I always give a pass to King Crab (even though I enjoy it) because I keep thinking "I can get all I can eat of these at the bellagio buffet". Am I mistaken? Is there a significant difference between buffet alaskan king crab and properly prepared at a posh seafood restaurant?

Ate at Pinot Brasserie last night. No corkage fee. Yay for that.

Service was a shade old school too formal but nevertheless right on time all night. Cheese plate was great. Appetizers were good, entrees were outstanding. Dessert was very good. Would eat there again for sure. I prefer Bouchon, but this is a nice change of pace.

Anyone try that new Todd English PUB at the Crystals Mall? I'm staying at Aria at the end of May and wanted to try some of those great sandwiches and several varieties of beer. Any food or beer recommendations at the Pub?

I've been there once, around midnight, for the late night menu, with a friend of mine. The service was comically bad, and I'm REALLY tolerant and don't say that lightly.

Roughly 15 minutes after we got there, a waitress came by to ask for our drink orders. We asked for a beer list and got one maybe 10 minutes later. I ordered beer-A, my friend ordered beer-B. 10 minutes later, the waitress came back and said they were out of beer-A. I asked for beer-C. 5 minutes later she came back and said they were out of beer-B as well. My friend ordered beer-D. 10 minutes later she came back with one glass of beer-B and one glass of beer-D, and gave us food menus. I was already too frustrated to try to get either of the beers I had originally wanted and just drank my beer-D (a PBR), and ordered some food. Maybe 20 minutes later, our food came out and was cold and pretty bad. It's hard to imagine that the average PUB experience is quite this bad, but I'm in no hurry to go back and find out.

Wow, thanks for the review.

Been to PUB twice. Service was good both times. The food is decent for what it is - bar food essentially. Decent sandwiches, fried food, etc.

Oh, and the waitress I had the first time I went told me, "Good luck vs. Isildur"

dudes, nickel pbr from 9-midnight on tuesdays. just make that beer A and you'll be fine.

No ****ing way. I don't believe this.

Not sure I should ask this question in the LV fine dinning thread, but has anyone been to Binion's Steakhouse lately? It's usually my first night dinner when I go to Vegas for all the WSOP and other poker tournaments. I usually love going to those old school Vegas restaurants, but last year when I went it was just a little empty and sad up there and the food was as good as it's usually is. I also spend around $30 bucks for cabs from the strip to get a $1.99 shrimp cocktail at the Golden Gate, just something I got to do while in Vegas.

i'm going to musashi tonight! i'm posting this in fine dining, because musashi is awesome!! ok i'm done bragging.

Ate at Panevino for the first time in a long time yesterday.

Very friendly staff. Tried a little too hard to leave us alone, resulting in a few periods of unnecessary waiting. Food was very good, with a very fair $55 for app/salad/entree/dessert of your choice prix fixe option. Place was borderline empty. For those that don't know, it's got a great view of the strip from just behind the airport. Will go again.

+1 good local Italian food joint, not to be confused with the equally as good Carnevino at Palazzo though.

Wow, that's just so cool.

Love reading this thread and all your posts in it, keep it up.

Going to Vegas for a week in August for my honeymoon, and we'll be hitting up a few of the nicer restaurants while out there. I realize there's already been some in this thread that I've read, but I'd appreciate it if anyone could post some more reviews/experiences from eating at:

Alex
Craftsteak
L'Atelier
Michael Mina's
Picasso

Thanks

Sounds like a very good deal, is that standard there?

N9ne, Craftsteak, SW Steakhouse, Prime are mentioned throughout this thread. Any comments on Envy, Stripsteak, or Curve? I know SS @ MB has the awesome scotch list, but just more interested in food, atmosphere, pricing, etc.

How are Aureole and Fleur de Lys @ MB? Any reason to choose one over the other? Is Mix a clear winner over both of those?

Fleur de Lys is the best choice by far, the tasting menu is awesome. Make sure no matter what you get the onion soup is included. Best restaurant at Mandalay, probably top 5 in the city.

1) learn to use the search function here.
2) Go to Chowhound.com and check the Las Vegas Board (new) and the Southwest Board (for older reviews)
3) Go the websites and look at the menus at these restaurants.

IMO, you can't go wrong at any of the above choices. It will come down to personal tastes and expectations. Do some homework and fit the restaurant to your preferences. The one thing I would NOT do is to couple a meal at these places with any sort of evening theatre. Enjoy and savor your dining experience. Please don't just throw it down your gullet as a "fast food" experience because you've overscheduled your evening. I've seen people do this and it is sad/funny/and a waste. Enjoy.

Hey thanks .....

I do appreciate the rest of your post though.

Yeah, I'm taking this into account. If we'd be going to a show that same night it'd be a late night show with the dinner scheduled early.

when i read reviews like this it always makes me want to try the place. even if the place totally sucks, it could not possibly be THAT bad. like you said, the average experience couldn't be that bad, but what IS it like?

maybe what i am trying to say is that i think i subconsciously (or consciously now) discount all "BEST MEAL EVER" and "WORST MEAL/SERVICE" ever reviews because i find the reviews are usually based on some outlier experience that is unlikely to happen to me.

Maybe it's because I've been to all of these places, or maybe it's because I also have my honeymoon in August, but I'll respond to your question instead of sending you searching.

Alex and Picasso are definitely a league above the rest in terms of atmosphere, no question about it. I prefer Alex over everything here - their food is just out of this world.

In terms of dissecting your choices:
Michael Mina has the second best tasting menu (2nd to Alex), but is half the price. Their cookbook tasting menu is ordered virtually every time I'm in vegas. Just outstanding.

Craftsteak is amazing, but indistinguishable from Prime, SW Steakhouse - the atmosphere is a little more casual. It's still a top choice, but Prime has more comfy seating.

L'Atelier - I dunno, I would pass on this. Gourmet tapas sounds delicious but the food is very very heavy. The quail stuffed with fois gras is delicious but you'll be sick of it by the fourth one - it's just too much fois gras and fatty quail for your body to handle. It's also pretty loud.



So, in conclusion:
Best Restaurant: (food and romantic atmosphere): Alex

For best value while being mostly romantic, Michael Mina (but it can occasionally get very busy and noisy)

Picasso is great, but most would likely put Michael Mina's food above it...except for the Michelin Guide, for some reason.

I'd pass on L'Atelier, and think Crafsteak is an excellent choice for a steakhouse (although Prime has comfier couches)

It's not fair to confuse me when I've made three reservations for the same night and have finally settled on Picasso.

(My apologies for jumping in here MEbenhoe.)

Dining, like poker, should be viewed as one long session. Go to Picasso, and check out Michael Mina next time

Please, separate nights. A tasting menu, even at the earliest time, will now jam you up on your theater time. IMO, the only thing you should rush to do on your honeymoon is f'ing each other brains out. Rushing to do anything else (other than running late because your were f'ing each other's brains out) is a form of buzzkill and bad. But that's just me. (One honeymoon and 27 anniversaries to my credit.)

Example: One night @ Prime they had a '69 Armanac on an after dinner special. It was awesome and I nursed that drink for an hour and half. To throw that back or to just not order it because I needed to be elsewhere, a sin and a lost opportunity. And finding time to linger quietly with your lady in elegant surroundings is, IMO, another really good idea.