Category Archives: Forking Restaurant Reviews

Honest unbiased reviews based on actual experiences

SMKD BBQ – Henderson NV – Bravo Top Chef Restaurant – Worth a Fork!

SMKD BBQ is a casual but very good BBQ Restaurant located in Henderson Nevada that is about a thirty minute ride from Las Vegas. This restaurant is by Bravo Top Chef Alex Resnick. (He’s the one in the red shirt in the picture below)

Back to the food.

We shared a four meat plate that comes with four sides. We tried brisket, mojo garlic bbq chicken, pastrami, and smoked salmon. For the sides we tried macaroni and cheese, sweet potato hush puppies, beets and carrots, and this super amazing kugel.

It all good but some of it is FORKING AMAZING!!!!!

The Mojo Garlic BBQ Chicken might be the best chicken I have ever tried anywhere. It so tender, so juicy, and so deliciously flavorful.

The Smoked Salmon is also really great. It’s that type of salmon that is seasoned and smoked just so with that certain – Melt in your mouth type of quality.

The real surprise was the Kugel. Who knew that something like kugel could be amazing.

But everything was good.

For my taste the brisket was a bit delicate with seasoning and smoke. But did taste much better with a little SMKD BBQ sauce.

Same with the pastrami. Good but maybe a little under-cured and was lightly smoked but still good.

The Macaroni and Cheese was better than what you get in most BBQ Places and so was the Beets and Carrots, and the tasty Sweet Potato Hush Puppies.

Went back a couple weeks later for a holiday special that we took out. Chef Resnick was also at work cooking that day.

Here is the take out special ordered for four people.

I am pleased to say that everything was good and delicious.

SMKD BBQ is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

SMKD BBQ

10895 S Eastern Ave Henderson NV

725-205-1460

www.SMKDBBQ.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

A Taste of Oh La La French Bistro – Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!

Oh La La French Bistro is located in the Summerlin Part of Las Vegas Nevada. This might be the only French Restaurant (and bar) that you can find here that is owned by an actual French Man that usually greets you during your stay. We’ve been here several times for lunch, dinner, and restaurant week. and other various specials.

For your first time here you might want to try one of the reasonably priced lunch specials.

Here is the rest of the lunch menu –

We haven’t tried every plate here but we sure tried a bunch.

Whatever you order they start you off with complimentary baguette and butter. Then the rest is up to you!

Below are various plates from our lunch and dinner visits.

Everything was at least good.

Not all but some things did stand out.

French Onion Soup – because it was a delicious onion base

Warm Goat Cheese with pistachios and onion jam – Just delicious and hard to pass up

I didn’t eat any of the duck or beef dishes here. My husband did and he liked them all.

I think he liked the Hachis Parmentier (French Shepard’s Pie) a lot and the Croque Madame.

Several times I got the Sole Meunière here because it seems like what to order.

Oh La La French Bistro is Always Worth a Try! and also is –

Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

Oh La La French Bistro

2120 N Rampart Blvd Las Vegas NV

702-222-3522

www.OhLaLaFrenchBistro.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Wok Republic N Las Vegas NV – (Don’t Wok This Way)

Wok Republic is a Casual American/Chinese Take out or eat in kind of place located in North Las Vegas Nevada, You order and pay at the counter. (for locals this is in the spot where Jasmin Express was and at this time the Jasmin Express sign was still up.)

They just opened last week and had lots of specials and coupons going on so we got to try a bunch of things.

First they gave us complimentary fried noodles to munch on.

Next were vegetable egg rolls.

The egg rolls were full of oil inside and got my hands very oily. I took a bite and was done.

My main meal came out next. I tried the Szechuan Hot Garlic Chicken.

The chicken is masterfully tender but it is in sauce that tastes like spicy orange jam. It’s ok at first but the sweetness builds up and gets to be too much sweetness for me.

Next is the steamed rice.

The rice is good.

My husband’s Kung Pao Beef comes out next.

They do get points for serving tender beef but it tastes like salty soy sauce. I can’t eat it. My husband can tolerate more salt than me and it is salty for him so it indeed is too salty with cold peanuts on top. This has so much salt in it that I won’t bring it home for my dogs.

Lastly the chicken potstickers arrive.

They look hand made and probably are. The dough is very thick and inside tastes like unseasoned ground chicken.

That was my trip to Wok Republic. I will not Wok this way again.

5546 Camino Al Norte North Las Vegas NV

702-982-0633

www.WokRepublicVegas.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Taste of Gujarat – Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!

Taste of Gujarat is a fine dining Indian Restaurant located in Las Vegas Nevada not too far from Henderson. The minute you step in the atmosphere transports you to a land very far away.

There are multiple dining areas and a bar.

Below is only some of what I saw.

Ordering here might be challenging for some. You need to use your cellphone with a QR code.

We started out by sharing the pani puri – crispy hollow pastry shells that you fill with DELICIOUS potatoes and chick peas curry, onions, and spiced waters.

