Since this was our second trip to Las Vegas, I approached things a bit differently this time. Last trip, my goal was to do a “survey” of all the hotels on the strip, spending just a few minutes in as many of them as possible. I largely met that goal last time, so I wanted to delve a bit deeper into Las Vegas this trip.

I explored several hotels more completely, including Mandalay Bay, the Excalibur, Imperial Palace, Rio, Stratosphere, Treasure Island, and Luxor. While in the Luxor, I visited the production offices of Criss Angel’s Mindfreak television show, which was very cool. I also drove into downtown Las Vegas (scary) and visited the Freemont Street Experience (also scary), plus a few downtown casinos (very scary).

We had several good meals while in Las Vegas… L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, La Provincal (with Doug & Kelly), Bouchon, Marrakech (with Scott, Emily, and Sarah), Andre’s (downtown), and a couple different buffets (hey, it IS Vegas!). The meal at L’Atelier, which was the most anticipated meal, was very good but not excellent (and certainly not worth the price). Expect a full report soon.

The conference opener for Wendy’s conference was Howie Mandel. I wasn’t a huge fan of him before, but his 75-minute set was very funny and very tailored to veterinarians (unlike Jay Leno’s set a couple years ago which was a standard monologue). Our friend Emily hooked us up with free tickets to see Billy Joel in concert. They were great seats and we all had a great time.

Doug & I went ”wheeling” in his Toyota FJ and all was swell — it was big fun climbing over non-navigable terrain — until Doug decided to take me “dune jumping” and wrecked his vehicle. :(  Still, we got great pictures!

A giant highlight of the trip was a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon. It was a 45-minute flight out, with 30 minutes IN the Canyon (amazing), and a 45-minute flight back to the strip. More info and pictures soon.

Wednesday February 22 was another early day, dropping Wendy off at her conference before heading to Cravings, the buffet at the Mirage Hotel & Casino. I met “Big Al” on the tram. Al is an elderly gentleman who was a dealer for 25 years and now spends his time navigating his walker around the casino as a self-appointed goodwill ambassador. He showed me the shortcuts to getting to the buffet (not all of them were successful) before unceremoniously ditching me in line while he zipped in the VIP line. I greeted him inside the buffet and it was as if he’d never seen me before. Since I was in Vegas, I figured I had to eat at a buffet, and Cravings has been highly reviewed, though since I arrived while it was in ‘breakfast buffet’ mode, I felt like I didn’t get the full ‘buffet experience’. Still, my breakfast (pizza, Eggs Benedict, cottage cheese, cereal, juices, and more) was fresh, hot, and tasty and fueled me for a day of walking around the Strip and into most of the casinos, just for a visit.

Some observations about the Strip at Las Vegas… The older casinos have lower ceilings and are somewhat smokey, close places. The newer casinos do not have these issues. Everything in Las Vegas is huge. The scale is just incredible. Wendy’s convention — 12,000 veterinarians — was in one wing of the Mandalay Bay (along with a realtor’s convention (6,000 people) and a couple smaller (approximately 2,500 people each) conventions in the same wing!). Buildings in Las Vegas look close together, but they’re not — they’re just huge. It’s critical that you wear good walking shoes. I wore gym shoes and they were fine and comfortable for a week’s worth of walking. Vegas is clean, well-lit, and not at all seedy. I’m sure there are seedy spots, but we didn’t see any of them. To go to Vegas and do anything except fine dining or gambling is pretty affordable, and only tourists pay list price for anything. There are ALWAYS ways to get discounted or free tickets to anything.

So, I walked around Vegas a lot today, and found myself at Todd English’s OLIVES at the Bellagio Hotel and Casino for lunch. I stopped there because as I was passing, I noticed that they offer a ‘Chestnut Apple Soup’, which I thought must be like the ‘Apple Chestnut Soup’ I make, and it was. Mine soup is better because I use heavy cream instead of milk in the restaurant version and top the soup with a spiced cream. The bread bowl served with a plate of olives (unpitted?!), tapenad, and herbs was very tasty. I paired the soup with a Caesar Salad for a nice light lunch before it was back out for more walking!

