Exclusive: Chef Kwame Onwuachi's Newest Restaurant Is a Caribbean Steakhouse in Las Vegas

Travel + Leisure

20-05-2025

Chef Kwame Onwuachi has a new restaurant coming to Las Vegas. The chef spoke to Travel + Leisure about restaurant's inspiration, his aspirations for the Vegas dining scene, and how his background (both his upbringing in North Bronx and his Afro-Caribbean roots) continues to shape his approach to food.
When Kwame Onwuachi speaks about food, he's not just crafting menus—he's conjuring memory, migration, and resistance. The Top Chef star and James Beard Award recipient is a storyteller who shapes his dishes around history and heritage. Now, Onwuachi is bringing his vision to Las Vegas with Maroon, an Afro-Caribbean steakhouse at Sahara Las Vegas.
Onwuachi's vision for the restaurant is to reimagine the classic American steakhouse through the lens of Caribbean cuisine. There will be jerk rubs and dry-aged cuts, live-fire cooking, scotch bonnet-infused sauces, grilled seafood, and vibrant sides rooted in West African, Jamaican, and Creole traditions. It's fine dining grounded in cultural memory.
But for Onwuachi, Maroon is more than a restaurant. It's a reclamation of history and culture through the lens of fine dining—and it all starts with nomenclature. The name Maroon is a reference to the Maroons of Jamaica—descendants of enslaved Africans who escaped bondage and created self-sufficient communities in Jamaica's Blue Mountains. "The Maroons didn't just run,' Onwuachi told Travel + Leisure. 'They thrived. They created something new, something powerful, out of pain and resistance. That energy—that story—is what this restaurant is about."
'This isn't just about food,' he added. 'It's about telling the stories that haven't been told. It's about honoring a legacy and recognizing that the food we're putting on these plates has a deeper meaning. It's not just a meal—it's history, it's resilience, and it's a testament to the strength of those who came before us.'
Onwuachi is no stranger to building a restaurant that becomes a cultural moment. His New York City flagship, Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi, opened at Lincoln Center in late 2022 and quickly became a sensation. (In both 2023 and 2024, it was ranked the No. 1 restaurant in New York City by The New York Times, topping its annual list of the city's 100 best restaurants.) His new Washington, D.C. project, Dōgon, is also earning massive acclaim.
That's exactly what he hopes to do in Las Vegas. Maroon will be the signature culinary anchor of Sahara Las Vegas's ongoing evolution—a resort that has quietly but intentionally repositioned itself as a destination for thoughtful luxury.
"We were intentional in selecting Kwame Onwuachi as our partner for the next chapter of Sahara Las Vegas' culinary journey,' Sahara owner Alex Meruelo told T+L. 'His incomparable fusion of storytelling, culture, and outstanding cuisine is uniquely captivating. Maroon will not only advance chef Kwame's personal vision but also revolutionize the current steakhouse experience on the Strip and beyond.'
Chef Kwame at Tatiana in New York City.
Gladimir Gelin
In a city with dozens of luxury steakhouses—most modeled on classic American or European dining traditions—Onwuachi's take stands apart. It's not just that the flavors are different; it's that the purpose is different.
Maroon is also the first concept on the Strip led by a Black chef-owner, rooted in diasporic cuisine, and designed from the ground up to represent a broader cultural vision. But Onwuachi is quick to note that representation alone isn't the endgame. 'It's not just about being the first,' he said. 'It's about making sure we're not the last. It's about opening the door and then holding it open for others.'
This ethos extends beyond the kitchen. At Patty Palace in Queens, Onwuachi sells Miri, a sparkling water brand he founded to support clean water initiatives in Nigeria. A portion of the profits from every bottle sold goes directly toward building wells in underserved communities. 'The goal is always to create something that leaves a positive mark,' he said. 'Whether it's through food or philanthropy, it's about impact.'
A portrait of chef Kwame Onwuachi.
Scott Suchman
As Las Vegas continues to evolve from a playground of extravagance into a city with growing cultural nuance, Maroon feels perfectly timed. Las Vegas has always been a place for big names and big concepts, but the Strip hasn't often been a place where food carries this kind of weight. Maroon is poised to shift that balance. Its arrival is a signal that the dining landscape is shifting toward something more inclusive, more rooted, more real.
For Onwuachi, this next chapter is a return to origins, and a way of bringing past and future into one place. 'Food is memory,' he said. 'It's how we remember who we are—and how we show the world what we can become.'
Travelers descending on Las Vegas this year will undoubtedly find all the usual thrills, but at Sahara, they'll also find something soulful, ambitious, and long overdue. A seat at Maroon will be an invitation to experience a story told in fire, flavor, and freedom.