After watching commercials for the Surf buffet in the Boardwalk hotel $5.99, I was interested. After all, how can they screw up breakfast. It was a horrible place. Don't go.
Very low end stuff. Poor variety and quality on the deserts too.

Bellagio lunch buffet.
Supposedly the place to go for a lavish buffet brunch. Lavish yes; but the atmosphere is more Texas cafeteria.

I do suggest the Paris buffet brunch instead. It's $17 plus tax. It's a beautiful place. Lots of atmosphere. Beautiful spread of food. And tasty too! And those french pastries...Yum. This was an outstanding place.

Delmonico's Steakhouse in the Venetian. Our meeting ran late so we cancelled. We were to tired to schlep from the Mandalay all the way to the Venetian. Instead we had champagne and cavier at that Russian place (very cool looking) in the Mandalay. After that my friend insisted we go eat at the Border Grill in the hotel. That's owned by the 2 ladies you see on the food channel. It was ok, but nothing special. Sure wish I had that steak.

Item last.

Olive's at the Bellagio. I stayed at the Bell and went to dinner in the hotel. Again the food was good, but not outstanding.

Restaurant prices are very high in LAS. (And I'm a New Yorker who is accustomed to high prices.) Many of the better places have entrees that start at $40 and head up and up.

Wine Prices are very high too. Insulting if you ask me. I know some prices. And it's one thing to pay normal markup in a restaurant, but 4 times?! I mean come on --- $40 for a $12 bottle. $29 would have been acceptable.
And a $19 bottle selling for $70. Maybe the big winners don't care, but Vegas restaurants are missing lots of business by overcharging. I always boycott restaurants that have a practice of doing this. I had a $10 martini instead. #%$@

Dan

The wine markup in many fine Las Vegas restaurants is an outrageous 3.5 times. That is why I felt it necessary to institute my $5/bottle maximum tip. Emeril's (MGM) is one great restaurant that has more reasonable wine prices.

The Border Grill at Mandalay Bay is not as good as the one in Santa Monica. Next time eat the whole meal at Red Square, which has fabulous food.

Sorry you missed Delmonico.

Caesar's has a "celebrity chef" restaurant called 808. It is run by Hawaiian chef Jean-Marie Josselin, who had several restaurants in Hawaii called A Pacific Cafe.

Since we had two great meals at these places in Hawaii, we decided to try 808 this past weekend. Very disappointing. There was nothing really wrong. It was just that the food was very ordinary. The dishes all had the right names, but except for some hot spices, they were all pretty bland.

Caesar's is building a new restaurant to be run by Bradley Ogden of the Lark Creek Inn in Larkspur, CA. Let's hope he can transfer some of his culinary talents a little better than Josselin.

Some notes on two restaurants at the Bellagio, where we stayed. We had Saturday 8:30 reservations at Olives and showed up at 8:00. Not expecting to be seated early, I asked the hostess what our chances were and would we have a chance at a window table? The early twenties hostess was completely dismissive and rude and told us to come back and take our chances--she appeared to be marking time in between high school and the strip clubs. For what it's worth, we were both very well dressed--little black dress on her/ slacks and cashmere jacket from Barneys on me respectively.

In disgust, we left to have a drink at the Fontana Lounge (great cocktail selection), which is next to the two Le Cirque restaurants. The menu for Osteria del Circo (the somewhat more casual Tuscan offshoot) looked great, so we stuck our head in and asked about the possibility of a table. The front of the house was manned by a professional Maitre D' who said to come back at 9:00. I thanked him; said that we would like a non-smoking table "if possible" and joked that, "I won't be so gauche as to push my luck and ask for a window table." We returned at 8:55 waited less than ten minutes and were taken through the still crowded restaurant to a window table overlooking the fountains, had an outstanding meal with professional service. This is now my favorite restaurant in Vegas!

Also, avoid the Palms Casino AT ALL COSTS--it is cheap and trashy to say the least and overrun with drunken frat boys and cheesy 40 year old women dressed up like Britney Spears--I saw enough exposed tummy rolls in my five minutes to last a lifetime! Went there after dinner to see what the hype is about and quickly turned around and caught a cab to the Venetian. There, we went to the Jack's Velvet Lounge (you need to go up the stairs above the rather stark looking restaurant part), which was very cool: small dancefloor, lots of plush red sofas and an outdoor balconey overlooking the strip. The V-Bar was also very restrained and classy.

I agree with the recommendation for Osteria Del Circo. A great meal without all the hype.

We had one of the most memorable meals ever at Picasso (could have been helped by my wife's big win that motivated us to try it in the first place) Loved the wine pairings - I'm learning and this was a great lesson.

As to Delmonico - NEVER WILL RETURN. Had their oysters and bit into the worst morsel I ever laid a tooth on. It reeked. While this can happen, their attitude was the problem. We were well dressed as well but their response was cold and distant as though we were trying to get away with a buck of theirs. My wife suggested that if he didn't believe us, he should smell the culprit - a huffy decline. The meal was ruined. Should have left. 1 appetizer comped - duh. I waited all night for illness to arrive.

Wrote a letter to the manager and "BAM" - a note of apology - Woop! Also, their bathrooms were trashed and a block away. BOYCOTT.......

