Chef Michael Mina Plans an Off-Strip Restaurant With Adam Sobel in Southwest Las Vegas

Maybe it feels like Las Vegas can call San Francisco-based chef Michael Mina one of its own since he has so many restaurants in the city. Since his restaurant Aqua opened at the Bellagio in 1998 overlooking the conservatory and botanical gardens, Mina’s name became synonymous with the city with restaurants such as the former Seablue and Nobhill Tavern at the MGM Grand, now home to International Smoke; StripSteak at Mandalay Bay; Bardot Brasserie at Aria, which replaced American Fish in 2014, and his namesake Michael Mina, which took over the Aqua space in 2004 and went through a makeover in 2018.

Now the chef finally plans a restaurant off the Strip at UnCommons, the $400 million mixed-use property under construction over 40 acres south of the 215 Beltway at Durango Drive. So far, Mina and his management company Mina Group haven’t announced what the restaurant will be, only to say that it will be fast-casual, developed with partner Adam Sobel, and combines “East Coast nostalgia with premium ingredients.”

Sobel joined Mina Group in 2011 when he took over Mina’s Bourbon Steak as executive chef in Washington, D.C., after opening Bradley Ogden at Caesars Palace, then moving on to become chef de cuisine at Restaurant Guy Savoy. This restaurant joins an off-Strip location for Urth Caffe and an 18,000-square-foot food hall Platform One from Batch Hospitality, with dining outlets from a dozen local chefs including Geno Bernardo, who had Nove Italiano at the Palms and ran Herringbone at Aria; Claudia Andracki from Desert Bloom Eco Farm near Pahrump; Jessica Perlstein, the executive sous chef at Main St. Provisions; and Roy Ellamar, who has Harvest at the Bellagio.

UnCommons plans to open in 2022 with work spaces that feature floor-to-ceiling windows, breakout spaces for individual work or small group collaboration, a conference center that can be used to host small meetings and workshops, and more. Fitness studios, an open-air common areas, contemporary residential units, a luxury movie theater, and food and beverage options are set to fill the space.

• Urth Caffe Plots a Second Las Vegas Location in the Southwest at UnCommons Near Ikea [ELV]

• A New Food Hall With 20 Vendors Plans to Open in the Southwest [ELV]