I am not even comfortable giving this restaurant one star! The most horrible service I've ever had! Food came out late and our breakfast potatoes were cold. Server never came back to check on us until it was time to bring the bill. When she took our order, she completely forgot about one of the people in our party. It wasn't that busy either! She spilled coffee on the table and in the water glass. Did she bring back fresh water? Of course not! Over priced, horrible food, AND bad service. Will definitely not be going back.
Review Source:This restaurant has good food but a little high price for the amount of food.
The food was tasty and bread was freash and warm but could not get balsamic vinegar for dipping. Kinda strange for Italian? ???
Now the waitress was friendly but she was very slow and the restraunt was empty. They seem to only focus on happy hour. Kind of a shame due to we were paying way more and getting the meal portions.
If your in a hurry eat somewhere else but the food here is worth the wait.
Review for happy hour only. It's decent, though the drinks are not as cheap as I'd like to see at a downtown happy hour. Wells, wine and beer for $5-7. Our pizza was cold when it arrived, but it was only $7 so I'm not too upset.
Service was alright, except for the pizza incident. Drink glasses stayed full and we hung out for about an hour and a half and spent $40. Not bad for a weekday afternoon, I suppose.
We decided to give the Grotto a try before a play in the Arts District. Â As Dana said in his review, this is pretty standard fare in an over-priced casino restaurant.
First our iced tea orders were taken and we were brought some slices of standard Italian bread with a container of olive oil for dipping.
I ordered the special of the day, a risotto with lump crab. Â My wife ordered the Pollo Romano, a chicken breast--"Romano crusted chicken scaloppine" and served with penne in a sugo rosa. Â My wife's chicken was very good but there was more of a breading taste than romano to the chicken. Â The penne was very bland. Â A little salt helped that along. Â My risotto was good and there was a fair amount of crab meat.
We shared a slice of mezza notte chocolate cake. Â It's very rich and very good. Â Lots of chocolate drizzled with chocolate.
Service was good. Â Iced tea was refilled and the server took my Landry's card early and linked it to our order. Â
While you can sit along the windows by the pool, I didn't push for that. Â The one table remaining along the window had a large man with a tattooed back almost pressed against the window. Â Needless to say, that wasn't a view of the pool I wanted to have.
The place is quite noisy from both music, table talk, and people walking through this way to go to the Rush Tower or back the other way. Â It wasn't a detriment to the dinner--just an observation.
I was staying down at The Plaza for a week long event and was dying to get out of there. Â So my friend and I took a stroll down Freemont Street and happened upon the Golden Nugget. Â We cruised in and found the Grotto. Â Italian food...PERFECT.
It was a Tuesday night but it was very crowded. Â We were seated within a few minutes and the gluttony began. Â We started with Stuffed Mushrooms...always a perfect start. Â We ordered a bottle of Reisling Wine...can't remember which brand but it was good. Â We both left with a little buzz and that was even after we ate so much. Â Next we moved onto the Tomato Caprese Salad...delicious. Â
For my main course I ordered the Penne Diavolo and my friend got the Seared Sea Bass. Â Both dishes were superb. Â And what meal wouldn't be complete without a little Creme Brulee to top it off. Â Our service was excellent and the food was wonderful...by far the best meal I had my entire stay in Vegas.
We had to walk around Freemont Street to keep from going into a food coma but it as well worth it. Â I'll be back here again the next time I'm in the area!
This place is a diamond in the rough (and I use rough jokingly) the Golden Nugget is beautiful and up-to-date. With that said this authentic Italian restaurant was so good I had to create a Yelp just so I could share.
What we had:
Lobster Bisque = 5 Stars rich, creamy with chunks of fresh lobster
Meatball Appetizers = 4 Stars original Italian meatball, very good, I would of liked more herbs and spices but still a delicious meatball
Cheese Tortillini = 5 Stars beautifully plated, delicious pesto sauce, pasta cooked perfectly
I agree with another yelper about how it's openness in the hotel allows for whoever to walk in and out so you get people who may already be intoxicated walking up to have a cocktail (we had a somewhat loud table near us) but hey it's Vegas and we chose to sit in the bar section....I'm not complaining personally just stating. Didnt take away from the decor and food though.