On Scott’s recommendation, I went to Harrah’s Casino Hotel to see if I could get into a daytime magic show. As it turns out, my timing was perfect. I arrived just in time to get tickets and go in to see Mac King’s Comedy Magic Show, and boy am I glad I did! He was funny and a talented magician. The 75-minute show was interactive with the audience and appropriate for all ages (which was good because there were a number of kids in the audience). After the show, Mac hung around and signed autographs and sold books & other merchandise.

For tonight’s dinner, please see this article.

The morning of Thursday, February 23 was in a slightly different format. Wendy drove in to the Strip by herself because Doug & Kelly were hanging out with me all day. Rather than getting up so early, I was able to sleep in for a couple more hours, which was very nice.

When we finally got going, it was to hustle down to the Strip to meet Wendy and Scott for lunch (Emily would stay home with Sarah). Doug, Kelly, and I made it to our meeting place (outside Lupo in Mandalay Bay) early enough that we decided that Doug & Kelly would secure seats at House of Blues (also in Mandalay Bay) while I waited for Scott and Wendy. Scott arrived at the meeting spot and I had time to walk him over to the restaurant and order our food before heading back to the meeting spot to pick up Wendy. Once we were all assembled, we enjoyed a big lunch of Po’ Boys, Cheeseburgers, Artichoke Dip, and more. The conversation was lively and continued even after Wendy had to get back to her conference. After lunch, Scott headed on his way and Doug, Kelly, and I shopped and walked around the Strip.

Around 5:00, we wandered back to our meeting spot to pick up Wendy and get changed into nicer clothes before heading out for dinner. Wendy & I wanted to take Doug & Kelly out for a nice meal to thank them for hosting us this week. Based on my previous experience, we decided to take them to Bouchon in the Venitian Hotel & Casino. Please see this article for dinner.

From Saturday, February 18 through Friday, February 24, 2006, Wendy & I were in fabulous Las Vegas Nevada. Wendy went to attend the Western Veterinary Conference, the largest veterinarian convention in the United States, and I tagged along with her. Our friends Doug & Kelly generously offered to put us up at their house, so we saved the expense of a hotel room.

Wendy was in conference all day most days, so this article is mostly about Drew’s experiences in and around the Strip. Because I did so many different things most days, this won’t be a chronological recollection, but rather a bunch of impressions and thoughts. Please read on for the whole story…

VEGAS PICTURES ARE HERE.

After arriving late on Saturday evening, we started Sunday by touring around the Strip with Doug & Kelly. We ate lunch at Le Provencal in the Paris Hotel & Casino (the Pasta Putanesca was very good, as were the variety of crepes we had for dessert) and enjoyed catching up with Doug & Kelly and learning about their recent trip to Russia (read about it at their website).

Entertainer Jay Leno provided the kick-off for the Western Veterinary Conference on Sunday evening. We joined almost 4000 people in one of the ballrooms of the beautiful Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, the home-base of the conference, to listen Mr. Leno share funny stories and jokes. For dinner this evening, please see this article.

On Monday, February 20, I dropped Wendy off at Mandalay Bay early — we left the house at 6:45am and made it to the Strip before 7:30am. After I dropped her off, I drove down the deserted streets to the Venetian Hotel & Casino to try my luck at walking in for breakfast at Bouchon, the Las Vegas outpost of a Thomas Keller restaurant.

I was worried because I’d attempted to make breakfast reservations at Bouchon online for every morning hour of every day we were going to be there, but I was told that no times were available at all. When I walked in, I was pleasantly surprised that there were a total of two tables seated. I was quickly ushered into a comforable booth. I told my server of the online experience and she indicated that she’d talk to the manager about it. (The lesson being, even if you’re told that a place is full, show up anyway!) I enjoyed an amazing breakfast at Bouchon. I ordered the Breakfast Americaine which is “two eggs any style (over medium for me, please) served with bacon, country sausage, pommes frites, and toasted brioche, along with your choice of a breakfast pastry, fresh juice, and Bouchon blend coffee”. The coffee was wicked strong but very tasty as was the amazing fresh orange juice. The thickly-sliced toasted brioche was perfectly crisp outside and tender inside. The sausage was firm and meaty and perfectly spiced. When I asked my server if it was made in-house, she told me it’s from Hobbs Farms in California. The pommes were creamy inside and perfectly fried outside without a trace of greasiness. They were spectacular, and I was grateful that the restuarant served them for breakfast. I asked for and received a tour of the kitchen, led by Danny, one of the cooks who was very informative about the large facility. I was so impressed with the restaurant that I made reservations for Thursday night, our ‘thank you’ meal for our hosts.

