Hidden Fellini's Worth Finding

I love Italian food and have always come away from Italian restaurants in Las Vegas somewhat disappointed. Perhaps it's simply from being spoiled (there are some fantastic Italian places in Los Angeles), or perhaps it's just that I hadn't found Fellini's yet.

For this, I have to thank an intrepid group of readers of this column who sent me e-mails raving about the place. You talk, I listen, and I finally went to go check the place out. I thank you, and now the rest of our readers can thank you as well, because Fellini's is, without a doubt, my favorite Italian restaurant in Las Vegas.

It's been around for years, both in its west Las Vegas location, the branch at the Stratosphere that I ate at, and another at Sam's Town on the east side of the city. But even with three locations it still falls under the radar and qualifies for the "best kept secret" category.

Take the Stratosphere location, for instance. It is tucked away in a corner at the very end of the meandering casino -- you literally can't go any further -- seemingly miles from the front desk, tower entrance and main gambling areas. Even when you get there it's easy to miss, with only a small sign and a little dining patio and bar along a service hallway marking its existence. Unless you want a casino-noisy meal, I'd avoid this area.

Once you get inside, though, it's an entirely different world, with three themed dining rooms offering high ceilings, hand-painted murals of various Italian landscapes and a pleasantly intimate environment.

The service is spectacular from the moment you enter to the time you walk out the door, with a pleasant blend of old-world friendliness (you expect somebody's mother to come out of the kitchen wearing an apron) and professional efficiency.

But to heck with all that -- let's get to the food.

The menu here is satisfying hybrid of traditional Italian favorites (chicken Alfredo, lasagna, veal parmigiana), some Mediterranean-influenced dishes (osso buco, veal Marsala, linguini with clams and mussels), and the kind of Americanized Italian dishes that make people with less adventurous palates happy (spaghetti, pizza, ravioli).

My dining companions and I covered all of those bases. We started simple with the garlic cheese bread. It's kind of a boring choice when you have bruschetta, jumbo shrimp in garlic and olive oil, carpaccio in lemon and Dijon mustard, or even a giant portobello mushroom stuffed with crabmeat as options (among others), but I find it impossible to turn down a good garlic cheese bread, and this definitely was. Toasty, ciabatta bread (thank you Jack in the Box for educating the world) with a zippy mix of goldeny cheeses and not too much garlic. Excellent.

We considered the pasta fagioli under the salads and soups section of the menu, but wound up choosing a simple garden salad (uneventful but good) and a bowl of the minestrone. The latter was fantastic, the vegetables almost frighteningly tender and the pasta bursting with a warm, herby flavor.

If those don't do it for you, the menu has almost a dozen other salads to choose from including Caesars with chicken, shrimp or classic.

For our main courses we selected a couple of things from the pasta section and one from a "specials" menu as an addendum to the entrees. The tenderloin tips with gnocchi (potato dumpling pasta) were smothered in a mind-blowing gorgonzola cream sauce with tons of fresh mushrooms and shallots. A similar sauce topped the special filet mignon entree, and neither that nor the cut of meat disappointed. Finally, if you're looking for a traditional pasta with a twist, I can't recommend the rigatoni alla amatriciana enough -- tender tube-shaped noodles tossed in a marvelous tomato, white wine, and basil sauce with tons of Italian bacon and onions creating a superb blend of subtle and bold flavors.

A full dessert menu and drinks are also available.

As if the food wasn't good enough, you have to take a look at these prices: Starters, soups, and salads are mostly under $10; pastas are mostly under $15; entrees from $13 to $24; and pizzas for $9. That's a bargain for just about any restaurant on the Strip, much less one this good.

I wish it hadn't taken me this long to discover Fellini's. Don't make the same mistake I did.

Fellini's Ristorante
The Stratosphere Hotel & Casino
2000 Las Vegas Blvd. S.
(702) 383-4859
Open Sun.-Thurs., 5 p.m.-11 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 5 p.m.-midnight

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