Chica continues to wow Las Vegas diners with Latin American specialties
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Four years ago, Las Vegas welcomed chef Lorena Garcia and her new restaurant, Chica, which presented Las Vegas visitors with dishes not only from Garcia’s native Venezuela but from countries all across Latin America. Garcia has authored two cookbooks, competed in Top Chef Masters, and has established a number of restaurants in addition to Chica. And since that 2017 opening, Garcia and her Chica partner, 50 Eggs, have expanded to Miami with a second incarnation of the restaurant.
In The Venetian, Chica sits at the entrance to the casino on Restaurant Row, and beckons you in with a glimpse of the large, rustic bar inside. The muted lighting is perfect for a slow-to-rise breakfast or brunch, and also for those long dinners.
At brunch, start with a cocktail—Bloody Marys come in several different forms, with Chica’s signature mix combining tomato juice, fresh citrus, Worcestershire, an unusual horseradish chipotle purée and ancho chili. Add spicy spirits with serrano peppers, Fresno and jalapeno peppers to kick it up even more. Mimosas are standards at brunch for good reason; they are light yet give you a pleasant buzz, plus you’ll often find fruity flavors far beyond the typical orange, like Chica’s strawberry mimosa. If you are keeping it clean, try the fresh-pressed Nothing Rhymes With Orange juice; it combines carrot, orange, ginger and cantaloupe.
As far as what to order at brunch, there are so many good things that it’s almost impossible to choose. A basket of the signature savory arepas, of course, little cakes of beet, nata butter, black bean, cheese and cilantro. Avocado toast gets a significant upgrade here with pomegranate, pumpkin seed and house-pickled Fresno chiles.
A go-to entrée for brunch is the corn cachapas; they have much more depth than the standard typical fluffy buttermilk variety. But you can’t go wrong with a coconut-chia granola bowl or a bowl of hand-cut tropical fruit. French toast drizzled with dulce de leche and topped with fruit is a nice twist. You’ll find several egg dishes on the menu, from an egg Benedict cazuela with chorizo and Hollandaise sauce, the Latin breakfast with two eggs, your choice of meat and Peruvian purple hash. An egg-white frittata with queso fresco boasts spinach, veggies and roasted tomato. And the sunny-side up eggs are accompanied by yucca hash, a side you may not have yet experienced.
For less breakfast and more main meal, try shrimp tacos with a habanero aioli or the Chica burger, a piled-high sandwich with pepperjack and prime beef. The marbled potatoes with stewed onions and chiles are good with both.
Chica’s storied churro tower has been replaced by a churro bouquet, with stems of the red velvet pastry being delivered in a vase along with sauces for dipping. They are so good, but don’t think you can dust off the entire vase all by yourself—you will definitely need all your dining companions to eat up, too.
The Venetian, 866.659.9643
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