L’ Atelier de Joel Robuchon
3799 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702) 891-7777
This is my 2nd time at Le Atelier de Joel Robuchon after a few years time span, and I was just as impressed with the first as I was with this 2nd visit. Coincidentally, on both visits, I had a gosh darn cold, but thank goodness the tastes buds were pleased enough to ignore my under performing nose and enjoy the dining experience thoroughly.
This time, we went with a la carte rather than the popular tasting menu. Good strategery for the tummy.
+Freebie – Foie Gras, Port Red Wine, Cheese Reduction. Very rich and tasty.
1. Les Huitres – Kushi Oysters in clarified butter. These lil’ oysters could have been more fresh, but the texture and the way they were prepared was just right.
2. La Saint Jacques – I obviously have not had well prepared scallop before because I usually avoid eating it. Lo and behold – Perfectly prepared scallop! So tender!
3. Homard Deg – Lobster in spicy broth. Very comforting and lobster not over cooked at all.
4. Le Bar Deg – The worst dish of the evening. The fish was not flavorful and was tough. Is this real sea bass texture and have we been mislead by expecting juicy, fatty fish? However, the side of mashed potatoes was the creamiest that we’ve ever had. It was like eating butter and potato flavored pudding.
5. Le Burger – Fantastic morsel of juicy, fattiness! One order comes with two lil’ guys, but you may want to order one more order. We refrained. The accompaniment of -perfectly fried fries were fresh and salted with sea salt. The mini burger was comprised a perfectly toasted bun, fresh greens, a one square inch piece of foie gras and juicy-extreme piece of mini burger patty.
6. Chocolat Sensent -The best chocolate dessert. Why? It’s the texture, baby. Texture. Sweet, creamy vanilla icecream rolled in finely crushed oreo bits. Thin disk of milk chocolate with delicate fruity blobs of sauce. Underneath the disk was a creamy smooth dark chocolate mousse with orbs of tiny dark chocolate crisps imbedded. All this together was eye-rolling good.
7. Le Framboise – Usually, I’m not a fan of fruity desserts, so I could pass on it. The presentation was very unique. The round orb of white chocolate was melted by the warm raspberry sauce. The center consisted of some sort of sorbet.
Conclusion: C’était délicieux! Ha ha. Who am I kidding? I don’t speak French! This place is bomb diggity and I’m going back.
p.s. I updated my dim sum post on Ping Pang Pong HERE, a new tasty tidbit – Zhu Fan Tong, “bamboo rice tube/container”
First Food & Bar
The Palazzo
3325 Las Vegas Blvd S
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702) 607-3478
www.palazzolasvegas.com/first.aspx
I went in with a positive attitude, expecting bar food that can do no wrong. However, I left disappointed. The philly cheesesteak dumplings were unique but definitely not a party in my mouth. The swordfish was just waaayyyy over done. My sliders were very very bland. The truffle macaroni and cheese was worlds apart from Stripsteak’s. After Stripsteak’s truffle mac n cheese, why did we even bother?
Conclusion: Despite being disappointed with the items we ordered, I think I’ll still give it another chance with trying other typical bar food like chicken wings, tenders, fries, pizza. This place has potential for having such an awesome strip view and nice staff.
Stripsteak – a Michael Mina Restaurante
Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino
3950 Las Vegas Blvd S
Las Vegas, NV 89119
(702) 632-7414
I have mixed feelings about this place. For a place called Stripsteak, is it supposed to shine for the dishes that were non-Steak? I went shamalamadingdong over the duck fat fries and truffled mac and cheese, but how can our steaks that we made at home the following night shine over the Stripsteak steaks?! Huh? Allow me to illustrate….
1. Trio of Duck Fat Fries – These were mutha beepin’ good! Loved the bbq flavor fries. Loved the garlic flavor fries, and most of all, I mutho beepin’ loved the truffle fries. These blows Envy Steakhouse’s out of the water (not that ENVY had a chance with their truffle fries anyway). Let me just call these my Crack Fries.
2. Sashimi (albacore, bigeye, blue fin toro) – The worst decision ever. We were greedy and thought that “Hey, we’re at an expensive restaurant. It has to be good right?” Boy, were we wrong! The albacore was icy? WTF? The tuna was fishy. AND. AND! The toro was so fibrousy.
2. Bibb Wedge (Salad) – Standard blue cheese, iceberg and bacon. Yum.
3. American Kobe Ribeye – Good but not juicy. (Del Frisco’s and N9NE still win)
4. Slow Poached Prime Rib – Not juicy, not super tender. *tear
5. Truffled Macaroni and Cheese! – Another mutha beepin’ good one. Trufffleeee…. *pump fist.
Conclusion: I beepin’ loved the fries and mac n cheese. I will dream of them. However, the steaks, I will not have, again. I say save yourself the disappointment, don’t go to stripsteak and make it yourself.
p.s. This is the steak recipe we used to put Stripsteak to shame. Savory Garlic Marinade. Seared high on grill for 30-45 seconds each side. Turn grill to low heat and cover for 3 minutes each side. Perfect medium rare/rare steaks. Make sure to bring steaks to room temp before grillin’. Enjoy. Thank me later
Dad’s Grilled Cheese
5255 South Decatur Boulevard
Las Vegas NV 89118-4917
(702) 247-6640
Maybe it wasn’t a bright idea to go after the superbowl where I gorged myself with as much pizza as I could possible stuff into my under-achieving stomach, but Brenda and I decided that we’d give a go. How can you turn down grilled cheese sammiches?!
