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Ichiza, a Chef's Hangout

Where do chefs go on their night off? In Las Vegas, they might head for Chinatown, a collection of Asian businesses on Spring Mountain Road within sight of the Strip, but very far removed from it.

One place they like is the izakaya restaurant Ichiza. As a matter of fact, I did see a chef there, Wazuzu's Jet Tila.

Ichiza is a real escape, a place where a tee shirt and jeans look dressy, where laughter can be raucous and the beer is icy cold.

Paper slips with the names of dishes that the kitchen can produce are tacked up all over the place, but there's a conventional printed menu too.

The cooks are Japanese, and the small plates they send out are quite good, with an occasional slip. But who cares, when you're this relaxed and having this much fun?

A beef and albacore tataki salad (at right) was first rate.

Stir-fried pork with kimchi showed Japanese restraint and simplicity, which is not to say that it wasn't delicious.

Chewy and gummy, bacon-wrapped mochi was a study in texture as well as taste. It's on the blue and white plate in the photo above the tataki salad.

Grilled corn on the cob with teriyaki seasoning was better than what you get at backyard barbecues.

Robata-cooked asparagus wrapped in bacon should have been just as good, but the cook was in a hurry and didn't grill the bacon sufficiently, leaving it flabby and pale.

No matter, a bowl of ramen provided some comfort. Grilled tofu with bean sprouts (right) was excellent, and spinach with enoki mushrooms and garlic butter was a very nice way to treat the leafy greens.

But the best was on its way, the dessert honey toast. 

Ichiza hollows out half a loaf of tender white bread, toasts it, puts in vanilla ice cream and glazes the toast with honey. 

This sounds like something Mom would throw together for the kids, but it's a grownup-pleaser too. And Ichiza deserves thanks for putting it on the menu.

The only other place that I've had this dessert was Tokyo Table in Beverly Hills, and that restaurant is now closed.   

Ichiza Sake House and Japanese Restaurant, 4355 Spring Mountain Road, Suite 205, Las Vegas, NV 89102. Tel: (702) 367-3151.

 

For Sushi Lovers--Crunch Rolls

These sushi rolls are as crunchy as their name. Panko-coated tempura shrimp are inside, but the real crunch comes from the tiny arare pearls that coat them.

To get these crunch rolls, you'll have to eat at Wazuzu in the Wynn Encore Las Vegas, where they're made by master sushi chef Masaru Matsuura.

Matsuura puts avocado, cucumber and a strip of Japanese mayonnaise blended with masago roe inside with the shrimp.

Then he dips the roll in a container of golden bubu arare (tiny rice cracker pellets), slices it and arranges the slices on a platter.

The sauce alongside is yuzu miso, with dark unagi (eel) sauce in the center. Unagi sauce is like teriyaki sauce, but simmered with eel bones.

Want to make crunch rolls yourself? Then check out Wazuzu executive chef Jet Tila's video that explains the procedure. 

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A Reunion at Le Cordon Bleu

Dinner at Technique in Las Vegas was extraordinary.

You never heard of the place? No wonder. It's way off the Strip, and the name is brand new.

Called Café Bleu until recently, Technique is the restaurant attached to Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts.  It's a classroom where students spend their final six weeks, half the time in the kitchen, the other half working on table service, wines and beverages.

Anyone can eat there. I wound up in Technique because I took a food tour to Thailand. 

Also on that trip was Heinz Lauer, Le Cordon Bleu's culinary program chairman and executive chef. That made Technique the first stop when the tour group held a reunion in Las Vegas.

We didn't eat Thai food, although Cordon Bleu students do learn the techniques of Thai cookery.

Instead, we sampled luxurious things such as duck confit with apple and pear tarte tatin and an apple-honey reduction (below).

Chef de Cuisine Carlos Fernandez talked up the caprese salad, dressed with a basil oil and balsamic reduction, which was as good as he said, judging by the remarks I heard.

