Wynn Las Vegas’ Elio, delayed by pandemic shutdown, to open Thursday

Restaurants at Wynn Las Vegas are steadily moving toward a new normal.

The resort announced Wednesday that Encore’s Elio, the first Mexican restaurant for the twin properties, would open for a “summer preview” on Thursday. The news follows an announcement that the Wynn buffet would reopen Thursday — the first Las Vegas casino buffet to do so — albeit with a revised business model in accordance with anti-COVID-19 guidelines. The rest of the properties’ restaurants reopened earlier.

Elio is from the team of Enrique Olvera, Daniela Soto-Innes and Santiago Perez, the group behind the acclaimed Pujol in Mexico City and Cosme and Atla in New York. It originally was scheduled to open March 19, but on March 17, Gov. Steve Sisolak announced that all of the state’s restaurants would have to close by noon March 18.

The team was unavailable for comment Wednesday. In an interview early this year, Perez said they had been visiting Las Vegas, and the Wynn, for more than 10 years.

“We never really thought about doing something until a couple of years ago, we were celebrating Enrique’s birthday,” he said then. “We said if we ever did something in Las Vegas, it needs to be here.” “Here” turned out to be the very room where they had dined together: Andrea’s, which had been Switch when Encore opened.

Elio’s menu will reflect the team’s interpretation of Mexican food, which is rooted in the traditional but veers sharply away from the expected, with dishes such as tuna tataki rubbed in adobo with nopales, scallions and smoked soy; whole red snapper served with herbs, citrus, corn tortillas and salsa crudo; herb guacamole with house-made tostadas; and green mole made with pepitas, nuts and herbs with Tokyo turnips a la plancha.

The opening preview will feature a $70 three-course menu of dishes such as striped bass with ginger mojo and cucumber, carrots al pastor with pina butter, lamb barbacoa with shishito peppers and salsas, and tres leches with white chocolate and lime.

Hours will be 5:30 to 10 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays and 5:30 to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays in the dining room, later in the lounge. Weekend brunch service is expected to start in July. For reservations, visit wynnlasvegas.com.

Contact Heidi Knapp Rinella at hrinella@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0474. Follow @HKRinella on Twitter.