1st look inside beloved SoCal diner’s Vegas expansion
The sign on the front says it all: Opening Wednesday 10/30 at 7 AM.
Norms, the beloved Southern California diner chain, is finally making its debut in Las Vegas. The launch has been highly anticipated since the Las Vegas Review-Journal broke the news that Norms was bringing its signature hotcakes to town.
The RJ obtained an advance look inside the new restaurant, which features a main dining area partitioned from the kitchen by a decorative screen, two other dining areas, Norms’ signature orange (deployed on glass pennants, chairs and counter stools), burst fixtures in keeping with Norms’ midcentury origins, and a terrace with seating shielded from the western sun.
On the menu
The large menu, brightened with food shots, encompasses the breakfast dishes for which Norms is famous: the hotcakes, French toast and waffles; the Lumberjack and other combination plates; specialties such as chilaquiles; several omelettes; breakfast burritos and sandwiches; and a trio of eggs Benedicts.
The El Benedicto stands out, built from sope shells, cheese, chorizo and poached eggs topped by hollandaise, salsa verde, green onion and cilantro. A hillock of fresh pico de gallo cuts the richness of the Benedict.
The menu also runs to Norms classics (Ultimate Meatloaf and country fried steak), soup, salads, pastas, chicken dishes, seafood, steaks and children’s items. There are also beers, wines by the glass, a mimosa, micheladas, a bloody mary, specialty cocktails, and unlimited free refills of beverages such as an Arnold Palmer, agua frescas, specialty lemonades and more.
75th anniversary
Norms was founded in Los Angeles in 1949. The chain offers some of the most famous examples of Googie architecture, the futuristic style popular in the mid-20th century, especially among roadside businesses in Southern California. The signature Norms sign, each letter set within a vertical stack of sawtooth pennants, has become a Googie icon, the letters seemingly caught for an instant as they streak past.
Norms is at 4605 W. Charleston Blvd., at South Decatur Boulevard. Visit norms.com.
Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram.
