10 top Vegas dishes and cocktails that are on fire — literally
That’s hot.
Setting a dish or drink on fire conjures the drama and excess that is so very Las Vegas. How can we improve this pricey cocktail, elaborate dessert, extravagant cut of beef? Flames!
In Vegas, the impulse to gild the culinary lily is given wide encouragement. With that in mind, here are 10 of the best flaming foods and cocktails in the city. Think of it as Vegas, when it sizzles.
■ Cocktails at The Golden Tiki: Fire can be added to any cocktail. As head bartender Adam Rains explains, a sugar cube soaked in Goslings 151 rum is placed in a spent lime half, then lighted like a candle wick. Goslings is also spritzed upward to create a pillar of fire. Guests are allowed to take pictures of the drink, but they can’t get near it, touch it or sip from it until the flames have been extinguished. $1 to flame any cocktail. 3939 Spring Mountain Road
■ Super Tomahawk Steak at Stanton Social Prime: This Stone Age-sized chop comes in at 64 ounces. The steak hangs from a carrier as it’s carted to the table, where it’s flamed with cognac, at Stanton Social, the Vegas spinoff of the original restaurant open for a dozen years on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. $395. In Caesars Palace
■ Carajillo cocktail at Galpão Gaucho Brazilian Steakhouse: This take on the Carajillo, a popular after-dinner drink in Mexico, begins with a snifter rinsed in Licor 43, a Spanish vanilla-herbal liqueur. The rinse is set afire, then poured onto a rocks glass, followed by a shot of espresso. The aroma and flavor? Almost like crème brûlée. $16. In Fashion Show mall
■ Flaming Skull dessert at Chica: A molded chocolate skull is painted in a mix of gold leaf and vodka, then plated with chocolate lava cake, horchata ice cream, fresh fruit and corn marshmallows. To finish, the skull is doused in rum and set alight, arriving at the table engulfed in blue flames. $38. In The Venetian
■ The Reaper pizza at Evel Pie: The Reaper offers a five-alarm conflagration made with habanero chile sauce, mozzarella infused with chilis, sriracha-marinated chorizo and, to add fuel to the fire, a strew of habanero slices. The scorch grows when the pizza is flamed tableside. You must sign a medical waiver before ordering the 20-inch pie. Eat three slices within 30 minutes to be added to The Wall of Legends. $49.99. 508 E. Fremont St.
■ Yucatán Toucan cocktail at La Popular CDMX: The Yucatán Toucan riffs on the Jungle Bird, a classic tiki cocktail, replacing traditional rum with mezcal. The cocktail is clarified to make it crystal clear and to round out the sweet-spicy flavors. A sugar skull garnish is set on fire. $15. In the Palms
■ Torta Merengata at RPM Italian: Meringue clusters top this round sponge cake made with vanilla and salted caramel. The torta, a twist on baked Alaska, is flambéed at the table, then poured with chocolate sauce that courses down the sides of the cake as the flames flicker. $24. In the Forum Shops at Caesars
■ Apple Pie Harvest cocktail at Oak &Ivy: The Apple Pie is a signature drink — and one of the most requested — at Oak &Ivy, a craft whiskey bar in Downtown Container Park. The cocktail is built with Old Forester Bourbon and Laird’s Apple Brandy. A sliced apple garnish is flambéed to mimic the baked flavor of apple pie. $30. 707 E. Fremont St.
■ Flaming Fajitas at Nacho Daddy: Heaps of fajitas feature chicken, shrimp or beef (or any two), plus peppers, onions, pico de gallo and guacamole. The fajitas are anointed with tequila, then lighted tableside into a flaming, smoking pyre that lends a roasty char to the food. Mexican rice, refried beans and tortillas ride sidecar. $27.45-32.95. Multiple locations
■ Up All Night cocktail at Clique Bar &Lounge: The tableside mixology menu includes this cocktail fashioned from Cruzan rum, orgeat and house lemon-ginger syrup. The cocktail is topped with fresh blackberries, strawberries, whipped cream and, for a twist on flames, an oversized sparkler fizzing away. $25. In The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram and @ItsJLW on X.