Rao's

A guy named “Bubbles” greets you at the door.

He cheerfully welcomes you to Rao’s and leads the way to your table through a broad corridor with hundreds of celebrity photographs lining the walls. A big photo of Anna and Vincent Rao, the couple that made Rao’s famous in New York, hangs in front of the restaurant.

Ahead is the center bar with a bright red awning and Christmas decorations -- wreaths, garland, big red velvet bows.

Slipping into a dark wood booth, it’s impossible not to notice the neighboring table, inhabited by a large group of 40-something gentlemen, singing along to music and dancing in their chairs.

You’re about to open the menu when a friendly server pulls up a chair and plops down, telling you that the Rao’s tradition has been around for more than a century. Maybe this server tells you about a couple of their favorite dishes -- the lemon chicken or famous meatballs.

And that’s when it hits you. You’re not in Las Vegas anymore.

Actually you are still in Las Vegas, inside Caesars Palace to be exact. But it’s hard to imagine that a restaurant with the genuine, honest qualities of East Harlem can be situated in a city where bigger equals better and more equals never enough.

Rao’s is a diamond in a city full of cubic zirconias.

The exclusive Rao’s in New York City has fed and entertained celebrities like Billy Crystal, Rob Reiner and Mariah Carey, just to name a few.

Now, Frank Pellegrino Jr., and his wife, Carla Pellegrino, have carried on the century-long family tradition of home-style Italian cooking by opening a larger version inside Caesars Palace. The extra room means guests can enjoy the same cuisine that put Rao’s on the map, without the four-month waiting list.

Since it is a family-run business, a relative of the Pellegrinos is on the premises nearly all the time. That dedication, says Frank Pellegrino, is one of the biggest difference between Rao’s and other Italian restaurants.

“Whether Carla is here or myself, my cousin Ron or my father, we’re always paying attention to the details and trying to ensure our guests the best experience possible, and it shows that we care,” he says.

It is other nuances, such as making sure the servers greet guests and sit with them to explain the menu, that keep guests coming back.

While relationships were being well established in the dining room, things in the kitchen didn’t go as smoothly at first.

As executive chef, Carla Pellegrino had a few initial obstacles to overcome moving to a restaurant nearly double the size. But, with tenacity and by being on site every day, she single-handedly trained each member of her kitchen staff — a quality in an executive chef that is rare to find in Las Vegas.  

To this day, she prides herself on training her staff well, treating them well and being one of the best chefs in Las Vegas to work for.

“Everything just came together, and I’ve never lost a cook,” explains the chef. “I work very hard. I work 15 to 16 hours a day and I lead by example. That’s the truth.”

Those long workdays pay off — for guests, that is. Loyal customers dine on gnocchi, baked clams and colossal shrimp in parsley, garlic and butter. All dishes are made with imported Italian ingredients, from San Marizano tomatoes to prosciutto and mozzarella.

In true Italian tradition, Frank Pellegrino explains the dishes are meant to be served family-style.

“If you have the opportunity to share, different foods or what have you, I think it embellishes the experience and goes back to building relationships and making relationships stronger,” he says.

Desserts like a light ricotta cheesecake (which can fully hold its own in any competition against traditional New York cheesecake), tiramisu and an apple tart in a flaky, buttery pastry will leave those with a sweet tooth wanting nothing more (except for maybe a record of Dean Martin singing “That’s Amore,” and a cigar).

Rao’s also has a few amenities worth checking out. A 14-seat private dining room is available and recent visitors included celebrities Mariah Carey, New Kids on the Block and Bette Midler. There is also the patio backing the Caesars Palace pool and a bocce ball court.

Then there is Rao’s wine: Three types of domestic, a Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet, and eight kinds imported from Italy; all purveyed with Rao’s quality in mind.

Husband and wife both agree they love what they do.

“I started off as a busboy at Rao’s at the age of 12 never thinking I was going to stay in the business, and I never left,” explains Frank Pellegrino. “It’s in [my] blood, and a lot of it had to do with the relationships that were built. I got to interact with so many incredible people, regular people, working people, CEOs, celebrities, billionaires.”

If they were not in the restaurant business, the Pellegrinos say they have no idea what they would do.

“We are very lucky that we get to do what we like to do,” adds Carla Pellegrino.

They love what they do so much that the couple still cooks and entertains when they are at home.

But between being married, living together and working together, there have to be a few quarrels here and there.

“My wife and I never raise our tones with any of the people we work with, we really only raise our tones between ourselves,” says Frank Pellegrino. “But, I would be incomplete without my wife, Carla, being here.”

Just as they are family, when you dine at Rao’s you become an extended part of that family.

Perhaps Frank sums it up best.

“Rao’s is truly about building relationships with the people who come and support us,” he says. “And that is really the heart and soul of Rao’s. We built an extended family. And I think that’s our greatest achievement out of anything we’ve accomplished.”

-- Review by Nikki Neu