After breakfast, I made my way leisurely up to Mandalay Bay to spend some time in the kitchens of Wolfgang Puck’s Trattoria del Lupo. During the several hours that I was there, I stretched dough and made a variety of wood-fired pizzas and learned how they make sauces and antipasti in the restaurant. I was impressed with the focus on quality, even considering the giant numbers that the restaurant dones. It was a lot of fun, though I had to bow out before lunch because the class ran long and headlong into our afternoon plans — Wendy decided to skip afternoon classes to go to Hoover Dam with Scott, Emily, and Sarah. Scott and I went to college together and have kept in touch over the years since. Everyone met outside of the restaurant (which became our meeting place for the week) and we piled into Scott’s vehicle for the trip out to the Dam. Photos from Hoover Dam will be posted soon. After walking around the Dam (we decided not to do the full tour due to our limited time), we drove through the Lakes of Las Vegas (spectacular) before heading down to the Strip for dinner at 9 Fine Irishmen in the New York New York Hotel & Casino. We had a nice meal — my roast pork was very good — and we enjoyed the time with Scott, Emily, and (tuckered out) Sarah.

Tuesday, February 21 dawned bright and early. After dropping Wendy off at her convention, I hung around Mandalay Bay and did a bit of gambling (I lost $80) before heading to Caesar’s Palace to have a solo lunch at Bobby Flay’s MESA GRILL. It was a solo lunch because Wendy hates Bobby Flay (I do too, really — I think he’s a pretentious pompus guy) and refused to eat there. I decided to go because I think it’s important to know your ‘enemy’, and I must say that the meal I had there wasn’t anything special at all. It was good, but not ‘this guy is so talented that he must be an Iron Chef‘ good. I had Blue Corn Pancake with Barbecued Duck + Habañero Chile Sauce and Yucatan Chicken Skewers with Yogurt-Cilantro Dipping Sauce + Grilled Tortillas. Overall, the sauces were very good, but the rest of the items fell flat — the duck was dry and tough, the chicken was very overcooked. The breads served along with the meal were very good. This experience validated my feeling that Bobby Flay isn’t anything special — he’s certainly not Iron Chef-quality, based on my meals with Morimoto-san, another Iron Chef.

For information on our dinner tonight at Bradley Ogden, please see this article.

After dinner, the four of us walked over to Bally’s, where I lost $20 at the roulette table (bringing my total gambling losses to $100, where it stayed), to see JUBILEE, the old-Vegas-style spectacular ‘boobie’ show. When we entered the theater, our seats were upgraded from ‘third quarter’ of the house to ‘front quarter’ because the show wasn’t sold out. As a result, we had great seats — only one table in front of us — from which to see the spectacular show. There were ‘millions of rhinestones, covering practically nothing’ and the ‘million dollar’ sets were amazing, everything from the sinking of the Titanic, to Sampson destroying the temple, to an American patriotic number. And boobs (well, boob-ettes, they were pretty slight) were everywhere — at least two on each of the 100+ female cast members. The singing and dancing were enjoyable as well. We’re glad we got to see the show with Scott & Emily! We got home around 1:30am and went right to bed to get ready for the next day…

We arrived at the comfortable restaurant and were immediately shown to our table near the front of the room. As we were settling in, we were greeted warmly by Joe, our server, and the sommelier, C. Houston Smith, who helped us decide on a bottle of wine to get started with. We ordered appetizers — a monkfish cheek special (out-of-this world), the country-style pate with watercress, cornichons, and radishes, and a couple different soups. We knew from these offerings that we were in for a treat. Entrees were the Poulet Roti (roasted chicken), Porc Braise (braised pork), and Croque Madame (sandwich), and  few side items including Macaroni au Gratin and Haricots Verts. Wendy’s dish came with Pommes Frites and everyone sampled them. Desserts included the Lemon Tart (awesome), Brana Framboise to drink, and Bouchons, little cork-shaped chocolate cakes and more. We were presented with a bag of salted caramel popcorn as a take-away.

