This week, I was feeling like going out for some Italian cuisine. As regular followers to my column know, good Italian food is my favorite.
I went to La Strega located at 3555 South Town Center Drive in Summerlin. La Strega just recently celebrated its 1-year anniversary and I have to admit even though the restaurant is basically in my backyard, I hadn’t been there yet.
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That was a big mistake on my part. Gina Marinelli is the Executive Chef and has worked with some of the more renowned Las Vegas chefs and then traveled and studied her craft in Italy before returning to Southern Nevada and opening La Strega.
La Strega has a Happy Hour Monday thru Friday from 4-6 p.m. were you can enjoy cocktails priced from $5-8. Nothing kicks off a good Italian meal like a Negroni priced at $6. The Happy Hour menu features a couple pizzas priced at $10. There is also a Fisherman’s Stew, which is various shellfish in a lobster broth for $15.
On my visit, which was a Saturday night, the restaurant was very busy. I would suggest making a reservation when going on the weekend.
One item I highly recommend on the appetizer menu is the Fritto Misto consisting of Rock Shrimp, Calamari and Artichokes with a Cherry Pepper aioli. This a great start to any meal. For dinner I was feeling pasta and all the pasta dishes at La Strega are prepared with home-made noodles.
I decided on their Rigatoni Bolognese made with a wild boar meat sauce. The sauce was amazing and the rigatoni was cooked to perfection to my taste. I hate overcooked pasta as true Italians like myself want our pasta served al dente and the rigatoni was perfect.
When it comes to meat sauces, I’ll be honest, I can be quite a snob, but I have to say I put La Strega’s Bolognese sauce right up there as one of my favorites in the city. There were several other dishes on the menu that I want to return to try.
La Strega is a great place to stop for a drink and share a pizza as one of their more popular pizzas on the menu is their Spicy Pig Pizza which has soppressata, smoked mozzarella, Calabrian chilis and chives.
Unfortunately, I didn’t save room for dessert, but La Strega has a very tempting dessert menu, including the classic Italian dessert treat — fresh Cannoli.
My waitress was very attentive to my needs and very helpful with menu suggestions. The portions were big as I took some of pasta home as I wanted to enjoy it again for lunch the next day. It took me over a year to try La Strega, but trust me I’ll be back real soon. I give La Strega a Rating of 3.75 Forks.