No surprise that the entrees included chicken cordon bleu, but the top choice that night was seared diver scallops with sweet potato risotto, a red wine reduction and Parmesan foam (below).

Le Cordon Bleu makes sure its students keep up with trends such as flavored foams.

I sat in on a foam-making lesson there in January. The procedure is not delicate and touchy but  simple--as long as you have lecithin on hand to stabilize the bubbles.  

Technique's menu changes but not frequently, because it's a teaching tool and has to be consistent.

Other fall entrees are sauteed fresh salmon with a winter vegetable melange in tomato saffron broth; grilled beef tenderloin with chive mashed potatoes, asparagus, crisp fried onions and a creamy peppercorn sauce (above), and a grilled herb-marinated lamb chop with Yukon Gold mashed potatoes, asparagus and Dijon herb sauce.

My group didn't explore the wine list because Chef Heinz brought out his own red blend, made with a group of friends and labeled with their names. Deeply colored and off dry, the wine earned good marks. 

Desserts were set out randomly. I was lucky to get a chocolate lava cake with a molten center.

Others were Madagascar vanilla crème brûlée topped with a crisp, lacy tuile, and assorted berries with Grand Marnier sabayon.

Prices are low for such stylish food, and it's only fitting to tip well. Gratuities don't go into the servers' pockets but into Le Cordon Bleu's scholarship fund.  

Technique is open Tuesday through Friday, except for holidays and school breaks. Lunch is noon to 1:30 p.m., dinner  6 to 7:30 p.m. Call (702) 851-5322 for reservations. Le Cordon Bleu is located at 1451 Center Crossing Road, Las Vegas, NV 89144. The main phone is (702) 365-7690.

Head to Vegas for Thai Food

It's a long drive from Hollywood's Thai Town to Las Vegas, but if you're after really good Thai food, you won't mind the trip.

The place you'll eat is Lemongrass, the first Thai restaurant to open in a Strip hotel, the Aria Resort & Casino. Not everything is perfect, but you can get some real standouts.

One is bua loi, a dessert that is totally unglamorous, it's so white and bland. But dig in, and you'll go into raptures over this soft, warm comfort food.

Tiny, chewy glutinous rice dumplings flavored with pandan, taro and pumpkin float in sweet warm coconut milk along with slices of fresh young coconut meat.

Thai Town bua loi can be good, but it doesn't measure up to this one.

The northeastern minced meat dish larb is excellent too, nice and acidic, with an underlying earthiness from ground roasted rice. 

Not on the menu when Lemongrass opened last December, larb had to be added because so many people asked for it.

The executive chef is Krairit Krairavee, from Bangkok.

I heard about him from Chef McDang, who tours Le Cordon Bleu Colleges of Culinary Arts in the United States once a year, teaching the principles of Thai cooking. There's a Cordon Bleu in Las Vegas, and while there this summer, Chef McDang ate at Lemongrass.

Chef Krairavee, he said, gets the Thai flavor profile right, so that even when he puts together something original, it has true Thai taste.

Given the Las Vegas location, however, the restaurant has to consider the tastes of its clientele.

Spring rolls filled with salmon, Cheddar cheese and basil (above)? That's a long way from Bangkok, but such a dish wouldn't scare off a tourist leery of anything too foreign.

Chef Krairavee says, and I think I detected a note of apology, that Vegas diners want their green curry thick and creamy. The Lemongrass green curry is as gorgeous as the rest of the food, but those of us who eat in Thai Town, or Thailand, would like it a little more green and a little less creamy.

No quarrel with the shrimp spring rolls. Large shrimp are neatly wrapped, then tied with  a noodle, deep fried, and served with syrupy plum sauce. That, larb and bua loi would make a perfect meal, in my opinion.

Lemongrass has added more Chinese dishes than were on the original menu. On weekends, there's midday dim sum--they'll even pull a cart up to your table.

Although it's Hong Kong style, the dim sum has some Thai touches, such as spicy red curry siu mai and buns filled with minced chicken and Thai basil (right). There's a minced pork red curry bun too and green curry mushroom caps.

