"Part of a wave of on-Strip talent who exited the casinos and struck out on their own in Las Vegas neighborhoods, chef Brian Howard opened Sparrow & Wolf in 2017. The Chinatown bar and restaurant stands out among its neighborhood peers for serving modern American fare that leans into the fine-dining techniques Howard picked up working in restaurants like Comme Ça, Alizé, and Bouchon. Servers flit around the dimly lit dining room ferrying dishes like oxtail hummus and tortellini birria drenched in goat consomé, as well as cocktails infused with bruleed pineapple or garnished with fried mushroom. Howard’s take on the northern Vietnamese bánh cuốn, a dish of savory duck, fresh basil, and black rice roll, is at once sweet, spicy, and bright. Put your trust in the tasting menu, which opens with oysters and Japanese milk bread and ends with a chocolate espresso flan — each course paired with a wine from a small producer you’ve likely never heard of." - Janna Karel
