Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
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Perhaps this is what global domination looks like in Sami Ladeki's mind. PHOTOGRAPHY BY BEVERLY POPPE W hen Sami Ladeki opened his first restaurant, he didn't even hire a chef. "I served items that didn't require anyone with a lot of culi- nary knowledge," Ladeki confesses. "The menu was made up of all really simple dishes, things that were easy to make." His no-frills approach paid off. Ladeki Restaurant Group now owns and operates 21 Sammy's Woodfired Pizza & Grill locations throughout Sout her n Ca lifor nia a nd Nevada (t wo of t hem at a ir por t s, L A X a nd McCarran), as well as his latest venture, Sammy's Restaurant, Bar & Grill, which opened in Henderson in September. "Sometimes ignorance is bliss," he says, chuckling. While he admits he lacked serious culinary chops, Ladeki was far from inexperienced. Prior to opening the first Sammy's, in La Jolla, California, in 1989, he had a successful career in hospitality. Born in Lebanon, he attended hotel and restaurant management school in Germany, where he was recruited by the Royal Sonesta Hotel in New Orleans. After military service, feeding troops in Louisiana during the Vietnam War, he returned to the hotel and stayed until 1976, leaving to become the food and bever- age manager at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Fire Starter SAMI LADEKI IS BUILDING AN EMPIRE THE OLDFASHIONED WAYONE PEOPLEPLEASING RESTAURANT AT A TIME. BY CASEY BRENNAN POWER STRIP continued on page 56 VEGASMAGAZINE.COM 55 Superlatives PEOPLE, CULTURE, TASTE, TREASURES 055-056_V_SP_PowerStrip_Spring14.indd 55 2/10/14 5:01 PM