If you haven’t traveled to Italy in a while, Vegas has got you, with world class restaurants up and down the Strip channeling that cuisine. One of the best representations of Italy’s diverse offerings is at Eataly Las Vegas at Park MGM, a marketplace that encompasses everything from wine and fine dining to piping hot pizza and street foods.
Just as if you were on vacation in Italy, you may want to sleep in, then venture out for a morning espresso—in Eataly, Caffé Lavazza offers breakfast items and coffee starting at 7 a.m. (and is open until late evening, if you need a charge then). Nearby, the pastry counter offers lighter bites for breakfast.
During the morning, stop back in to peruse the shelves of the market area, where you’ll find a good selection of wines, food products from tomato sauce and pasta to olive oil and coffee, and gift items like branded tote bags, cooking accessories and more.
Grab a snack, too, from one of the street food kiosks, like roasted potatoes, arancini and more from Il Fritto, hearty slices from La Pizzeria, meatball sandwiches and burgers from Le Polpette, and meat and cheese boards from La Salumeria. These mini restaurants all feature quick service and make for a great early lunch as well, opening around 11 a.m. or noon—and there’s plenty of seating all around. For more substantial plates, try La Carne y il Pesce, with meat and shrimp skewers, raw bar offerings, steaks, tuna, salmon and more. La Pasta Fresca offers pasta plates from pasta rolled out at the stand. Each has beverages, but you can also grab a refreshing drink at one of Eataly’s bars.
Eataly Bar offers a sweeping bar and patio-style seating all around for an easy pasta or pizza, great for a full lunch or midafternoon snack and glass of wine. We definitely recommend the margherita pizza and focaccia e salumi!
For a more restaurant-style meal, stop in at La Pizza & La Pasta, a full, bustling restaurant with a pizza oven greeting you as you come in. Here, you can order antipasti like burrata with radicchio salad, prosciutto, olives, fried calamari and zucchini, meatballs and minestrone soup, focaccia and salami plus sautéed morel mushrooms and insalata cavolo nero with Tuscan kale. There are plenty of pastas and pizza, making this a good spot for both lunch and dinner. Pasta dishes include both daily housemade pasta and imported Italian pasta, with seasonal barbabietola ravioli with red beets, tagliatelle alla Bolognese with a beef and pork ragu.
And now through June 24, the restaurant will showcase its carbonara program, with the pasta available four ways, including classic with ingredients like guanciale, asparagus, tartufo (truffle) and wild gulf shrimp. Pizza has a choice of doughs, with traditional preparations of margherita and quattro formaggi, but unusual varieties, too, like diavola dolce, featuring smoked mozzarella, spicy salami, whipped ricotta, Mike’s Hot Honey and basil.
For fine dining, head to the intimate Toscana after 5 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday, where reservations are normally essential, for an evening of relaxed cocktails, wine and spritzes, plus wagyu carpaccio, calamari alla griglia, butternut squash gnocchi, pan-seared salmon, N.Y. strip steak and grilled yellowtail. But the showstopper here is most definitely the signature Bisteca alla Fiorentina, a large, luscious porterhouse, perfect for two. Sommelier recommendations keep your wine choices way manageable.
And for a dessert? Maybe classic tiramisu or house-made gelato. But for a little extra, try a dessert cocktail like the affogato espresso martini with fior de latte gelato. Perfect.
Park MGM. 702.730.7777. eataly.com
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