TERRAZZA
The Terrazza restaurant at Caesars Palace
-- the perfect garden spot for fine Italian dining at lunch, brunch and dinner -- boasts
exquisite cuisine and the most beautiful exterior architecture of any restaurant in Las
Vegas. The Terrazza is set in an ornate rotunda overlooking the Garden of the Gods
swimming pools and gardens.
Opened Dec. 19, 1997, and specializing in
country rustic Italian cuisine, the 146-seat restaurant features an exhibition kitchen
with wood-burning, brick pizza oven. A la carte selections include delicate risotti,
exciting antipasti, savory soups, fresh fish and seafood, succulent meats, the chef's own
pastas, just-baked pizza and focaccia breads, and tempting desserts.
Terrazza Chef Alberto Tapia, formerly
executive chef of Da Umberto restaurant in New York City, has re-created a traditional
"cucina Italia" (Italian kitchen), with innovative interpretations of the
country's various regional cuisines.
Terrazza is the perfect choice for a
power lunch Wednesday through Saturday, with light pasta (penne with baby shrimp in a
light Brodetto sauce, $ l 6.50) and fish selections (grilled herb-infused Mahi Mahi,
$14.50) for the weight-conscious, fast-track food service (available upon request) and
convenient cordless telephones.
On Sunday, the restaurant features a la
carte brunch selections, adding cheese/potato pancakes served with shaved apple salad
($9.50), and Italian-style omelets ($9.50) to a variety of luncheon fare. Favorite
appetizers are the Portobello Ripieno Tartufato (lightly grilled Portobello mushroom,
served over lightly grilled polenta, with fontina cheese and truffle sauce, $7 lunch,
$12.50 dinner) and the Gamberi A1 Vino Bianci (large fresh shrimp sauteed in herbs and
shallots, with cherry tomatoes in a white wine sauce, $9.50 brunch).
Pizza and focaccia breads, wines and
cocktails are served from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. in the Terrazza's 44-seat Trattoria lounge
overlooking the interior Court of Fonntains. During Las Vegas' abundant warm-weather
season, dining alfresco is available on the 36-seat terrace.
Interiors, created by Wilson &
Associates (Dallas, New York, Singapore, Los Angeles, Johannesburg) were inspired by
sun-drenched Tuscany villas. The focal point is the interior grand rotunda that separates
distinct, tiered dining areas. An atmosphere of casual elegance in the upper tiers leads
to a more casual feeling in the loggia (along the poolside glass wall), where glass doors
open onto a dining terrace, creating an indoor-outdoor fine dining experience. Outside,
antique bronze lanterns and wall sconces illuminate the poolside colonnade.
"We saw this whole restaurant as a
very romantic space," says Susan Prann, senior designer for Wilson & Associates.
The color of the walls is a warm, Tuscan
plaster, accented with stone columns and mouldings. Giant, iron chandeliers with alabaster
cups create a candle-light effect on regal, high ceilings. Aged, dark, heavy ceiling beams
adding a rustic feeling over the bar and loggia, while white moulded plaster ceilings add
an elegant flare to the upper dining tiers. Pendant fixtures of hand-painted apricot silk
wash walls with a flattering glow -- a Venetian touch that embellishes the Tuscan
architecture.
The flooring design was inspired by
rustic Italian piazzas -- an antiqued Italian tile inlaid in two colors that complements
rustic plaster walls. Custom-designed Axminster carpet echoes the tile pattern and adds a
contemporary accent.
Furnishings were chosen to make the
guests feel exceptionally comfortable. In the upper-tier dining areas, guests luxuriate in
high-back settees, upholstered in hand-painted antiqued velvet with custom bullion fringe.
Plush banquettes envelop guests in the rotunda and loggia. Service stations and wine
display cabinets are reproductions of Italian antiques.
Old World architecture and interiors
contrast with sophisticated, contemporary art, bridging the centuries-old tradition of
fine dining and trend-setting cuisine for the new millennium. At the restaurant entrance
are murals of giant wine bottles, created by Marion Westall. The large oil-on-canvas
abstracts at the entry foyer and in the rotunda were painted by Robin Mitchell. Curtis
Ripley crafted the colorful mixed-media-on-paper, and Robert White painted the four-panel
screens on the walls in the two upper-tier dining rooms. In the loggia are two wonderful
abstract mixed-media vertical panels by Robin Wassong.
Terrazza is both a casual and elegant
dining spot, particularly for luncheon guests. By night, the Terrazza provides an intimate
fine dining experience that will be long remembered. Terrazza luncheon service is
available Wednesday through Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. On Sunday, the brunch
menu is served from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.. The restaurant is open for dinner seven nights
weekly, from 5:30 to 11 p.m. (last dinner seating at 10 p.m.). Reservations are
recommended. Phone (702) 731-7731.
