The Poppy Den – Angelo Sosa’s Eclectic and Amazing Creation

We are Top Chef watchers here. Kinda fans of the show. Enough so that when Kristen was knocked off this past season we went online to complain. We were not giant fans of Angelo Sosa when he was on top chef in Season 7. So….going into his restaurant, he did not have a free pass. We left with a whole new respect for the man.

A friend of mine had recommended the new restaurant “Poppy Den” at Tivoli a month or so ago. Michael and I actually dropped by to see the menu after our lunch at the View earlier this month. Today, we went back for a late lunch to try it out.

First the hosted was friendly and asked a few more questions than I was used to. She asked where we would like to sit, booth or table, my first name, my last name…and then walked us to our booth.

Poppy Den Architecture

The restaurant is eclectic and beautiful.

White walls with white washed beams, I-beams on the outside walls with spray painted orange and factory numbers, tufted curved booths with lovely white and gray upholstery, clean dark brown wooden tables, mismatched china on the table, painted white branchy chandeliers…orange, dark brown (almost black), with greys and various tones of white….very hip and very well thought out. So, atmosphere from the top was pretty good. Then I listened to the music…this could really be my Pandora channel..Florence and the Machine, Mumford and Sons…I was feeling at home.

April was the afternoon bartender who was doubling as our waitress. We ordered the PuPu platter which included the Sweet pea soup, Jarred Tuna, Watermelon Salad, Meatballs and fish fritters. Then we added the Tuna Deviled Eggs and the Tabouleh lettuce wrap with sesame dressing. Michael ordered the Lunatic White Blend and I was trying to decide between the Justin Sauvignon Blanc and the Zaca Mesa Chardonnay. April was so kind as to bring me a sample of each so that I could decide. I went with the Zaca Mesa Chardonnay. It had just the right amount of oak, balanced with perfect acid.

Devil Tuna & Tabouleh lettuce wrap

April brought a small dish of kimchi pickles as a gift from the chef to begin. They were crisp and spicy without being too hot. Then the Tabouleh lettuce wrap with green apple, bean sprouts and bulgar arrived with the Tuna Deviled eggs with scallions, paprika oil and cilantro. The tabouleh lettuce wrap had the perfect dressing. The oil was subtle, making the dish softer without adding any heaviness, the acid was low and Michael’s Lunatic white blend paired perfectly. The Tuna Deviled Eggs was really lovely, chopped raw tuna along side chopped egg whites. Perfectly seasoned this was stunning with the Chardonnay.

Poppy Den Pupu Platter

Then the towering PuPu Platter arrived on a three-tiered tea-tray stand. The top held two portions each of the sweet pea soup with edamame and basil chilled, and the watermelon salad with goat cheese. The next level held 2 portions of the Jarred tuna with celery, red onions, scallion and sriracha served with a toasted slice of baguette and the bottom level held two dishes, one with 4 of the Aunt armen’s fish fritters in a kimchi relish with dill and lemon and the “meatballs and tomato “my style” with basil and parmesan cheese. The presentation was lovely and we started with the warm dishes before they got cold.

Aunt Carmen’s fish fritters were lovely and paired wonderfully with the Chardonnay. The levels of aroma’s that opened in my mouth just kept going. The Meatballs were wonderful with the Lunatic blend, the sweetness paired nicely with the spice in the meatballs. We moved onto the sweet pea soup, which was wonderful and cooling after the heat of the meatballs. It paired wonderfully with the Lunatic blend.

Watermelon & Pea Soup

The Watermelon salad was simple and sublime and went wonderfully with the Lunatic also. The Jarred tuna was really glorious with both wines in different ways. Each wine pulled up something different in the dish and highlighted it!

April came back with the desert menu and suggested her favorite the Chips and Ice cream. She suggested the lemon poppy-seed ice cream. She had not steered us wrong yet, so we said, of course. The dish came out and she warned us that the potato chips were hot, right out of the fryer. Dipping into the lemon poppy-seed ice cream with the warm salty handmade chips was the perfect blend of sweet and salty and was delightful.

Poppy Den Dessert

April was finishing downstairs and was heading up to do a second shift at the upstairs bar and invited us up to see it. Up stairs is stunning, with a great 2^nd floor view of Tivoli the sun setting, soft sheer drapes on the walls and rich burgundies of the plush rugs the clean crèmes and browns of the other plush seating and a high ceiling the lounge is stunning, the upstairs patio is over the side of the restaurant and with it’s curved seating feels so exclusive. And they do have a room set up for dinner service upstairs that can be booked for private events. When we walked upstairs one of the staff members who had passed us downstairs asked how our late lunch was and if now that we were upstairs during happy hour if we would like to have cocktail or sparkling wine? One of the staff out on the patio said we should see the place on Friday night when the lounge and patio are full and there is a DJ playing. They were all very proud of the restaurant that they work in.

I have no complaints and you will have to put a hand across my mouth to keep me from gushing. This was a really wonderful experience, great design, great food and a warm friendly and attentive staff. If you are in Vegas, don’t miss this place!