James Beard Winner Chef Sarah Thompson Brings Coastal Mexico to Vegas

She didn't want to move to Las Vegas. She moved anyway for a restaurant that was supposed to open March 16th, 2020. And then she stayed, kept pushing through two years of pandemic uncertainty, and built something so extraordinary that just the other month she became the 2026 James Beard Award winner for Best Chef: Southwest, the first time Las Vegas had been recognized on the James Beard platform in 15 years.Chef Sarah Thompson is the executive chef of Casa Playa at Wynn Las Vegas, a coastal Mexican restaurant she opened in September 2021, now approaching its fifth anniversary. She is also the 2026 James Beard Award winner for Best Chef: Southwest, the first time Las Vegas has been recognized on the James Beard platform in 15 years. And host Sarah Perkins met her on the red carpet a few weeks before this conversation, already knowing she was talking to someone extraordinary!In this episode, Sarah tells the whole story. From a mom who has organized every Bon Appétit magazine from 1989 to 2022 by year in the basement, to a decisive 17-year-old who knew exactly what she wanted and went straight to the Culinary Institute of America right out of high school. From learning the French brigade system at school while sneaking into New York City on weekends to eat at Eleven Madison Park and Momofuku Ssam Bar, to learning to break down fish at Marea, to having her entire creative understanding of cooking transformed by Wylie Dufresne at Alder, to the turning point of her entire career working under Daniela Soto-Innes at Cosme, where she knew nothing about Mexican food and had her palate completely transformed.And then a phone call to come to Las Vegas for a restaurant slated to open March 16th, 2020, which tells you everything you need to know about what happened next.Casa Playa is Sarah's love letter to coastal Mexico, built in the Nevada desert, sourcing corn from Masienda and mushrooms from a hydroponic farm in Las Vegas, and employing a kitchen where four of six chefs are women. It is also a restaurant that is about to add a tasting counter with eight to ten seats and two seatings per night, and a chef who has no intention of slowing down.In this episode, we cover:Growing up in the suburbs of Boston with a mom who collected every Bon Appétit magazine from 1989 to 2022 and organized them by yearFamily dinners every night and discovering that not everyone did thisGoing straight to CIA out of high school and spending weekend trips eating at Eleven Madison Park, Gramercy Tavern, and Momofuku Ssam BarLearning to be a line cook at Marea under Amador Acosta and working the fish roast station for a yearWylie Dufresne at Alder teaching her to think about food completely differently and use parts of her brain she never knew she hadWalking into Cosme knowing nothing about Mexican food and having her entire palate transformedThe flavors, the community, the communal feeling of Mexican cuisine and why it always brought her backTraveling to Mexico City, Oaxaca, and the Yucatan during her Cosme yearsMasienda: working with them for 15 years since Cosme was their very first restaurant customerMoving to Las Vegas to open Ilio with Daniela Soto-Innes and Enrique Olvera, slated to open March 16th, 2020Wynn Las Vegas asking her to stay and build her own coastal Mexican restaurant from a blank briefCasa Playa opening September 2021 and approaching its fifth anniversaryBuilding a kitchen where four of six chefs are women and more than 50% of the team is femaleWhy female cooks and leaders gravitated to Casa Playa without her actively seeking itBeing the only female executive chef at Wynn Las Vegas when she arrived, now one of fourThe Women's Hospitality Initiative in Las Vegas: from 40 people to 90 to 100 across two annual eventsSourcing: corn from Masienda in Mexico, mushrooms from Desert Moon hydroponic farm in Las Vegas, produce from Santa Monica Farmer's MarketMaking all tortillas, tostadas, and tamales in-house from heirloom cornThe Wynn Las Vegas's warehouse, lobster tanks, and the infrastructure that supports a property of this scaleGoing from shame about living in Las Vegas to fierce pride in what is being built thereWorking on a tasting counter: eight to ten seats, two seatings, showcasing masa and seafood in a more elevated formatThe 2026 James Beard Best Chef: Southwest win and what it means for her young team and the city of Las VegasUpcoming: Chef's Table Festival in Park City August 13 through 16 and Wynn Revelry by Chef's Table September 18 through 20Advice for founders: do not give up, take risks, and do not let the fear of the unknown stop youFind Sarah and Casa Playa:Instagram: @sarahcthompson_ and @casaplaya.wynnCasa Playa at Wynn Las Vegas: wynnlasvegas.com/dining/fine-dining/casa-playaChef's Table Festival: Park City, August 13 through 16Wynn Revelry by Chef's Table: September 18 through 20Subscribe to The Perfect Bite podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen! 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