Excellent service (Tony) who was knowledgable about food and drinks, friendly, and attentive. Even brought out the desert tray at the end but we were full. If your in the area definitly check this place out, worth the $
Been here twice, once with group of 4 and another with a group of  6.  Service was great and food was yummy.  I enjoyed the pizza made from their pizza oven and the spinach pear salad.  Chicken parm is huge with side of angel hair - delicious!  Also snaked a bite of the steak panini and stole a fry from my neighbor, very good.  I would say the only drawback to this place is looking out on the pool in the middle of a work day thinking that it should be you with the bucket of beer next to you soaking up the sun.  Check it out for sure.
Review Source:Excellent dinner and even better service! The kids loved their spaghetti and meatballs. The dang meatballs were the size of softballs and very tasty! We shared the seafood pasta which was outstanding as was the lobster bisque. Oh, and the bread.....the best I've ever had!
A real surprise for a hotel restaurant!
Nestled inside the bustling Golden Nugget Casino and Hotel, this Italian eatery boasts the staples, like pizza, chicken parm, caprese salad...you get the gist. Though, I usually appreciated open quality of all the restaurant casinos in Vegas, this spot was a little too open to the guests moving in out of the Golden Nugget. It's no shocker when people are havin a good time in Vegas. Even being drunk at 2pm is a normal circumstance. I guess it's just not always appreciated while you're trying to enjoy a nice midday salad. Especially when you are there at the restaurant to escape the craziness that comes in out of the casino.
Don't get me wrong, I realize I need to stop by belly aching. It's Vegas after all: I just need to get used to it or get out; however the interruptions were incessant. If the restaurant was just a tad more closed off, it would be a quaint restaurant with actually very delicious food. In fact, the pizza sizes are generous and the Italian Chopped salad is topped with a lot of grilled chicken. The server was incredibly nice and patient with my parents who can be a tad overwhelming with requests.
I rarely hit up the Nugget, but not blind to the fact that it's probably the best hotel casino north of the strip.
My visit with a homie was due to a small wedding reception dinner at a nearby chapel. Â Can you say elope? Â Congrats to the love birds Moses and Bree! Â Unfortunately, we missed the wedding reception by more than an hour, but made it for the dinner...you could say that we was behaving like we was really related to the bride and groom, lol. Â So I played the role of that uncle that just comes through something on everything, and when everything is all "ate" and done, it's deuces! J/k...
At first glance, I thought this was just your average casino diner filed with transient d-bags, bit not at all the case. Â A look at the menu, and a brief Yelp review, quickly changed my mind. Â The use of space is efficient and doors a good job with separating the restaurant from the casino floor. Â A view of the pool and shark tank was a pleasant surprise as well. Â
My buddy and I opted to split the chicken herb pizza since it was a small informal dinner with the bride and grooms closest associates. Â There is also a full bar and local brewery beer selection. Â That alone can make this man happy. Â The pizza was astounding, anything with goat cheese is a major plus for me, bit the overall pizza was scrumptious nonetheless.
Although, our late arrival prevented me from peeping out everyone else's offers. Â I love marveling over others' orders to plan my next attack, lol. Â I did see some oversized meatballs and pasta specialties, enough to know there are some good stuff on the menu. Â A return trip is in order the next time I'm downtown.
I would have to give this experience an overall 3.5, making it a 4-star review. Â The pizza was superb and the drinks were flowing with attentive service. Â Exceeding my expectations definitely played a part in the rating. Â Mazal Tov!
we ordered room service, 3 pizzas, under $60. Â VERY thin crust, and not crisp at all, very doughy. Â my sister LOVED hers, but maybe it's because she hadn't really ate that day. Â i ordered a triple cheese, and it had barely ANY freakin' cheese. Â whatever. Â I think they try to make gourmet pizzas, but Portland and Salem have sooooo many good pizza joints, that this wasn't even close.
Review Source:The food's actually pretty good. The service, however, is not.
Water was not refilled for the entire meal. Four water glasses sat empty for literally an hour. Other empty glasses from wine and soft drinks were never picked up. Not even after the bill arrived. The empties just sat there.
Our server was loud and sorta cocky. Which actually can be an asset in some cases. But this guy couldn't pull it off...and, based on our experience with him, he had no justifiable reason to be so self-confident in his style.
Food, though slow to arrive, was pretty good on the whole.
Half of the table enjoyed salads and they were quite flavorful, particularly the mixed greens with beets, pears, and pomegranate dressing. Very nice.
The cannelloni was out of this world good. The portion was only two noodles. I could've eaten a thousand. Fantastic!
