What are some people's favorite dishes from Lotus of Siam?

Yeah, I'm one of the few who aren't a fan of his joints either. There are some really good dishes (the octopus appetizer at B&B is amazing), but in general I find his food to be overseasoned and heavy-handed. Service is kind of spotty too imo, but I (admittedly) really have a major bias in favor of great service.

Everything on the last page (chef's specials) which includes Panang Short Rib.
Soft Shell Crab on Drunken Noodles

Any of the Curry's are great. Green Curry with Tofu is probably my curry of choice, but I should clarify that I don't like very spicy food. There's something about the tofu at Lotus that makes it just perfect.

Mint and Green Chili - Suateed with fresh and dry chili, garlic, bell pepper, and Thai basil

One of my favorites

Tom Yum Soup

Does Lotus of Siam take reservations?

Sort of. They'll take a reservation but if it's busy you're likely to have to wait when you show up anyway. Pro tip: when they tell you the wait will be 30 min+, ask if you can leave your phone number and go to the Mexican place across the parking lot (there are a couple, I'm blanking on the name but it's the giant one that actually has people in it) for Margaritas while you wait.

Any of the whole fish, especially the charbroiled whole catfish. These are mostly big enough for 2+ people to share.

Nam Kao Tod (crispy rice with sour pork sausage) appetizer

Spicy jackfruit and ground pork from the Northern Thai section of the menu (the best way I can describe jackfruit is that it tastes a lot like artichoke heart, this dish is basically a pile of baby-poo-green mush but it tastes much better than it looks i like to order this dish very spicy and i'm not sure i'd recommend it if you plan on ordering it mild)

Had the bone-in-ribeye for two this weekend. Fantastic. Mario gave me the go ahead to go caveman on the bone. Took pics as we were eating to email my teenage/adult sons.

Don't know if we're the first, but had the wrap up the bone to take home as a souvenir.

Go ahead and laugh.....

No respectable steak lover would laugh at your for that.

We often fight over the bone when we go. Sometimes we do credit card roulette first for the bill, and whoever loses (pays) gets to eat the bone. It really is the best part.

my favorite dish at lotus is the nam kao tawt (not sure on the spelling). it's a fried rice dish, but crispy fried rice, with chili, lime, and sour sausage. absolutely amazing dish, and basically not available anywhere else.

edit: oops didn't realize ike already posted same thing.

Ok....I'm not digging the Yelp reviews for Bartalotta. I'm going to be pissed if I pay 300 for a crappy meal...I need help LVers! Where should I go for an awesome seafood dinner this March?

Uh, do you trust yelpers more than 2p2ers?

There has been (as far as I recall) only positive remarks in this thread for Bartolotta.

If there is something in particular about the yelp reviews, you should specify, people here may have something to add.

There are other places, for sure. RM Seafood in Mandalay Bay offers two levels of dining (a more formal room upstairs, and a more casual place downstairs). The downstairs has good seafood prepared well, and you are more likely to spend $150 for two with wine, maybe some oysters, etc.

But the Bartolotta experience was great, and worth the money.

Remember that 90% of the posters on yelp are completely ******ed. That's an actual number, 90%. I've done the research.

I haven't been to Bartolotta (keep meaning to) but a friend who knows better said it's the best meal she's ever had in her life. That was several years ago. She's still talking about it.

Nobu?

Aquaknox

I read through the Yelp reviews and a whole lot of the negative ones seemed to be people who were appalled to be charged so much for fish (look at a ****ing menu or call the restaurant before you show up, moron) and couldn't remember precisely what they'd eaten or had shown up with an 18 person bachelorette party and ordered the chicken. By contrast, the positive reviews were by people who knew what they were going to the restaurant for, had had similar things before, and reported that Bartolotta was superlatively good at what they do. To be fair there were a few reports of really bad service. Such things happen every once in a while nearly everywhere and are particularly likely to end up on Yelp when they do. In my 4 or so trips there, the service has been fantastic every time, but for all I know it might be more variable than at other comparably priced places.

If they have it when you go, or I suppose if you encounter it someplace else, get the slipper lobster. The waiter described it to us by saying that it was a small species of lobster which ate other crustaceans, causing it to develop a concentrated crustacean flavor. It was the richest, most flavorful lobster I've ever eaten, almost like another creature entirely.

