The Giada De Laurentiis restaurant at The Cromwell Las Vegas has become one of the most popular Italian restaurants on the Vegas Strip. I’ve been to the restaurant three times and had very different experiences each time. My recent dinner was by far the best GIADA Restaurant experience I’ve had. I finally understand why so many people love this restaurant.
The Sangria
My first visit to Giada was for lunch at the bar. The pizza was okay (good ingredients but not the kind of pizza a New Yorker would love) but the highlight was the best glass of sangria I’ve ever had. A few days later the same friend and I returned to Giada and had an overpriced pre-made lunch with poor service. The highlight once again was the sangria.
The experience at the second lunch was so bad that I’d sworn off Giada for awhile. However, the sangria was the catalyst for dinner at Giada. My friend is a Total Rewards Diamond member had a $100 credit to use at a Caesars Entertainment restaurant and this was the spot. This dinner would be worth it even if we only drank sangria. This dinner was the first night of our annual Vegas vacation and we decided to make this our first big celebratory kick-off meal.
It should be no surprise that dinner started with a glass of sangria. The first course was the Arugula salad with candied lemon, crispy pancetta & parmigiano-reggiano cheese. The salad was perfectly dressed and delicious.
This was the right way to start the dinner. I think this $16 salad would be great for lunch on a hot summer afternoon in Las Vegas. Of course, you would have to be okay paying that much for a salad.
My friend got the Romaine salad and had fried capers for the first time. This seemed to be a life changing salad. I think there might have been a rush on fried capers back on the east coast when vacation was over. Who knew fried capers were so good?
Related: Tasting The Newest Restaurant At The Venetian, Mercato della Pescheria
The main course for dinner was bucatini (Boo~kah~tee~nee according to the menu). This is the first time I’ve ever had bucatini and it won’t be the last. The Calabrian chili Pomodoro & fresh ricotta was delicious. The pasta was cooked perfectly and the sauce offered a gentle kick but wasn’t overwhelming. There was a nice gently pinch of flavor in each bite.
The portion was small but perfect for my level of hunger. The $25 price tag for a fist full of pasta is high. Having said that, the food was delicious so there wasn’t much sting from the price. As you’ll see with each course ordered, Giada is a meal that you have to budget for.
Dessert and Celebration
Dinner turned into a birthday celebration for dessert. The description of the Espresso Nocciolato sounds amazing – Lavazza Gran Riserva, Nutella, whipped cream, toasted hazelnuts and a light dusting of cocoa powder sounded too good to pass up.
The drink itself was even better than expected. This lovely espresso offered the perfect zoom zoom for a night on the town in Las Vegas. Now that I think about it, this may have powered the 6.5 hour Pai Gow Poker session after dinner. Well, this and my new friend, Basil Haden.
We celebrated my birthday with two adorable cookies on the house. I really enjoyed the lemon cookie but was not into the chocolate. Regardless, it was a nice addition to the meal by the waiter after my friend inquired about the cookies earlier.
Everything from the service to the food at Giada was impressive. Everyone we came in contact with that worked at Giada was helpful and nice. Actually, besides that one bad lunch, I’ve never had a bad experience with anyone that works at The Cromwell Hotel and Casino.
I went into dinner expecting the worst from previous daytime experiences and left feeling great about dinner. This is the kind of food and service I expect when I go to a fine dining restaurant. If you’re a Diamond or Seven Stars member of Total Rewards request a table with a view. I think we received the view of the Vegas Strip because of my Diamond friend and because we celebrated my birthday a few months early.
