Gordon Ramsay Expands Las Vegas Empire

Chef Gordon Ramsay appears to be on a mission to conquer Las Vegas. The chef, whose Michelin-starred restaurants in London and New York along with shows including Kitchen Nightmares have put him on the map and officially attained him celebrity-chef status, has opened three restaurants in America's Playground in the past year, with two alone opening within the past month.

Back in May, Ramsay opened Gordon Ramsay Steak in the Paris Hotel, and it's since taken off. So he did what any good Vegas gambler would do and doubled down, opening two additional restaurants, Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill and Gordon Ramsay BurGR within a week of each other, right on the Vegas Strip.

The 290-seat Pub and Grill, which opened Dec. 18 at Caesars Palace, is a sprawling restaurant with two distinct rooms. The Pub side has a sports bar vibe, with 24 beers on tap and a menu of elevated British pub food including Scotch eggs, shepherd's pie, fish and chips, and brick-pressed Cornish chicken. The Grill retains that relaxed atmosphere, but does away with the televisions and serves items like Scottish salmon, lamb T-bone, Irish beef cheek stew. Both are open until 2 a.m. on weekends.

Up the road at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino, Ramsay opened his first "burger experience restaurant," the 200-seat BurGR, on Dec. 22. Burgers, hot dogs, fries, and shakes have all been elevated to Ramsayan levels: all the burgers are cooked over an open flame, and come topped with things like asadero cheese, roasted jalapeño peppers, avocado, and oven-roasted tomato (the Hell's Kitchen), and chanterelle mushrooms, arugula, and figgy-onion jam (the Chanterelle). Hot dogs are all-beef and simmered in hot sauce, fries are "thrice-cooked," and milkshakes are handspun and topped with pudding. To wash it all down, 30 beers are on tap.