Society Café Encore in Las Vegas has had some really mixed reviews over the past few months. We thought we would try it out while we were there, just to see if they were justified or not. We ate out a lot while away, and had sampled some high quality food. Our hopes were fair to middling for this venue, but I’m glad to say we were pleased with our experience there.
The restaurant is in the Encore hotel, which is a high-class venue, with high standards. The Society Café was rated as one of the best new restaurants in Las Vegas, so our expectations were high. It’s classed as casual, but with an injection of chic. It’s posh, but not pretentious, fancy but not flowery.
The decoration is elegant. It seems inspired by the 1930s and all that involves. Bold, contrasting colours, sprawling plants, moose heads, and mirrors. Someone said it was Victorian themed, but it definitely seemed more thirties to us. It is well done, with a nice mix of luxury and relaxation to provide a calm atmosphere to dine.
Executive Chef Kim Canteenwalla works hard on the dishes, that much is obvious. The menu shows imagination, hard work, and flashes of inspiration. We were looking forward to getting started! Reading the menu shows the café pretensions of the place. Many dishes look ordinary on the page, and it’s only when they arrive that you can see the flair in which they are delivered.
Service was swift, we were greeted and seated quickly, and the first drinks served within a few minutes. We started with a Budweiser and a blood orange mimosa. There isn’t much to say about the beer, but the blood orange mimosa was excellent.
For starter we ordered macaroni and cheese and a shrimp cocktail. The “Mac ‘n cheese bites” were lighter than I imagined, and came with a truffle dipping sauce. It was this sauce that elevated the dish from ordinary into something special. It added an earthiness to the dish that made my mouth water.
The shrimp cocktail came with guacamole and a spicy cocktail sauce that was a shock at first, but then evolved into extreme satisfaction. It seemed the starters were ordinary dishes, with a little magic thrown in. A good start.
For main we ordered a New York strip and orechiette pasta, with a side of mashed potato. The strip was everything you could want from a steak. Cooked quickly and to perfection. It was red, juicy, steaming hot, and made my stomach rumble just looking at it. It was served with “wrinkled fingering potatoes.” The side of mashed potato was light and fluffy, just like it should be.
The orechiette pasta is a vegetable inspired dish with snap peas, pea shoots, asparagus, teardrop tomatoes and pecorino cheese. The seasoning was light, and allowed each individual flavour to shine through. We liked it, a lot. The vegetables were fresh and the pasta was soft. An ideal combination.
This is café dining, so we didn’t elect for dessert. Instead we sat and people watched as the dining room ebbed and flowed. Even though there were plenty of people coming and going, we weren’t rushed or hurried at all. The clientele were a mix of tourists and locals, which was a good sign.
The Society Café Encore is an easy going dining experience. It does have pretensions of elegance, but nothing that gets in the way of the enjoyment. It’s a nice, relaxed alternative to some of the busier, more frenetic restaurants on the strip, and one we would happily repeat.
The Bill: £76 per head
