Thank you, we probably won't do the wine pairing, so I would be safe at a 2.5 hour max you think?

You should probably just ask the restaurant if 2.5 hours is enough. They will be more than likely to accomodate you if you say you have a definite time restraint that's reasonable.

Sounds scammy. Three places at Cosmo (only one of which I'd consider a real restaurant), one place at Caesars that I've never heard of and that's supposed to be a "food journey of epic proportions"?

Why is it even called "Taste of the Strip Walking Tour" if 3 of the 4 mentioned places are at Cosmo?

Never been to Max Brenner, but heard good things about their chocolate stuff. But that was for the NYC location, didn't even now they had one in LV.

Max Brenner is awesome.....If you want chocolate stuff. Otherwise it isn't very good. If it is your last stop it would be perfect for dessert

Any recommendations for Valentines dinner? Do any restaurants do something special?

Worst day of the year to eat out imo, with Mother's Day brunch being a close second. Cook dinner!

heh, ya

the special thing that lots of restaurants do is offer a limited, set menu of the stuff they can mostly easily churn out a ****load of in order to accommodate the extra traffic.

Yep

And the staff is miserable because they have to work the second-worst day of the year, and you'll be miserable because there's absolutely nothing special or romantic about eating out on Valentine's Day other than getting crammed into a restaurant and eating from an inferior menu. Take it from a former waiter, it sucks.

And don't get me started on Mother's Day.

Of all the Wynn and Encore restaurants, which two or three would you all recommend if limited to the separate vegetarian/vegan menus at each? I've only been to The Country Club there.

On my last trip to Vegas, I wound up hitting a nice jackpot so I decided to take my aunt and uncle out to a really nice place... on Vegas lol.

Was staying at Treasure Island so I booked us at Delmonico steakhouse across the street at the Venetian.

Not being much of a restaurateur I didn't really know what to expect. Definitely felt a little out of place.

I ordered the spinach and frisee salad with a poached egg. Pretty yummy indeed. I'd never had a poached egg before. The yolk oozing out when cut into was really delicious. My aunt ordered the heirloom tomato salad and it looked incredible. My uncle ordered the lobster bisque and said that it was excellent.

My uncle and I ordered the house favorite, the bone-in ribeye. Perfectly cooked and quite yummy. My aunt ordered the filet medallions and totally loved it. I really wanted the chateaubriand but neither my uncle nor my aunt wanted to share that, sadly. But the sides stole the show. The creamed corn and the potato gratin were just divine.

My uncle made the comment, steaks are good but above a certain price point they can be only so good. Have to agree a little. 150 dollars for three cuts of meat before drinks and sides etc (and this is a lot better than a lot of the other establishments I've seen!) seems unfathomable. Then again, I full well understand that I was eating well above my class level lol.

360 bucks out the door was steep but hey, it was TI's money lol.

Was surprised by a dinner at Picasso for my anniversary. It was tied for the best meal I've had in Vegas (hard to compare it E, which is such a different experience).

Highlights:

-Amuse bouche: a bamboo skewer with 1/2 of a hard-boiled quail egg, smoked salmon (spritzed with lemon), and caviar. Simple, but perfectly balanced and the best amuse I've had in a long time.

- Scallop: beautiful sear on a bed of pomme puree with a demi-glace reduction, with a length-wise section potato chip for texture. I also had some bacon bread with this-- which has inspired me to bake some at home!

-Foie Gras: Usually I prefer a torchon with brioche, but this was the best seared piece I have ever had. Here the technique was just amazing: an perfect sear on both sides-- the inside was like butter. The pistachio garnish added texture and brought out the nutty qualities of the Sauternes for the pairing.

-Lamb:Best lamb I've ever had. Apparently it's organic and sourced from Colorado, from a farm that tries to raise them in a Wagyu type of fashion. It was so incredibly tender that I was sure they sous-vided it, but the waiter claimed it was roasted. It was served with a rosemary infused demi-glace reduction and an elegant take on ratatouille. Ordered it rare instead of the suggested med-rare, and was glad I did. Syrah aged in American oak made for a nice pairing.

-Dessert: The standout of the plate was the Guiness ice cream.

The service was excellent as well. (There was a goofy moment when we asked if there were any additional pairings not listed on the menu and the waiter told us that "the wine gets progressively heavier to match the food" lol, I should hope so! And one waiter seemed particularly enamored with asking "can I get you anything else," which is a bit odd when repeated and in the context of a tasting menu. What are we going to do, ask for ketchup? )

I appreciated that we weren't rushed in the slightest, despite having one of the nice two-tops right by the window. We were at the restaurant for over 3.5 hours, in part because we started with champagne before the dinner.

I really liked how they kept the restaurant decor simple except for the dazzling Picassos, and the beautiful multi-colored informal flowers on the center stand, which played off of the bright colors in the paintings.

I thought that the dinner was also a good value. There were many expensive ingredients, and dinner came to ~600 for two (though we spent around 200 on beverages). This makes it the best value tasting menu I've ever had, and one of my all-time favorite meals.

Very nice.

B&B has two tasting menus at the same time. A pasta tasting, and a regional tasting. This time they went a little nuts with the regional tasting, and changed it into a multi-course "whole hog" tasting for 125 + pairings. Gonna try it this week, pretty excited!

hotjenny's report is why I always rec Picasso. It's just so well executed there. I can't wait to go back.

Very nice Picasso TR Jenny.

Factoring everything in (food, value, service, convenience, etc.) Picasso is my favorite restaurant. I highly recommend you try it if you haven't yet.

I've had this exact conversation sooo many times and it always tilts me:

Friend: "I love staying at Bellagio. The food there is so great. I've eaten at all the restaurants."
Me: "Nice. My favorite restaurant is Picasso."
Friend: "What's that?"

Glad you guys enjoyed it! I also can't wait to go back.

You had me at bacon. Recipe please!

Still guilty. Soon... planning to eat there in March.

For a group of 11, would you guys recommend L'ATELIER DE JOËL ROBUCHON or Picasso? (or something else in that same vein)

Thanks!

Agree with that, best lamb I've had was also at Picasso and I've eaten a lot of lamb in my day. Wine pairings were excellent too. However, overall, I feel Picasso is overpriced and there are better options at that price point and below. Reason being, all the other courses were good, not great.

Overpriced? I really disagree. $120 for a 5 course amazing tasting is pretty tough to beat in this town. I need specific examples to get your frame of mind.

Got a resy for this friday at Picasso so I am excited. Anyone b een to Twist at the Mandarin Oriental? Any tips? Go a la carte or tasting menu???

I rarely follow a recipe when I make bread; I just roughly adhere to Ruhlman's ratio of 5:3 (flour to liquid). I added about 4 ounces of bacon to equal parts whole wheat and white bread flour (about 20oz total), with flax seed, olive oil, and a couple tablespoons of yeast.

And because it was Valentine's Day, I attempted heart shaped rolls:




+1, easily the best value for a tasting menu I've had in Vegas!

Twist.

Def tasting menu ... we did the three-course tasting last time, and even though there wasn't much room left afterwards, I kind of regretted it ... the six-course is a truly unique experience.