Brenda ordered “The DJ” – other than the given of the toasty and chewy of cheese and toasted bread, the pastrami was nice and tangy. I actually liked this sandwich more than mine because of the tanginess.
I ordered “The Teacher” – normally this combination would win hands down. can’t really go wrong with bacon, fried egg and ooey gooey cheese, but The DJ won. I would’ve preferred my bacon crispier, but overall, pretty fatty and tasty. My side of curly fries were crispy and lightly seasoned. The key is that they stayed crispy.
Conclusion: Cheese lover’s unite and try it out. Don’t be afraid to get down and dirty.
Chang’s Hong Kong Cuisine
4670 South Decatur Boulevard
Las Vegas NV 89103
(702) 362-3663
Chang’s is usually the go to for dim sum after Ping Pang Pong in the Gold Coast. This weekend it seriously disappointed with the siu mai (shrimp/pork dumpling), ha gow (shrimp dumpling) and my beloved flaky egg tarts but it saved itself with one of my fav’s – Fried rice noodles in XO sauce. The rice noodles themselves offer a great chewy texture, but when fried with XO sauce, it lends itself a good kick from the XO sauce and crispy, yet chewy texture. mmm mmmm
Wow! What a fun concept. You get to fill a box with a variety of your favorite ramen. Sure, you can get your own cheap ramen at the local supermarket but this option is just fun!
241 West Charleston Boulevard
Las Vegas NV 89102-2591
(702) 227-5652
www.lolaslasvegas.com
This is my first time at Lola’s and probably one of my few southern style restaurants, so despite other southern food experiences to compare, I liked it. It had a very cozy ambience with friendly service. Oh and how cute! Lola actually picked up the phone to take my reservation!
Here’s the spotlight on the food =)
1. Charbroiled Oysters – “Fresh Oysters charbroiled the Cresent City way, with lots of garlic, lemon and a blend of cheeses.” Usually I shy away from any cooked type of half shell oysters suspicious that it is the stuff that they’re trying to hide the unfreshness of with cooking it. However, I was pleasantly surprised with my favorite robust flavors of garlic and cheese and the lovely toasted slices of french bread
2. Crab Cakes – “Lump Crab in Lola’s special blend of spices, pan fried and served w/Lemon-garlic Aioli.” This is not the usual crab cake you’d expect. It seems to be 99% crab meat. Not crispy but very crab meaty.
3. Fried Oyster Po Boy on New Orlean’s French Bread fully dressed, meaning that it comes with all the slaw glory. I love po boys! I enjoyed the deep fried goodness of the oyster with the slaw a bam of hot sauce. bam bam!
4. Jambalaya with chicken, sausage and shrimp – fluffy flavorful rice
5. Etouffee – a cross between a roast and a gumbo. Gravylicious
Dessert!
1. Louisiana chocolate sheath cake – the cake was very light but every bite was a chocolate dream. We made it a la mode with praline icecream and it was perfect!
2. Bananas Foster – loved the flavor, but hated the mushiness. I’ve had others where it wasn’t so mushy.
Conclusion: Do I like it enough to go back? Perhaps, for the oyster po’ boy, it didn’t make me go banana ding dong, but it was tasty. Oh, and definitely I will have the chocolate cake, again.
p.s. Keep in mind portion sizes are more realistic rather than humongous American portions sizes. Expect well prepared food vs. over compensation with size.
Waffles Cafe
6446 N Durango Dr
Ste 150
Las Vegas NV 89148
(702) 727-3267
This cute little cafe would fall under the category of great neighborhood eats. It’s small, cute decor, in an unknown strip mall and not run by some corporate giant. Behold, Waffles Cafe, where everything is made with waffles! You can have waffle sandwiches, waffle pizzas, and of course a good ol’ waffle with whatever favorite toppings you want on it. It is also serves boba tea drinks. =)
Here’s what we got.
Yoonis Favorite made of an original flavor waffle plus strawberry, banana, vanilla icecream, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream. The texture of the waffle was chewy and slightly crunchy. This is definitely the texture I enjoy rather than the fluffy texture a la pancake batter.
The Breakfast Sandwich made of thinly sliced ham, melty cheese, perfectly crispy and smoky bacon, fluffy egg and a mysterious sweet gooey sauce arranged perfectly into an original flavor waffle. Phenomenal. Great! Eyes-rolling-to-back-off-head-good.
Conclusion: Oh waffle heaven, we will be back to sample your chocolate and pumpkin waffles and other delicious varieties. Go try it and be a supporter of the small business owner.
p.s. They have another location at 5165 S Fort Apache, Ste #160, Las Vegas NV 89148.
p.p.s. Many thanks to Tina for having a waffle craving at lunch time or else we would not have ended up there.
