Saffron Lounge — Restaurant in Spring Valley

Overall: 3.4/5 [dine in]

We made a dinner reservation for our friend's birthday celebration at Saffron and were surprised to find the restaurant nearly empty upon arrival. With only one other occupied table, it felt like we had rented the entire place. Saffron's beautiful deco along with the cushioned booth seating makes it a great spot for hanging out with friends or going on a date. It would have been a nice touch if they offered a complimentary dessert for our friend's birthday, as many other restaurants do.

The service was impressive, considering there was only one server who also doubled as the bartender for the entire night. She had great energy and professionalism, though her bartending skills could use some refinement.

Panna Still Bottle ($10): I don't understand how restaurants justify charging this much for still water...

Lotus Blossom Martini ($17): Made with Grey Goose Pear, Hana Sake, fresh lychee, and lime. It was just okay for me; those who enjoy sake might appreciate it more.

Champagne Barbie ($18): A mix of Grey Goose Le Poir, Bacardi Dragonfruit, strawberry puree, lemon juice, and edible glitter. Sweet, fruity, and pretty--what more could you ask for? The best cocktail of the night!

Saffron Smoked Manhattan ($18): House-infused saffron whiskey, Sweet Vermouth, and orange bitters, garnished with Luxardo Cherry. Despite the beautiful presentation with the glass dome & swirling smoke, the taste was disappointing and didn't resemble a proper Manhattan. We considered having it remade but opted not to.

Charred Brussel Sprouts ($15): Wok-tossed in a house-made fig jam & garnished with lemon zest. Delicious and a great way to include greens in the meal.

Honey Glazed Chicken Lollipops ($17): Chicken brined in a special house sauce, deep fried, & glazed in sticky honey yakitori. It sounded better than it tasted and the chicken meat was too dry for me.

Saffron Satay Spears - Shrimp ($24): This came with two grilled shrimp skewers in a sweet & smoky yakitori served with two slices of Saffron infused focaccia. The shrimp was overcooked and didn't seem to be marinated long enough for the flavors to come through so they tasted like your basic grilled shrimp.

Bang Bang Shrimp ($18): Large battered shrimp, better than the Saffron Satay Spears but not as good as RA Sushi's version. The batter was too thick and didn't stick well to the shrimp.

Peking Tacos ($18) + Extra Taco ($7): These tacos were small so $18 for 6 is pricey. We had 4 people so the server said she would add another one for us; it sounds like it was going to be complimentary but she charged us. (Also, how is it $7 instead of $6?) Now for the tacos themselves, they were made with crispy wonton shells filled with citrus-brined duck, pear slaw, feta, and spicy mango aioli. Unfortunately for me, the duck was dry, and the crispy wonton shell overpowered all the other ingredients.

Skirt Steak Stack ($28): Grilled medium-rare skirt steak with sugar-soaked Fresno peppers and Maldon salt. Although the presentation of the dish was nice, the steak wasn't as juicy as I hoped for, and the portion size was small.

Filet Fenom ($36): A 10-ounce medium-rare filet mignon atop creamy mashed potatoes with red wine reduction. More tender than the skirt steak and paired well with the potatoes. Portion size was bigger as well so I would easily recommend this dish over the skirt steak stack.

Pork Belly Fried Rice ($14): One of the best dishes of the night, despite being on the wetter side for fried rice. The flavors were spot-on and had me coming back for more even...

Let me start by saying my review is more focused on the service and not so much on the food. Although I don't have a lot of praise about the food either.

We got to the restaurant at 9pm (they close at 10), the hostess asked if we have a reservation. We did and she seats us, only to see the whole restaurant has about 3 tables occupied and is otherwise totally empty.. what is the point of asking if we have a reservation or not?

Next, the server mentions, they don't have hot water to get tea. How does a restaurant which is serving "hot food" not have hot water. Assuming you have a working stove, it should take you ko longer than 3-4 mins to boil water, if your kettle/ machine is broken.

I tried to order a beer and the server was unsure if they even had it.

Moving on, we ordered our food, everything was alright. Nothing blew my mind or was out of the ordinary and certainly not worth the prices listed on their menu. We had the bang bang cauliflower, squash blossoms and the spicy beef noodles. Cauliflower tastes like orange chicken but with cauliflower. Squash blossoms were okay! And the spicy beef noodles tasted like beyond burger meat added to noodles for $32.

We had gotten our food around 9:30pm, and the server comes over to mention if we wanted another round of drinks or needed more food since it was last call.. we had just received our food.. how do you know even before you have started eating if you want anymore food or not..

Next, she says if we were ready for the check, never asked if wanted any dessert. Which I really did.. but it seemed they were eager to go home. There were still other people in the restaurant at this time.

Finally, when I asked about auto gratuity added to the check, her response was, "it is to ensure best service, which is why we circle the gratuity and write thank you next to it! "

I was speechless and was ready to leave. This is not the way you talk to a customer especially when you are charging 20% tip for just bringing food to the table.

I will absolutely not be returning here nor would recommend it to anyone. There are sooooo many more places in Vegas you can spend your money at. Hell, even loose it at gambling and you will still feel happier. I left the restaurant frustrated and dessert less

Save yourselves and...

1st time here. 1st impression: WOW! The decor is amazing! You enter through brown wooden double doors and walk past the host and see this gorgeous lighting fixture made of probably thousands of white flowers hanging from the ceiling. The walls look like sound proofing material but it was concrete. In the center was a statue which seemed to float on a water feature which looks like an infinity pool. Super high ceilings. We were seated in a booth made of crushed red velvet. So posh. Beautiful ambiance.

Upstairs is a private dining are that seats 10 people.

There were only 5 patrons in the restaurant, us included. 2 wait staff.

Now the food..... I ordered the skirt steak. Cooked medium rare, which i like. It was plated beautifully. Charred perfectly BUT it wasn't hot. Almost like it sat in the kitchen for a while before it was served to me. By the time I was on my 2nd piece, the fat started to harden and I could feel it collect on the roof of my mouth! I don't like sending my food back bc I've seen the movie "waiting" and i don't want special sauce on my food so I ate it. Served with a sauce that was carefully smeared onto the plate, a few slices of peppers and about 4 (FOUR) pieces of microgreens.

The portions are tiny. You might want to eat before coming here.

I ordered the Pink endivour. That was fabulous. The beets and the cheese on it were perfect. I couldve eaten my weight of that dish as the portion is very small. Almost like they found the smallest endives and used them.

My friend WANTED to order the exotic clay pot but our server suggested the tandoori instead. She asked if we wanted to add tofu, which we did. My friend wasn't satisfied. Said there was probably 1 mushroom in the dish. The best part was the rice. At least that was hot.

The bill: $86.70 for 1 app and 2 mains. No alcohol. Our server charged $4 extra for tofu without telling us of the up charge. We didn't say anything about that either.

We just won't recommend nor patronize this place again. Beautiful decor tho. Someone needs to talk to the chef and...