Table34
Bread Basket and Butter – White Rolls, Whole Wheat, Garlic Focaccia and Cranberry-Walnut Bread
Quail, Jack Daniels Marinated, with Mixed Greens and Roasted Garlic Dressing
Duck Confit Quesadilla with Spicy Blackberry Syrah Coulis
Crisp Bacon and Gouda Pizza with Wilted Spinach and Mushrooms
Roasted Chicken Ravioli with Asparagus in a White Wine-Tomato Broth
Wild Boar Loin with Apple-Sage Stuffing and Brandied Cherry Demi
Oven Roasted Half Duckling with Wild Rice Pilaf and Cherry-Port Wine Reduction
Lime Tart with Pecan Crust and Lemon Curd
Lemon Cheesecake with Candied Lemon Zest
Really Big Warm Chocolate Brownie Sundae with McConnell’s Chocolate and Salty Caramel Ice Cream
Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie with Honeycomb Clusters
Belgian Waffle with McConnell’s Vanilla Ice Cream and Strawberry Coulis
Located south of McCarran International Airport, one might say that Table34 is a bit out of the way for locals, let alone tourists, but that has not stopped the restaurant co-owned by Chef Wes Kendrick and his sister Laurie from serving the people of Las Vegas for over 17 years, the restaurant originally known as Wild Sage Café continuing to present delicious American Cuisine in a relaxed, yet elegant environment.
Occupying a lengthy footprint at 600 East Warm Springs Road, technically part of a strip-mall but made to feel far nicer by way of a patio and corner-pocket with big windows bathing the space in light, those entering Table34 by way of the front doors will likely find themselves greeted by Laurie or the restaurant’s longtime General Manager before being led to one of several tables in a room lined with Wine bottles, mirrors, wood and yellow, the front of house team featuring captains as well as back-servers pleasant and accommodating, though clearly used to dealing with diners that need everything spelled out for them.
Going above and beyond what is necessary of a neighborhood place in terms of sourcing, the local Farmer’s Markets providing much of the produce while proteins are Certified Prime or Safe Harbor Fresh as relates to Fish, it was with soft Beverages poured and Wine declined that four guests sat down for a business dinner, the nightly specials all quite tempting which led to eleven plates over three courses sent out over the span of just over two-hours.
Rooted in the concept of ‘California Cuisine’ in the late nineties, Chef Kendrick coming from the Golden State to join his sister who was then working at Spago in the Forum Shops in 1999, it was after a bit of conversation that the first of two Bread Baskets was delivered along with cold Butter, the Garlic Focaccia and Cranberry-Walnut Bread both reminiscent of the quality offered at Wolfgang Puck’s Flagship while the White Rolls were unfortunately a bit dry, shredding as the Butter was added but decent enough later for sopping up sauces.
Serving both weekday lunch and dinner from 5:00 until 9:30pm Tuesday through Saturday, a Happy Hour menu providing some good deals from 4:30 until 6:00 at the bar, those looking to best experience some of Wes’ long-time classics would be well served to select one of the Chef’s non-GMO Whole Wheat Crust Pizzas offered with a variety of toppings, the Bacon and Gouda Pie featuring a light char with Mushrooms and wilted Spinach but no Sauce while the Quail Salad and Duck Confit Quesadilla spoke of a Chef willing to challenge more conventional diners, the former downright delicious with the crispy skinned bird still juicy and tender while the latter was a little sweet, but still rich enough that the confit Leg would not be mistaken by anyone as Chicken.
Certainly not one to bash Chicken, a personal favorite that often serves as a standard by which a kitchen can be judged in terms of its execution, Table34 offers the bird as either an Herb-roasted Entrée or under a section listed as “Pastas & Pizzas,” the six sizable Ravioli appropriately priced at $21 for tender noodles stuffed with ground Breast in an elegant vegetal broth while the Half-Duck and nightly special Wild Boar each hovered around $30 for an amount of meat that would cost double on Las Vegas Boulevard, the golden-skinned Fowl nicely paired to Rice Pilaf that still had a lot of give while the medium-rare Loin was tender and moist despite the lean Meat and very good bite-for-bite with the sweet Cherry Sauce and savory Stuffing.
Making every Dessert save for the Ice Cream in-house, an impressive display even when compared to several of the Strip’s best restaurants, it was on the Waitress’ suggestion that the decision was made to go all-in on five choices as an apology for Club Soda being spilled all over one guest some thirty-minutes prior, the Lime Tart and Lemon Cheesecake just the things for someone searching for a fresh and vibrant flavor to close out the evening while the silky Chocolate-Peanut Butter Pie with Honeycomb is rich without being too heavy, the same to be said of a daily special Waffle topped in Vanilla Ice Cream and reduced Strawberry-Rhubarb while the “Really Big Warm Chocolate Brownie Sundae” is the sort of dish best shared beneath a Whipped Cream, Sauce and two big scoops of McConnell’s Ice Cream.
THREE AND A HALF STARS: A bit spendy for a local’s spot, though no moreso than Ferraro’s or Bob Taylor’s Ranch House, Table 34 offers classic American cooking from a Chef going above and beyond in terms of ingredient sourcing, the menu straight-forward enough to please those celebrating a special event that might normally be spent at a chain while still offering plenty of interesting options for those who consider a meal at Spago to be typical weekend stuff.
RECOMMENDED: Quail, Wild Boar, Chicken Ravioli, Cranberry-Walnut Bread, Lemon Cheesecake, Chocolate-Peanut Butter Pie.
AVOID: As above, the White Rolls were a bit dried out, as were parts of the Duck Breast.
TIP: Daily Specials are frequently featured by way of Social Media @Table34LasVegas. Online Menu is out-of-date, though similar.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor.