Bistro Napa is part fine dining restaurant, part culinary fun house.
On the fine-dining side, the restaurant offers a long curving bar, a capacious lounge with easily rearranged seating (handy for large parties), a seafood and raw bar and a columned dining room composed of thick carpet, glass and copper panels, domed ceiling frescos and a wood-fired oven just beyond. The menu, inspired by California cuisine and wine country, features dishes made with in-season local and regional ingredients.
But chef de cuisine Clay Slieff also likes to experiment, often whimsically. He’ll send out lettuce wraps cradling fried oysters and rémoulade, Asian meets Creole, or a flatbread pizza topped with ground lamb and tzatziki, like a deconstructed gyro.
On the fine-dining side, the restaurant offers a long curving bar, a capacious lounge with easily rearranged seating (handy for large parties), a seafood and raw bar and a columned dining room composed of thick carpet, glass and copper panels, domed ceiling frescos and a wood-fired oven just beyond. The menu, inspired by California cuisine and wine country, features dishes made with in-season local and regional ingredients.
But chef de cuisine Clay Slieff also likes to experiment, often whimsically. He’ll send out lettuce wraps cradling fried oysters and rémoulade, Asian meets Creole, or a flatbread pizza topped with ground lamb and tzatziki, like a deconstructed gyro.
Our Inspector's Highlights
- Among the waiters, it seems that broad shoulders and a cool haircut are included in the job description. But staffers always are efficient and friendly — no attitude here.
- Atlantis guests and Reno locals fill Bistro Napa’s bar and lounge from 4 to 6 p.m. daily for a Social Hour (OK, two) in which small plates, sliders, flatbread pizzas, wines by the glass, and cocktails (even specialty drinks and call brands) are served.
- One of chef de cuisine Clay Slieff’s most whimsical offerings is a must-try: the trompe l’oeil hamburger and fries is fashioned from beignet buns, a brownie patty, white chocolate cheese, kiwi pickles, mango sticks for fries and strawberry coulis as ketchup.
- Bistro Napa’s spacious dining room features romantic nooks, wide tables with incredibly comfortable chairs and a wine room that seats up to 10.
- The sommelier can help you select the perfect pairing with your coastal California cuisine from the 4,000-bottle wine cellar.
Things to Know
- Bistro Napa is located inside Forbes Travel Guide Recommended Atlantis Casino Resort Spa. It’s on the second floor, off the events, conference and boardroom promenade.
- The Reno restaurant is open from 4 to 6 p.m. daily in the bar and lounge for Social Hour and from 5 to 10 p.m. nightly in the bar and lounge or dining room for dinner.
- Many people arrive before 4 p.m. for Bistro Napa’s famous happy hour and rush the seats once the lounge opens. If you don’t arrive by 4:15 p.m., you often won’t find a table.
- Though Bistro Napa sometimes attracts families, it’s not an ideal restaurant for little ones, and there is no children’s menu.
The Food
- The menu, inspired by California cuisine and the California wine country, features dishes made with in-season local and regional ingredients.
- Try West Coast bites like ravioli plumped with butternut squash from farms east of Reno; a salad of pears singed in the wood fire and dotted with Sonoma County, California, goat cheese; and Colorado lamb chops dusted with pistachio.
- Ask for the chef’s whimsical and innovative dishes; they’re not on the regular menu. You might receive sustainable Verlasso salmon presented under glass; when the glass is lifted, a flavoring smoke tumbles out.
- The Social Hour features small plates like wood-fired baby artichokes and Wagyu beef sliders to Greek- and Margherita-style flatbreads to wines by the glass, specialty cocktails and other spirits.
Amenities
Bar
Dinner
Private dining
Getting There
3800 South Virginia Street, Reno, Nevada 89502
TEL800-723-6500
TEL800-723-6500
TEL775-335-4539
TEL775-335-4539
