Aroma Latin American Cocina
Permanently Closed
Latin-inspired dishes, from gaucho sandwiches to enchiladas
Latin-inspired dishes, from gaucho sandwiches to enchiladas
"For one night only, James Beard Award finalist chef Steve Kestler will team up with comedian Jason Harris from Eat This Comedy for a dinner and comedy event on Thursday, May 15, starting at 5:45 p.m. The event will have bottomless beer and unlimited tacos with pork belly, asada, chicken tinga, carnitas, shrimp, and more. Tickets are available for $80 per guest, and reservations can be made by calling 702-547-0474." - Emmy Kasten
"Tucked inside a strip mall in Henderson, this compact eight-table restaurant serves dishes influenced by Guatemalan cuisine. Aroma chef Steve Kestler — who grew up in Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela — is a veteran of Edo and Bazaar Meat and was Las Vegas’s solo finalist for the 2024 James Beard Awards. Here, he prepares Guatemalan-style enchiladas that combine pickled beets, Kobe beef picadillo, and salty cotija cheese onto crunchy tostadas. Thick slabs of tender pork belly nestle into tacos with pico de gallo, pickled onions, and guacamole, while the Gaucho sandwich marries deftly grilled New York steak with a verdant chimichurri sauce. Aroma marked an exciting entrant to Henderson’s casual dining scene, and with arguably some of the best tacos found in Southern Nevada, proves that Hendersonites need not travel far to find a stellar taco plate. Must-try dish: Beef short ribs are impossibly tender, made in a sweet and earthy mole with bold spices that bloom on the palate." - Janna Karel
"For a Latin-inspired evening, this Henderson spot is presenting a four-course menu for $60 per person. Choices include pork belly, hummus tostada, Peruvian ceviche, beef short ribs, and strawberry tres leches." - Emmy Kasten
"Chef Steve Kestler, a veteran of Las Vegas Strip powerhouses Bazaar Meat by José Andrés, Edo Gastro Tapas & Wine, and Bouchon Bistro, earned a James Beard Award nomination for his embrace of Latin American comfort food in this compact Henderson restaurant. Popular items include a too-good-to-share steak sandwich with chimichurri, tender beef short ribs in a stunning and complex mole sauce with spiced corn, and Guatemalan-style enchiladas with Kobe beef." - Janna Karel
"In 2024, chef Steve Kestler was the Las Vegas area’s only finalist in the James Beard restaurant and chef awards; he represented a Henderson restaurant but did not win that year. That 2024 finalist status was noted in coverage of the long-running James Beard Awards, which are considered prestigious honors in food and have a history that includes first awards in 1991, a pause in 2020 and 2021 over misbehavior and abuse allegations and a lack of nominated and winning Black chefs, and an internal audit to make voting processes more inclusive before returning in 2022." - Rebecca Roland