The restaurant looks sensational, as you would expect from its glamorous location.  Design elements were drawn from the Thai silk weaving industry. Square fixtures modeled on handlooms dangle from the ceiling of the dining room. Spools are stacked high on a wall.

The look is dark, which is cool and soothing, but strategic lighting lets you see what you eat.

If you're alone or want to watch cooks in action, you can sit at a satay bar.

I haven't seen bacon satay (right) in Thailand, but it's at Lemongrass (also lobster satay for high rollers.)

The bacon isn't Oscar Mayer but pork belly grilled on sticks. You have to relish fat to enjoy this, but the cucumber relish and peanut sauce that go with it are first rate.

You could have Thai iced tea with your food, but the proper choice is the signature drink, lemongrass tea--hot tea brewed with fresh lemongrass. It's a nice restorative, if you've whiled away too much time at the gaming tables.   

 

 

Vegas' Best Noodles Are Drunk

Well, not really. Wazuzu's drunken noodles don't include a drop of alcohol. They're what you might want to eat when you've drunk too much--something comforting and slithery smooth that goes down easily and feels good. 

If you can still taste, you'll know they're a little sweet, a little spicy and so delicious that they're the top seller at this pan-Asian restaurant in the Wynn Encore Las Vegas. On a busy day, the restaurant turns out more than 50 pounds of jthem.

The Thai name for drunken noodles is pad kee mao. Executive chef Jet Tila, who is Thai, says his version is not like any other. The seasonings are secret, which makes the noodles all the more alluring.

Chef de partie Kam Ho worked with Tila on getting the flavor just right.

Cooking a batch in Wazuzu's kitchen, Ho stir-fried with a vengeance, lifting the wok to let the flames soar over it and impart the tantalizing wok taste that makes the dish so exceptional. The high heat slightly caramelizes the noodles, deepening the flavor.

There's nothing secret about the basics--fresh rice noodles hand-cut into wide strips, egg, a few simple vegetables and large shrimp.

It's the sauce components that make the difference, and I'm not telling, although I saw what went into the wok.

There's some dispute over what the name drunken noodles really means. Should you eat the noodles while you're drinking or later, when you have a hangover?

Probably neither. Cold sober is best when you're eating anything this good. But you will still wind up drunk--with pleasure. 

Origin India--a Las Vegas Find

I hadn't expected to find Indian food in Las Vegas, and certainly not a restaurant as good as Origin India.

The only flaw I could find is that it is not in Los Angeles, closer to my home.

Executive chef Kuldeep Singh is updating Indian cuisine in a way that preserves its identity--no awkward fusion concepts. The dishes simply become more refined, more appealing, more interesting.

He might stuff a roast chicken with wild mushrooms and black prunes and serve it with a cashew mint korma sauce touched with truffle oil. Or he'll roast wild Atlantic black salmon that he has marinated in pickling spices and present it with apple fennel salad and roasted beets.

I didn't taste those dishes, but I did try rogan josh in which Singh replaced the usual cubed meat with lamb shank, cooked until seductively tender (at left in the photo).

The other dishes in the photo are chicken tikka makhani, or tandoori-grilled chicken chunks in a tomato sauce with cream; garlic shrimp, yellow rice and kadhi pakora, or gram flour and vegetable dumplings in a yogurt-based sauce. 

Sometimes presentation makes the difference. The street snack pani puri appeared as a sort of shooter. Usually, it's a plate of small fried puffs (puri) that are stuffed with chick peas and potatoes and splashed with spicy sauce flavored with tamarind. Singh put the spicy mixture into a shot glass and set the puri on top.

Origin India's menu is primarily north Indian (Singh is from Meerut in that region), but he cooks southern dishes too, such as South Indian lemon rice with curry leaves and black mustard seeds, a lamb curry from Tamil Nadu, and baked eggplant in a Hyderabadi sesame peanut sauce tempered with fried curry leaves, mustard seeds and red chiles.