After dinner, the sommelier took us on a tour through the kitchen. The kitchen is big, bright, and quiet, everyone working efficiently. Kitchen staff stopped and greeted us as we went through. When we met the pastry chef, he gave us another bag of popcorn — this one chocolate and hazelnuts — to take with us, a nice suprise.

On the ride back to the house, I ‘hit the wall’ and completely ran out of steam, nodding off a bit. Fortunately, Doug was driving!

Wendy & I decided to go to Le Cirque based on the recommendation of Jean-Robert. He trained the executive chef, Jeremy Lieb, at the Maisonette. Based on that recommendation, we made reservations. When I called to confirm our reservations, I inquired if it was possible to greet Chef Lieb and was told that he was no longer with the establishment. A little snooping, and I found out that there’d be quite a shake-up in the restaurant just a few weeks prior, so my expectations of an earth-shattering meal went out the window. I expected it to be good, but a kitchen in transition doesn’t produce amazing food.

Undaunted, we arrived at the restaurant and were seated. (Go to this page and click the “360 view” link under the picture. When it loads in a new window (QuickTime required), left-click and hold your mouse and pan the view to the right. The first banquette you’ll see is where we sat for our meal.) From our comfortable seats, we could see the entire restaurant and had a view of the fountains outside. After looking at the menu, we quickly decided on the Degustation Menu, a 6-course sampling of the kitchen’s work. We made a couple modifications — we added a course of the “Fresh Winter Black Truffle Risotto with Champagne Sauce” and requested a different wine with dessert. Here’s the complete menu, with wines:

The amuse-bouche was an oyster with caviar presented on a funky metal & glass stand with blue ice (we were warned not to eat the ice!)

Lobster Salad “Le Cirque” served with Pouilly Fume, La Doucette, Loire Valley, 2003. A lobster salad in a light mayo dressing with avocado.

Sauteed Foie Gras with Macerated Fruit and Hazelnuts served with Tokaji, 5 Puttonyos, Royal Tokaji Company, 1999. Generous pieces of foie gras atop lovely soft fruit and crunchy hazelnuts, all in an individual silver pot (with the restaurant name embossed in the handle). Delicious.

Cinderella Squash Veloute with Sweetbreads and Truffles served with Puligny-Montrachet, J. Drouhin, Burgundy, 2002. The soup was lovely and the sweetbreads & truffles were divine. However, we noticed that the wine pairings were overpowering. Unfortunately, this trend continued throughout the meal. It was also at this point that the Sommelier stopped by to inquire how we were enjoying the wines. We told him that this particular pairing wasn’t the best, and he quickly proceeded to ignore us the rest of the evening.

Fresh Winter Black Truffle Risotto with Champagne Sauce served with a white Burgundy, “Le Roy”. This additional course was served exactly the right way — in an individual silver pot with a lid. When the pots were set down, the lids were removed and we filled our nostrils with the wonderful earthy smell of the truffles. This was a perfect course — the risotto was tender with the slightest firmness to the bite, and the flavors were wonderful.

Pan-Seared Striped Bass with Fennel Compote and Bouillabeisse Sauce served with Chambolle-Musigny, J. Drouhin, Burgundy, 1999. I recall the bouillabeisse sauce as being extremely flavorful in this dish, and liked the fennel compote very much.

Intermezzo of Passion Mint Sorbet with Champagne.

Beef Tenderloin with Peppercorn Sauce served with Chateau Malescot, St. Exupery, Margaux, 1995. Very tasty — the medium-rare slices of beef were fanned out on the plate. Easy to cut with a fork.

Grand Marnier Souffle & Molten Chocolate Peanut-Butter Cake with Banana Ice Cream served with Moscato di Asti, Vigna Senza Nome, 2004. Seeing Moscato di Asti on the menu, Wendy & I had asked to substitute it for the Port offered on the regular degustation menu. The server informed us that they’d do a different dessert to match it (instead of the Winter Dessert Fantasy promised on the menu). The souffle was excellent — the flavor was light and airy, not eggy at all, and rich with the taste and aroma of Grand Marnier. The Chocolate Peanut-Butter dish was very good as well, and the banana ice cream was smooth and creamy. The Moscato di Asti was one of the best I’d ever tried.

After dinner, we stopped outside in the mild evening to watch the Bellagio Fountains before heading home for the night. It was a great evening.