Bummed to find out that the Sahara out in Vegas will be closing down in May. Here's a nice appreciation of the Sahara. Sure, it was run down ten years ago and only getting worse. I don't actually remember for sure if we've been there at all since then. And, yes, I did have one of the worst meals I've ever had in Vegas at the Sahara buffet. The food at Circus, Circus buffet was as bad but they at least renovated at some point so the ambiance wasn't as ghastly. My main memory of the Sahara is from the 2001 trip to Vegas when Sarah and I went with our friend Pru and we all went up there to see the Rat Pack is Back which was playing in the legendary Congo Room. I'd rented a car so we could get around off strip and got upgraded to a Cadillac (cos they were out of the mid-sized boringmobile I'd reserved). Okay, it was a new model so it's not like I was rolling the Strip in some late model beast like Thompson drove in Fear and Loathing... But, still, I did get to drive up to the Sahara and valet a Caddy and we all went and had a totally swanky good time watching a Rat Pack tribute show. Oh, and it was just after Dale Earnhardt had died and Sahara had already started their Nascar theme-ing so they had one of Earnhardt's other cars on display and it was turning into this huge shrine, with all these people leaving flowers and writing lots of memorials and tributes.
So one more piece of old Vegas is gone. It's pretty much just the Trop and Flamingo left on the Strip at this point. Downtown still has a lot of old school vibe to it. But, hey, that's Vegas. They tear it down and put up a new one more there even than NYC. From what I read the current owners are planning to hold onto the place and try to renovate when the economic climate is better. If that's true (or if they just sell and the place is imploded), I hope someone will save the nomads and camels. They appear in the original Ocean's Eleven and (as the photo at that link shows) were still there in the 1980s and, in fact, were still there when we visited in 2001. It looks like they might have been removed in the last year or two but I hope they're either stored on site somewhere or have been given to the Neon Museum Boneyard. Somewhere I think I have some pics of the Sahara from that (or earlier) trips. But that was before I had a digital camera so I'll have to dig around in my desk and see if I can find the prints and scan them in.

If you've been following this blog for any length of time, you might have picked up on the fact that I have this low-level obsession with lamb burgers. I won't go back and link to all the previous mentions (because they haven't been all that interesting). But take my word for it (someday I'll figure out how to get searching fixed on the blog), there have been several. I think I mentioned already that I'd tried to go to Burger Bar on my first night in Vegas but got there when it was too crowded and I didn't feel like waiting. I'd read online buzz that BLT Burger was the new hotness. It's at Mirage, which is pretty conveniently located for coming off the monorail. I just hadda schlep thru Harrah's and it was right across the street. And, hey, super shout out to whoever decided to put the BLT Burger right inside the entrance (!!!!) cos by Tuesday afternoon, I was pretty much done with walking around. I sat at the bar, which had a great view of the open kitchen. Noticed that the waiters had t-shirts with theoretically funny sayings on them like "tip waiters not cows" (okay, that one actually was kind of amusing -- there were other less funny ones but I didn't write any of them down). Had a Stone IPA on draught altho I seriously considered getting a Chimay just because, hey, how many places even have Chimay on tap? Hadn't researched the menu so was happy to discover a lamb burger on the menu. And, damn, was it good. The menu says "Colorado lamb burger, mint-cilantro yogurt sauce, cucumber, olives, red onion, tomato." I don't remember any olives so if they were there they were unobtrusive enough not to throw me. Seriously good. A bit more complicated than the Burger Bar burger of memory. But better, I think. And not just because it exists (unlike the Burger Bar lamb burger of memory). BLT's was also better than the lamb burger I had at Broad Street Cafe (which it had frikkin' better be since it's almost twice the cost). With that I finally wrap up (I think) everything I had to say about my Vegas trip. One final note: I'm pretty sure today was the last day for the Liberace Museum. Hopefully they'll be able to do some fundraising and find a way to display at least some of the collection somewhere. The world's largest rhinestone should not disappear into a warehouse like the Ark of the Covenant.

