CW: Hey! We are perhaps in the only kosher restaurant to be playing Sinatra. Why are they playing Sinatra? Why Sinatra, buddy?
Judd: Rat Pack, you know, Vegas.
CW: Oh, ’cause we are in?
Judd: We’re in in Vegas.
CW: ‘Cause we’re in Vegas. We are at a joint called Anise Tapas Bar and Grill.
We’re big fans of Anise Tapas Bar and Grill.
Judd: Yes.
CW: Because they understand that the kosher menu can be shaken up a little bit. They have a lot of little, unique twists going on in their food. Who doesn’t love an avocado egg roll. We do enjoy them very much. There you go. There you go, I’m gonna dip for you.
When I dip an egg roll. Everybody dip your egg rolls and stuff it in your face.
Oh yeah.
We just had the egg roll. The egg roll came will that… They call it drunken sauce. It’s got a little bit of tequila, a lot of jalapeño, a lot of cilantro to tell you that it’s not necessary a Jewish person cooking. Which I love. Then there’s agave that sweetens it out.
This is an apple beet salad. This is actually quite a beautiful plate, here. I’m gonna take my glasses off and we’re gonna look up close. I love roasted beets. You got this beautiful vegan crème fraîche. This crème fraîche is out of this world. The apple and the pomegranate and the beets are just four different kids of sweetness and a certain type of acidity and they round each other very well.
Judd: Fresh.
CW: It’s 110 degrees outside. This is incredibly refreshing.
Moussaka! Moussaka is a Greek dish. Tzatziki, lamb, there’s an eggplant, slow simmered. This is the Moussaka Slider. We got a lamb patty, right? We got some jerpenese errgplant. We have tzatziki and a harissa. That looks like a legit harissa.
Hey, smile! You know, I can’t do all the legwork all the time.
Judd: You’re gonna have to.
CW: No, no! You have to do the eating part and the smiling part.
Moussaka.
One of the things I really want to commend Anise Tapas Bar and Grill is their use of simple things like a vegan yogurt or a coconut yogurt or something to really elevate the dishes. A lot of the foods that aren’t kosher that we haven’t eaten because they have a dairy element, are very easy to recreate nowadays. And they’re killing it with this parve tzatziki.
Hell yeah! You know what we’ve got here? We got my crispy, spicy buffalo chicken taco. It’s got a fresh slaw. Yo, they got the wonton crunchies. This is the texture of the taco. It’s upper edge is very pleasant. It lingers. Tasty.
This is really a special spot. This menu is great. It’s not going to scare you away, right? The changes and introductions to the kosher palate are subtle. But, they’re really spot on. This place is excellent.
We’re here in Anise Tapas Bar and Grill run by the very commanding, slightly intimidating
Shani: Scary.
Cw: Yeah. Shani. She runs a tight shift, though.
Shani: I’m nice.