Chef shakeups: Minor out at Bandito, Zuk exits the Strip

Bad news for fans of Chef Mike Minor, who have been eagerly awaiting his new restaurant Bandito Latin Kitchen & Cantina on Hughes Center Drive. Minor, who began perfecting a brand of Mexican-tinged barbecue on his Truck U BBQ food truck after leaving Mandalay Bay’s Border Grill, has parted company with partner Kent Harman, another Border Grill alumnus.

According to a statement from Bandito, “While the two men remain friends and have a mutual respect for one another, they were not able to come to an agreement on the final vision for the project. Harman remains on track to open the restaurant in late April or early May.”

It goes on to quote Harman as saying, “Mike is one of the most talented chefs in the city and I wish him nothing but success for his next project. We are moving forward with Bandito, though we are eliminating the BBQ aspects of the menu, which reflected Mike’s signature cooking style. Bandito will still aim to serve the best Latin food in town, with a heavy emphasis on the food of Mexico, along with great cocktails and service all within a friendly, neighborhood restaurant vibe.”

Minor declined to go into further details on the split, saying only, “It sucks things didn’t work out. I wish they could have. Unfortunately, creatively we couldn’t come to an agreement.”

But the chef promises a new venture soon. While he’s put Truck U on hold for now, he says, “I have some amazing opportunities that have presented themselves to me.”

In another chef shakeup, Doug Zuk reports he is no longer running the kitchen at Off the Strip at The Linq. He says he received the news this week. According to Zuk, the restaurant simply began moving in a different direction than he expected when he was brought onboard.

The chef, a veteran of Craftsteak, Public House and Flour & Barley, says he’s considering a few opportunities both in town and elsewhere. But he’d really like to stay here and try something different.

“Of all the things I’ve done so far in this city, I’ve never gotten to do my own food,” he says looking back at his career in Las Vegas. “I’ve always had to do someone else’s food. So I’m kind of hot on the idea of maybe being able to get myself my own little spot.”

Off the Strip’s representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Contact Al Mancini at amancini@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlManciniVegas on Twitter.