Cheers! There will be a lot of that this weekend as Sin City welcomes the inaugural Drink Las Vegas four-day event. The Drink Las Vegas Makes Its First Pour With A Star Studded Vegas Weekend first appeared on The Blast
Cheers! There will be a lot of that this weekend as Sin City welcomes the inaugural Drink Las Vegas four-day event. With lots of spirits, food tastings, chef appearances, and celebrity guests, the event promises to make a splash in multiple locations on the Las Vegas Strip.
Drink Las Vegas began on Thursday night with a Signature Tasting opening night event hosted by Jean-Georges Vongerichten with special guests Shaquille O’Neal and Sammy Hagar at the Yucca Pool at ARIA. The Blast was in attendance for the first night of the inaugural event. The vibe was top tier with dancers, drinks, food, and fun all around.
Drink Las Vegas Takes Over Sin City With Cocktails, Chefs, And Celebrity Guests
The four-day event kicked off on Thursday night with a Signature Tasting event at ARIA. With plenty of food and drink samples to go around (and around, and around), it was a delicious event that offered a great backdrop, perfect weather, and lots of friendly interactions.
There are two more Signature Events, as well as many other events throughout the weekend. On Friday night, Signature Tasting: A Night of Excellence with the James Beard Foundation presented by Marriott Bonvoy, will be hosted by Tom Colicchio and Tiffany Derry. On Saturday night, the Signature Tasting will be Timeless Taste: Celebrating the Legacy of Las Vegas presented by Marriott Bonvoy, will be hosted by Michael Mina, Masaharu Morimoto, and Wolfgang Puck.
Other events throughout the weekend include curated lunches and dinners, wine tastings, a special no-proof dinner, cocktail parties, and after party events. Many events also include celebrity guests.
Local Chef Alex Reznik Participated In Thursday Night’s Signature Tasting Event
Alex Reznik, known for his appearances on “Top Chef” and “Beat Bobby Flay,” as well as being a restaurant owner in Henderson, participated in the opening night Signature Tasting event.
When asked why it was important for him to participate in Drink Las Vegas, he simply said, “this is a real food event.”
“Three days, chefs coming in from all over the country, incredible bartenders, restaurants, booze, food, and it’s happening in Vegas,” Reznik told The Blast exclusively. “This is my city. If we’re inviting everybody over, I want to be in the kitchen.”
Reznik isn’t just excited about his own cooking; he’s also ready to indulge in all the other chef’s tastings. He said he’s been looking forward to “eating everybody else’s sh-t.”
“We spend our lives stuck inside our own kitchens worrying about our own food,” he added. “Give me three days to eat what everybody else is doing, drink something good, talk a little sh-t, and steal a few ideas, sorry, inspiration; we call it inspiration.”
‘It Puts Vegas In The Middle Of The Conversation’
Reznik explained that an event like Drink Las Vegas “puts Vegas in the middle of the conversation.”
“You bring great chefs and bartenders from around the country here, mix them with the people cooking and pouring in Vegas every night, and everybody gets better,” he said. “And selfishly, I love that people come here for the festival and get to see there’s a whole other Vegas food scene once you get off the Strip.”
When asked what it is about Sin City that makes the culinary and cocktail scene so unique, Reznik said, “Vegas is weird, and I mean that in the best possible way.” He explained that everyone comes here from somewhere, bringing their “own food, their own influences, and their own bad habits.”
“Then Vegas screws with it a little,” Reznik shared. “There aren’t a lot of rules here. That’s what makes it fun.”
- Enjoy a cocktail experience like no other at The Chandelier at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
- Have you been to these celebrity owned Vegas businesses yet?
- Inside some of the Vegas hotspots where professional athletes like to visit.
- Reality TV loves Las Vegas.
Alex Reznik Hopes Everyone Eats ‘Something They Weren’t Expecting’ At Drink Las Vegas
As for what Reznik served at night one of Drink Las Vegas: “oxtail terrine, crispy chicken skin, red and green zhug.” He said that “oxtail is already fatty, sticky, beefy, and kind of filthy in the best possible way.”
“Then I put crispy chicken skin on it because apparently I don’t know when to stop,” he added. “The zhug saves everybody. Hot, acidic, fresh, herby. Fat needs acid and heat or eventually you’re just eating grease. Call it an oxtail terrine and it sounds fancy. Really, it’s just meat, crispy skin, and hot sauce.”
Paired with the right drink, any dish can be slightly elevated.
“With something like oxtail, I want the drink to fight back,” he said. “Acid, bitterness, bubbles, spice—something to clean you up and send you right back in.”
For locals and visitors alike, Reznik hopes that they enjoy the event and “eat something they weren’t expecting.” His advice, “Don’t come and eat the same sh-t you eat every Tuesday.”
“Try something weird. Drink something you can’t pronounce,” he said. “Find a chef you’ve never heard of. Then find a local Vegas restaurant you didn’t know existed.”
The sign of a successful event according to Reznik is leaving “overfed and slightly overserved,” as well as having a list of new places you want to try out in the near future.
About Alex Reznik’s Restaurants: SMKD And Hayworth
Reznik owns two restaurants in Henderson, just outside of Las Vegas.
“SMKD and Hayworth are basically the two sides of my brain fighting with each other,” he told The Blast. “SMKD BBQ is smoke, meat, ridiculous sandwiches, sauce on your shirt. It’s not precious. It’s supposed to be f-cking delicious. Hayworth is what happens when I behave myself. A little.”
Hayworth is the neighborhood steakhouse with “great beef, live fire, serious cocktails, caviar, some Eastern European weirdness, and food that occasionally makes you ask, ‘Why the f-ck did he put that together?’”
Both locations are just miles apart from each other, making it easy to visit one for lunch and the other for dinner when in the area. While they are both “built for locals,” they are the kind of restaurants visitors to the area would want to eat in as well.
As far as what the future holds for Reznik, he’s working on a few things around Vegas that he can’t quite publicly speak of just yet, but he did say he’s building more and he’s far from done.
For more information about Drink Las Vegas, visit the website. To learn more about Hayworth or SMKD BBQ, visit their websites.
The Drink Las Vegas Makes Its First Pour With A Star Studded Vegas Weekend first appeared on The Blast
Dax Shepard Gets Inside Story On Controversial Dire Wolf Puppies
Ed Sheeran’s Cousin Doubles Down On Public Shaming, Says ‘I Saw The Snake In Him’
Tom Brady’s ‘True Love’ Post Was ‘Softest Middle Finger,’ Friend Claims
Brooke Hogan Blasts Mom Over ‘Vile Text’ Amid Bitter Family Estrangement: ‘I’d Be Embarrassed For Her’
Gisele Bündchen’s Handwritten Letter To Tom Brady Revealed What Was Missing In Their Marriage