Chef leaves big-name Asian restaurant on the Vegas Strip to open an off-Strip Thai spot
The executive chef of one of the highest profile restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip has left the hurlyburly of a huge operation, at least 200 seats, for a more intimate approach off the boulevard, opening his own restaurant that reimagines Thai classics with refined flavors and presentations.
Pinyo Saewu, the executive chef of Hakkasan in the MGM Grand, departed the restaurant in December after seven years to debut Amata Modern Thai on South Rainbow Boulevard at West Russell Road. Amata means “eternal” or “immortal” in Thai.
Duck rolls, beef, black truffles
The menu encompasses appetizers, a couple of raw dishes, soups, noodles, main courses and several signature dishes, plus vegan options.
Prawn rolls arrive in a shaggy coat of crisp fried noodles, backed by housemade spicy plum sauce. Other fried rolls are stuffed with Peking duck. A duck version of larb is classically seasoned with nutty (and textural) roasted rice powder and bracing jabs of chili, lime and galangal. Spicy Thai-style papaya salad is studded with dried shrimp, tomatoes and peanuts.
Two carpaccios make an appearance, including a spicy beef version made with prime-grade tenderloin, northern Thai spices and gusts of mint and cilantro. A roasty heap of pad kee mao features drunken noodles tossed in spicy basil sauce. Khao pad truffles, a signature dish, delivers a stir-fry of fried rice, black truffles, garlic and enoki mushrooms.
Crab fat, flowers, bone marrow
The menu proceeds to more signature items.
For pad pen su, crab fat and jumbo lump crab top ribbons of flat rice noodles in sweet-savory soy sauce. Duck braises for eight hours, then is fried twice, for a Panang curry elegantly dotted with edible flowers. Another stir-fry calls on prime grade beef, punchy black pepper sauce, onions and bell peppers, with a plume of fried rice noodles surging from the dish.
A dramatically plated khao soi features a trench of bone marrow rising from a rich curry of northern Thai spices, noodles and beef short ribs braised for eight hours.
A history of Hakkasans
The clean design of Amata brings together wood accents and tables, aqua-upholstered chairs, potted greenery and plenty of natural light. Besides Hakkasan at the MGM, chef Saewu worked on the opening teams for Hakkasan San Francisco and Hakkasan Dubai. Saewu joined with Misonori Hospitality of Vegas to open Amata.
Visit amatathailv.com or follow @amatamodernthai.
Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram.
