Inside the new $10 million Toca Madera restaurant in Las Vegas

Knock Wood Los Angeles is coming soon to the Las Vegas Strip.

Guests of the new 200-seat restaurant, lounge and speakeasy between the Aria Casino Resort and The Shops at Crystals will find themselves in a bird’s nest-like space, passing through a secret VIP corridor filled with flights from Kobe and surrounded by by artists such as fire artists.

Noble 33 Hospitality co-owners Tosh Berman and Mikey Tanha, who are behind Toca Madera on West 3rd Street and Scottsdale in Los Angeles, Italian restaurant Sparrow in downtown Los Angeles and Casa Madera in Toronto, say the third Toca Madera’s site is taking over the original. gastronomic concept and turns it into 11 with a modern Mexican steakhouse atmosphere.

“We’re rooted in Mexican flavors, but that doesn’t make us just a Mexican restaurant,” says Tanha.

Knock on Wood Las Vegas will debut a new menu suited to the city of opulence: Think of all the greasy bites of wagyu and heaps of caviar. The premium meat program includes premium Australian and Japanese beef with wagyu, kobe and prime options, from 2 oz to 40 oz. Tomahawk + Bone Marrow is served over a floating charred green sauce, presented and cut by the chef at the table, while Kobe Flight 3 Japanese A5, Olive Kobe and Japanese A5 “True” Kobe are presented in a shiny Japanese stone.

Popular Toca Madera offerings such as Mexican tuna, cucumber, avocado, pomegranate, chile de arbol and leche de tigre sashimi will be on the menu, along with new dishes created by corporate executive chef AJ McCloud of Noble 33. New dishes include A5 Wagyu Tacos and Wagyu Enchiladas and the Truffle Burger with a mix of Wagyu beef, Wagyu rib eye, gouda truffle, caramelized mushrooms and black truffle.

The farm-to-glass mixology program, led by beverage director Carla Lorenzo, includes the sensational Caviar Martini with Castelvetrano-infused gin, olive oil, drizzled with Dolin dry vermouth, orange and fennel bitters, served with caviar, edible gold , fennel -fragrant air. .

“Las Vegas is an important market for us. If we want Noble 33 to be a world leader, we need to have an influential presence, and Las Vegas is the epicenter of the hospitality and entertainment world,” says Tanha. “This mid-Strip location not only gives us a lot of branding, but also a lot of traffic. But it’s not inside a resort or inside a mall. It is very easily available. “

Noble 33 isn’t just a restaurant operator: Berman says he designs his designs from A to Z thanks to his in-house design company, Monochrome.

“We design and develop everything you hear, touch, feel and see. Everything is personalized and made to order. We create all kinds of furniture. We designed all the lighting. We developed all the music,” says Berman.

Exclusive on first view the hollywood reporter From the $10 million space, Tanha unveiled “The Bird’s Nest,” a photo-worthy work of art that serves as an entry point, with fallen branches and a canopy of lush green trees over a reflective pond.

Locker rooms are where VIPs keep their most valuable items for the public. “We start in Scottsdale, some athletes have signed a football or our investors have a favorite bottle of tequila. It’s an excellent, personalized experience for VIPs,” says Tanha.

Guests are escorted to the lounge where they can drink and be entertained or order the full menu. To take advantage of the energetic atmosphere, everyone will stop by the lounge at some point, with many choosing to stay before or after dinner. In the lounge, located above the DJ booth, a skull adorns the wall.

The Toca Madera touches include undulating carpentry that creates a skeletal walkway between the salon and the main room, place a door in the dining room, terciopelo color land tapestry, intimate lighting and a biophilic design with several trees and other vibrant green touches everywhere. An open kitchen and dramatic U-shaped bar take center stage in both the restaurant and lounge, respectively.

Look for a custom sound journey that complements the layered atmosphere of Tocca Madera curated by Dan Whitfield, vice president of marketing for Noble 33, a mix of DJs and live musicians playing deep, melodic and Afro-Latin house music.

“Music moves through space,” says Berman.

At the end of a long hallway is a speakeasy that can serve as an after-hours extension to the dining room or a private area for special events. “It’s a secret room where you can have your own party,” says Tanha.

Berman and Tanha, who became friends after meeting at a Las Vegas nightclub in the 2000s, feel the venue represents the maturing of the brand and their partnership.

Five years ago, Tanha, who has a background in finance, partnered with Berman, who ran some of the hottest nightclubs in Southern California, Arizona and Mexico.

“At some point you come out of that scene and you have to start evolving the way you see hospitality. “Even though I loved certain elements of the nightlife, late nights and heavy drinking and everything that went with it were becoming elements of my past,” says Berman.

Celebrities who have dined at Touch Wood in Los Angeles include Brad Pitt, Channing Tatum, Michael B. Jordan and Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra.

“Toca Madera started as a bar with a food component and evolved into a culinary brand. We are 85% organic. We import all of our proteins from the best butchers and sources around the world, even joining the Kobe Federation in Japan,” says Berman. “Although we have DJ and theater and all that, at the end of the day, we’re not a nightclub. But we can be a nightlife alternative for an older, more sophisticated crowd, because we want the restaurant to be fun, engaging, and interesting for people.”

Openings in 2022 include Casa Madera West Hollywood (inside the Mondrian Hotel) and Sparrow Italia in Mayfair, London. In 2023, Noble 33 will continue to expand with outposts in New York, Houston and Miami. Berman says the Miami location is in Brickell, where a three-story development is planned.

Touch Wood Las Vegas will be open seven days a week, 4pm-12pm Sunday through Wednesday and 4pm-1am Thursday through Saturday.