Real Eats by Chef Vic – The Monzú Experience

West Las Vegas and the food scene up there just hits me differently. Some of it could have to do with my first true kitchen job up there in one very busy Italian restaurant that was once located at 5900 West Flamingo. If you have lived here long enough, then you know exactly which restaurant I’m talking about. That was in 1996.

When it’s time to have an amazing meal and support local restaurants, I tend to give a lot of attention to the West Flamingo area of town. This time around I was invited to what I feel was one of the greatest trending restaurants in that area ran and owned “hands on” by Chef Gio/ Giovanni Mauro – known as “MONZ’U – Italian Oven & Bar on 6020 West Flamingo Suite 10. A shout out to Gio’s other baby- “Old School Pizza” with multiple locations. My favorite there is the massive slice that they have on that brand’s menu. They use imported Italian ingredients there as well. You have many years of experience here within this situation for the most epic dining experiences wherever Gio opens shop. They have a big understanding regarding tradition, but they also know the importance of culinary trends. Before I even get started, I want to give much love to these guys for all they do! The entertainment matches their food and for sure is the best of all worlds at MONZ’U!

THE MONZ’U EXPERIENCE

Of course, it started off with meeting my great friends that were joining me for this soon to be wonderful food journey. First, the head of the Real Vegas Magazine fam and dear friend– Candice Wiener and joined by local professional and dear friend/ business associate Hekili Apao. I was the last to get there of course miscalculating the traffic and I walked into a lovely situation where we had Dos Caras tequila on the table waiting for me. “Thank you Hekili”

I knew as soon as the waiter Collin came over to the table this guy was absolutely on it, and he was only going to add to this experience. He took our entire order with a combination of what we came to eat and what he suggested. And I must say as far as suggestions from the staff in there, they are one of the most well-rounded and educated staff when it comes to the food, flavors and ingredients which really does contribute to the whole dining experience and allows you to put the trust within them if you’re not exactly sure what you desire or looking for some new adventures. Every time I dine in at MONZ’U, I keep trying at least one new item. It’s hard to shift away from my favorites but as I order new things, I continue to find out I have more favorites within that establishment.

Now that our order has been given to Collin with a combination of his suggestions, let’s touch on some of these amazing heart and soul creations by chef Gio. Because it is about to seriously go down as the bread yes, the homemade bread that hits the table first. Just the bread alone, please don’t tell yourself you’re not going to eat bread that night because if that bread is in front of you, you will be eating bread that night. There’s no getting around these rustic breads and loaves that chef himself does from scratch. I’m already excited here and we are just at bread, balsamic and oil.

As we go, if you’ve ever been here, you know you are about to experience both traditional classic flavors and a modern twist as well as chef Gio using his unique flavor profiles to master the art of these one-of-a-kind dishes. Let’s start off with the legendary stuffed lemon leaves. A tender charcoal grilled beef pork and lamb croquette wrapped in a lemon leaf before it’s cooked. I must get this one every time as this is the perfect bite with the drinks after that bread.

Next up – Burrata & Porri. As I love the traditional way this cheese is mostly served, chef Gio put a magical twist on it where he added melted leeks and actually bakes the cheese in a skillet and served it with some of his delicious crostini. A very unique presentation for burrata and this flavor profile is something I never had before, but totally hit home as if I had. Then we go on to of course one of my favorites that I must have every time I’m in there as well better known as “squash blossoms”. Those are tough to not think about every day once you have had them and it is one of those items you can’t believe it until you eat it! The chef takes squash blossoms and fills them with ricotta cheese, a little parmesan, and some mint. Then a light batter/fry, and then serves them with a nice chunky red sauce. As you’re reading this you are starting to understand now how this is very exclusive and certainly an experience as we go here.

Right as we are finished with these two appetizers, our guy brings us over a very fresh seafood dish that’s known as the “Grilled turner calamari” with avocado, heirloom tomato, red onion kiwi fruit and a mint pesto. This one right here makes Gio – “The Fresh Prince of West Flamingo!”

At this time the combination of the food with the drink really all comes together, and we are having such an amazing time as the table is being cleared and the entrees are about to hit. All this excitement even before the dinner. We are having a blast right now and I’m about to share the dinner side of things.

Most of us love spaghetti and meatballs. And being an Italian American, it’s very difficult for me to order it when I go out to eat. No offense to anyone but they will all understand what I mean by this. But this spaghetti and meatballs…. hits you in a different way. This is supposed to be a robust dish and somehow the chef figured out how to make it fresh and robust. Handmade spaghetti is not easy to come by, so on top of that they fold in little baby hand rolled meatballs with the fresh handmade spaghetti. And you can only imagine how good his red sauce is that is incorporated with the shaved imported cheeses and fresh garnish. The verdict here is, Gio got me to order spaghetti and meatballs when I eat there! And I am about to be due for more of that greatness soon.

And we can’t just have one pasta as the “Caramelle” house made ricotta stuffed pasta with mint & porcini dust & butter hits your mouth. It was a very smooth light flavorful pasta and works well as a duo pasta with spaghetti & meatballs.

And now for the main “Pork belly pisarei e faso”. We were at the point where a main course would seal the deal on this meal. This entrée was suggested by our amazing server, so we ordered this very well thought out creative pork belly dish, and just like everything else he does, this one had some great working layers to it. The slow cooked then grilled pork belly was sitting over a bed of gnocchi, sausage, borlotti beans, sofrito and tomatoes. It was that meat dish we needed to take us home for this meal. Again, everything worked so well together down to taking the fork full of the last few pieces and getting a bite of everything. The last bite was just as perfect as the first. Well done in the creation of this dish.

Their dessert menu was absolutely amazing as I have indulged in that before, and I highly recommend dessert when you visit that establishment. To finish things off with this lovely meal, since we ate so well, we just had a little double of espresso and biscotti. The perfect way to end this amazing evening with these great people in this fabulous establishment created by, in my book, one of the best chefs in this city. Gio! Thank you for all you do! Looking forward to all the food adventures you will be bringing to life in the future!

Be sure to visit the menu, order online or make reservations for a dinner that is sure to please: monzulv.com

6020 W Flamingo Rd #10, Las Vegas, NV 89103

 

 LUNCH | CATERING & GROUP RESERVATIONS ONLY

TABLE@MONZULV.COM | 702 749 5959

DINNER | SUNDAY-THURSDAY 4:00PM-10:00PM | FRIDAY & SATURDAY 4:00PM-12:00AM