Gordon Biersch is a welcome addition to Boca Park
I was recently invited by my boyfriend to attend the VIP party preceding the grand opening of the newest location of the Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant. It’s nestled in the chic Boca Park area of Summerlin. As I love this little shopping area, it was great to have another excuse to hang out there. I found the restaurant to be a wonderful new addition!
As I approached the restaurant, I was quite pleased with the initial appearance, more specifically, the outdoor patio. As I have recently moved to Las Vegas following a 10-year stint in Upstate New York, where I frequently visited New York City where outdoor dining is the norm, I had grown to miss that aspect of my former life. As outdoor dining, although present, is not as abundant in Las Vegas as in other locales (likely because of the toasty temperatures during much of the year), I enjoy the restaurants that have this feature. There was ample outdoor seating. According to one of the wait staff, the patio has both a fire pit and waterfall.
This brings me to another aspect of the gathering that caught my attention: the staff. Upon approaching the establishment, we were greeted with smiles and warm hellos from a diverse staff. Throughout our stay the staff was engaging and eager to assist with any need (and I don’t mean over eager, but genuinely considerate). We were able to snag one staff member to get a little tour and additional info. She was extremely knowledgeable about the menu as well as other restaurant details…so much so that we thought she might have a position in management. We were pleasantly surprised to learn that she was a member of the wait staff. We later discovered all the staff had ample knowledge of the restaurant’s offerings. The staff was gracious and personable; they appeared to have fun interacting with each other as well as with customers. This added to a great dining experience.
The next aspect that both my companion and I enjoyed was the décor. It fit well with the brewery theme. There were great Dutch themed art pieces that sparked the attention, several flat screen televisions if that’s more your style, and artwork like a picture of a trumpet player that alluded to jazz. The swank lighting and chic bathrooms added a touch of an upscale nightclub feel.
The booth cushions were a little stiff; hopefully this will soften over time. The lighting looked great, but one area of the restaurant (just as you enter the back section of dining) is very dim. Another row of lights in this area would do wonders.
The women’s bathroom was very nice, but the door lacked a spring and thus banged the inside stall when opened. There were also no hooks on which to hang purses in the stalls—a major faux pa in my book, as well as with the other women I shared the restroom with. Hopefully these details can be taken care of soon.
On to the VIP menu: we both thought that items served were a tasty and delightful sampling of what the restaurant’s menu had to offer, along with a touch of a few extra’s added for the special event.
A few favorites: amazing garlic fries (one of their signature starters), tasty ahi topped wontons (if you’re a fan of sushi), a variety of tasty pizzas (chicken and artichoke was great), and amazing carrot cake.
A few that will hopefully improve a bit: the crab cakes (I think that the best ones are a bit crispy outside and tender inside…these were not crispy), olive tapenade with humus over crostini (mine contained olive pits).
And of course we can’t forget the beer! The way to go, we found, was to do the beer sampling. It provided a great way to sample each of the beers offered. We each found something to our liking.
All together, we both agreed that our experience was great! We thoroughly enjoyed our time and look forward to many return visits.
Restaurant:
Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant
750 South Rampart Blvd., Suite 16
Las Vegas, NV 89145
(702) 487-6463
GordonBierschRestaurants.com
Situated at Boca Park in Summerlin at the corner of Rampart and Charleston.
Hours:
Monday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. with an open bar till midnight
Friday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. with an open bar till 1:30 a.m.
Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. with an open bar till 11 p.m., Sunday brunch is served from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Private meeting rooms are available.
