Sure, you can go with sake, but some of our favorite Asian restaurants take pride in offering exceptional wine lists. It’s just one of the reasons we're excited to see the original Lotus of Siam location reopen last month at Historic Commercial Center.
“Many of these wines have been carefully preserved in temperature-controlled storage since the original Sahara location closed in 2017, allowing them to continue aging under ideal conditions,” according to co-owner and operating partner Penny Chutima, daughter of James Beard Award-winning chef Saipin Chutima, whose recipes made Lotus of Siam a bucket-list dining experience.
“Many of our most prized bottles remained with the collection,” Chutima says, noting the restaurant has 2,000 to 5,000 bottles, representing a wide variety of producers, regions, and vintages. “Guests will find several vintages of Pétrus, verticals of J.J. Prüm, and an exceptional selection of older French and German wines, many dating back to before the 2000s. We also have a rare Scarecrow flight, along with a few highly sought-after bottles from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti.”
Another Lotus of Siam location, near Flamingo and Paradise, has a smaller wine list, described by Chutima as “more approachable and fun.” Both restaurants, however, take pride in variety, while making a point to showcase Rieslings, which are typically lighter and sweeter, cutting and balancing the bold flavors of traditional Thai cuisine.
Bank Atcharawan, a former sommelier at Lotus of Siam, followed a similar approach while venturing out with his own concepts. After putting his stamp on Lamaii (with locations in Chinatown and Henderson), he’s moved on to Jipata, which occupies an intimate space off Spring Mountain Road. Like the restaurant itself, the wine list feels like a well-kept secret, featuring unfamiliar, but exceptional labels that often hover in an affordable $30 to $50 price range. Atcharawan also has a soft spot for natural or low-intervention wines and usually carries at least one orange wine on the list.
When it comes to the Strip, you can’t go wrong with deep, indulgent wine programs at Mott 32 or Zuma, but COTE is a Korean steakhouse that makes an especially strong point to showcase a thoughtful 1,200-label wine list. Ask nicely, and you can even take a sommelier-led tour of the wine “cellar” — a temperature controlled room that glows in red light near the main entrance. COTE isn’t afraid to stock up on jumbo-sized bottles like magnums and jeroboams for large parties, but the real finds are in the Old World varietals, especially the Burgundy and Bordeaux options, that pair well with Korean marinades and a multi-course selection of meats grilled by your server at the table.
