Middle Child — Restaurant in Paradise

We went as part of our "going out " group. A mixture of Concierge', hospitality and food and Beverage friends. We are not very picky or overly critical. Nor do we really ever go out to review where we go out. We really just want to hang out .

I have a rare poor review, as i spent a life working for a restaurant group, I dont like to take a moment in time and give a bad opinion.

First impressions were positive. Nice looking, clean, staff available, friendly and attentive. We usually need separate checks, and we made that known right in the beginning, and kindly and without hesitation accepted. We all kinda strolled in at different times and our server and wait staff were extremely attentive and on point. Even other servers were attentive to us. Way awesome !!

We ordered a variety of foods. The angliotti marsala was ok, the pork chop dry, my wife's burger she said was terrible, my lamb colognes exceptional. My friend had a steak and I didn't here any comments on his food.

All along the server took care of us in an excellent fashion.

But now to my concerns. And all of it points to me to the unseen Managment and ownership. The server was trained to tell us the Branzino was a cod fish. He was adamant about this and so we didnt order it, because we didnt know what we were getting. The coffee we ordered was basically espresso watered down. Why we weren't told this and we just found this odd, and to me, a matter of cheapness that points to a decision by owner or manager to not stock or pay for regular coffee. If we would have been told what we were getting it would have been a decision we would not have made to buy. We could have complained, but we dont do that in our group. But the real kicker was the split check with added gratuity and then given the credit card machine and prompted to give an additional multiple "extra" gratuity. All good, but we were not made aware verbally that the split checks had the gratuity built in. So 1 of us put in extra thinking it was the tip, noticed it was low, did the math and customized the tip to a higher amount and then double paying it. My wife had asked when we were paying put bill ( after my friend double tipped) what this 5 % extra tip was for and the server politely said at that point "incase you wanted to leave extra" . My friend already finished his process decided to not say anything. But to me, and operator this was as deceptive as you get in the business.

We had made tentative plans to visit one of there sister restaurants before we chose Middle Child, because Herbs and Rye was too busy..but now we all decided to never go again to any of their concepts. We just cant swallow that kind of operational mishandling. Between the menu saying Branzino and the waiter saying it was cod, the coffee not being a standard coffee, and the greedy handling of the tip we really left an other wise great time. ( forgot to mention the acoustics were bad and we struggled to hear each other).

I feel bad ..we really dont like to give poor reviews for such simple things that just should never of happened in this day and age in the...

This place was incredible for brunch before going to the noon sphere. I can’t believe it wasn’t more crowded! This is the sister restaurant to the very popular Herbs and Rye. Like the stereotypical positive traits of a middle child - this place is social, ambitious, creative and open minded. They are not practicing here - they are showing off.

The decor and open kitchen are a throw back to the art of cuisine while welcoming you into the experience. They have done it very well, so that you feel close to the kitchen and you can see the work the culinary team is putting in without the typical chaos of an exhibition kitchen.

We made a reservation online and were sat immediately upon arriving. Paola was our server and she provided the best service we have had in Vegas in the past many visits. She had perfect timing and pace with every visit to our table. She was very friendly and knowledgeable about the food. When I found out this restaurant had only been open for one year, I just assumed she was a part of the opening team and likely a trainer for them. I was shocked to find out she’s only been there for three months. Goes to show what a difference it makes when you have someone that takes pride in what they do. If I was still running restaurants, I would have immediately tried to hire her away.

As for the food - the culinary team here is obviously committed to the quality and craft of their food. I wouldn’t say that any one dish is outlandish from what you would expect to be on a carefully curated menu, but every dish has a twist - a flare - a little something extra that sets them off. Fun ingredients and unique takes on classics.

We had the bone marrow biscuits and gravy - traditional Benedict - chicken and waffles - chorizo bacon crispy rice - and salt beef hash. Everything - yes everything - was money. I almost always make sure to try an eggs Benedict at a breakfast spot. It’s such a traditional dish, that it’s a great measuring stick against other restaurants. I have had others in the same class, but certainly not better (this is comparing traditional to traditional, not the wild creation Benedict style dishes).

Not sure what some of the folks on here are talking about as far as cost. When three mediocre coffees and two pastries this morning at the casino cost us $82 (seriously) - this was an extremely welcome menu at a very appropriate price.

Thank you to the entire Middle Child Team for the best brunch we have had in Vegas. It is clear you guys have something special going on there and you all care for it as a Team!

TL:DR Get off the strip and try out Middle Child. If you’re lucky, you’ll get Paola. With five perfectly executed dishes tried, I’m pretty sure there isn’t a single one on the menu that...

Learned from Karla of Petite Bohème that Middle Child (MC), which opened as a brunch spot late 2024, was available for dinner service as well (began 07 March). MC is the latest restaurant concept (as of this review) from owner Nectaly Mendoza of Herbs & Rye, Cleaver, and Morning News; all solid venues, and although I'd never shift myself to go across the street for a breakfast, I would gladly cross state lines for a new steak joint.

Chose an end seat at the spacious bar and began exploring the menus.

Millionaire ($17): A great balanced starter drink. Almost tropical, almost sweet, almost juicy, almost sour.

Prosciutto & Burrata ($21): Very large, lots of sweet and creamy elements cut by the chili oil drizzle.

Cease & Desist ($17): Warming smokey spiced sipper.

Prime Rib English Cut ($29 happy hour): When I read that the portion was three thin slices, for some reason I pictured small, manageable pieces of meat. Nope, of course the slabs covered the length of the dinner plate. Very tender, pleasant chew, meltaway, rich au jus. Sides and Sauces were separate; ordered the Bourbon Peppercorn ($8): Slight quiver at the cost, but the condiment cup contained a creamy not too peppery delight to enhance the beef. Vermont White Cheddar Pork Belly Mac ($15): Arrived in a wee roasting pan. Cute. Tubes al dente, generously coated in cheese, just enough pork pieces to give a salty contrast. Entrée included a cast iron pan of buttery fresh tender Parker House rolls. Had plenty of takeaway of all this food; leftovers tasted just as yummy.

Opolo Summit Creek Zinfandel ($14; comped): This and all the other glasses of wine that I observed had very liberal pours.

Espresso "Slushie" ($?; comped): Pre-made, but still had a strong caffeine kick.

Value: Pretty good for an upscale eatery.

Service: Outstanding from Karla (same person as Petite Bohème Karla), and Michael behind the bar, but also all the floor personnel were friendly.

Atmosphere: Bright Art Deco garden pavilion. Mint green, cream, light woods, and white marble. Place was moderately busy right at opening, and got even more packed as the evening advanced. So while walk-ins are welcomed and bar is first-come first-served, reservations would be advisable.

Notes: The cocktail menu did not have prices listed; Karla explained that the choices were undergoing evaluation so that menu was not in its final form yet. Per the menu, all prime rib cuts were served medium-rare. As they should be. Sister steakhouse restaurant Cleaver is located in the same complex (The Collective); however, while they shared similar menu motifs, the actual overlap of the food and drink items...