It’s Tapas Time on Wake Up With the Wagners!
Scroll to the 31:04 mark to see ELV tantalize you with terrific tapas, and actually get Kim Wagner to take a bite of something strange and delicious – cold gazpacho inside a cocoa butter ball. (If there’s a better hot weather food than Julian Serrano’s cold gazpacho, we haven’t found it.)
For the best tapas in town. go to:
1) Julian Serrano – Aria Hotel and Casino
2) Jaleo – The Cosmopolitan
3) China Poblano – The Cosmopolitan
4) Bar + Bistro @ Arts Factory – 107 East Charleston
…and don’t sully the spirit or the succulent superiority of any of these places by even thinking about Firefly…or mentioning it in ELV’s presence.
Firefly is so bad, it hurts ELV to even type its name.
It’s so bad, ruins our digestion just contemplating its existence.
It’s so bad, and so cheap, and so third-rate in its ingredients, its cooking, and its platings that describing it as mediocre would be a compliment.
It was so stupefyingly bad on two recent visits (off-tasting seafood, stale everything, cold food served hot, hot food served cold…you know, the basics) we have banned all mention of it in our presence forever.
It is, however, always busy.
Why is it busy if it’s so lousy ELV?
Because children, it is cheap…and because its decor (at whatever location) is perceived as “classy” by a certain breed of American suburbanite — the same suburbanites who have become inured to terrible, mass-produced restaurant food by having their sensibilities pounded into submission by a lifetime of advertising …and hearing all their equally-inured, dumbshit friends say something is “good” even when it isn’t.
For them there is Firefly.
The rest of us can thank Julian, José (Andrés), Shirley (Chung), and Beni (Velazquez) for the real thing.
Restaurant reviews, quips, picks and pans-with some seriously salivating history-from the man who eats his way through Sin City every day.
July 6th, 2012 at 9:33 am
There are a plethora of other tapas restaurants off Strip, Mr. ELV. How do they rate? How’s that new place on West Flamingo?
July 6th, 2012 at 9:33 am
Zagat gives it a 24 for food. ::ducks:;
July 6th, 2012 at 9:38 am
ELV responds: There is hardly a “plethora” of new tapas places around and whatever there are follow the Firefly mold of trying to put one over on the diner for $4-5 plates of shite. By the time you read this, that place on West Flamingo will probably be out of business.
July 6th, 2012 at 10:03 am
Although a bit limited, the tapas at Forte are very good. Authentic and great ingredients.
July 6th, 2012 at 10:18 am
Don’t forget Forte! The squid in its own ink alone is worth 50,000 of Firefly’s microwaved plates.
July 6th, 2012 at 10:40 am
Keep in mind, John, that Olive Garden is always busy too…
July 6th, 2012 at 10:53 am
The strip has certainly spoiled you Mr. Curtas! When looking for an off-strip restaurant, Firefly is certainly better than average in my opinion. While Firefly doesn’t compare to your top three, I don’t believe it merits the vitriol coming from your virtual pen!
July 6th, 2012 at 11:31 am
Firefly is lively and fun and affordable. The food is fresh and fast and great. A true, homegrown gem. There’s nowhere else in town you can find the combination of service, atmosphere, and quality for the price. I take all visitors from out of town to Firefly. It’s not fancy, but it’s got a great vibe and great food.
I love it for what it is, a casual, affordable night out or quick bite. Best sangria in town for sure.
I frequent JS. In fact, I know Julian quite well. Been to Jaleo a dozen times and actually prefer it to Serrano. I know restaurants and am a hospitality professional in town. I really dont get this Firefly diatribe. Sounds personal.
July 6th, 2012 at 1:50 pm
Nancy: Best Sangria? come on now… the liquid that FireFly serves is pure sugar, 100% hang over, and pales in comparison to even some of the most mediocre sangrias I have tasted. It reminds me of the “bug juice” we used to make as a late teen, a sugary water spiked with the lowest priced alcohol we could find.
I agree with John all all accounts, except the inclusion of Bar + Bistro. I was quite disappointed and B+B, my experience missed the mark (but not nearly as bad as they miss at Firefly). I loved the environment and concept, but the execution of the menu was missing.
July 6th, 2012 at 2:34 pm
What about La Cave at Wynn?
Botero at Encore?
Both are great.
July 6th, 2012 at 4:18 pm
Why people still use to read news papers when in this technological globe the whole thing is
accessible on net?
July 6th, 2012 at 5:47 pm
Firefly “stupefyingly bad?” Are you kidding? It’s consistent and enjoyable for what it is. And you don’t have to travel to the strip or pay an arm and a leg.
I’m with Nancy here. There’s no rational reason for this kind of diatribe over Firefly. Did they forget to comp your meal or something?
July 6th, 2012 at 7:47 pm
Your harsh criticism of Firefly is unjustified. No, it’s no JS or Jaleo but for me it is a good off-strip option for tapas, well-prepared and fairly priced. That’s the reason it’s busy, and not because we who have eaten there are unenlightened diners who need food critics to bring us out of the culinary Dark Ages. I generally agree with your observations, but I think someone woke up on the wrong side of their burrito this morning.
July 7th, 2012 at 4:40 pm
I have been surfing online more than 4 hours today, yet I never found any interesting
article like yours. It’s pretty worth enough for me. In my opinion, if all web owners and bloggers made good content as you did, the web will be a lot more useful than ever before.
July 7th, 2012 at 7:15 pm
John, I agree with all your picks. Firefly blows, always did. Sangria is cheap and all sugar. Why is it, diner’s out here just don’t know what good spanish food is? Does spanish fly really work?
July 8th, 2012 at 7:51 am
Quit bitching about Firefly. I’ve been there twice and enjoyed the food and the wine was priced w a non ass pumping mark up. In fact, it was much better than Emerils @ MGM. Sure Julian Serrano is fantastic but 3-$20 tapas is not an everyday meal.
July 8th, 2012 at 11:20 am
FireFly is “fairly” priced because
1) They use poor quality ingredients (you are what you eat)
2) They have cheep labor costs (you get what you pay for)
3) The cooks are trained to slap your dishes together, they are not trained to properly plate, prepare, season, or put any love into your dish (love is not free)
4) They chose locations with low rent in high population centers filled with consumers (location, location, location)
5) The customers, for the most part, don’t care about issues 1-3. I do, John does, and many other gourmands do as well. When a friend calls me up to go to Firefly, 8x out of 10 I decline for this reason.
The people responding in this thread who are upset should step back and really see the restaurant for what it is – a high end Spanish BK Whopper Bar. If you are into high end fast food, then I would agree that FireFly is a great pick, if you are not a big fast food eater, then FireFly should be skipped. Its ok, they have so much business from the masses of people who are not concerned with topics 1-3 that they won’t even notice your lack of patronage.
July 8th, 2012 at 1:33 pm
What about Fleur by Hubert Keller at Mandalay Bay? Their new chef d’cuisine, Ryan Nuqui, has a unique, micro-gastronomic menu now.