The Canteen Food Hall will open in January in the space that once housed the Carnival World Buffet at the Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
Carnival World Buffet, once the city's most famous buffet, closed during the pandemic and never reopened.
"When we started planning the revitalization of the resort, one of the first things we wanted to deliver was an approachable yet exciting dining destination that appealed to a wide variety of people, much like the Carnival World Buffet did back in its heyday," said Trevor Scherrer, president and CEO of Rio Las Vegas.
Among the first-to-market concepts planned:
• Southland Burrito Co., which will honor the culinary history of coastal towns of the Southwest, Baja and northern Mexico.
• Shogun Ramen, a partnership of master ramen chef Foo Kanegae and restaurateur Takashi Segawa.
• Tony Luke's, South Philadelphia's popular cheesesteak chain.
• Tender Crush, by Chris Barish and Julie Mulligan, founders of Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer, with fried and grilled chicken tenders, sandwiches, sides and sauces.
• Nama Nama, a street food-style sushi in a setting reminiscent of Tokyo's streets and alleys.
• Attaboy Burger, with chef Alex Resnick's "less is more" menu.
The Rio Hotel & Casino Las Vegas, which recently completed its ownership transition from Caesars Entertainment to Dreamscape Cos., is renovating 1,427 guestrooms and suites in the Ipanema Tower in a project that will be completed in the first quarter of 2024.