Vegasjuhl

September 7, 2012

Back Home

I have a couple more restaurant week meals to share. Those will be coming soon. In the meantime, I'll share about my visit to Chicago. I left Sin City for the Windy City on Saturday. I stayed at my sister's house and got lots of time with her and Nicky. Visited my dad, inlaws and a few friends too. Nicky is in school now so we did our best to keep routine. It was wild to help him with his homework. It seems like yesterday he was still in Amy's belly and we were curious what he'd look like. Now, he's writing the letter S. How time flies!

I ate my favorites like Giordanos pizza, chinese and gyros. Even satisfied a craving for cream of chicken soup. I still love Greek restaurants. They have tasty home cooked food, a huge variety and cheap prices.

We took Nicky to his first home game, he's now a White Sox fan. He was loyal to the Angels. Our mistake for taking him to Angel Stadium first. The White Sox played the Twins and we won. It was a great game.

We rented a boat at the Monee Reservoir and fished. We didn't catch anything and it was mighty sweaty from the heat and humidity, but we enjoyed it. It's quite peaceful.

Amy's roommate has two cats and one recently had a litter of kittens. They are handfuls of utter cuteness.

Our last stop before they dropped me off at the airport was the Plush Horse, an old fashioned ice cream parlor with a huge selection of homemade ice cream. M'mmm strawberry cheesecake ice cream!

August 31, 2012

Restaurant Week: Andre's

Wednesday, we had reservations at Andre's for 7 o'clock. When we arrived it was nice to be so warmly welcomed "Oh, right this way. We have a table ready for you." And sure enough, we were seated a table set for three. Little touches like this don't go unnoticed.

To get us started we received a amuse bouche a caviar creme palette cleanser.

Breads followed, and we tacked on the wine pairing for $25. Reisling, Chardonnay, A French red with a name that escapes me and a dessert Reisling.

Our first course was Roasted Corn Soup with Warm Crab Salad, Garlic Chips and Chive Oil a beautiful soup with delicate flavors.

Next, was Butter Lettuce Salad with Crispy Duck Confit, Toasted Almonds and Cherry Vinaigrette. Clean and crisp, with a hint of richness just to be naughty.

Seared Scottish Salmon with Spinach Gnocchi, Heirloom Tomato and Truffle Beurre Blanc and Grilled Rib Eye Cap with Anna Potato, Broccolini and Horseradish Beef Jus. Both dishes were cooked to perfection and nicely prepared.

We finished with Cocoa-Nut Marquise with a Banana-Lime Sabayon for dessert. This was a decadent dish without being overly sweet. Tartness from the lime helped to balance the flavors and the banana flavor added a playful element.

Food and service were solid. Andre's is a class act through and through.

August 30, 2012

Restaurant Week: Allegro

Tuesday's dinner was at Allegro inside Wynn. It took over the space that was formerly Stratta. Alessandro (of TC Masters fame) got the boot. Chef Enzo Febbraro was highly regarded in Washington DC and hails from Naples. The restaurant has only been open a short time, but it's already getting great praises.

Our table for three wasn't ready when we arrived so we ordered wine at the bar. $42 for three glasses: riesling and pinot grigio. They later seated us in the bar area, which I found a bit odd since this area is generally reserved for those without reservations. The restaurant week menu had three choices for each course. We decided we'd each order something different and share so we could sample a bit of everything. One of the entree choices was spaghetti and meatballs, but we learned while the restaurant does make its own pasta it does not make its spaghetti. Odd. We wanted to try homemade pasta so the waiter asked the kitchen if we could substitute the lasagna. They approved, yay.