Naans include  one with wild mushrooms and truffle oil and a sweet naan with apricots and raisins.

Singh will compose a five course tasting menu ($45) with optional wine pairings. My lunch included the appetizer plate at right, composed of  a single seekh kebab, tandoori chicken decorated with edible  silver leaf and a tiger prawn seasoned with kaffir lime leaves. The shrimp sound Thai, but kaffir limes grow in India too, Singh said.

The bar offers signature cocktails and a long list of beers. But the best beverage may be Singh's own sparkly, spicy homemade ginger ale.

No surprise that his cooking has captured national attention. In February, Singh was guest chef at the Beard House in New York City.

The only dishes on that menu that I tasted at Origin India were crispy dumplings with masala water (pani puri) and the dessert, vermicelli panna cotta with Alphonso mango jelly.

It was another dessert, though, that really intrigued me--a dark red, sweet beet dumpling coated with coconut. Singh put it on a plate with the panna cotta, and it very nearly stole the show. 

Origin India Restaurant and Bar, 4480 Paradise Road, No. 1200, across from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV 89169. Tel: (702) 734-6342.

 

A Place Off the Beaten Strip

Here's a Las Vegas restaurant you probably never thought about trying--Cafe Bleu.

And yet the cafe offers real cordon bleu cookery. A couple of factors keep it from being better known. For one thing, it's off the Strip. For another, it's part of a school, which doesn't sound glitzy enough to draw diners away from the top hotels.  

However, the school is Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, a fast growing campus that feeds the city's huge hospitality industry (95% of the students work, the majority of them full time).  And what goes on there is pretty impressive.

Just look at the gorgeous scallop dish (right) that chef/instructor Jason Labahn prepared to show what he teaches in a six-week class in contemporary cuisine.

The seared diver scallops are plated with acorn squash prepared three ways--as crisp-fried shreds, pureed and reduced to foam.

The link to the luxury dining scene is ever present. During the last 10 days of Labahn's class, students are assigned to tour the Strip and mimic a celebrity chef's dish.  

Cafe Bleu is their last stop before externships. It's open to the public for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Friday.

The a la carte menu includes such dishes as prosciutto and peas penne rigate in a roasted garlic sauce and crispy skin salmon served with tomato saffron broth and mixed vegetables.

The restaurant offers a full bar and wine service, both essential to fine dining in Las Vegas. So check it out the next time you go there.

And if you'd rather spend time in a kitchen than a casino, the school offers weekend classes for recreational cooks. The upcoming schedule includes culinary basics (beef and pork) April 10, Mexican cuisine April 24 and culinary basics (poultry) May 8. Classes are $85. For more information, call Jean Woodruff at (702)851-5316 or email jwoodruff@vegasculinary.com.

Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Las Vegas, 1451 Center Crossing Road, Las Vegas, NV 89144 ( in The Crossing Business Center in Summerlin). Tel: (702) 365-7690.

Eating Asia's Finest at Wazuzu

I could have a perfect meal with just two dishes, Korean short ribs (galbi) and Indonesian fried rice (nasi goreng). But I would have to eat them at Wazuzu in the Wynn Encore at Las Vegas.

I've already written about the short ribs there, which rival anything in Koreatown in Los Angeles.

Nasi goreng is new on the menu. And it incorporates Asian seasonings in such a skillful way that flying home the day after eating it at Wazuzu, I was sorry that I hadn't asked for an order to go.

Like a melting pot of Southeast Asia, the rice tastes of dried shrimp and Chinese sausages, fried shallots, sweet Indonesian soy sauce, spicy chiles and fish sauce.

Fresh shrimp and fried eggs on top make it all you need for a meal, but there is so much more to taste at this pan-Asian restaurant that you will have to set it aside after only a bite or two.

For a starter, try fried Indian flat bread (roti) with panang curry. Executive chef Jet Tila's creamy, coconut-rich panang was a big seller at the annual Thai festival on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles before he left L.A. for Las Vegas. Fortunately, he left behind the recipe.

