sorry for the long wait for new post... have been on working trip to las vegas. i was actually kind of dreading it, the slot machine noise drives me batty, the reeking smokey lounges... all pictures in my head of the three and a half days to come as I flew out of Sky Harbor.
boy was i pleasantly surprised at how much I actually enjoyed myself... here's our post-game replay:
*view from ghostbar patio @ top of palms tower
first night: cocktails, hardwood suite @ the palms casino; wine, aureole @ mandalay bay.
hardwood suite: off the hook!!! wow that place is a bachelor's dream (or bachelorette with the right attitude)
aureole: the wine bar at aureole was sooo impressive to look at but a little disappointing to partake at. granted we were there a little late (for des moines standards but not for vegas) but there was NO food whatsoever, the bartender/wine steward finally produced some stale bread for my starving companion who didn't hit the heavy apps at hardwood quite hard enough. he also recommended a pinot noir called ISC, (short for International Sommelier Conspiracy) which is actually produced solely for Charlie Palmer's restaurants. perhaps it wasn't my favorite because it was developed to be specifically paired with Palmer's food, and they didn't serve us any.
second night: dinner & drinks & late-night, ghostbar @ the palms.
*tuxedo strawberry & mousse @ ghostbar
ghostbar is dreamy, the view is exquisite, you are glad to be off the main strip so you can take it all in from the patio there.
dinner was a decent caesar salad "as it should be"; a lame pasta: spinach and pesto just fight each other to the bitter end...; a nice filet, and this dessert (above), a nice light fluffy mousse with typical wedding dessert fare tuxedo strawberry that is hard to mess up.
third night: dinner, okada sushi @ the wynn; late-night, palms lobby bar.
*sablefish @ okada
*beautiful blend @ okada
*tuna tartare tacos @ okada
this dinner was just gorgeous. the wynn is just a cut above in terms of least-gaudy-but-still-tacky vegas decor. had the best uni i've ever had, even though it was not one of anyone's favorite of the selections. the sablefish (above) was marinated in miso and wonderfully sweet, probably the highlight. I wasn't impressed with the satay meatballs, there was something missing, like... spice or flavor or something essential like that. most of the sashimi was divine, I love toro! this wine was lovely too: le mistral 2003. this place was our back up to nobu, and I think it filled in just fine.
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