For the first course we had Bianca Pizza Mozzarella; Proscuitto, Arugula, Shaved Parmesan, Panzanella Salad; Tomato, Cucumber, Celery, Red Onion, Double-Baked Fresella, Red Wine Vinaigrette and Calamari & Shrimp; Fried Calamari, Shrimp, and Cherry Peppers, Spicy Tomato Sauce. The Bianca pizza was fantastic. Crisp crust, gooey cheese and topped with Proscuitto and Arugula it reminded me of the flavors we enjoyed while in Italy. The Calamari was very good as well. Tender and lightly breaded with a kick... just the way I like it. The Panzanella was a bit bland and the weakest dish.

Next up was Roasted Pink Snapper; Escabeche of Vegetables, Salmoriglio Sauce, Chicken Parmigiano; Tomato Sauce, Fresh Mozzarella and Baked Lasagna Napoletana; Meat Ragu, Meatballs, Smoked Mozzarella. The snapper was delicate and nicely prepared. The pickled vegetables were much too pickled for my liking, though. The Lasagna was very meaty. Too meaty. I've heard raves over this lasagna but it didn't thrill us. I'm not one who enjoys chicken parmigiano, in all honestly, chicken dishes in general don't appeal to me, but this was excellent. It was giant breast well seasoned with light crisp breading. The sauce wasn't acidic. We agreed it was likely the best any of us has had. Who knew?

And finally, dessert offered a Cannoli; Sweet Ricotta Cheese, Candied Citrus, Chocolate Shavings, Cassata Frozen Nougat, Raspberry & Meringue Sorbet and Tiramisu; Mascarpone Mousse, Coffee Soaked Lady Fingers, Chocolate Liqueur. The cannoli was not liked by any of us. It was heavily orange flavored. My bite brought back memories of spoonfuls of Trix as a kid. The Cassata was nicely done, but it was the Tiramisu that wooed us. It's right up there with the one made by angels at Circo.

Overall, we enjoyed a delicious meal. Service was great until the very end when it took forever to close out our check. Being held hostage is a definite pet peeve, but our waiter did go above and beyond to see about getting lasagna so it was forgiven.

August 28, 2012

Restaurant Week: Nove

We kicked off fall Restaurant Week at Nove inside the Palms. Our foursome was seated at 7:15. The restaurant remained pretty quiet until late into our meal.

We started with an amuse bouche of bruschetta and caponata. Plus a bread basket with sesame bread, twists and focaccia. We opted for the $20 wine pairing: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and I missed the dessert wine. Not a moscato, I'm sure of that, but still very sweet. Too sweet for my liking.

Butternut Squash Ravioli; Brown Butter, Sage whet our appetite. The pasta was tender, and a bit rustic. The filling was sweet. I prefer a more savory squash, but it was very good.

Next, we had Baby Fennel and Apple Salad; Endive, Toasted Hazelnuts, Gorgonzola Cheese and Petite Farmers Market Greens; Roasted Heirloom Beets, Humboldt Fog Goat Cheese, Candy Walnuts. Both salads were nicely dressed, crisp and loaded with tasty bits.

Before the third course, we had a second amuse bouche of salumis. The venison was one of the better varieties. Entrees were Salmon; Cauliflower Puree, Truffle Pan Sauce, Arugula and Almond Salad and Veal Scaloppini; Broccoli Rabe, Roasted Garlic, Scampi Sauce. I couldn't find fault in either dish, but I think the veal was a bit better than the salmon. It had bolder flavor and it was so tender, it seemed to melt like butter.

Dessert was odd. The menu read Chocolate Ganache; EVOO, Sea-Salt, Toasted Walnut and White Chocolate Bread, and I interpreted it as individual desserts with ganache over sweet toast. Instead, a single large scoop of ganache was served with a half dozen pieces of toast and two knives were provided. We spread the ganache across the toast, and dug in. It was like a saltier, and a more decadent version of nutella and toast. It was very rich so a little went a long way.

Service was attentive throughout. Nove is perched on the 51st floor of the Palms' Fantasy tower. The views are stellar. We watched the skies fade from day to night. It is always a joy to see the glimmer of lights across the desert. Eats tend to suffer when you get views like these, but Nove seems to get it right.