If you want to taste something rare, order Hong Kong style typhoon lobster in advance--it's not on the regular menu.

The lobster is cut up, coated with a light batter that includes a touch of sambal oelek and double fried, then dished up with fried chiles and garlic. "You don't find this dish many places, " Tila says. But be warned, eating it is messy work.

A gorgeous dish called Matsu Special surrounds seared tuna tataki with a green rim of scallion oil. 

A tangle of finely shredded red and gold beets and daikon in the center of the tuna sits on a circle of cucumber slices. Sesame-coated slim burdock sticks cross in front. 

Thai food is Tila's specialty, and Wazuzu offers plenty of that. The night I was there, he had put shrimp into tom kha gai (chicken coconut soup) instead of chicken, a small change but a good one. 

And I liked the new drink, Thai Silk, a tall blend of coconut lemongrass sake, ginger liqueur and soda, with Thai basil leaves tucked in instead of mint. 

Ice kachang, the Singaporean concoction of shaved ice with fruit, red beans, sweet syrup and condensed milk, is one of the desserts. But I would opt for dragon balls--glutinous rice dumplings filled with black sesame paste and served in warm, ginger-flavored black tea broth.

This traditional Chinese dessert doesn't look like much--I didn't even try to take a photo--but the subtle tastes and chewy textures are wonderful. 

Speaking of Chinese, Wazuzu's vibrant red walls and the Swarovski crystal dragon that undulates across the back look like Chinese New Year every day, so it's a lucky place to be, whether you've done well at the tables or not. 

Wazuzu, the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, 3131 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (702) 770-5388.

Off the Strip to Chinatown

There's more to Las Vegas than gaming. Close by the glittery Strip is another attraction that draws top-drawer chefs as well as the local Asian community--Chinatown.

Its center is Spring Mountain Road, which is virtually in the shadow of the tall hotels along Las Vegas Boulevard.

Driving along Spring Mountain is much like driving along Valley Boulevard in Southern California's San Gabriel Valley. Although not as extensive, it has everything the city's growing Asian population might want, from Chinese language books and ginseng to Asian spas, Chinese bakeries, foot reflexology centers, jade shops, a Hong Kong massage place and well-stocked pan-Asian supermarkets.

A 99 Ranch Market anchors Chinatown Plaza, which is like a small version of San Gabriel Square. The Greenland supermarket is in Korea Town Plaza, and Shun Fat Supermarket is in Pacific Asian Plaza.

Restaurants are everywhere, attesting to the Asian love of sharing a meal. Packed into a short distance are Korean, Thai, Japanese and Vietnamese eating places, a Chinese restaurant with live seafood tanks, another that offers Taiwanese cuisine, a place to eat Penang style Malaysian food, a tofu cafe, an Asian grill buffet, Chinese fast food and small places that put out Vietnamese sandwiches, boba tea, even durian smoothies.

I bought delicious nut pastries, a fruit cake slice and cute cookies that mimic panda faces at the Diamond Bakery and wished I had had time for lunch at Pho So 1 (center photo).

The crowd in there, well before noon, indicated that the food must be good. And the Vietnamese crepe, banh xeo, going to one table (at bottom) looked marvelous.

But I was headed to another part of town to eat Indian food at a place my Punjabi taxi driver said was one of the best in Las Vegas. I hadn't expected to find anything Indian there--I'll report on that restaurant later--just as Chinatown was an unexpected discovery. 

12 Top Tastes of Las Vegas

Las Vegas was once known for cheap buffets, bargain shrimp cocktails and yard-long beers. Some of that is still around--a sign on one building promises "all you can eat all day for $29."  But high end food is the game now.

The strip is jammed with celebrity chefs, and they don't come cheap. Restaurant Guy Savoy at Caesars Palace offers a set menu paired with Krug champagnes for $750.