We also shared the Street Style Bhel. (puffed rice that’s sweet, spicy, tangy with chutneys)

It seems as light as air but also is strongly aromatic.

For our mains we shared the Gujarat Style Chicken and Rice. (delicious and mighty flavorful)

Ringan Bhartha (spicy eggplant)

This was more like a dip to me but also was delicious with the garlic naan bread.

We ordered more than we could eat and brought leftovers home.

I’ve been to many Indian Restaurants but this is the first one that gave us refreshing seeds to eat after the meal.

Everything was superb!

Taste of Gujarat is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

Taste of Gujarat

9890 S Maryland Pkwy Las Vegas NV

702-291-8011

www.TasteOfGujaratLV.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Cooper’s Kitchen & Tap – Las Vegas NV – BLECH!

Cooper’s Kitchen & Tap is located in the Centennial Part of Las Vegas Nevada. The restaurant and Bar is located in a gated Community called Trilogy. You need to show your license to the guard at the gate and let them take a picture of your license plate to get in. I read about this restaurant on Yelp and it was in a good location for us to try. I also liked the New American Menu. At the time of finding out about it they had an impressive 4.5 star average on Yelp so I thought I couldn’t go wrong trying this place……….

Anyways – It looks nice inside but is kinda empty at lunch time.

We waited a very long time for our order.

After at least 30 minutes someone in a suit jacket comes out and says that their rice cooker wasn’t turned on and I could either change my order or wait another 20-30 minutes. I asked if they could substitute something for the rice. The person in a jacket suggest quinoa and I said that is great and even better.

In about ten minutes more our meals arrive.

The better of the two meals was my husband’s bucatini.

The pasta is over cooked and this is very bland and seems to be missing the seasoning and fresh herbs. I do note that there are other pictures on Yelp of this dish and this looks very different than what other people received. Other people had 4 dollops of cheese and herbs and fresh herbs that you can clearly see.

My plate was AWFUL.

I was suppose to get a stir fry with bok choy,and broccolini not a FORKING BIG BOWL OF RAW DRY KALE. The salmon is ok but the sauce is also awful. I think Panda Express and some frozen dinners might taste better. This is HORRIBLE. Since they weren’t able to serve me the rice that normally comes with the stir fry they agreed that they would give me quinoa. Look at my plate. They did give me a total of like one tablespoon of quinoa but it isn’t even fresh. It is in tiny cold hard lumps. This is one of the WORST PLATES OF THE YEAR.

I used to serve people. If I was a wait person here I would not have even served either plate.

I can not recommend Cooper’s Kitchen & Tap (I considered moving to this neighborhood because I thought it would be nice to live by a restaurant………I am so glad I didn’t move here now)

BLECH!

Cooper’s Kitchen & Tap

9560 Lapis Lane Las Vegas NV

725-258-6308

www.MyTrilogyLife.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Americana – Las Vegas – Lakeside Atmosphere – Average Food at Lunch Time

Americana is an American Restaurant and Bar with lakeside views that is located in the Summerlin part of Las Vegas Nevada. You might want to come here for lunch so you can see the attractive lakeside views.

Even at Lunch Time they start you off with tasty warm bread with soft butter. (we both thought that this was the best part of lunch)

We watched the birds that flew or swam by while we waited for our lunches to be prepared.

Then our lunches arrive.

I tried a Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich with upgraded truffle fries. The chicken breast is plump and moist. But this seems to be a non-traditional Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich. It was served on a soft sweet bun. It also is spicy but the spicy isn’t a paste or sauce. Instead it is a powder on top of the chicken. It is spicy. The other issue is that the breading is soft and not crispy. The sandwich is topped with a dill type pickle and creamy slaw is under the chicken in the sandwich. Fries are fresh and well prepared and are topped with a shredded Italian type cheese and some sort of truffle dust.

My husband ordered a medium-rare cheese burger with fries.

It was prepared past the requested medium/rare to around medium. It comes with their house sauce that is similar to fry sauce. The burger comes with caramelized onions and cheddar cheese and some lettuce and tomato slices. It’s kinda your average burger. Not the most flavor but ok.

I was hoping dessert would be the sweet spot here so I took home 1/2 my lunch so we’d have room to try dessert.

The Lemon Italian Cream Cake sounded good so we gave it a try.

To me it tastes like pound cake.

I think the cinnamon cream (not mentioned on menu) is very strange tasting with this cake.

There are also strawberry flavored candy curls and strawberry-ish lemon dots on the plate and the cake is topped with a large un-ripe strawberry.

Americana – beautiful lakeside atmosphere but pretty average food served at lunch time. Hopefully dinners could be a sweet spot here?

Americana

2620 Regatta Drive Las Vegas NV

702-331-5565

www.AmericanaLasVegas.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

A Taste of Bagelmania – Las Vegas NV

Bagelmania is a large full service Jewish Delicatessen and Restaurant with a few locations in Las Vegas Nevada. The original location is by the strip and next to the convention center. You can find everything that you can think of in the deli and more. Doughnuts, Pastries, Cookies, Breads, BAGELS, Cream Cheeses, Lunch Meats, Cheeses, Smoked Fish, Knishes, and more.