I've been to RM a couple times, only the downstairs area, and been pretty happy with it. From what I recall, $150 is even a pretty high estimate, though I don't think I've gotten wine there. Last time I was there my gf and I split a 750ml bottle of hard cider (wish I could remember the name, it was from upstate NY iirc) that was like $25 and really really good.

American Fish (by Michael Mina) at Aria was quite good the one time I went. More expensive than RM, cheaper than Bartolotta. $50ish entrees if I remember correctly.

I'm also a big fan of Restaurant Charlie at the Palazzo. Not strictly a seafood restaurant in the same sense as the others I've mentioned, but the menu does focus on seafood and it's really, really good. A bit hard to classify the style, it's sorta fusiony with heavy Asian and French influences, but much lighter and more ingredient driven than you might expect from that description. Poke around the website http://palazzolasvegas.com/restaurantcharlie.aspx if that appeals to you at all.

1) You are asking for a seafood dinner while traveling to the middle of an f'in desert! Seafood is exceptionally sensitive to deterioration from the moment of capture. Please set your expectations accordingly.

2) Hopefully, seafood means more to you than "I want my f'in lobster!"

3) I would expect to pay top dollar for the good stuff.

4) I would research the last minute specials to see if some truly special seafood was on a menu when I am in town.

5) Go to San Francisco or Maui or Vancouver and then make this request.

YMMV.

For those who have been there, please recommend some dishes at Restaurant Charlie and Aquaknox.

I've eaten a lot of seafood in both Boston and Las Vegas. The average, reasonably priced stuff in Boston blows similar stuff in Vegas away. At the top of the high end, Vegas is at least as good. I'm pretty sure there's a good bit of seafood available in Vegas that was swimming in the ocean less than 48 hours before it ends up on your plate. It is, after all, only a few hours drive from the California coast and at the nicest restaurants they spare no expense flying **** in as fresh as possible from all over the world.

sorry that I just discovered this thread but I really need to throw my two cents in when it comes to the best italian restaurant in vegas. I have been to all of the major players from B and B, Carnevino, Circo, Fiamma, Raos, Piero's, Nove Italiano to name a few, but the one that stands out by far purely due to the taste of the food is Stratta at the Wynn (formerly Corsa Cucina). I think I have eaten there at least a dozen times and it never disappoints. Alex Stratta has a different take on italian, especially if you are used to more traditional italian american cuisine that a place like Raos or Nove Italiano specialize in, but each dish seems to have a new and improved twist on classic italian dishes that I grew up on.

The first thing that you guys cannot miss is the clams casino, the only preparation that I have ever tried that can compete with my godfather's clams casino. Other appetizers I enjoyed were the beef pansotti and the butternut squash ravioli.

The lobster fra diavolo, roasted shrimp penne, or ribeye steak are always great, but the best thing on the menu if it is available is a special of filet mignon and lobster ravioli. That dish is in my top 5 things I have ever eaten and my gf who has eaten filet mignon at almost all of the steakhouses around town thinks it is better than all but the filet at CUT.

What do you guys think is the best tasting menu (with wine pairing) in Vegas?

Whoa Whoa......such hostility! Nonetheless, your point is taken. I'm happy to hit every steak house in town, but the fiance' (growing tired of my endless appetite for beef) is demanding a fine seafood dinner this time.

Granted, there are a lot of ******ed people on Yelp, but I still needed some reassurance from 2+2. If the general consensus is don't order seafood in Vegas, thats fine. I can drive to NY/Philly/Boston anytime I want.

If the consensus is that Bartalotta is the nuts. I'm, very willing to pay 300+ for a meal if its going to be awesome.

I found the service experience at Bartalotta to be subpar. Specifically, they were snotty.

in my experience, yelp everywhere has the same "problem."

yelp is majority populated by people who i would be nice in classifying as "cheap."

indeed, if they would just call ahead or look at a menu online, many of their problems would not exist. specifically, they are always appalled at how expensive everything is, have always had "much better" everything for cheaper someplace else in their neighborhood, and always "expect more from someplace that costs so much, i mean i could have gotten that lobotomy i've been putting off for that much."