A tasting menu without wine pairings is $385 at Joel Robuchon in the MGM Grand. Shibuya in the same hotel stocks a $2400 bottle of sake. Bar Masa at Aria Resort has a shabu shabu dinner for $500. And the Pierre Gagnaire's Spirit tasting menu at Twist in the Mandarin Oriental is a relative bargain at $280 with wine pairings.

Such prices are pocket money for high rollers who might stay in a $25,000-a-night villa at Caesars Palace. Take a look at one at the right. It has two theater rooms, two pianos, a huge dining room, billiard room, countless bedrooms and bathrooms, a bar, enormous living room, verandas with spa tub and fire pit and more. Dream on.  

Big spenders demand restaurants as glamorous as they can get and the finest food and wine, no matter the price. Who cares what a wine costs when a black-clad wine angel flies up a tower of bottles like a trapeze artist to get it? You can see that at Aureole at Mandalay Bay (photo at right).  

But there's plenty for the rest of us, from sandwiches and Starbucks to down home food for the masses in places such as BB King's Blues Club in The Mirage.

Buffets are still alive and well, at reasonable prices.  M Resort and Spa charges $25 for its lunch buffet, and that includes wine or beer. 

Aria Resort in the new CityCenter has a good-looking buffet with live cooking stations as well as the first fine dining Thai restaurant on the strip.

That's Lemongrass, whose chef, Krairit Krairavee, came from the Mandarin Oriental in Bangkok. Check his sate with peanut sauce and cucumber relish in the photo above.  

Las Vegas restaurants may be fancy--look at the stunning setting of Shawn McClain's Sage in the Aria Resort (right). But for the most part menus are cautious.  Dishes that sound novel and creative may translate on the plate to something familiar and safe.  No sense scaring away those customers whose regular diet is plain home cooking and fast foo0d. 

Steaks are common. And culinary fads are a little behind the time. Ban truffle oil, for example, and the culinary ship might sink. It's everywhere, from onion veloute soup with a dot of truffle oil on top at Fleur de Lys in Mandalay Bay (right) to truffle butter at the Strip House in Planet Hollywood to naan at Origin India.

Still, there's enough good food to make choosing a dozen top tastes a tough challenge. But here they are anyway, based on a week of intensive eating.   

1. Salmon teriyaki appetizer at Twist. Twist by Pierre Gagnaire, which opened in December, treats diners to assorted small tastes before they begin. One of these is a tiny spoonful of salmon teriyaki topped with a thin slice of black radish marinated in yuzu and decorated with yuzu pearls. If you eat bread with this, be sure to spread it with butter, because the butter comes from France, and it's heavenly. 

Twist by Pierre Gagnaire at the Mandarin Oriental, 3752 Las Vegas Blvd. S.,  Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (888) 881-9367.

2. Chimichurri steak at Botero.  Order a steak in Buenos Aires and spicy chimichurri sauce comes on the side.

At Botero in the Wynn Encore, chimichurri coats the steak, as if it were pepper sauce. It's a great idea, and the filet steak was one of the best I had in Las Vegas. Maybe those Argentinians should give this a try.

I liked Botero's ice cream lollipops in their naughty chocolate holder too.

Botero at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, 3131 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (702) 770-5310‎

3. Spinach with truffle cream and Parmesan at the Strip House. If you want to zero in on steak, this is the place. Executive chef John Schenk knows how to handle meat and how to accompany it with sides that almost steal the show. His creamed spinach is as rich as spinach can get, thanks to olive oil, shallots, truffle cream and Parmesan cheese.

The Strip House, Planet Hollywood, 3667 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV, 89109. Tel: (702) 737-5200

4.Gnocchi at Fiamma.  There's an Argentine connection at this restaurant, because executive chef Carlos Buscaglia lived in Quilmes as a child. Steak may be important down there, but so is gnocchi, traditionally served at the end of the month when budgets are thin.

Buscaglia's gnocchi with lobster, cremini mushrooms, roasted leeks, black winter truffle and butter is hardly a budget dish though. Getting into the kitchen for a hands-on lesson in making gnocchi (the base is Yukon gold potatoes) made me pay particular attention to this dish.

