Longtime Vegas chef opens neighborhood restaurant in Henderson
Alex Reznik, the longtime Las Vegas, Los Angeles and New York City chef — not to mention “Beat Bobby Flay” champion and “Top Chef” Season 7 alum — is bringing a piece of his biography to Henderson: personal history in culinary form.
The restaurant is called Hayworth, named for the L.A. street he lived on when his first child was born, and celebrating his Jewish and Eastern European heritage. Hayworth will debut Feb. 26 on West Horizon Ridge Parkway at South Stephanie Street. The “Est. 1976” on the sign and logo refers to the year of Reznik’s birth.
“Every dish I make carries my family in it, our humor, our heart, our history,” he said. He hopes to make Hayworth, he continued, “a place where passion meets play, where the food hits your soul and where the only thing taken seriously is how good the food is.”
Hayworth is the latest project from Ogden Hospitality, which Reznik founded last year. The debut of Hayworth follows the launch by Ogden of SMKD BBQ (shorthand for Smoked Meats, Killer Drinks) in November on a stretch of South Eastern Avenue in Henderson where it rises toward the posh precincts of Anthem.
On the menu
The menu at Hayworth is at once an expression of roots and a reflection of the kitchens Reznik has cooked in, not least Lutèce, an outpost of the lordly French restaurant from New York that was open in The Venetian from 1999 to 2004.
Fingerling potatoes crowned with cultured cream and briny pops of caviar lead off the menu, along with a crisp potato latke joined by buttery salty king salmon, one of its traditional partners. Agnolotti are stuffed with beef tongue, the richness balanced by tangy crème fraîche, Meyer lemon and jabs of chili crisp.
Sablefish arrives glazed in apple honey, with beurre blanc, parsnips and trout roe. A roasted half chicken is served paprikash style (sweet paprika-infused) with duck fat potatoes and dill crème. Wagyu brisket — Reznik knows his way around the cut, to judge by the brisket at SMKD — is slowly cooked for 24 hours, then finished with bone marrow jus, eggplant and sunchoke.
Chef Miloš Babić, whose CV includes stints at Bellagio and at Monogram, a top restaurant in Bosnia-Herzegovina, helms the dessert program at Hayworth. Look for chocolate babka, the Jewish pastry that is part bread, part cake. Or sufganiyot, the deep-fried Jewish doughnuts given an upscale spin by Babić with rose jelly filling. Or a honey and olive oil cake with goat cheese ice cream and halva, a sort of Mediterranean fudge often made from tahini paste and a sweetener.
In the shaker
Giuseppe González, head bartender and beverage lead, aims to create a destination-worthy cocktail program at Hayworth. González is a veteran of several renowned New York City bars, including Clover Club and the former Flatiron Lounge, a spot that helped fuel the craft cocktail movement in the city when it opened in 2003.
He is perhaps best known as the inventor of the Trinidad Sour, one of the first sours to use bitters as a base, about 1½ ounces, an enormous amount compared with most cocktails that call only for a few dashes of bitters. The Trinidad Sour, created in 2009 when González was at Clover Club, grew in popularity, eventually appearing on cocktail menus around the world.
Gonzalez will be serving the Trinidad Sour at Hayworth, along with cocktails — such as Benton’s Old Fashioned, Black Manhattan, Made in Cuba and an Infante — that blend classic structures with modern flair.
Neighborhood spot
Hayworth encompasses 4,200 square feet and features an 80-seat dining room with brown and deep blue velvets, fluted wood paneling, low lighting inspired by Old Vegas and a marble bar that seats 25. The 30-seat terrace serves as an open-air extension of the dining room.
Reznik said he envisioned Hayworth as a neighborhood restaurant, a place for family meals, celebrations, date nights, late-night dining and weekend brunches. Hayworth, open for dinner nightly and weekend brunch, is at 1450 W. Horizon Ridge Parkway, Suite C-205, Henderson. Visit hayworthlv.com or follow @hayworthlv.
Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram.
