Meet Wynn's Top Culinary Talents Nominated for the "Oscars" of Food

Cristie Norman, lead sommelier of Delilah at Wynn Las Vegas, and Casa Playa Executive Chef Sarah Thompson recently received James Beard Foundation Award finalist nods for Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service and Best Chef Southwest, respectively. Wynn Stories sits down with these exemplary culinary professionals to learn about their professional passions, inspiration, and winning philosophies.

Get to Know Delilah Lead Sommelier Cristie Norman

 “I had no idea why I was getting so many phone calls at 7 a.m.,” Cristie Norman says of finding out about her JBFA announcement. “I’m not sure who nominated me, but I am very grateful.” The Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service is a new category. The criteria outline that the candidate has set high standards, demonstrated creativity and consistency in excellence, innovation, and hospitality, is making efforts to create a sustainable work culture, and has served as an exceptional example or mentor for other beverage professionals.

Norman ticks all these boxes. She became a sommelier when she was just 21 years old. While working at the legendary Spago Beverly Hills, she founded the LA Somm Community, a group of over 300 sommeliers from San Diego to Santa Barbara. She has mentored over 200 sommeliers/wine professionals, created the “Online Wine Course for Beginners,” and was named Wine Enthusiast’s “Wine Educator of the Year” and “40 Under 40 Tastemakers” of 2020. She is also the co-founder and president of the United Sommeliers Foundation (USF), which has distributed nearly $2 million in financial assistance for wine professionals in need due to circumstances beyond their control. Recently, Wine Enthusiast Magazine named her “Social Visionary of the Year,” and she now hosts a blind tasting group for Wynn employees and invites master sommeliers to mentor the team.

Norman does all this before showing up for work every day to manage five somms and a list of more than 800 rare and prestigious bottles in one of the most successful restaurants in Las Vegas.

Cristie Norman is nominated in a new JBFA category, Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service.

During the pandemic, several colleagues and friends aligned her with Brian Weitzman, Wynn Las Vegas executive director of wine, as he was hiring a sommelier for the resort’s new restaurant, Delilah. While at first, Norman didn’t think a move to Vegas was in the cards for her because she was so busy with her Foundation, the fantastic opportunity to join Wynn, and with the idea of Delilah being a perfect fit, she couldn’t get it out of her mind. “I moved my entire life, never having seen the restaurant, and when I walked in, I almost started crying. It was the most beautiful space I’d ever been in. Every day I walk in, I still think it’s the most beautiful restaurant,” she says.

The blank canvas and the levels between Delilah’s nightlife aspect and the culinary and fine and rare wine dynamic attracted her to the role. “We will have a six-liter of Ace of Spades going out at the same time as a six-liter of Mouton Rothschild; that’s what Delilah is; it’s a place with great music, amazing entertainment where you can enjoy incredible fine wine.” Weitzman compiled a base wine list for Delilah’s opening for Norman to work off. She soon realized that the Las Vegas customer’s thirst for wine fine was real. She returned to him and said, “I need more expensive stuff. The Grand Cru Burgundy, first-growth Bordeaux—they were selling. This week, I brought in a ’61 Chateau Mouton Rothschild, one of the most iconic vintages of the century. Sometimes, I don’t even get to put it on the wine list because it’s already sold. That’s just the reality of what we’re doing. It’s wild. Every seven days, we’re reprinting the wine list. We’re adding 25 to 30 different wines.”

EXPERIENCE DELILAH AT WYNN LAS VEGAS

Upon returning from a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Japan in 2025, Sarah Thompson learned she had been named a James Beard Foundation Award finalist for Best Chef: Southwest. One year later, she returned to the national stage to claim the title, becoming the 2026 James Beard Award winner for Best Chef: Southwest and the first female chef on the Las Vegas Strip to receive the prestigious distinction. "Just being recognized is something that many chefs aspire to," she says. "We're putting out the best food we can do. We continue to develop the menu, foster a good work environment, and encourage growth among our cooks and chefs. We've built a unique environment here at Casa Playa that I'm proud of." What began as a "pinch-me-is-it-real" moment evolved into one of the most significant achievements in American dining, further cementing Thompson's influence on Las Vegas' culinary landscape.

Her artistry, leadership, and innovation have helped define a new era of dining in the city. Thompson's menu is an authentic expression of coastal Mexican cuisine, showcasing California and Baja seafood, seasonal produce, and a robust in-house masa program. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, she honed her craft in New York City kitchens, working at Marea, Alder, and Andrew Carmellini's NoHo Hospitality Group before being recruited by Daniela Soto-Innes to join the acclaimed Cosme. Though she had never cooked Mexican food before, Thompson embraced the opportunity, training alongside some of the world's most respected Mexican chefs.

When the Cosme team embarked on opening a restaurant at Wynn Las Vegas, Thompson relocated to the city with little idea of what to expect. Soon after, she was entrusted with transforming the concept into something entirely new. In 2021, she opened Casa Playa as executive chef, creating a restaurant rooted in the flavors, ingredients, and traditions she discovered while traveling throughout Mexico. Today, the nationally acclaimed restaurant inside Encore Las Vegas stands as one of the country's most celebrated destinations for coastal Mexican cuisine, culminating in Thompson's historic James Beard Award win.

Chef Sarah Thompson in the kitchen of Casa Playa.

The menu reflects the culture, cuisine, and hospitality Thompson experienced while exploring Mexico's coastal regions. Casa Playa takes guests on a culinary journey through fresh seafood, vibrant produce, and large-format dishes designed for sharing. Fish is sourced from the Pacific coast, produce comes from more than 50 farms across Nevada, California, and Arizona, and corn, chiles, and agave are purchased directly from small producers in Mexico. The approach not only ensures exceptional quality but also supports the communities and traditions that inspire the restaurant.

"There are many people in my kitchen from all over the world: Latin America, Mexico, Asia, and, you know, we all come together magically," Thompson says. "Sometimes, two people are at a station, and they don't even speak a common language, but somehow, we still find ways to communicate."

That spirit of collaboration extends beyond Casa Playa's kitchen. In recent years, Thompson has hosted a Friends of James Beard Foundation benefit dinner, participated in The World's 50 Best Restaurants events at Wynn Las Vegas, and helped elevate the city's profile as a serious culinary destination. As Casa Playa continues to evolve, Thompson remains focused on the details that brought her here.

"We get the best ingredients, we get the best produce, we get the best team members. We spend a lot of time training and teaching. And because of that, we continue to make amazing food," she says. "The restaurant is progressing. There's so much momentum behind it."