Las Vegas Weekly

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Here’s a little nerdy Vegas trivia for you: What was the name of the fabulous, cheesy, over-the-top restaurant at Caesars Palace where toga-clad waitresses served never-ending courses of food and wine, and diners were warned the feast would take about three hours to complete? It was the Bacchanal Room, one of the Strip’s grand gourmet destinations. And it’s coming back ... sort of.

The Bacchanal Buffet, set to open September 10, seems deserving of the name. The $17 million project will feature a mind-boggling 500 different dishes every day, from red velvet pancakes to shrimp and grits, all arranged in a beautiful new eating arena incorporating Japanese designer Super Potato’s trademark style of mixing natural and reclaimed materials—think glass, wood and steel rooms converging into each other. Executive chef Scott Green considers it a collection of nine mini-restaurants, as the many open kitchens will allow cooks to prepare the majority of the food right in front of your hungry eyes.

Photo: UNLV Libraries Special Collections

The menu cover for the original Bacchanal Room at Caesars Palace.

It will be a buffet to remember, no doubt, but a far, modern cry from the original Bacchanal Room.

“We wanted to pay homage to this legendary restaurant that existed at Caesars Palace for many years and pleased so many customers,” Caesars prez Gary Selesner said while snacking on a Chinese soup dumpling at a recent media tour. “When we closed it, about 10 years ago, so many customers never stopped writing and talking about that restaurant. It was such a unique place. It really struck a chord.”

It was so popular that Caesars re-created it for one night as part of its 40th anniversary celebration in 2006. “We brought back a lot of those customers to celebrate, and they were just delighted,” Selesner said. “To this day, at least once a month I get a letter from a customer suggesting to bring back the Bacchanal Room.”

Of course, it could never return in its original form. Too kitschy. But with its long buffet line, luxurious design, and view of the pool, the new Bacchanal might just do its namesake proud. “It describes in one word this over-the-top nature that we’re going for,” Selesner said.