Uncovering incredible flavor at Strip House
By Brock Radke
Photos by Beverly Poppe
Maine lobster
Time flies when you’re having fun, especially if your definition of fun is a decadent dinner of expertly grilled prime meats with all the traditional trimmings, finished with a rich slab of 24-layer chocolate cake. This particular fun has been happening so fast, it’s hard to believe that Strip House, the home of all things indulgent, is celebrating five years in Las Vegas. Good timing: You’re invited to the anniversary party.
There’s no denying Planet Hollywood Resort is one of the most electric, vibrant casino resorts on Las Vegas Boulevard, but dining at Strip House is a retreat from the bustling activity and neon glow. Even if it’s not a special occasion, your night will become a memorable one once you sneak up to the second floor, make your way into this delicious cavern and start things off with a blue-cheese-and-olive-accented martini in Strip House’s utterly swanky surroundings. Far from the sometimes sleepy environs associated with your average chophouse, this dark, deep red dining room feels like a speakeasy, a bordello, or a combination of both. Luxuriate in your comfy booth and prepare for a feast.
The menu is as seductive as the space. The namesake New York strip steak is this restaurant’s calling card to be sure, a 16-ounce, wonderfully charred, beefy masterpiece. You can also order the bone-in 20-ounce cut for a little extra flavor. The hefty, juicy bone-in ribeye is just as popular, offering a deeper flavor, thanks to lovely marbling of fat and meat. For supremely velvety texture, stick with tender filet mignon, also no slouch in the taste department. Strip House’s signature steak sauces, from bordelaise to sweet chili, are all at your disposal, as are an array of steak-friendly side dishes. If a baked potato or garlic-herb French fries aren’t spectacularly starchy enough, try the crisp goose fat potatoes, a rich disc of spuds with a crunchable outer crust. Think of this dish as the crème brûlée of potatoes, delicious and delicate inside once you penetrate the pleasing perimeter.
Bone-in New York strip
Other entrées include the Colorado lamb rack, plump Maine lobster and sesame-crusted yellowfin tuna in a brisk green peppercorn sauce. Strip House brings all the traditional steakhouse favorites and adds a few creative twists, also evidenced by its appetizers. Difficult choices abound: Will it be a lump crab cake over potato salad and haricot verts with tasty rémoulade, or roasted golden beets and grilled asparagus with creamy Stilton cheese? One of the more savory innovations is the roasted bacon dish, house-cured strips that will satiate any bacon lover’s desire. Of course, you can’t lose with the seafood plateau, the freshest selection of shrimp, shellfish and lobster available with sauces to complement.
Back to that cake: it has become legendary, a study in chocolate perfection. But there’s more fun on the dessert menu, like old-school baked Alaska with pistachio and chocolate ice creams, hazelnut profiteroles with hot fudge sauce, and a slightly tropical tasting caramelized banana tart. They’re all sinful, but somehow it all makes guiltless sense, considering the scenery. Enjoy.
Planet Hollywood Resort
5-11 p.m. Sun.-Thurs., 5-11:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat.
702.737.5200
