Elrushbo

La Belle Vie, Alma, 112 Eatery and Saffron are definites. ... I'm making a point to put Saffron on my list the next time I venture that way. I regret not having made time for it on my last trip. ← Going to Cosmos for my 40th March 25th. My dad is going to be visiting and he's staying at the Graves. I was there a few years ago and enjoyed it, I see lots of good reviews of Cosmos with the current chef. The Tea House in St Paul is the best Chinese food I have ever had. I want to try Heidi's as well.

Here's another article on this subject: http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/03/06/europe/duck.php One wonders if something happened deliberately here, after all I assume you have to be pretty good with hygiene to get 3 Michelin Stars.

Gotta disagree-Lisa screws up yet again, and the better chef went home again. She should have left last week. She messed up EVERYTHING she made. Sure, Dale wasn't great himself, but he has demonstrated a lot more talent than her. That was a huge mistake, no way is Lisa a better chef than Dale. NO WAY. Looks like a political/network decision to keep a certain number of female chefs in at all costs.

I think Vegas has its' own soul. It is Disneyland for adults, and that is what makes it so great. The Strip fun, it's electric, it's safe, it doesn't smell, there aren't snooty locals who dislike Americans, and the weather is good. It's affordable...to go see the real Venice, I'd have to shell out 4 times as much as a trip to Vegas costs. And there is spectacular nature close by. Red Rock Canyon, Mt Charleston and the Valley of Fire are amazing places with stunning natural beauty, and the Grand Canyon is a short hop by helicopter. There is more to Vegas than the Strip.

No offense taken as I agree with you. The technical talent of the Chefs at the high-end restaurants doesn't seem to be the primary question. But the ability of these Chefs to express their creativity, their "soul" if you will, is often constrained by corporate forces that are unique to Las Vegas-something I'll be speaking about as this topic develops. However, as the city grows and looks toward the opening of restaurants at Encore at The Wynn and MGM's City Center, we'll undoubtedly see more well-known Chefs open dining rooms based on models from other cities. The challenge is for the Chefs to distinguish themselves within the confines of the corporate structure of the resorts to give us the cuisine with "soul" that both you and I are looking for. Of course it can be done, but it's a daunting task for sure. The movement is already underway, and I'm hopeful we'll see it gather steam as we go forward. The opportunity is here for someone to take it. ← Soul? I just know that I have fantastic meals in Vegas as good as anything I've had in Chicago, San Francisco or New York, and that I will likely never be able to go to every restaurant in Vegas that I'm 'itching' to go to as I don't get there as often as I'd like and a bunch more open inbetween every trip for me. I think Vegas is the best food city there is. I have said this before, but I love being able to walk out of a restaurant and see the Canals of Venice or the Conservatory or Fountains of Bellagio or the whatever you'd call it in Mandalay Bay. A great restaurant may have great cool, modern ambience, but in most locales, that thrilling ambience is gone when you walk out the door. But not in Vegas. With the introduction of restaurants like Robuchon, Guy Savoy, and Alex, Vegas dining has been 'kicked up a notch.' I'm hoping(should I win the weight loss challenge) to be back in Vegas in July and I will have a difficult time deciding which places to eat at. Whereas next time I go to New York I know I'm going to go to Jean-Georges and Babbo. Don't even have to think about it.

I just called Bradley Ogden, the hostess said Bryan's last day was the 30th, but he'll be working as a consultant for 6 months, in once a week.

I was there back in Aug. 2007. My dinner was really good. FYI Bryan Ogden (the son) is leaving LV to go to Southern California. I'm going to try and find out more details where. Five more days until Bon Appetit's "Vegas Uncork'd" conference .. I can't wait ← Anything you find out about that would be great. Especially if he's leaving soon, cause I expect to be there in July. I assume Bradley Ogden would be staying.

Anyone been to Bradley Ogden lately?

Flying out on Friday. The Cdn dollar is in nice shape vis a vis the greenback, so I will be living large. The itinerary is revised to dinners at B&B, Morel's and Lotus of Siam, breakfast at Lou's Diner on Decatur. And the Peppermill. We're renting a Mustang, which is not much more money than taking a few taxi rides so we will be mobile. A trip to BBQ Galore and Lee's Discount Liquor may be in order. ← Let us know how B&B is, please! I'm doing a weight loss challenge thru my local Gold's Gym-they're giving a trip to Vegas for the winner, and I'm down 30 lbs half way, which means I keep it up and I get to go back to Vegas sooner than expected. So I can go to B&B. Ironic, isn't it?

You say "three steakhouses" like that's a badthing! Every restaurant can't be Guy Savoy, Robuchon or Alex. I look at the Palazzo lineup and find I could eat there five nights in a row and not have anything similar.

Dallas has Craft now, right?

I didn't think Olives was very good for dinner. I'd go over to Venetian and have lunch at Mario Batali's Enoteco San Marco.

Made it for the second time tonight, came out good but I think I could make it better. I know some people tinker with the traditional recipie, if anyone has some ideas, I'd love to hear them. I used one lemon and two limes instead of the five lemons. Seemed like it could use maybe one more lemon. Any ideas greatly appreciated.

Holy schnikes! Looks like you had a good time! You took some great photos yet again. That photo of the cheese case at Morels looks great, very inviting. One of those pics that not only looks artistic, but sets the mood by displaying great products. Looks like Palazzo had a great lineup, I look forward to hearing reviews from people such as yourself and eventually getting back to Vegas to try some of this food myself. Fortunately my wife loves the stuff I've been making from my Batali cookbook and therefore wants to a Batali place next trip. So many places have opened since I was last in Vegas I could have a hard deciding where to go from places that opened in the last two years alone!

I think Vegas has a great dining scene, there's great chefs with great restaurants and all in walking distance. One thing Vegas has that other places just cannot compete with, imho, is the ambience. The eye candy atmosphere that's everywhere. You can go to a restaurant like Alinea and be 'transported' away with the ambience of the restaurant, but when you walk out the door, you're in a major metropolitan area. In Vegas, you can walk out the door after being wowed at dinner and see the Canals of Venice. Or the Fountains of Bellagio. Imho, it's one of the things that for me makes Vegas number one for food.

I would also like to be included in the Thursday dinner at Blackbird, and thanks for all your organizing.

I'm in for this and for the Friday stuff...maybe the rest, depends, but definitely that.

Thanks, Alex. I was planning on bumping this myself this week. Yes, those seem to be the preferred dates. Happy new year, everyone I have an excellent lead on a facility for the Saturday afternoon/evening event. Let's try to choose the date by early next week and I'll see about locking us in at the venue. Sound good? =R= ← Let me know when you've got the dates down, I'll need to put in for vacation. Thanks for all the work you're putting in to make this happen!

Russell, at Robuchon I noticed an odd pattern that included a consistent rotation of servers serving dishes, followed by equally as calculated pattern of people asking how dishes were. It felt too much like the waitstaff, save the sommelier and the captain, was reading directly from a training manual. Robots, perhaps during that not-so-great first visit. I guess personal preference factors in as well, since the service Guy Savoy and Alex-style is what I look for. I want to see character and genuine interest in delivering wonderful food and pampered service. In short, I found Robuchon too impersonal. My multiple (4) visits showed some (albeit little) improvement. I've yet to decide if another visit during this next coming Vegas trip is in order. ← Imho, service is just as important as the food. Guy Savoy sounds appealing to me now because of the raves over the food as well as the service. Makes the experience more enjoyable. Part of the reason I like Mina's restaurants, service is always top notch. I was glad to see Bradley Ogden got a star, it's a great restaurant. I was suprised to see Fleur de Lys not on the list.

Bryan, I would have to agree with you on Guy Savoy being a three-star restaurant, along with Robuchon. And you should really go to Robuchon. If you've been to L'Atelier in Las Vegas, that would be a good introduction to the more formal Robuchon. As for Picasso, I just had dinner there last Mon. night (12 Nov.). I'll give my full report later. And Bryan, you're forgetting that other distinctive attribute of Picasso: the Fountains of Bellagio. Watching the fountains go off while dining on my tasting menu makes for a terrific dining experience .... It's nice to see a restaurant from downtown Las Vegas (Andre's) receiving a Michelin one-star rating. ← I was suprised Mix got a star, I have seen so many horrible reviews and so few good ones of the place I think they gave it a star as a favor to Ducasse.

I think Bradley Ogden would be great for your purposes. Exquisite food, top notch service, most menu items would fit in that budget, nice, relaxing enviroment, and the casino is right there when you get done-but you wouldn't know it was right there when you're dining, which is a nice thing imho. Where are you staying?

Um, because she's really hot?

Sounds like a great idea, I really want to try that soup, and unless I win the lottery or at the slots, I won't be getting into the regular Guy Savoy anytime soon.

I've found that any of Michael Mina's restaurants in Vegas have stellar service. You can tell it's something that's important to him. I'm looking forward to trying Stripsteak, after hearing the good reviews and with the history of great service from Mina's restaurants.

I for one prefer to skip the buffets altogether. The line at the Paris for breakfast is often half an hour or more. We waited for twenty minutes at Cravings for lunch and the place was only half full! Long lines at good buffets are commonplace. When I'm on vacation, the last thing I want to do is stand in a looooong line! For breakfast, there are a multitude of cafes and restaurants that will serve better food without making you wait. For dinner, the lines and the price are dealbreakers for me. $35 or so for the buffet at the Wynn? For $35, you can find a ton of places with better food for dinner, heck, for $48 you can have the 3 course dinner at Boulud! There are other fine dining restaurants that offer three course menus for around $40.