The least successful entree at the table was a pizza, which had a droopy, limp crust, sparse toppings and little cheese. If  you go--and that should be a BIG "if" in my estimation--take a pass on the menu's pizza section.
After such good food, I was ready to forgive the lackluster service. But that's when Mr. Cocky Server came back and took our final drink orders: a couple of wines, a coffee, and a refill of Coke. "Got it," he said, "two Merlot, a coffee, and a snort of coke." WHAT? Who says that? I wanted to kick him in the nuts for fucking up a perfectly good meal with friends.
The good food is not worth the awful service in my book. I'd rather go to an Olive Garden. At least the server there wouldn't cap off the evening with narcotics jokes.
Decent Italian American food but nothing really authentic or memorable. Â Pasta was kind of bland but I'm very biased since I travel to Italy on a fairly regular basis. Â The bar staff didn't seem too enthusiastic but then again I think one of them was from New Jersey and people from there usually strike me as odd and/or irritating. Â Oddly the power went out during dinner and the smell of smoke from the pizza ovens started to stink up the bar. Â Would skip this restaurant and check out the steak restaurant at Gold Nugget instead. Â I heard really good things about that place.
Review Source:This restaurant's happy hour, running from Mon-Fri 2-6PM, features $5 martinis and bellinis plus $7 pizzas. My wife enjoyed a pair of bananas fosterinis while I found happy hour bliss by ordering a lemonade (spiked OF course) and a pomatini. We will be retuning soon for a pizza and the house peach bellini.
Review Source:Had high hopes in dining here last night and was overall, disappointed.
Making the rez on Open Table and getting in was not problem. Â
I ordered a pizza and was served a good looking, luke warm at best, limp one. Â I showed the server it's lack of warmth and it's lack of crispiness - he apologied and took it away, only to bring the same pizza back it's now too-hot-to-touch plate. Â They did not redo it, but warmed it, making it more limp.
Tried to eat a few pieces with knife and fork. Â Not too bueno.
Best italian food in Vegas in my opinion and I live here. I know it's a chain I have eaten at the one in Houston before as well and it was equally good.
Sit on the terrace if possible it over looks the pool and shark tank its relaxing and romantic.
Their fettucini sauce is delicious, so is their lasagna and their cheese cake is so rich and tasty! Great wine too.
We always bring our friends here when their in town & it never disappoints.
Although the food had excellent flavor, 2 out my group of 4 had severe food poisoning. I myself had the Lobster Bisque, which had excellent flavor but had a tiny amount of lobster in it. The two that got sick had their pepperoni pizza and the lasagna. Didn't expect to spend the last day in Vegas recovering...
Prices were fair and service was great.
Sat at bar for a sandwich. Â Bartender was very nice. Â He recommended a good draft beer. Â Ordered a sandwich then looked up and saw the B health rating. Â Hope I won't be hugging the toilet tonight. Â (I subtracted one star for health rating)
**note....3 days later and no sickness! Â WOOT!
We sampled pastas and pizza when we came to the Grotto. Â The pizza crust was nice and thin, with a good char on the bottom and crispy texture. Â The pasta portion was hearty. Â Wine prices were very reasonable, as were cocktails.
I will say if you want Italian, this is a very serviceable option. Â It likely won't blow you away, but the food was well above average and it's worth the price.
Stopped here for a quick bite before heading out to the Strip. We got there just in time before their happy hour ended, scored!
Happy Hour runs from 2pm-6pm, Mon-Fri.
Their online menu <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.grottohouston.com%2Fpdf%2FLasVegas_HappyHour.pdf&s=a0c7ac1b677e92b91a1b28ae3cc4a3763b780fc85e504b95f0d60fe1ac641fa2" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.grottohouston…</a>
Too bad we prefer to drink other types of booze. Our bartender was a sweetheart with a heavy hand. She was trying hard to get us drunk within the hour, bless her heart.
- Kendall-Jackson Avant Chard ($10 a glass)
- Heineken ($5.50)
- Level Vodka ($10)
ROASTED HERB CHICKEN PIZZA ($13.99, $7 during happy hour):
<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/grotto-ristorante-las-vegas?select=9YGBNGrefAacoNmxjn_U4A">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>
The herb chicken was moist and juicy, but I didn't get much herbs or seasonings on it. Everything on this pizza worked with the goat cheese (basil, garlic, caramelized onions and roasted tomatoes). I was pleasantly surprised to find that the chef also added sun-dried tomatoes, in addition to the roasted tomatoes that was listed on the menu. YUM!
