A new Vietnamese restaurant is open on Jones Boulevard just north of Spring Mountain. Bosa 1 is located away from the main Chinese / Vietnamese drag but in the same plaza a few other Asian restaurants. There is a sign hanging on the side of the building that advertises “Com Tam & Bun Bo Hue”. We ordered one of each.
The broken rice dish was excellent. The charbroiled pork chop was savory and the quiche side dish was soft and flavorful. The Bun Bo Hue was very authentic and came with several pieces of pork bone and beef blood cubes.
It looks like the owners are still getting things setup (their website does not work yet) but Bosa 1 is worth a visit.
Bosa 1 Vietnamese Cuisine
3400 S. Jones Boulevard, Suite 2A
Las Vegas, NV 89146
(702) 418-1931
As a rule of thumb we try to avoid strip center sushi places here in Las Vegas. How fresh can the fish be considering we’re a landlocked city? and how good can the sushi be at an all-you-can-eat establishment? Still, we also make it a point to support local businesses during these tough economic times.
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So we have established that I won’t be visiting Aliante Station but I probably will check on the M Resort. After all, it was “built by locals, for locals.” And the marketing was awesome: it made me want to go.
There were ads all over the place, they flew a blimp over the city and residents received all kinds of promotional materials in the mail (an invitation to join their rewards club, coupons for the restaurants and gaming vouchers). I am particularly excited about 32 Draft which will have a selection of 96 different beers.
The Silverton Casino is conveniently located a few miles up the street from where I live. It is my favorite place to take visitors who are itching to gamble when I don’t want to schlep them all the way down to the Strip. Let’s just say I’ve been there a few times.
So here are my impressions of the place: it looks like a hunting lodge but is built in a Disneylandeque kind of way; the ceilings are really low which makes it extra smokey; the dealers are indifferent and sometimes sullen; there’s a big aquarium by the front with manta rays in it; and a Bass Pro Shops is attached but I have never been inside (people who know me should not be surprised).
Now the Silverton has spent a bunch of money to increase the size of the gaming floor, added a steak house, a wine bar and a parking structure. “Luxury & Rustic All in one Place”. Woo-hoo.
Real New York style pizza. That’s the promise at the appropriately named New York Pizza & Pasta. Many places in Las Vegas claim to serve up a NY-style pie but reviewers on Citysearch and Yelp alike rave about this joint in particular. We decided to make the trek from the far southwest corner of the city to Jones & Sahara to see for ourselves.
My wife hails from the East Coast and she likes her’s with a really thin crust. New York Pizza & Pasta did not disappoint. It was truly a NY-style pizza, calzones and grinders. The checkered floors reminded me of Mullberry Street in Los Angeles.
The atmosphere is homey and family friendly and our waitress brought us free garlic knots. Definitely worth a visit if you are on the west side of Las Vegas.
New York Pizza & Pasta
2400 S Jones Blvd Ste 13
Las Vegas, NV 89146
(702) 871-1159
Fortunately for me, Nevada is one of the four states to boast In-n-Out locations. Accessibility to In-n-Out was not a consideration in moving to Las Vegas from California but it should have been!
We have driven to the In-n-Out just off the Strip to get our burger fix. This happens to be the second busiest In-n-Out (the one in Barstow is crazy) and the line can sometimes be daunting. But now we have our very own In-n-Out! The newest Las Vegas location is now open at Blue Diamond Crossing (just west of Interstate 15).
How can one not walk in with high hopes and expectations when a giant banner hangs over the entrance proclaiming “Voted of Las Vegas”?
My friends and I learned that the honor was bestowed on the original Pin Kaow and that they still have some kinks to work out at the new South Rainbow location.
We were served the wrong soup (we asked for Tom Ka Koong not Tom Yum Koong) and all of the dishes were just so-so and certainly not spectacular. The service was prompt and friendly but we could tell they were still training many of the waitstaff.
The original location might be worth a try someday but this is hard to justify when Lotus of Siam is located right across town.
They have been working on a little shopping plaza at the corner of Blue Diamond and Cimarron. How excited was I to see that there is Dunkin Donuts within walking distance from my house! Well sorta.
It’s a full two miles from me: a long ways to walk to get some donuts (but just a few minutes by car!).
We were in the mood for South American cuisine so we decided to visit Rincon de Buenos Aires located on Spring Mountain. The cafe / grocery sits just down the street from many of the Asian establishments in a nondescript strip mall (aren’t they all nondescript in Las Vegas?) and it’s easy to miss.
From the outside the Buenos Aires does not look like much. But step inside and you will find a cute little restaurant and amply stocked deli.
We tried their special grilled meat sampler and it was served on a giant plastic tray molded in the shape of a cow. The seared steaks and dipping sauces were delicious. They offered flan for dessert which was hard to pass up.
On the way out we picked up some coppa, soppressata and big piece of Manchego cheese all at very reasonable prices. We plan to visit again to try other items on their menu.
Rincon de Buenos Aires
5300 Spring Mountain Rd Ste 115
Las Vegas, NV 89146
(702) 257-3331
Never again. That’s how I’ll describe my opinion of Mimmo Ferraro’s. Billed as a “local favorite” and a restaurant that appears in many “best of Las Vegas” lists one would expect dinner here to be at least passable. Instead, we found the food to be mediocre at best, way overpriced and the service to be downright insulting.
Our waiter spent more time at the bar chatting with his pals than tending to his tables. We watched a distressed couple get up angrily and leave after waiting over 15 minutes for him to take their order. In hindsight, they were lucky because they didn’t spend any money there.
The restaurant had only a handful of diners at dinnertime on a Saturday night so I don’t think Mimmo Ferraro’s is much of a local favorite anymore.