One other food thing I wanted to mention from my Monday in Vegas was Bouchon Bakery. Because I had places I wanted to go for lunch both days, I didn't want to eat as big a breakfast as I'd get going to Bouchon. But I love the restaurant and have been hearing great things about the bakery so I wanted to check it out. So Monday I left early and stopped at Venetian before I started my work day. I'd read a description of where Bouchon Bakery was in Venetian online but wasn't completely sure. But when I came down the escalator from the self-park area it was right there. Score! I overindulged with a croissant and the chocolate beignets. Croissant, as I said already, was outstanding. Maybe not quite the Platonic ideal but well in the running for such. Altho maybe no one from New Orleans would recognize the beignets as such they were fabulous as well. Little donuts filled with chocolate, which managed to be decadently rich and creamy w/o being super heavy. And the coffee was good, as well. Tuesday, I wanted to go back to Lenôtre, the bakery/patisserie at Paris (hotel & casino, not French city). It was one of the first "high-end" pastry places in Vegas and affiliated with the famous patisserie in Paris (the French city, not the hotel & casino). Even though I thought it had slipped the last time we were there, it's still a sentimental favorite. Or was. Made my way there Tuesday AM (via the monorail this time) only to find that it was no longer Lenôtre. And it wasn't very good, either. Not even close to Bouchon or Payard or even the basic café at Bellagio. Kinda too bad.

(Yes, I'm still rambling on about stuff from my three days in Vegas at the end of last month.) While I was waiting for a table at Lotus of Siam, I looked thru the local alternative newspaper and they had a short interview w/ Stephen Hopcraft, who was on the most recent season of Top Chef. He's also the exec chef at Seablue. When I looked at the cast list before the season started, I thought it was interesting that, in addition to Hopcraft, they'd also cast an instructor from CIA. It seemed like they were amping up the casting of chefs at a higher career level. There have been several chefs over the years that were working or had worked at pretty high end restaurants (Marcel had been at Robuchon at MGM in Vegas, Hung was at Guy Savoy, also in Vegas, when he went on Top Chef, Jennifer was cooking at an Eric Ripert restaurant in Philly). But a CIA instructor and an exec chef at a Michael Mina restaurant -- that's pretty high level stuff. But after seeing the season, I have to wonder if maybe they weren't trying to discourage really successful chefs from trying out. Cos they gave them both pretty bad edits. Stephen, in particular, I thought they made look kinda clueless for much of his run on the show. So it was interesting to see his thoughts on the upside and downside of being on the show. And, whatever I might have thought of how the show presented him, it's true that there's a big picture of him outside the restaurant. I don't think it's true that there's no such thing as bad publicity but it seems that the whole Top Chef experience has been a net positive. And, yes, I did see Hopcraft in the kitchen at Seablue the night I was there. I was sipping my Chimay between courses and I happened to look across towards the open kitchen (it was all the way across the restaurant from where I was sitting) and thought something like "hey, that guy looks kinda familiar... oh, it must be Stephen from Top Chef.")

