HKR Finds 'Innovative Touches' at 35 Steaks + Martinis

Just how does a steakhouse stand out from the crowd? “There isn't a lot of inherent room for creativity — which is why we were pretty delighted with some of the innovative touches we noticed at 35 Steaks + Martinis at the Hard Rock Hotel,” says Heidi Knapp Rinella, the food critic for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

But then she did order the “Prime (as in USDA Prime) prime rib, dry-aged 35 days” and didn’t find a “deeper flavor or firmer texture.” In fact, she found little flavor in the horseradish jus on the side.

She gave the food an A-, the atmosphere an A, the service an A- for an overall A-.

Max Jacobson from Vegas Seven says he’s “often groused about the dearth of breakfast options in town, but no longer. The east side has Bread & Butter, and now, the west side has Megan Romano’s Chocolate & Spice Bakery. Charlie Palmer’s loss is the local dining scene’s gain.” [VS]

The first time Al Mancini visited The Martini, he had an atrocious experience. Now it’s under new ownership and the food has elevated. The food critic for CityLife found the calamari “a stringy, chewy mountain” but liked his Drunken "Kobe" Burger. “It was a huge, juicy patty of American wagyu beef, perfectly cooked and topped with rich, creamy bleu affine cheese, crispy prosciutto, sautéed mushrooms and caramelized onions on a pretzel roll.” [CL]

John Curtas checked out Hash House a Go Go on his Eating Las Vegas blog and, “He does not know why he did this nor why he is telling you.” He says of the chicken and waffles adored by the likes of Martha Stewart, Rachel Ray and Adam Richman: “That chicken and waffles was a bit bread-y for our tastes (i.e., not crispy enough), but otherwise decent, well-seasoned and juicy. It came on a slab of waffles with the bacon strips cooked inside the waffle. This puzzled ELV. Because the bacon made the waffle hard to eat and the waffle made the bacon impossible to eat.” [ELV]

Apparently Las Vegas Weekly has stopped writing reviews since Brock Radke took over as food editor and started offering tips on where chefs like to eat, such as this nugget about how the Hard Rock steakhouse chef sticks to his favorites, as opposed to, you know, sticking to his least favorites. [LVW]
35 Steaks + Martinis [Photo: Erik Kabik]