lgott

Several places have opened, with more on the way. I plan to visit a few in May. The Palazzo web site has a little bit of information, including a few menus, at http://www.palazzolasvegas.com/dining.aspx. Just based on their web site list, I'm a bit disappointed. There are three -- count 'em, three -- steak houses! Carnevino is an Italian steakhouse; Morels is a French steakhouse; Cut is a good ol' American steakhouse. SushiSamba is part of a small chain, with the head chef coming from the Miami branch. Well, I've been to the Miami branch a few times, and you don't go there for gourmet food. The food isn't bad, but the selling point is its trendy atmosphere. I'm hoping that Restaurant Charlie (Trotter's place) will be good, and maybe even Table 10. Other than those two, I don't see anything really exciting.

David, thanks for the heads up! By luck, I'm going to be in town and, solo or not, am signing up for a few events.

rjwong speaks the truth! I've eaten at L'Atelier five times, and it's my favorite in its price category. I'm a pretty hearty eater, and the nine course tasting menu was more than enough food.

My favorite is Okada, right next door at Wynn Las Vegas. I've eaten there over a dozen times, and have yet to be disappointed. The fish is fresh, the chefs are friendly, and the atmosphere is excellent. For a more verbose description, see my review at http://home.comcast.net/~lasvegasvacation/...uide_Okada.html.

Yes, the Bubbles Bar is indeed the bar that has always been in Guy Savoy. It's just the menu that's new. I called, and was told that: the dress code is the same as the restaurant (coat and tie suggested, but not required); no reservations are accepted at the bar.

Has this changed? Caesars' web site still says: "Coffee/liquor/panini bar serving breakfast, lunch, dinner; and late-night offerings will be served to guests on the go. Guests will have the ability to enjoy more traditional table service in the restaurant’s dining room that is centered by an open-air kitchen. [my emphasis]"

I emailed Harrah's with this question a month ago. They responded that "Right now we have a tentative opening date of November 1 2007 for Payard Patisserie and Bistro."

No contest - L'Atelier. But as molto e said, do try to fit Bouchon in for breakfast.

Tableau (at Wynn Las Vegas) serves a very nice lunch. I vaguely recall seeing outdoor seating, but am not sure about that.

Molto E is correct. I've dined solo at Wing Lei, and felt completely at ease.

I very much agree with britcook. Picasso has been eclipsed by a handful of newcomers, but it's still very good indeed, and a relative bargain.

With respect to molecular gastronomy, does The Restaurant at Platinum bear any relation to the real thing?

I went to StripSteak shortly after it opened. I thought it was pretty good and pretty expensive - not the best in town, but not the most expensive, either. The side dishes I tried were more interesting than the steak. The atmosphere was a little trendy, but not outrageously so. For details, go to my Las Vegas restaurant review page and click on StripSteak. John Curtas, a local food critic at KNPR radio, had a different reaction, saying that it "may be serving the best beef in town, with a winning wine list, but little else." Click here for an audio review.

Sadly, Bartolotta no longer serves lunch. As of a couple of months ago, it only offers dinner.

Great pictures - the restaurants on which you report should link to your stuff!

I ate at StripSteak a few days after it opened, and thought it was pretty good. My steak wasn't as good as what I've had at Delmonico or at SW Steakhouse, but it was still pretty good. On the other hand, the side dishes provided a lot of interest. See my detailed review.

I ate at Guy Savoy on October 1, and had the Menu Prestige. It was excellent! Here is a link to my review.

