Chef Todd English Reinvents His Mediterranean Restaurant Olives, This Time at Virgin Hotels

Todd English reinvents his Mediterranean restaurant Olives, opening at Virgin Hotels four months after the resort opened to the public on the east side of the city. Todd English’s Olives opened with flatbreads, seafood, and classics from his menu.

Beef carpaccio comes with Gorgonzola rosti cake and scallion cream, while Nantucket Bay scallops top chestnut risotto with orange vinaigrette. A bowl of mussels pairs with whole grain mustard and grilled Tuscan bread. Those flatbreads feature fig and prosciutto with fig jam, Gorgonzola, and prosciutto; portobello with wild mushroom puree, fontina, and truffle; and fiery chicken sausage with herbed ricotta cheese, balsamic onions, and roasted tomato sauce. The flatbreads range from $19 to $26.

Pastas range from agnolotti with lemon ricotta and veal Bolognese to bucatini with shucked Maine lobster, uni butter, and crushed cherry peppers.

For entrees, the restaurant serves wood grilled sirloin block, scallops with cauliflower, a wood-fired half chicken with roasted tomato and olives, and roasted cauliflower Parmesan, all in the $30 to $55 range.

English worked with design firm Icrave to create the 185-seat dining room with a stone and steel hearth kitchen and a raised bar with lounge areas featuring stone, terra cotta, wood, cork and Renaissance-inspired hand-glazed art.

English originally opened Olives in Boston in 1989. The Mediterranean-inspired restaurant originally debuted with the Bellagio in October 1998, planned to close in 2013 before a reprieve, and then shuttered for good in 2018 to make way for Wolfgang Puck’s Spago. Olives at Virgin Hotels joins sister restaurant Olives in the Bahamas, and English plans to open more Olives restaurants in New York City, Los Angeles, and Dallas.

The four-time James Beard award winner also has The Beast Food Hall at Area15, the entertainment complex west of the Strip.

Todd English’s Olives, Virgin Hotels, 4455 Paradise Road. Open Wednesday through Sunday from 5 to 11 p.m.

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