It was in the spring of 2014 that Station Casinos began announcing some major dining upgrades at its Las Vegas properties. The first announcement concerned Red Rock Resort, where plans for the $35-million facelift included: a makeover for T-Bones; a new Italian restaurant in the place of Terra Rossa; a "small plates" concept for the former Hachi spot; and a Mercadito where LBS Burger had been located. Fast forward to now, and what actually has transpired to date, is the takeover of the Hachi venue by Chef Brian Massie's Hearthstone, which offers "rustic American dining," as opposed to the tapas-style venue formerly promised from the controversial (and now Hakkasan-owned) Light Group, while Mercadito is indeed open. A new Italian eatery has failed to materialize, but there's a new Asian restaurant, 8 Noodle Bar, which took over half of coffee shop's space.
Similarly, while the Charcoal Room announced for Palace Station is indeed up and running, the Little Tony's pizza concept from Tony Gemignani of Pizza Rock fame, which last May was said to be "coming soon," is still "coming soon," apparently.
As far as Green Valley Ranch is concerned, a $20-million dining upgrade was announced shortly after the plans for Red Rock were made public. The promised Pizza Rock is open, as is Slice House, from the same chef. Mercadito, and its sister bar/pub concept Tippling Hall, however, are still "coming soon" as far as the employees we spoke with have been informed. We checked out the restaurant company's own websites to see if they shed any light, and we found a "coming in 2016" message, so it looks as if these are still definitely on the agenda still, but running somewhat behind schedule.