Fiamma Trattoria & Bar at MGM Grand, 3799 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (702) 891-7600.

5. Galbi at Wazuzu. Living near Koreatown in Los Angeles, I've tasted lots of galbi (Korean barbecued short ribs), but none to rival this version, created by executive chef Jet Tila. The secret is a marinade with an ingredient that contains caramel. Don't ask what that is. Tila won't tell.  The meat is juicy, tender Kobe beef.

Wazuzu at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, 3131 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (702) 248-3463.

6. Foie gras custard brulee at Sage. Although it involves blood orange and toasted cocoa nibs, this is an appetizer, not a dessert, and you have to have a sweet tooth to appreciate it. Creamy and crusty, it cries for a premium dessert wine, like a Sauternes, but you'll have to wait for that until the end of dinner.

Sage at Aria Resort at CityCenter, 3730 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (877) 230-2742.

7. Olives' Pan-Seared Sea Scallops.  In this simple but elegant presentation, Jaime Mendoza, executive chef of Olives at the Bellagio, seasons scallops with brown butter and serves them with cauliflower puree, baby carrots, shaved Brussels sprouts and truffle vinaigrette. Mendoza showed how he does it at a demo in the hotel's Tuscany Kitchen.

Olives at The Bellagio, 3600 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (702) 693-7223.

8. Italian wedding soup at Vintner Grill. Meatballs composed of beef and lamb bob in a light broth along with escarole, acini di pepe pasta and a hint of lemon. The effect is fresh and delicate, not meaty and heavy. The Grill's blueberry-Meyer lemon cheesecake with blueberry compote, candied lemon, raspberry garnish and whipped cream is pretty good too.

Vintner Grill, 10100 W. Charleston Blvd., Suite 150, Las Vegas, NV 89135. Tel: (702) 214-5590.

9. Deep fried Oreos at Lavo. This outrageous dessert provoked more comments from the group I ate with than the Caesar salad, pasta with marinara sauce and chicken Parmesan. It's paired with a mocha milk shake for the ultimate in a gooey dessert that you shouldn't be eating, but boy, is it good. Lavo is dark and noisy. The din from the nightclub upstairs obliterates conversation and makes it hard to concentrate on the food, but the Oreos triumph over that. 

Lavo Italian Restaurant & Nightclub at The Palazzo, 3325 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (702) 791-1800.

10. Pistachio cake at Restaurant Guy Savoy. This tiny sliver of cake was topped with white chocolate mousse and a red currant. It was exquisite, as you would expect considering its prestigious source. The glass of Krug Grande Cuvee on the side made it even better.

Restaurant Guy Savoy at Caesars Palace,  3570 S. Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (877) 346-4642.

11. Paloma at the Garden of the Gods Pool Oasis at Caesars Palace.   Perfect for the hot days to come, this tall, rosy drink was designed for the luxurious Garden of the Gods pools (with swim-up gaming) at the hotel.

It's composed of Don Julio white tequila, red grapefruit juice, agave nectar, lime juice and the Italian aperitif Aperol, which adds a touch of bitter orange. Mixologist Matthew Stober shows it off in the photo.

Garden of the Gods Pool Oasis at Caesars Palace, 3570 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Tel: (866) 227-5938.

12. Maple sugar waffles at Silk Road. With such a name, I expected the restaurant to turn out dim sum for breakfast. Instead, the kitchen produced the best waffles and bacon I have had on the road.

Often hotel waffles and bacon are soggy, but not here. Berries scattered over the top, cinnamon-sprinkled whipped cream and strands of lemon curd were nice, but these perfect waffles needed nothing more that the syrup on the side. Thick slices of crisp Nueske applewood-smoked bacon were a good match.

Silk Road restaurant in Vdara Hotel & Spa at CityCenter, 2600 W. Harmon Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89109.Tel: (702) 590-2375.