I've eaten at Bartolotta three times, and think it's an excellent restaurant. I've been working on a summary of my Las Vegas restaurant experiences for a while now; here's what I have for Bartolotta. ----------------------------------------- "It's an Italian restaurant." "No, it's a seafood restaurant." Bartolotta serves Italian food, but places a heavy emphasis on fresh seafood flown in daily from the Mediterranean. Most dishes are very simple, with small amounts of light, fresh sauces; Chef Paul Bartolotta lets the food speak for itself. I've eaten at Bartolotta three times - both for lunch (no longer offered) and for dinner. Since the lunch menu was identical to the dinner menu, both in content and in price, I don't distinguish between the two in the descriptions that follow. The Menu As already noted, seafood is the star at this restaurant. Upon request, your server will bring to the table a platter of whole fresh fish available that day. They're sold by weight; you must purchase the entire fish. Royal langoustine and slipper lobsters are also available. The fish will be cooked very simply, and is served with one of two simple sauces. The Atmosphere The color scheme is creams, browns and oranges. Six foot tall urns, with large aloes atop, are spread throughout the dining rooms. Tables are spaced far apart, and it is fairly quiet. There's a view of a lake, the mountain, and trees. Each table has a vase with one orchid bloom. Service is friendly and relaxed. If you order whole fish, your server will skin and bone the fish at your table. This can sometimes lead to slight delays, since you may end up waiting while this service is performed for another table. Meal #1: Whole Fresh Fish As an appetizer, I had mozzarella salad. The mozzarella was light and soft, very different from what passes for mozzarella in grocery stores. I enjoyed it, and it wasn't too filling. For my main course, I decided to splurge and ordered one of the fish flown in from Italy - red snapper. I had planned to get the simpler of two sauces - salmoriglio (olive oil and lemon with herbs), but the server convinced me to get salsa estiva (tomatoes, arugula, garlic, red onion, olive oil, and red wine vinegar). The whole fish arrive at the table; my server skinned and boned it. The sauce was provided in a bowl, to be spooned over the fish as desired. Accompanying all of this were some finger potatoes, roasted marinated peppers, and sliced zucchini. The fish was very good - nicely cooked, tender, yet firm, with a mild flavor - and I'm glad I listened to the server about the sauce. The sauce ingredients were uncooked, perhaps marinated for a while. Spooned over the fish, it was a great combination. I sopped up the excess liquid with selections from the bread basket. Meal #2: Royal Langoustines I started with Baccalà mantecato - Venetian salt cod mousse. It was smooth, mild flavored and salty, served with greens and a fancy version of garlic toast. It doesn't sound all that wonderful, but it was really good. Since I had previously tried whole fresh fish, I decided to try royal langoustines. Like the fish, they're flown in fresh from Italy. These shrimp sized crustaceans were split in half, grilled, and served with olive oil and lemon juice. Accompanying them were good finger potatoes and zucchini, and excellent roasted yellow and red peppers. The langoustines were very good, but pricey - $95 for a recommended plate of five. Given the high price, I prefer the whole fresh fish. Meal #3 I started the meal with a recommendation by the server: Octopus Salad. It consisted of bright red quartered cherry tomatoes, bright green fava beans, and chunks of black and white marinated octopus. The dressing was a small amount of olive oil. Very light, very fresh, very good. For my main course, I had "Rags of thinly sliced swordfish with Tuscan bread." Two thin slices of grilled swordfish sat atop cherry tomatoes, diced cucumber, and Tuscan bread. All had been dressed with olive oil, a little vinegar, and onions. The fish was tender, not at all dry, its flavor not masked by anything. The bread had soaked up some of the dressing and was delicious. Not to sound like a broken record, but it was very light, very fresh, very good. I'm a chocolate lover, so when my server recommended Budino di cioccolatie banana, gelato allo zuccaro di canne, there was no argument. This was described as warm chocolate banana custard, passion fruit pearls, and natural sugar cane gelato. The custard was so thick it was served free form. It had a very dark chocolate flavor, with banana in the background. All in all, it was more like a flourless chocolate cake than a custard, but slightly softer and smoother. The gelato was wonderfully creamy, with a delicate flavor. Sour passion fruit puree with (tapioca?) pearls provided a good flavor contrast. Excellent. Summary Bartolotta is among the elite of Las Vegas restaurants, surpassed by just a handful of places. Please order the whole fish if at all possible. It's expensive, but worth it. The Bill Expensive! It's possible to spend under $50 for a three course meal, but with whole fresh fish the cost will be from $75 to $100. Order shellfish and the cost will be higher still. To the price, add drinks, tax and tip.

If there are no Tex-Mex places in Berlin, perhaps no one is interested in eating Tex-Mex food there. I too would be interested in knowing why you believe a French 3-star restaurant can not be replicated outside of France.

I second the vote for Rosemary's. During the week, there's a great prix fixe special: appetizer, entree and dessert for $20. According to the web site, you have to present a coupon to get this special (click here for info and coupon link). However, all I did was ask for it.