Or maybe you want to order off the menu in the restaurant. They offer breakfast, sandwiches, salads, fish platters, and more!

This time my husband had a brisket latke slider plate with potato salad and curly fries.

I had the fish combo plate. (Nova Lox and I asked for White Fish but they accidentally gave me white fish salad that I sent back….Then it came out by a manger as sturgeon.

He wrongly told me that sturgeon is whitefish.

Then latter he brings me out whitefish and says it was a kitchen error.

I guess most restaurants have an off day sometimes.

Usually the food and service is good.

Joey Chestnut the competitive Eater has participated and won the bagel eating contests that were held here the past two years. His award belts hand on the wall near the entrance. Also this year the owners of Bagelmania bought the Italian Restaurant Piero’s. (I doubt they will serve bagels there) (I also bet one of the Piero’s Managers was working here on my last visit……You know the guy who didn’t know whitefish from sturgeon)

That was a taste of Bagekmania.

Bagelmania

252 Convention Center Dr Las Vegas NV

702-369-3322

www.SiegelsBagelmania.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Italo Pizza and Kosher Kitchen – Las Vegas NV

Italo Pizza and Kosher Kitchen is located in Las Vegas Nevada just above Summerlin. This is a small casual place and is not fancy. This is also a Kosher Dairy Restaurant. No meat other than fish is offered here. They offer PIZZA, shakshuka, salads, sandwiches, pasta, fish platters, soft beverages, malt beer and more.

The owner Hezi might be the one waiting on you. He is very friendly and starts you off with some complimentary peanuts mixed with pistachios to start out with.

Then the rest is up to you.

We tried a plain small pizza.

Falafels, Hummus, a vegetable pasta salad, and Fluffy Pita Bread.

And a Salmon Platter.

Most of the food really did taste better than it looks. Everything was at least good. Most notable was the fluffy pita bread that was very good and the generous portion of salmon that was cooked from frozen. It came moist and fresh tasting and was much better than from many places.

The owner is opening a Kosher Meat Restaurant Next Door.

That was my trip to Italo Pizza and Kosher Kitchen.

7595 W Washington Ave Las Vegas NV

702-862-6554

www.ItaloKosherPizza.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

The Cantina 24/7 Bar Restaurant Gaming (Centennial) Las Vegas NV – Worth a Try!

The Cantina is a 24/7 Bar, Restaurant, and Gaming type place with a couple locations in Las Vegas Nevada. The Centennial Location offers a limited Mexican Food Menu and also Smash Burgers. Inside it’s kinda dark with Day of the Dead Decor, Big Screen TVs, and Country Music filling the air.

They start you off with a basket of chips and two very good but spicy salsas.

My husband starts out with a carnitas taco (but without the avocado).

He said that it was VERY GOOD!

We also shared a chicken & steak fajita. Below is the rice, refried beans, pico, sour cream, and guacamole.

Below are can tortillas

Below is the chicken and steak fajita. (they said that they needed to add on more steak so a few minutes latter they ran out a little more steak.)

This fajita is VERY GOOD. The chicken is moist, tender, and flavorful. The steak is tender with a DELICIOUS char. I think that this is the best steak I ever had for a fajita.

The Cantina is certainly Worth a Try!

The Cantina (Centennial)

6050 Skye Point Drive Las Vegas NV

702-710-4220

www.TheCantina247.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

702 Sandwich Shop Las Vegas NV – Great Sandwiches and some NICE Desserts! – Worth a Fork!

The 702 Sandwich Shop is located in the north part of the Summerlin part of Las Vegas Nevada. This small restaurant was formally known as La Cantine French Sandwich Shop. They offer a limited menu of sandwiches made on French style house baked breads, a few varieties of quiche (maybe? no quiche anymore? wasn’t on menu but they were soon to close for a long vacation?), soup, salad, and macarons (and a few other desserts). Below is the latest menu. (***Temporary closed for vacation. reopens January 5-2026)

It’s casual and you order and pay at the counter or do take out like most people I saw.

Some of the things we tried were –

Special – Wagyu Pastrami Sandwich

Special – Chicken Char Siu Banh Mi Sandwich

Ham & Cheese Sandwich

Cuban Sandwich

Special – Lox on Croissant with avocado
Italian Sandwich

This is what was in the dessert case on my last visit.

We tried a few of the desserts like –

Earl Grey Macaron
Strawberry Macaron
Chocolate covered strawberries

Dubai Chocolate and Pistachio Macaron

702 Sandwich Shop – Great Sandwiches and some Nice Desserts – Worth a Fork! (NOTE***temporary closed for vacation and set to re-open January 5 2026)

Worth a Fork!

702 Sandwich Shop

3250 Tenya Way Las Vegas NV

702-749-7400

www.702-Sandwich-Shop.Res-Menu.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth