Guy Savoy (Las Vegas)

[chuckyoufarley]

I am curious who has eaten at Guy Savoy in Caesar's palace.

I would love to get a few reviews on how it was.

Shaun

Edited May 23, 2006 by chuckyoufarley (log)

[ChzHead]

I have, I posted a semi-review here: review

I'll post the full tasting menu when they email it to me.

[The Blissful Glutton]

My Dad and I decided to go to Vegas for a couple of nights and he charged me with the task of deciding which restaurants we were eating at. One of my choices was Joel Robuchon at the Mansion in the MGM Grand. However, we walked by after our meal at Craftsteak to check out the menu and nothing jumped out to us. My father suggested Guy Savoy’s new restaurant and so we canceled JR and got a reservation at Guy Savoy for the next night. I had eaten at Guy Savoy's restaurant Paris and it remains one of my favorites in the world.

When we walked in, Guy’s son greeted us. He is running the Las Vegas location with his father’s guidance of course. He is doing quite a good job. The restaurant is completely contemporary and chic. No old-world French decor to be found here. Nothing wrong with that just a nice change of pace since my last meal of this kind was at Ducasse. The service was impeccable from the beginning. They brought a stool for my purse, which I just, adored. The champagne cart was brought over and I chose Billecart-Salmon Rose. One of my favorite champagnes. We were presented with a toasted foie gras sandwich on a metal skewer, which was delightful. After much coaxing, my father agreed to the Menu Prestige...their 10 course tasting menu. My father was presented the wine list, which was literally an encyclopedia-sized book with its own table. They have a 12,000-bottle cave so I guess it makes sense. That book was intimidating…I even saw my Dad (who has a 16,000 bottle cellar and knows a lot about wine) look a bit bewildered. The bread sommelier…yes bread sommelier followed with the first of our bread pairings. Hilarious. I know you are curious how the meal was so I will go through each course and give you my opinion. We unfortunately did not take any pictures because I did not want to disturb the subdued elegance that the restaurant tries so hard to maintain. I hope my descriptions are sufficient.

Course one: Oysters in Ice gelee.

Simple oyster served on a gelee. The real delight was a surprise slice of crisp black truffle under the dish holding the oyster. I love how his sense of humor comes out in his food.

Course two: Peas all round.

Quite a delicious approach to a simple yet perfect ingredient. He started with a layer of pureed peas mixed with a gelatin to help set the base. He then topped with twice-shelled peas and micro-pea shoots. Then topped it with a poached egg. Delicious. I am definitely going to be making this in my kitchen.

Course three (pictured on the bottom link): Crispy sea bass with delicate spices.

This was great. They had taken the scales and fried them to a crisp before topping the fish with them. The fish was buttery and served over some leeks with buttery foam. Seems simple but it was prepared so perfectly it stood out as a favorite.

Course four: Roasted foie gras and red cabbage nage, savoy cabbage, horseradish and mustards.

These are two flavors I would have never thought of together but oh my…. the earthiness of the cabbage was perfect with the foie gras. One of my top 3 dishes of the night.

Course five: Spinach and mushroom gratin.

Another simple but amazing dish. This is one of the first dishes to make me moan in quite some time. My Dad loved it as well. It was a simple cascade of mushrooms in buttery and nutty mushroom foam with spinach. I do not what made it so good. I just loved every bite.

Course six (pictured on the bottom link): artichoke and black truffle soup, toasted mushroom brioche with black truffle butter.

This was a miss. The soup tasted like nothing. The slices of black truffle and pecorino were nice. However, the soup needed the cream they had chose to admit and much more salt. The brioche was so good though. Heaven.

Course seven (pictured on the bottom link): crispy sweetbreads, petit potatoes and black truffle sandwiches.

He hit it out of the park with this one. Perfect sweetbreads accompanied by sandwiches of crisp slices of small potatoes and slices of black truffle. There was also an amazing turnip mixture in the center to offset the richness of the sweetbreads.

Course eight: selection of cheeses

The selection was just overwhelming. I had some delicious goats and blues. I do not remember what they were though.

Course nine: avocado and pineapple--creamy avocado mousse, pineapple sorbet on top of diced pineapple.

Oh my god. Avocado Mousse with pineapple? Pinch me. Sweet, tart and tangy. I have to replicate that at home.

Course ten: chocolate fondant, crunchy praline and chicory cream.

Nice dessert. Nothing awe-inspiring but well prepared and tasty.

Course eleven: The candy cart

Macarons, rose rice pudding, sugar spirals on sticks…I could barely eat another bite but I found a way to taste these delicacies.

We then retired out onto their open-air patio for after-dinner drinks and for my father, the cigar menu. My father kept repeating how civilized the whole experience was and I agreed. We finished our remaining bits of drink and headed out the door with a box of chocolates in hand. Smiles on our faces…of course.

For photos: http://www.guysavoy.com/en/intro.htm

Edited July 19, 2006 by The Blissful Glutton (log)

[molto e]

The top set menu is $290

Kitchen Tour Of Guy Savoy

Underneath the burners is water so if there is a spill instead of hitting the cooktop, the spill hits the water and at the end of the night it is drained.

inside the walk-in

The Kitchen Table

looking into the glassed in kitchen table

looking out into the kitchen

Edited August 16, 2006 by molto e (log)

[Swicks]

S. Irene Virbila from the LA times reviews Guy Savoy here (sorry don't know how to link):

http://www.latimes.com/features/food/cl-fo...ack=1&cset=true

Interesting review. I didnt know the prices were that astronomical.

[ASM NY]

S. Irene Virbila from the LA times reviews Guy Savoy here (sorry don't know how Interesting review.  I didnt know the prices were that astronomical.

←

I agree. I am still wondering if Robuchon can get away with $300 pp tasting menus, it's hard to picture Savoy having that same following.

[Swicks]

Yeah, both spots seem to offer an incredible experience but I'm still not sure about a $300 tasting menu with no wine, tip etc. Maybe that is a short-sighted opinion. Im not familiar with what their followings are like but it seems to be working over at Rubachon.

Additionally, I have readof some lapes in experience with the two and I agree with the reviewer in that for that price tag the experience should be flawless. Even with the prices at L'Artelier de JR i would expect perfection, though based on quite a few reviews it seems to be hit or miss.

[Swicks]

Forgot to mention, great pics molto e, that kitchen is amazing!!!

[rjwong]

Hmm, I feel fortunate that I ate at Robuchon back in April, when the prices were a "bargain."

I'll probably go to Guy Savoy anyways. Mind you, reading the LA Times review caused me to pause a bit. Could it be that formal French restaurants are a dying breed? And the only place that can support these temples of haute cuisine is in Las Vegas? Just a thought ...

[ulterior epicure]

I just took a closer look at the menu posted by Molto E. Are those prices in USD?

[jsmeeker]

I just took a closer look at the menu posted by Molto E.  Are those prices in USD? 

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yeah. The restaurant is in las vegas.

[ulterior epicure]

I just took a closer look at the menu posted by Molto E.  Are those prices in USD? 

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yeah. The restaurant is in las vegas.

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Yeah, and as we all know, what happens there stays there - including your money!!

[aaronwcpa]

The place was reviewed in Wednesday's, August 29, LA Times. It was given three stars. It is extremely expensive.

[rjwong]

The place was reviewed in Wednesday's, August 29, LA Times. It was given three stars. It is extremely expensive.

←

Actually, the LA Times review for Guy Savoy was on August 23. Swicks added a link to the review. You may need to register for access.

S. Irene Virbila from the LA times reviews Guy Savoy here (sorry don't know how to link):

http://www.latimes.com/features/food/cl-fo...ack=1&cset=true

Interesting review.  I didnt know the prices were that astronomical.

←

I suppose when one of us hoi polloi hits it big, we'll want to celebrate at the most expensive restaurant in Las Vegas. Now, there's two to choose from: Robuchon & Guy Savoy ...

[jesteinf]

Just got back from an outstanding dinner at Guy Savoy. I'll post a full report later, but this was definitely one of my favorite meals of the year.

[jesteinf]

As promised...

We had a wonderful dinner at Guy Savoy last Friday night. After we were seated, we were warmly greeted by Franck, Guy's son. Soon after, the very impressive champagne cart rolled up and I was able to enjoy a very nice glass of Pol Roger Winston Churchill. And since this was all very civilized, we were served a nice little snack of foie gras pate and toast while hearing about the champagne.

As pictured above, the restaurant offers a nine course tasting, but my table opted to order a la carte. The nice thing about their a la carte option is that you can order half-portions and construct your own little tasting menu.

For my first course, I went with white truffle risotto (how could I not?). The risotto was on the firmer side (which I like) and the truffle was shaved generously table-side. A dish like this is a lay up at a restaurant of this caliber, but Guy Savoy took it to another level. When I was done with what was on my plate, a waiter came out and scooped a couple more spoonfuls of the wonderful risotto onto my plate. Next, some white truffle emulsion was poured on top of the risotto. Finally, some more truffle was shaved on top of the whole thing. Without a doubt, this is the best example of this dish I have ever had.

Next I moved on to the seared diver scallops. The scallops were cooked perfectly and served on top of a parsley puree. This was one of the many dishes to hit the table that really highlighted the quality of ingredients and the skill of the kitchen. Such a simple dish, but such a pleasure to eat when executed so flawlessly.

For my third course I had to have the artichoke and black truffle soup. Another winner. The soup itself was bursting with artichoke flavor and slices of cheese in the soup provided a nice balance of flavor. The warm brioche with black truffle butter served with the soup was just obscenely decadent.

For my main course, I had a special of white duck breast with truffles and foie gras cooked under the skin of the duck. This was served with black truffle mashed potatoes. As you could probably guess, this was pretty darn good.

Finally for dessert I had "Le Peche". A roasted peach served on top of phyllo dough (I think), served with a scoop of lavender ice cream. We also enjoyed a visit from the dessert trolley. I had a chocolate lollipop, a couple of marshmallows and a couple of other pieces of chocolate which were all outstanding.

This was by far the best meal I've had in Las Vegas, and probably one of my top 10 meals ever. The service was informed, polite, and pleasantly casual. We laughed quite a bit with the various servers who came by our table. One thing that was a bit over the top was the bread service. When you are seated everyone at the table is given bread. But as the meal goes on, you are visited repeatedly by the bread cart which has about 9 or 10 different types of bread to choose from. After about the third time it was probably enough already. Granted, it's pretty hard to pass up bacon bread, but we all wanted to save room for the rest of our food.

Bottom line, an outstanding experience that I would highly recommend.

Edited October 17, 2006 by jesteinf (log)

[molto e]

Josh,

Great to hear...how busy was the restaurant and at what time did you dine?

Molto E

[jesteinf]

We had a 6:30 reservation, at which point the room was about 1/4 full. By 8 the room was full and it stayed that way until we left around 10.

[rjwong]

Josh, no truffles for dessert??

Thank you for your report. You just raised my expectation level. I'll be having dinner at Guy Savoy at the end of the month for my birthday. BTW, I ate at Robuchon at the Mansion back in April. The comparisions and contrasts will be forthcoming.

You said that your table decided to go a la carte. Now that you had your dinner, would you have still gone with their 9-course tasting menu?

I'll report back in Nov. Again, thanks!!

[jesteinf]

Trust me Russell, the pleasure was all mine!

I'd be interested to hear the comparison to Robuchon at the Mansion. We originally tried to go there but couldn't get a reservation.

ETA: Regarding doing the tasting menu vs. a la carte. I always prefer a tasting menu, but the others in my party always choose to order a la carte if they can. Do I regret not doing the tasting menu? Absolutely not. Would I do it if I went again and I had the choice? You bet I would.

Edited October 17, 2006 by jesteinf (log)

[rjwong]

Pardon the inquisition, Josh ...

Did the champagne cart come with a price list? Did the restaurant have a wine pairing? Did your party order any wine? If so, was it one bottle each, of white and of red? Were you "encouraged" into having the more expensive bottles? How did the sommelier & staff treat you? Did you have to speak French?

If you haven't noticed, I'm starting to get really excited about my trip and my birthday dinner at Guy Savoy. Thanks, again!!

[jesteinf]

So many questions!

The wine list is extensive. So extensive it comes with its own wooden table to sit on while one reads it. My father selected the wine, and I don't think the sommelier tried to "encourage" any sort of choice based on price (we had a bottle of Puligny-Montrachet to start, and then I had a glass of red Burgundy with my duck). I can't emphasize enough how friendly and accommodating the entire was (no French necessary).

I didn't see wine pairings on the menu, but I would imagine they could do it, just because they are so willing to please all of their guests.

Finally, no prices were given on the champagne cart.

[lgott]

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

[Hong Kong Phooey]

Haven't been back to LV for over 10 years. Oh, how things have changed since dining at Spago. Just spent a weekend there in September going thru Picasso, Bouchon, Joel Robuchon at the Mansion and Guy Savoy. To me, GS's more innovative menu edged out JR by just a nose.

[rjwong]

On Sunday night, this was my birthday dinner at Restaurant Guy Savoy:

Outside the restaurant

My place setting

Surrounding views

Foie gras sandwich on a skewer

I was nibbling on my sandwich while a young lady was explaining the selections from:

The champagne cart

Wine list with its own portable stand

Celery root soup & crab appetizer

Oyster mixed with creme fraiche

Bread cart

Colors of caviar with seaweed bread

Lobster

Dover sole with snow peas

White truffle risotto

Foie gras with jus de canard

Probably the best dish of my entire meal. It tasted so illegal ...

Artichoke & black truffle soup, mushroom brioche topped with truffle butter

Poussin stuffed with black truffles, black truffled mashed potatoes

Then Franck Savoy asked me, “Would like some more mashed potatoes?”

Cheese cart

My cheese selections

Dessert amuse-bouche

Pineapple tuile filled with carmelized popcorn

Chocolate fondant with chicory cream

Organic Earl Grey tea

Dessert cart

My dessert selections

Indoor patio area

La fin

As I was leaving the restaurant, I was offered a chartreuse candy. Normally, chartreuse would be sipped. Instead, it was in candy form.