8 Noodle Bar

8 NOODLE BAR
By Vegas Food Nerd

8 Noodle Bar, located in Red Rock Resort and Casino, is a little modern space that serves up some tasty Asian fusion cuisine. I’ve passed the place numerous times while at the resort, tempted each time to saddle up to the bar and get some noodles for myself. The restaurant is bright and modern, with sleek white and red accents. Metallic rods decorated with bowls make up the walls of the cozy space. The menu, created by Chef Andy Vu, explores Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese and Thai cuisines. 8 Noodle Bar prides themselves on authentic preparations, rich broths and using the freshest ingredients possible. The focus of the menu is their noodle and rice bowls. 

It’s a busy spot, and on our visit, our party of two asked to sit at one of their tables and we were promptly turned down. The hostess informed us that the table was for four people , and if we wanted to eat we’d be forced to sit at the bar. While off-putting at first, we quickly saw why our hostess was so militant about her job. The place filled up soon with other hungry patrons, and our requested table was quickly filled by four diner’s moments after we took our seats at the bar. Turned out sitting at the bar was a perk. The bar faces the equally militant chefs that were cranking out dish after dish for the ravenous lunch crowd. We started with their Pork Belly Bao Bun, with two tender buns stuffed with tender pork belly, hoisin glaze, wasabi sprouts, yuzu, pickled radish and spicy mayonnaise. It tasted just like I’d hoped it would—tender with a perfect mix of flavors. In fact, I’m drooling a bit right now just thinking of it. For the main dish, while tempted by many of their hot soups and noodle offerings at the time, our Vegas temperatures were still high, so I opted to try a cold noodle dish. Their Vermicelli is served with hot grilled pork and a crispy pork egg roll on top of cold rice noodles, carrots, cucumber, daikon radish, mint, and peanuts. They serve the dish with a sweet chili dressing to add more flavor. Adding the dressing a little at a time would be my recommendation to see how much spice your tongue can take, and also ensuring you get enough of the tasty stuff right down to the last noodle that you can scoop up with your chopsticks. The grilled pork which we were lucky enough to see expertly cooked right in front of us, was sweet, tender and savory. The meaty pork egg roll was a hot, spicy and deliciously decadent complement to the bright flavors of the noodles it was served on top of.

With the temperatures cooling, I know a repeat visit to 8 Noodle Bar to sample some of those tempting steaming bowls that I watched other customers enjoy is in order.

It’s a busy spot, and on our visit, our party of two asked to sit at one of their tables and we were promptly turned down. The hostess informed us that the table was for four people , and if we wanted to eat we’d be forced to sit at the bar. While off-putting at first, we quickly saw why our hostess was so militant about her job. The place filled up soon with other hungry patrons, and our requested table was quickly filled by four diner’s moments after we took our seats at the bar. Turned out sitting at the bar was a perk. The bar faces the equally militant chefs that were cranking out dish after dish for the ravenous lunch crowd. We started with their Pork Belly Bao Bun, with two tender buns stuffed with tender pork belly, hoisin glaze, wasabi sprouts, yuzu, pickled radish and spicy mayonnaise. It tasted just like I’d hoped it would—tender with a perfect mix of flavors. In fact, I’m drooling a bit right now just thinking of it. For the main dish, while tempted by many of their hot soups and noodle offerings at the time, our Vegas temperatures were still high, so I opted to try a cold noodle dish. Their Vermicelli is served with hot grilled pork and a crispy pork egg roll on top of cold rice noodles, carrots, cucumber, daikon radish, mint, and peanuts. They serve the dish with a sweet chili dressing to add more flavor. Adding the dressing a little at a time would be my recommendation to see how much spice your tongue can take, and also ensuring you get enough of the tasty stuff right down to the last noodle that you can scoop up with your chopsticks. The grilled pork which we were lucky enough to see expertly cooked right in front of us, was sweet, tender and savory. The meaty pork egg roll was a hot, spicy and deliciously decadent complement to the bright flavors of the noodles it was served on top of.

With the temperatures cooling, I know a repeat visit to 8 Noodle Bar to sample some of those tempting steaming bowls that I watched other customers enjoy is in order.