CALAMARI TOTO ($11.99):
<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/grotto-ristorante-las-vegas?select=3O81T-ilZ8Czm4gYvmbGug#3O81T-ilZ8Czm4gYvmbGug">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>
It's hard for me to turn down fried calamari or fried chicken, so heck yea - I ordered this!
It's a bit overpriced, but I would still order it again.
Our fried calamari arrived piping hot with both the tentacles and calamari rings. The zesty marinara dipping sauce made the dish even better. Crunchy deliciousness that was neither greasy or over-breaded. PLEASE put this on your happy hour menu!!
This place was awesome!! Â We stumbled across it as my hubby had to watch the end of a football game and tables near the bar have TV views. Â It is amazingly delicious -- so much so that I wanted to "yummm" after every bite!!
I had the pollo francese and it was a definite 5-star meal, every bite was yummy! Â Hubby had the chicken piccata which he said was very good as well. Â We both had salads and the bread with oil n spices were also wonderful! Mix the oil around before you dip and you'll taste the fresh garlic -- mmmm!! Â
Worth every penny (entrees were $19-30) and drinks were ($6-10, beer, wine avg). Â We will definitely be back, want to try to the pizza!!!
Great, great, GREAT find!! Â My new top Italian pick!
The Grotto is inside the Golden Nugget, which by the way is nicer than I expected. Â I hadn't been to Fremont St. in over 5 years so it was a nice surprise.
We had a group of 5 and decided on The Grotto from the help of yelp! Couldn't have been more thankful. Â We were starving and this fit the bill. Â Food was great. Â I had a pizza (sausage & peppers), my buddies had the bruschetta appetizer, penne & meatballs and ravioli. Â Pizza's are wood fired and baked with thin crust.
Let me begin with how shocked I was once I entered the Golden Nugget. I did not expect it to be so nice. A couple of friends and I were going out for lunch. I was early, so I took a stroll around the property and was blown away by how modern and clean everything was.
At first, I was apprehensive about the separated dining area. During peak hours, crossing traffic to get to the part near the pool must be similar to playing Frogger with a banquet tray. The weather was gorgeous and the pool is beautiful, so I understand why they seat this area first. As the first party there, for lunch, we got a central table near the window.
October is pizza month. They are running a chef's special for $9.99. The special is a basic cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil pizza. It was delicious and easily shared between two. So why in the world did we get bruschetta, chicken fettuccine alfredo, and lasagna? Both pastas also comes with an Italian salad. It was was overkill. Yet, it was also a death I am willing to experience again. I am not a huge fan of cream sauces, but I even took a few bites of the pasta. The lasagna was my favorite. It is a bit more saucy than I normally like, but the flavor was good. The pizza is a thin crust style that I was thankful for because I could not handle any more carbs. By the time all three of us were finished we had enough to send someone home with leftovers.
Grotto is an excellent Italian restaurant kinda tucked away deep inside the Golden Nugget. I've passed it so many times on my way in, out, to the pool, to the check-in counter, through the casino - wherever. But I had never stopped in before during my six years of downtown tripping.
And I seriously regret that now.
Came in on a Thursday evening by myself, having just wrapped up a conference. Seeing no one in line, I first asked the hostess for a menu so I could spot something I liked. She happily obliged. Everything looked good to me, so I went in and sat down at the bar area, which is large and wraps all around a huge brick oven. I was pretty much the only one there, since it was so early (like around 6 pm).
A kind gentleman came out and provided a menu and a water. I looked it over and decided I was hungry enough to do an appetizer and a whole pizza. I asked if he had a favorite appetizer. He immediately pointed to the Three Cheese Ravioli, so I ordered it. I also ordered the Herb Chicken Pizza.
But first, let's not forget that ravioli. It was amazing. I mean really good. And really filling, too. I could have (and should have) made a meal off that dish alone. It was deep fried, covered in some outstanding spices, and the cheese inside was very tasty. I'd order two next time, eat both, then go buy some new pants.
And I just recently started asking servers for recommendations prior to ordering. And so far, I've been impressed everywhere I've done this. So I think I'll continue that trend in the future.
