The Bootleggers Bistro: authentic Italian cuisine
An Italian Family Tradition Since 1949
7700 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV 89123
1.702.736.4939

During one of our trips to Vegas we had a scheduled meeting at the end of the afternoon and were contemplating where we should go for dinner after that. We should visit a restaurant with a decent menu, good food and a great ambiance. A place where you can sit down, relax, enjoy a great meal and the company of great friends. We found all of that at the Bootleggers Bistro. It’s located about 5 minutes south of Mandalay Bay and the Bootleggers Bistro serves traditional Italian food. Since we’re European and we have been to Italy a couple of times we know what to look for when somebody suggests a traditional Italian restaurant in Vegas. Since we love traditional Italian food we were very excited to give the Bootleggers Bistro a try.

The Bootleggers Bistro has a rich family tradition in Las Vegas. The family that runs it has been in the Las Vegas restaurant business since 1949. That only should be reason enough to give them a try because the history alone sounds promissing enough in our opinion.

When we walked into the restaurant we were greeted graciously and directed to our table immediately. We sat down in a lovely red/brown leather booth (half moon shaped), received our menus and ordered a round of drinks. We looked around and concluded this place has that classic Las Vegas feel to it. Everything in here said tradition (in a good way). Warm colours, a lot of red, with a large bar in the center of the restaurant. A couple of TV’s showed a mix of old Vegas footage and football games. There are a lot of family pictures on the walls and pictures of celebrities who visited the restaurant. Lights were dimmed, great background music, perfect ambiance.

As a starter we ordered Garlic Bread Buns with a fresh tomato dip on the side. The buns were to die for. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. Filled with delicious Italian herbes and the amount of garlic was spot on. This starter was a homerun. We would have been perfectly satisfied if they had just brought us another big plate of these buns and just call it a meal. Now, we were even more excited to taste our entrees. We ordered Shrimp Scampi Linguini, Spaghetti & Meatballs, Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and Eggplant Parmesan.

When our entrees arrived we weren’t overly impressed with the presentation. But in all fairness it’s hard to do something special with the presentation of Spaghetti & Meatballs. Ok, so the presentation wasn’t all that. But what about the flavour? That still is the most important aspect of the meal isn’t it? Well, our meals were out of this world. The food was delicious. The right amount of flavour, cooked to perfection. The way Italian grandmothers prepared meals 50 years ago. This was Italian tradition passed on from generation to generation.

So it’s safe to conclude we were very happy with our meal. We had a great time, wonderful food, great service and the total bill was $94 (tip not included) which is very reasonable for the quality and quantity of the food. We highly recommend the Bootleggers Bistro and will visit again!