Hey, at this rate I might be finished writing up my last travels before the next ones happen. Maybe.
After a big lunch o' yummy Thai food on Monday, I wasn't up for a mega dinner. Which can be a problem in Vegas because lots of the better options are fairly mega. I wanted to figure out what I was doing after an epic fail on Sunday night where I wandered around semi-aimlessly from City Center all the way down to Mandalay Bay without ever getting the timing right -- I was either too early or places were too crowded and I ended up walking too much in this kinda hunger/jet lag fugue. Ended up just heading back to MGM thinking I'd get room service but I passed this mini Stage Deli outpost next to the sports book and had a pretty good pastrami sandwich. And after all that walking on Sunday night and pretty much all day Monday, I wanted to stay close. I'd read online that Craftsteak was a good option for solo dining. But when I got down and looked at the menu it all seemed way too heavy. Pondered my options while playing some slots, hoping for a free drink. Which never materialized. Aside: this was possibly my worst trip ever in terms of slot play (I spent all my gambling budget and don't think I was ever ahead more than $5) and getting free drinks (one rum & coke in three days).
Walked over to Seablue, which is not far from Craftsteak, and saw that they had an option where you could get tastings/samplers of their appetizers. I'd heard good things about Seablue (part of the Michael Mina restaurant empire) and decided to check it out. So good! They were super nice and never made me feel awkward about dining alone. I started with one of their signature cocktails. Something called a flamingo. Don't remember exactly what was in it (tequila and some citrus juice, maybe) and their cocktail menu doesn't seem to be online. But It was damn tasty. And they brought out this cone of fresh, hot (clearly made in-house) pita bread triangles, with a trio of dips: hummus, some kind of feta cheese dip, and what they described as roasted red pepper and walnut. I think it was basically mahumara (altho the version that I'm familiar with also contains pomegranate molasses). Holy flerking shnit was that good. I'd have been happy with just that and a couple of cocktails. Or Chimays (which they did serve in the appropriate glassware, although it wasn't on tap -- and I'll be returning to that topic later in the trip report). But I don't think that's a menu option. Instead I went for the tasting of their raw/marinated appetizers and their fried appetizers. The raw/marinated plate came first and it had yellowtail crudo (w/ spicy shiitakes and a ponzu sauce), scallop ceviche (w/ tomato, citrus, avocado) and tuna tartare (the menu describes it as having pomegranate and pine nuts but there was also something creamy -- creme fraiche, maybe?). And some more pita. Astonishing. I'm still on the fence as to which was best. Either the ceviche or the tartare. Just breathtakingly good fish, well prepared.
It's hard for something deep-fried to be any kind of a let down but the fried sampler was not as transcendent. Close, but not quite. The chicken & chorizo empanada was my least favorite of the six dishes I tried. Okay but nothing special. Crab stuffed piquillo pepper was excellent. Served w/ a "smoked jalapeñ aioli" (I'd say chipotle but whatever) and really excellent. But the winner of that group (and close with the ceviche and tartare for best of the night) was the lobster corn dog. Words fail. Even though I was pretty full by the time I finished it, I immediately wanted another plate full.
So, that was my ridiculously indulgent dinner in Vegas. Good times, indeed.
And I didn't even get to the celebrity chef aspect of the evening. But this post is already too damn long. More on that next time.

For no reason I can immediately think of, I've spent much of the evening listening to Sisters of Mercy tracks on youtube. (Actually, that's an overstatement; I could trace out the reasons but it's just not all that interesting). Anyway, just a few food-geek final wrapups on last week's Vegas trip. I mentioned all these briefly already but the highlights were definitely lunches at Lotus of Siam and BLT Burger and dinner at Seablue. I've heard people say that they think LoS is the best Thai restaurant outside Thailand. I'm in no position to make that kinda judgment (as I've said before) but it remains so damn good. I ordered more than a sane person should for lunch. Hey, I'm only getting to go there every couple of years so I want to maximize the opportunity. Plus having spent 3.5 hours walking around and looking at stuff had me feeling hungrier than I'd normally be at lunch. Had the nam kao tod ("crispy rice mixed with minced sour sausage, green onion, fresh chili, ginger, peanuts, and lime juice"), which I think I'd read a recommendation about on Chowhound back in 2008 and I want to publicly thank whoever made that pick cos it's one of the best dishes. Evah! I kinda remembered hearing good things about the papaya salad which we hadn't tried when Sarah and I were there. But the waiter steered me towards a mango salad. I got the sense that maybe the papayas weren't in season or just weren't very good that day. Mango salad (not on menu so I can't provide the restaurant description but there were green mango with small shrimp, chili, lime juice, probably fish sauce, w/ crispy rice and peanuts on the side) was amazingly good. Highly and hugely recommended. I understand that they're super crowded for dinner and reservations are a must but I just walked up at lunch and only had to wait about 5 minutes. Oh yeah, if my word isn't enough for you I should mention that while I was waiting for my food (and enjoying a lovely Stone IPA) I looked up at the pictures on the wall near my table. Lots of celebs, chefs and celeb chefs to be seen. The first person I recognized was Tyler Florence. OK but not all that super-impressive. Then I saw that a few frames above that was a pic of Saipin Chutima, the chef and owner of Los, with Joel Robuchon. Yowza! Up next: dinner at Seablue (complete w/ actual celeb chef sighting)

