Eating in Sin City: Scarpetta

There's a real danger in having an amazing meal: that the magic can't be recaptured. I worry about this every time we revisit a place that scored high or that was truly memorable...will it be able to live up? While in Vegas we took that chance by going back to Scarpetta.

M&S went during their anniversary trip in 2012 and raved about it. So I went with Mom in October of the same year and was thrilled that we had such a similiar - fantastic meal. Going for the three-peat, we booked our final dinner there this last trip. It would Alan's first experience.

We were seated at one of the large, comfortable semi-circular booths that are quite nice. But this one was located so close to the entrance I felt immediately like we were missing out on the ambiance you get when you go deep into the center of this dark, modern yet chic restaurant. We also couldn't see the Bellagio fountains.

We ordered a round of appetizers and then pasta dishes. I don't have all the dishes captured in pictures but you'll get a sense...

White asparagus soup with crab & croutons. I ordered this - I love cream based soups and crab is my favorite thing on the planet...especially blue crab which this dish contained. And can't imagine my disappointment when I realized it was lacking seasoning and came off as quite bland. Couldn't really taste the crab and the whole thing needed salt or something savory to save the dish.

Raw yellowtail. Fresh, nice.

Crispy fritto misto (seafood, vegetables, lentils). Why lentils? Ok.

Braised short ribs with vegetables and farro risotto. Nicely cooked - fall apart beef. Good dish overall.

Pici with lobster, tarragon & almond and chili pesto. This sounds like something that should have just had my name on it. But the tarragon was overwhelming and the other favors got lost. Such a shame.

Duck & foie gras ravioli. I liked this dish (it wasn't mine) much better than the pici I ordered. Alas, it wasn't so I only got a bite before sending it back to it's rightful owner. Probably the best dish of the night.

Overall, it didn't live up to the past. Pasta dishes weren't showstoppers and the appetizers failed to excite. Next time in Vegas, I'll skip this one in favor of trying a new place.

Jenn's Rating: 81 (for reference, I scored this an 88 the last time)
Zagat: 25-25-26

Eating in Sin City: Fleur

With our conference being in Mandalay Bay, we took the opportunity to try out the revamped (to small plates) Hubert Keller eatery, Fleur. I was hoping for great things - having only ever watched one season of Top Chef, it was the original Masters season and Hubert was a favorite to watch by far.

The location in nicely situated over by restaurant row between the casino and the convention center so lots of foot traffic walking by the "outdoor"  patio seating. The place was basically empty - possibly not a great sign.

We ordered appetizers to share and a round of entrees. The menu is organized by country which is a bit odd. Not the entire list of what we ordered but some call outs included the roasted bone marrow with grilled toast points; duck confit over whipped potatoes and the Fleur burger (quartered) with caramelized onions and fried potato.

There were also flatbreads with bbq pork belly and a few other dishes that sounded pretty great off the menu. The issue was that the taste just didn't live up to the description. There wasn't a standout course and a few, like the flatbreads were truly disappointing. We wonder why they chose to switch from a formal, traditional French restaurant into small plates in the first place considering Keller is a superstar French chef. This format and preparations didn't do anything to encourage us to seek out his other restaurants. There are far better meals to be had around the strip.

Jenn's Rating: 79
Zagat: 25-23-22

Eating in Sin City: Lotus of Siam

Our second dinner in Las Vegas this past April was a return to our favorite...Lotus of Siam. Argueably the best Thai restaurant in the US. We haven't been back since March of 2009 with Susan & Rich and were both excited and nervous to see if it still held that magic.

Calling for reservations three months in advance is the first hurdle...even with the new renovations and expanded space, this is a hard place to get into. They will only hold your spot for 5 minutes so don't be late!

We got there 15 minutes ahead of time and grabbed a drink at the bar while we waited. The bar is part of the renovations and definitely beats out having to wait outside in what's a sketchy strip mall at best that you're sure you've seen on either CSI or an episode of COPS.

We were seated at a little table for four right near the bar. The ambiance here isn't much to speak of - they make use of every available inch to get hungry diners tucked into boring wooden tables. But hey, who cares? It's all about the food! With a couple bottles of wine we dove right in and ordered for the table.

Appetizers:
Stuffed chicken wings (stuffed with ground pork, deep fried and served with sweet & sour dipping sauce). SO good!

Thai Salad (mixed vegetables, onions, boiled egg & peanut dressing). Boring? Yummy! 

Spicy Vegetable Soup (hotness level 5 - - and very funny to watch Mary try and eat this). I DARE you to try to soup with anything hotter than a four. Make sure you have someone video taping the experience - it's hysterical.

Nua Dad Deaw (Thai Style Beef Jerky) deep fried, marinated beef served with spicy dipping sauce. Really, really good ~ nice suggestion from our server.

Fried Chicken Dumplings. Classic.

For entrees we shared the Drunken Sea Bass; Pad Thai & Crispy Duck. These are some of the best dishes to be found in Vegas. Drunken anything at LoS is killer - try the bass, noodles or even soft shell crab.

The food was once again amazing - so full of flavor and so many different types of dishes to choose from. Service was fine - they offered suggestions for dishes to try that was appreciated and we didn't feel like we waited for anything.

This is a Must Go to place if you're in Vegas. Wear comfortable clothes ~ there's no scene to worry about. You don't need to be a fan of Thai food - it transcends any ethnic label and is just plain, awesome food.

Jenn's Rating: 94
Zagat: 28-15-23

Eating in Sin City: Blue Ribbon Sushi

Hey!! It's been a long time since I've posted - new job & nicer weather mean no free time. So I'm playing a little catch up here. In April we went to Las Vegas for a conference and piled on as many good meals as possible.

Our first night there after a hectic scramble to get from airport to hotel (and then to a second hotel) and back to Cosmopolitan for dinner at Blue Ribbon Sushi. This was our first time trying BRS though we'd been to the one in NYC with a large group and were a bit underwhelmed.

Starving and jet lagged, we ordered drinks and dinner. As a group we decided to go with the famous Fried Chicken "Blue Ribbon Style" with wasabi & honey and the Oxtail Fried Rice with daikon, shitake and bone marrow. We also ordered sushi to round out the meal.

The chicken arrived looking crispy and reddish - covered in spices. It was super moist in the middle and had quite a kick to it. The wasabi honey dipping sauce was a fantastic accompaniment. An excellent dish - one of the best takes on fried chicken we've ever had.

Served alongside the chicken was the rice in a giant bowl meant for sharing. This might be the single most incredible rice dish I've encountered. The oxtail & bone marrow give it such a heartiness and the rice still has that crisp, al dente style interior...what a keeper! I would go back to BRS for just these two dishes over and over again.

We ended with sushi as I mentioned before - the menu had a lot of unusual and interesting fishes we don't see here in NYC much. For instance, Japanese Red Snapper, Amberjack, Orange Clam, Fluke Fin and Jellyfish. The sushi was excellent - super fresh and with such diverse choices, got to try and great new things.

While we were all struggling to stay awake -the meal was super enjoyable; one of the best of the trip. Service was attentive and fun and the ambiance was jumping, a touch loud, but very energetic with good people watching. Highly recommend!

Jenn's Rating: 91

Zagat: 24-23-22