Red Rock’s Osteria Fiorella newest spot to offer al fresco dining

Marc Vetri is an early riser. Executive chef of Vetri Cucina at the Palms — neither of which has reopened since the pandemic shutdown — he used to go up to the 56th-floor restaurant, have a cup of espresso and watch the sun rise.

“Now, it’s even nicer,” he said.

“Now” refers to Osteria Fiorella, the James Beard Award-winning chef’s Red Rock Resort restaurant that, after a two-month life as a popup, is officially becoming a permanent fixture. It’s given Vetri a new place for his morning routine.

“I wake up early, head over to the restaurant, make my espresso and sit outside and look at the mountains,” he said. “With the rock formations, and the water fountain’s right there, it’s such a magical, almost zen place to sit.”

Monday is National Eat Outside Day, which comes at a time when Las Vegas may (we can pray to the weather gods) be within a week of breaking the string of triple-digit high temperatures that has cloaked it like an oversized hair dryer. And with more people wanting to dine outdoors because of the threat of COVID-19, the fledgling restaurant’s patio already has proven to be a popular spot.

“In the evenings, when you have the misters on low, even if it’s 100 outside, it just feels wonderful there,” Vetri said.

Vetri said Red Rock Resort was a natural fit because he’s long been a fan.

“When I had some visitors fly out for the opening (of Vetri Cucina in 2018), I always had them stay at Red Rock, because I was like, ‘Hey, guys, you gotta stay out there by the mountains,’ ” he said. “I always liked it out there a lot. When they made the offer to let us open, I was all for it.”

He actually had a little preview of the place when he put on a pre-opening popup there for media and invited guests when it was Scott Conant’s Masso Osteria.

“Restaurants take on new lives often,” he said. “It had a real good vibe. But I heard there were a lot of restaurants there, so when we moved in I did a sage-burning ceremony to get rid of the evil spirits.”

Osteria Fiorella is named for Luigi Fiorella, whose sausage-making company that opened in 1892 anchored what is now Philadelphia’s Italian Market, in a building where Vetri now operates a pasta bar by that name. Vetri said it and Vetri Cucina have the same sensibilities, although the Red Rock spot may be a bit more approachable.

“It’s a very neighborhood restaurant, but it’s also somewhere I think foodies are going to run to,” he said. “If they’re flying into Vegas and they’re staying near the Strip, they’re going to ride out a half an hour to eat there and then go back.

“The osterias of Italy are sort of neighborhoody, but they’re also more refined that just a regular trattoria. And then we’re utilizing all of the wood fires we have here, the wood oven and the wood grill, getting all those flavors on the meat and the fish.”

Fresh al fresco

Las Vegas offers a multitude of restaurants for al-fresco dining, with mainstays including Mon Ami Gabi at Paris Las Vegas and Bouchon at The Venetian on the Strip, Marche Bacchus and Americana in Desert Shores, Vintner Grill and Grape Street in Summerlin, Kitchen Table and The Pasta Shop in Henderson and Luna Rossa and Mimi and Coco Bistro at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson. Here are a few more recent openings:

Sickies Garage at Town Square, which will open Monday and have a grand opening Sept. 4, has a patio with misters and a TV for watching whatever games survive the various curses of 2020.

Jing in Downtown Summerlin, which opened in February, has an outdoor patio with fire and water features.

And El Dorado Cantina at Tivoli Village, which opened in January, has a spacious patio tucked to the side of the restaurant and a smaller one near the front entrance.

The Review-Journal is owned by the family of Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson. Las Vegas Sands operates The Venetian.

Contact Heidi Knapp Rinella at Hrinella@reviewjournal.com. Follow @HKRinella on Twitter.