Las Vegas Weekly

Combustible plates

Match restaurant serves international tapas at hot prices.

Match restaurant serves “cosmopolitan tapas” with a complimentary wine list of “eclectic gems.”

Photo: Sarah Feldberg

People have been yelling for balls at new tapas restaurant Match. Dragon balls, specifically, a mix of spicy tuna, chopped onion, peppers and eel sauce listed under “fried delicacies” for $3.50.

“We have one or two tables who are just yelling it across the restaurant, ‘Dragon balls!’” laughs Match owner Gregory Arianoff.

While the popular dish may sport the oddest name on the Match menu, it’s far from the most exotic recipe. The new restaurant’s menu covers three continents with most dishes falling into the category of “cosmopolitan tapas” before being further broken down according to preparation. Prices range from $2-$10, with options like Triple “S” from Korea, spicy sea snails that go for $4.50, and Hong Kong style oysters with ponzu, chili sauce and green onion ($4). Europe’s well represented, too; Spanish croquetas, Russian salad, and French charcuterie platters all pop up on Match’s very varied listings.

If it seems like there’s no theme to the restaurant, which opened in late March on the corner of Silverado Ranch and Maryland, that’s almost correct. Match is the work of Arianoff and his partner, Randy Liu, both of whom have years of experience in the Strip’s dining rooms and culinary backgrounds ripe for the picking.

Arianoff, a former managing partner at Morels French Steakhouse at the Palazzo, was born in Belgium and spent years in Spain where he learned to make the paella on Match’s menu. His is a classic rendition available by advanced reservation only for a minimum of two people. “When I do paella it’s more traditional. It’s going to come out like down in Valencia.”

Photo: Sarah Feldberg

And it won’t leave you broke. “Fifteen years on the Strip I wrote the prices, and it turned my stomach doing it,” says Arianoff, stressing an eye towards affordability at his new off-Strip eatery.

It’s not just the European side of the menu that gets a native eye, either. Arianoff’s partner, Liu, was born in Korean and grew up in Taiwan before doing time in Strip kitchens. When the two sat down to hammer out a menu for their joint venture, they had hundreds of dishes at their disposal. Besides the wide selection of tapas, Match also offers Korean BBQ at tables with built-in grills, 10 international entrees and a so-called “Tour of Continent” chef’s sampler of Asian, American or European dishes for $16.

Match’s space is equally multipurpose. A small bar is staffed by schoolgirl-outfitted ladies, and a large dining room is set up for Korean BBQ at wide tables that should hold all the trimmings without too much trouble. Counter seating in the main room is housed under a giant boat-hull that hides the ventilation system above. It’s a remnant of the space’s former tenants, but Arianoff seems to have taken a liking to the odd artifact. Through the main space, a smaller, airy dining room provides an entirely different vibe with large windows and Picasso-inspired paintings surrounding white clothed tables.

And down a long hallway are Match’s hidden secret weapons — a handful of private karaoke rooms, just in case you want a side of soprano with your garlic pork sausage. The full menu is available until 2 a.m., if your cravings work the other way around.