Las Vegas Mixtape v3: Freewheeling In Vegas: Shows, Eateries, Movie Theaters, and a Mind-Altering Museum — Track #6, Osteria Fiorella, Red Rock Resort

Track #6, Osteria Fiorella, Red Rock Resort

There are many creative Italian restaurants in Vegas, including the ones in Summerlin—Aromi, Al Solito Posto, La Strega, and Spiedini Fiamma—plus the adjacent Lakes area (Limoncello). With this treasure trove of eateries, it took me a minute to try Osteria Fiorella at Red Rock Resort.

This grand but welcoming space—with eye-catching circular light fixtures and an open kitchen as its focal point—is one of James Beard Award-winning chef Marc Vetri’s two Vegas restaurants (the other one, Vetri Cucina, is on the 56th floor of the Palms). Fiorella is a spin-off of his pasta bar in Philadelphia’s Italian Market area—and the handmade pastas and pizza they sent out from the kitchen were instant “hit singles,” with top-shelf ingredients, exquisite taste sensations, and textures.

Highly recommended is the boldly conceived pappardelle, with smoked short rib and horse radish. There’s also a world of flavor in the campanelle (cone-shaped pasta) with pesto, stracciatella, tomatoes, and pine nuts. The deftness that goes into the preparation of a traditional dish, like rigatoni with fiorella sausage ragu, is admirable, too. We took home the Pizza Maurizio with mozzarella, Parmigiano, rosemary, and olive oil—simple but effective, with a perfectly crispy crust.