh meat, roasted then sautéed, consorting with bok choy, Fresno chilis and pea shoots in a Malaysian-style laksa finished with cashew cream and a hail of spicy chicken-skin crumbles.

For part two, diners receive a chicken breast basted with double-cream fish stock and stuffed with a farce (forcemeat) of truffles and foie gras. Kaluga caviar comes along for the ride, as do shoestring potatoes tossed in togarashi mushroom powder.

Royal Golden Chicken seems spot-on for Vegas. At the same time, Arellanes said, drama isn’t the only thing.

“We want to have something that people feel special ordering, that elevates our brand, but we still need to make it approachable. So people don’t feel they are just at another Strip restaurant.”

Tale of two steakhouses

Fontainebleau has two steakhouses. But that’s not duplication. One offers a classic silhouette; the other serves up stilettos and Versace.

Classic first. You enter Don’s Prime through a lounge with moments of art deco, a circular bar and tables topped in a Goyard-esque pattern. The steakhouse features three dining rooms. The swanky Red Room lies at the back, with red velvet padded walls and red velvet seating trimmed in gold.

“It’s that old-time luster and the feeling I’m home and I could sit here for three hours,” said Patrick Muenster, the executive chef of Don’s Prime.

The chef is sending out Boursin butternut squash, a hot seafood tower, Ora King salmon with lobster broth and spiny lobster just out of the boat. There’s also the Idaho ranch that is raising cows just for the Fontainebleau. The chef is getting the first choice of the cuts.

Papi Steak, on the other hand, brings the party. A teal lacquered host stand marks the entrance. Inside, black walls are populated with floral arrangements. You want to go big with beef? These are your people.

You might do the suitcase steak for $1,ooo, presented in a case. You can can choose the music if you order it. There’s a wall of Louis XIII, and caviar flourishes like parsley.

“It’s vibe dining,” general manager Evan Polott said.

Hungry like the Wolf

Chef Evan Funke brings Mother Wolf, his L.A. hot boîte, to the desert. Outside the entrance, a mural depicts Roman nabobs lounging and eating on couches. Inside, the walls glow with that peachy terra cotta tone found on many Roman buildings. Trimmed arches and marble floors and cluster-lamp fixtures help define the space. A large kitchen opens along one side of the restaurant.

Chef Funke’s homage to Roman cooking issues from the kitchen: crackly baked pizza dough hit with sea salt and wild Italian oregano; a wild arugula and Parmigiano-Reggiano salad from the stuzzi e sfizi (roughly, “delicious little plates”) section of the menu; roasted artichoke and prosciutto di Parma pizza; cacio e pepe fashioned from tonnarelli, the square spaghetti of Rome; and pollo alla Romana featuring a roasted heritage chicken with tomatoes and marjoram.

The Wolf is at the door, in the house and on the plate.

Big smash

Josh Capon, the New York City chef and TV food personality, has won the Burger Smash at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival seven times — more than any other competitor. He’s bringing that smashing ability to Promenade food hall, where he’ll open Capon’s Burger’s, Fries & Shakes.

It’s a lean operation: four variations on a burger, chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders (dubbed tenderonis), shoestring fries, housemade shakes. Capon breaks into song: “These are a few of my favorite things … ”

The smokehouse burger is worth noting. Poorly conceived bacon burgers, Capon said, are plagued by two strips of bacon (formed into a familiar X) that slide off on first bite. Not his.

“My signature thing is bacon onion jam: chopped bacon with caramelized onions. It becomes a nice spreadable jam,” Capon said. “Every bite is the perfect bacon burger.”

Smashing.

In the mix(ology)

For Juyoung Kang, director of beverage for the Fontainebleau, mixology balances innovation with fundamentals, all bound together by quality.

“For us, it’s about getting it right,” Kang said. “We want to be creative and eye appealing, but at the same time, we want to be consistent and for things to taste right. Going big is one thing; making something small and momentous is another thing.”

She pointed to the Bloody Chyna at Chyna Club, a Chinese restaurant from Hakkasan and Wagamama founder Alan Yau, as one to watch (and sip). The cocktail harnesses Roma tomatoes, Worcestershire powder, Thai chili and lemon to supply the flavors of a traditional bloody; agar (a seaweed derivative) draws in the solids, making the bloody mary clear.

“It’s like a sponge in the middle,” Kang said. “You’re tricking your mind.”

What else is Kang feeling? Agave spirits from Azul. “It’s our love letter to Mexico.” Collins, named for the avenue fronting the original Fontainebleau in Miami Beach, updates the classics. At Après, in the food hall, you might pair an old-fashioned with a slice of pizza.

Kang is also working on a collaboration with Belvedere Vodka and “trying to figure out where to make rum work. It still has the stigma of ‘tropical’ stuck in there. I’m trying to move beyond that.”

Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram and @ItsJLW on X.