Mentioned last time that I went to the Liberace Museum last week. I was originally just planning to go out there to get some pics of the exterior (which is much changed from when Sarah and I visited, way back on our first visit to Vegas). But, as you may have heard), they're shutting down. Even though I'd seen it before, having gotten myself out there as far as the parking lot, it seemed silly not to go in for one last visit. Glad I did. Sure, nothing has changed but it's just such classic campy Vegas-y wonderfulness. Also, I managed to catch the guided tour by a very nice volunteer (who said it was her last tour ever). Not sure if they're always that long and wordy or if she felt moved to make sure she told us everything she could think of. But there was a lot of info and anecdotes. Quite fun, altho I ended up burning out after the first building (cars and pianos) and giving up on the tour when it got to the second part of the collection (the costumes and the world's largest rhinestone). Took lotsa pictures. Not sure if that's always been okay... there were "no cameras" signs but the lady at the register just said "no flash" and plenty of people were ignoring even that. In my memory there used to be a Papal dispensation displayed on the wall (I think Liberace got it for his mother) but I didn't see it this time. Altho the displays covering his biography do mention that he died of AIDS-related complications, there's no mention of his being gay and the tour guide actually said (in the context of his brother and sister and their families) that Liberace never married and had no children. Also, at one point, I thought I heard the tour guide refer to the world's largest rhinestone as a Swarovski crystal. Actually, I'm not sure if there's any difference between the two, now that I think about it. Anyway, the museum is only open until 10/18/10 but if you should happen to find yourself in Vegas before then, it's definitely worth a visit.

Back in town after 3 days out in Vegas. For work. I know... how tough is my life. I'm exhausted but jet lagged (which is why I'm still up writing this at midnight plus). Among the highlights of my before-and-after work time were: Bouchon Bakery (moves to the top of the list for best damn croissant I've eaten), City Center (they have a Henry Moore AND and Oldenburg on display), Lotus of Siam, Bellagio fountains (caught the end of "Viva las Vegas" one afternoon and all of "Luck Be a Lady" -- one of my faves -- last night), Seablue, riding the monorail (chance to check out the Wynn golf course, among other sights), BLT Burger, the all new, super-shiny Tropicana, Hash House a Go Go at Imperial Palace, Liberace Museum (more on that later). Best casino music would have gone to Mirage for a mix of 80s new wave and MPB (altho they lose points for dropping into BTO while I was in the middle of my burger) until I walked over to the Trop last night. They are definitely working on embracing the whole Miami, South Beach, Little Havana vibe. Salsa music playing outside as I walked up. A bit less sure footed inside, where the music switched from salsa to classic rock and back again depending on where you were walking in the casino. Special mention to the West Wing Bar at MGM who were playing Señor Coconut one night when I passed by. Overall, MGM had the crappiest music. Way too much rock du classique. Altho I'll award some (possibly intentional, possibly not) smartass punning points for playing "You Better You Bet" by the Who.

Okay, it's not quite summer yet (in fact, it's so cold and rainy tonight I'm thinking about hot cocoa) but here's something to set the mood -- an amazing set of postcards of oldschool Vegas pools. I'm always amazed at just how different Vegas looked in the early years. And it's not just all the empty space and desert you can see around the edges of the Strip. Everything looks like a motel! It's all so low rise. Too bad they didn't turn up any cards of the Algiers and their kidney-shaped pool. I shall forever regret not getting any decent photos of the Algiers when we stayed there.

It might be ridiculous (okay, it almost definitely is) but I could kinda identify with this heartfelt ode to a favorite slot machine. The upside of only going to Vegas (or anywhere, for that matter) every couple of years is that there's always something new to see when you go. The corollary/downside to that is that while there's plenty of new there's plenty of stuff that disappears or gets pushed aside to make room for that new stuff. Buildings that get torn down or restaurants that close and stuff like that are the obvious changes. But a lot of what makes some place fun are the little idiosyncratic things that maybe hover around the edge of the frame. And in Vegas, for me at least, one of those things is slots. I try not to get too attached to ephemeral cultural objects but I still look for, and generally don't find a few faves. Like the Sinatra slots they used to have at Bellagio, the French bakery at Paris, and (of course) Chainsaws & Toasters.