It's difficult to give a precise answer to your question about cost. Joel Robuchon at The Mansion doesn't offer wine pairings, although wines by the glass are available. If you were to have a glass of wine with each of the sixteen courses, the meal would be expensive indeed! For what it's worth, here's something of a comparison: (1) Joel Robuchon at The Mansion: full (16 course) tasting menu, one or two modest glasses of wine, including tax and tip - a little bit over $1,000/couple. (2) Alex: tasting menu, no wine, including tax and tip - $500/couple. (3) Picasso: tasting menu, no wine, including tax and tip - $300/couple (this number is about one year old). As to your other questions: I agree with Molto E about Alex - it's very good indeed, and a bargain compared to Robuchon (hmmmmm....something is wrong here when I refer to a $500/couple meal as a bargain). Okada offers a tasting menu, as well as superb sushi. I tried the tasting menu in September 2005, and liked it a lot. For details, see my trip report at http://home.comcast.net/~lgott3141/Travel_..._September.html, and scroll down to Okada (about half way through the report). I've eaten at the bar at Bradley Ogden, but ordered from the regular menu, not the bar menu. I was disappointed - a decent meal, but not what I had expected based on reviews I had read.

Chzhead, thanks for putting your review up so quickly. Yet another place I'll have to try!

Chris, Here are a few favorites. I've tried to choose items which are not only delicious, but somehow special or unique. For example, I did NOT list the foie gras; it's very good, but many places serve similar foie gras. I've cut and pasted from my reviews, so forgive me if the wording has suffered a bit. (1) L'Oeuf: Egg Cocotte Topped With a Light Mushroom Cream. Another dish served in a martini glass. In the bottom, some bright green parsley puree. Next a raw egg. The glass is then steamed, cooking the egg white but not the yolk. On top, a frothy, flavorful cream of mushroom soup, with a couple of pieces of chanterelle mushroom on top of that. Another wonderful combination of flavors; another case where I wasn't so sure I'd like it, but did. (2) Les Huitres: Poached Baby Kumamoto Oysters With French Echre [sp?] Salted Butter. Three tiny oysters with salty butter on top, with black pepper; warmed briefly. I don't like oysters, but these were terrific! Perhaps I've been eating oysters in the wrong places. Rating: E. (3) Mashed Potatoes. I know, I know, strange choice, but they're wonderful. It almost seems unfair to call them mashed potatoes; "potato puree" might be the official term. When I was there, it was even possible to get them with several slices of truffle covering the surface (but only when ordered with quail - "La Caille"). They're served with a number of dishes, or you might be able to just ask for a side order. Warning: they're very, very rich! There are many, many other good dishes: lobster salad; papillote of langoustine; fresh filet of cod in vegetable broth, and many more. Have a great time! Larry

nightscotsman, thanks!

Lise, I've eaten at both LOS and Rosemary's, but only one time each. Both are very good choices. Here's what I thought: Rosemary’s. This is way off the strip – perhaps a 20 or 25 minute ride. After hearing so many good things about it, I had to give it a try. Well…it was worth it. To save money, order from the prix fixe menu (available only at lunch). It includes an appetizer, main course, and dessert, for $20. A la carte is much more expensive. I had Hugo’s Texas BBQ Shrimp and Maytag Blue Cheese Cole Slaw (sounds weird, tastes great), grilled mahi mahi, and goat cheese cheesecake. The food is served in large portions and is very rich. Oh yes, this is another place where I ate at the bar, and felt quite comfortable. Lotus of Siam. Lotus of Siam has a reputation as an excellent Thai restaurant. It deserves its reputation. There are numerous reviews out on the Internet. My observations: (1) reviewers warn against the buffet, which is standard Chinese. From what I saw, I’ll second that view. Order interesting Thai food from the menu. (2) I had Nam Kao Tod (minced sour sausage mixed with green onion, fresh chili, ginger, peanut, and lots of crispy rice); charbroiled catfish; sticky rice with mango. It was a lot of food, and everything was very good. (3) The address is on Sahara Avenue. However, that’s the BACK of the restaurant. Don’t run away in horror; instead, drive around to the other side. It turns out to be a shopping mall, with the entrance to Lotus of Siam. Have fun! Larry