Now back to the meal. The Herb Chicken Pizza was not bad, just a little runny. I think it may have needed a couple more minutes in that authentic brick oven I sat across at the bar. Oh speaking of which, if you're going to sit at the bar, that's the best place to sit. I got to witness a myriad of interesting-looking (and attractive) pizzas coming out of that thing.
Based on the parade of pizzas, I think I'd go with the pepperoni next time. I noticed a lot of those coming out and they looked pretty good.
Customer service here is outstanding. I'm about as low-maintenance as they come, but I noticed my server constantly looking out for me. Kept the water glass full, cleaned the dirty dishes up quickly, and so on.
And he took it one step further when I went to pay. I had a $50 food & beverage credit from the Golden Nugget and wanted to use it when I paid. But for some reason, it didn't open up when I checked into the hotel a couple days earlier. So my server got on the phone, called two different people, and in about five minutes got it all cleared up. I think that was above and beyond.
And so was his tip!
So I really do regret not coming here earlier but plan to make it a regular stop on all future visits.
If you like Italian, I know you'll enjoy the food and atmosphere, too.
Hands down the best pizza I ever had in Vegas. We went in a party of 6, on a Friday night and everything's was great. We didn't have reservations, and we were promptly seated. Service as fast and courteous, drinks were generous and everybody loved their food. I had the Margherita pizza,because I am vegetarian, but the others had pasta with seafood or with chicken.
The pizza was amazing!! Perfectly baked thin crust, with a tasty sauce and just the right amount of cheese - not too much to mask the taste of the crust/sauce, not too little to keep me wanting more. Definitely a great surprise and we will come back for sure.
We dined at Grotto last Sunday for lunch and, like our last visit, it did not disappoint. Â
We had the Lobster Bisque and Spaghetti & Meatballs.
Both were good. Â
The grilled Chicken and Marinara sandwich is also delicious too. Try it if you come here. You won't regret it.
They also have good salads.
Another excellent visit.
This place is inside the Golden Nugget (Which is my fav downtown hotel)
The pizza here is sooooooooooooooo tasty! The first time we ate here we planned to share a pizza but it was so good we had to order another. They serve many more dished, which are also good, but the pizza is unbeatable! Unlike the pizza joints you may find on ever other street corner this pizza is a real treat! The crust is thin and light so you don't feel like you have a tummy full of dough when you leave. Its not too greasy and its just a very nice traditional wood fired pizza! If you are in downtown and need somewhere to eat lunch or dinner give Grotto a try, you'll be glad you did.
It was my first time at Grotto inside the elegant Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino. Â I was pleased with its welcoming and informal look, and ready for a fine Italian meal. Â The Italian bread in the bread basket was okay. Â So were the two meatballs that I had for an appetizer. Â One was medium and the other medium-well in doneness. Â The mild Marinara Sauce that accompanied the meatballs was quite good. Â And, a Half Caesar Salad featuring chopped Romaine Lettuce was nice and cheesy. Â
My mushroom-covered main dish of Veal St. Pietro in a very tasty cream sauce was nice and hot, and very good. Â Sauteed Spinach and Roasted Potatoes accompanying this dish were also tasty but warm rather than hot.
Service was very good and on target throughout my stay. Â This dinner ended on a high note with an excellent tasting, large slice of Mezza Notte Chocolate Fudge Cake and Vanilla Gelato for me, and excellent Tiramisu with Vanilla Cream for Diane. Â Both desserts were very rich and decadent!
They suckered me by just smelling the pizza as I walked by! But what really got me was their wine special...was really wanting a very good glass of wine on this last night of our adventure.
Never did get their pizza, although I seen it pass by a few times...Ordered their lemon Veal, and it was simply amazing. could cut through it with your fork. The waitstaff here was spot on, and the atmosphere and decor of the restaurant was beautiful...felt like you were in a little eatery in Italy. The prices are right...you get a good size portion - didn't order any appetizer...although they did bring out this very fresh, warm bread...which hit the spot! Was so hungry!
the wine was brought out in a little glass canister, and was enough for two glasses.
Really enjoyed my dinning experience here, and I ate alone. Just sat back, relaxed and people watched.
I don't make my way downtown in Vegas very often, but this place is a MUST-STOP AT when i do.
The italian home-style salad was very good and the fettuccine alla campagnola was delicious. one of best italian dinners i have ever had.
Service was impeccable and the decor of the restaurant is very nice, even though you are surrounded by the casino on all 4 sides.
the bread with the olive oil was to die for also.
LOVE it.
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