Restaurant Review

Firefly was another Las Vegas restaurant I checked out last week...

Rate each category on a 1-5 star rating.

Atmosphere: (3.5) Stars
Brief Take: Typical tapas restaurant...bold colors, modern art, very clean layout on the inside. Firefly had a front, outside porch with about six tables. I'm guessing on a Friday night this place is hopping. It's not a big restaurant but it has a nice, open flow. The fairly small, but immaculate bar is located on the side. To be fair...we went as a family in the middle of the afternoon, so the place was dead. Am I the only one who feels these tapas restaurants are designated for 20-somethings trying to inject a tiny bit of culture in their lives? Guess I'm getting older.

Taste: (3) Stars
Brief Take: The food was good, not great...and certainly not memorable. What puts this place on the map for me is the mojito. You had a choice of the traditional or one of the multiple infused flavors such as peach, mango or passion fruit. I could imagine sucking down a few of these on a 100 degree Vegas day. Perfect blend of alcohol, fruit, mint and hand-crushed ice. We ordered five mini plates that included: gazpacho, tuna peppers, tomato basil soup, chicken skewers, and fish sticks. The tuna peppers came out and I was disappointed to see it was canned tuna...but surprisingly they were very tasty. The chicken skewers were well seasoned but were paper-thin and thus got dried out in the cooking process. The gazpacho was refreshing, pretty standard, but excellent. I was expecting big things from the panko-crusted fish sticks. Turned out good, but the tartar sauce was a bit underwhelming. Again, everything was good...just nothing stood out...besides the booze.

Service: (5) Stars
Brief Take: Great service. No complaints here. The food came out in a timely fashion, kids were treated well, and he left the menu with us just in case we wanted more food. He checked on us regularly and kept the drinks flowing...hey...we were on vacation.

Pricing: (3) Stars
Brief Take: The mojitos were about what you'd expect in price...just wish they were a little bigger. Tapas is small, overpriced food. Everyone knows this going in. That said, I thought Firefly was reasonable.

Overall Opinion: (3.5) Stars
Summary: One of the best aspects of Firefly was location...a few blocks away from the bustle of The Strip. If I lived in Vegas, I'd go back again on an occasional basis. As a visitor, I'd definitely stop in for a cocktail again. Firefly had a good vibe, solid food, great service and perfect beverages!

www.fireflylv.com/