You're not the only one who has reported poor service at Delmonico... the Compmeister and I even had bad service one time. His lobster arrived cold and the waiter got defensive. Fortunately, we escalated to the manager, who served the rest of our meal himself and of course comped the lobster.

There are very few restaurants in Las Vegas that have consistently great service. And it takes some calibration to decide which type of restaurant you prefer: traditional, gourmet, creative... I tend to prefer creative, so those taking my recommendations should factor that in.

Oh, and the Olives hostesses are aloof to everyone, even high rollers. Don't take it personally, just take your business elsewhere if the "new cruelty" doesn't appeal to you.

QL

I have to disagree with the last couple of posts about Delmonico's steakhouse. We live in Los Angeles, and commute to Vegas about 4 times a year. About 3 of those times (on average) we will go to Delmonico's Steakhouse. It is different than the one in NY as Emerill bought the name. I have eaten at a number of excellent steakhouses and I have felt that this is by far the best. My wife and I have tried many of the entrees and side orders and have never had a problem. In fact, I have never experienced such exceptional service at any other establishment. The waiter that we always ask for is John Schoonmaker and the manager that we know is Matt Browne.

With respect to the food, here are our recommendations:

The appetizers are good, but we go straight to salad or soup. To us, there is nothing like a homemade Caesar salad that is prepared tableside. It is about $20.00 per couple, and it is the perfect combination to any meal.

The filet mignon!!! I have never had a better piece of meat than this. I have tired the bone in ribeye (which was also excellent), but their filet is out of this world. They both wet and dry age their meats themselves for a good number of weeks and the tenderness of this cut is not to be believed.

Side Orders: Do not miss the potato chips. I know that it sounds wierd that I am telling you to order an $8.00 order of potato chips, but these are not to be believed either. They are sliced so thin that they are light and crispy and with the combination of parmesan cheeze, herbs and truffle oil, I am salivating just thinking about them. The skillet potatoes are also amazing, but it is somewhat difficult to order 2 starches for the two of us. Their asparagus is also good.

Dessert is my wifes favorite. Generally you go to an upscale restaurant and get the same ole' things. Here, we get the bananas foster ice cream pie. The bananas foster is blended into the ice cream and is in a standard pie crust. I don't know how it happens, but the ice cream does not melt until it touches your mouth. It is so creamy and full of such rich flavor. It is something that my wife has been trying to find at a local restaurant, but with no luck.

While this restaurant is not cheap, it is well worth the money. My wife and I can generally get out for about $150.00 with a drink a piece. If you like wine, the menu is about the size of the book "War and peace." He has bottles ranging from the $25.00 range up to $15,000 if you hit something big at the Venetian.

You will need reservations for this restaurant as you do with many others in the las vegas area. Make sure that you book no less than 2 weeks out if you are visiting on a weekend as they are really popular.

I have heard that the only other steakhouse in the area that can compare is Hugo's restuaurant at the Four Queens in downtown las vegas. This has been around for ever, but I have yet to go there. They also have an amazing wine list as I have been told. If you just want an old fashioned cheap prime rib, you can go to the El Cortez Room at the Gold Coast. Always reliable and at $9.95 for a 10oz portion, not bad. You can get the 22 oz with rib (16 oz meat) for only $14.95.

Even with all of the other choices, I would say that the best bang for the buck anywhere is Delmonico Steakhouse at the Venetian.

My dinner there on Tuesday night was one of the best meals I have ever had anywhere in the world.



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CO treats me like a king, Rodney King

Quiet Lion-

Ate at Delmonico on Wednesday night. The food and service were excellent. Michael had the night off.

aaflyer81

I believe he has Wednesday and Thursday off. Glad you had a good time!

QL

I have dined twice at Delmonicos and though the steaks were good the best menu items i though were the garlic potatoes and the chocolate souffle. Should I ever go back there I think I might just have those two items only (along with wine of course)
Mike

Can't believe it hasn't been mentioned on this thread, but consistently the best restaurant in Vegas, in my opionion is Michael's at the Barbary Coast.

Hard to believe that a small, older casino has such a top-level restaurant such as Michael's. In Zagat's Top 5 in Vegas, and carries a 5-diamond rating.

A few personal observations:

I've never had better service anywhere.

Presentation is incredible; Lighted ice sculpture for shrimp coctails, caesar salad prepared at the table, lobster de-shelled tableside, etc.

Yes, pricey ($50/entree average, everything a la carte), perhaps overpriced (but easy to get comped there if you gamble). With drinks, sides, appetizers it runs about $100 per person. But portions are huge, and meal includes an atypical relish tray (quail eggs, jicama, baby corn, etc) to start and petit-fours and chocolates at the end.

Two sets of menus, the mens' menu shows prices, the ladies' does not.

Great menu selection including (in season) stone crab flown in daily from Joe's in Miami, the best dover sole you'll ever have, 3-5 pound lobsters, and a very good beef selection from the broiler. Desserts are to die for, including Key Lime Pie, Bananas Foster, Cherries Jubilee, and Carnegie Deli Cheesecakes.

It is not just a meal, but an event. Plan on 2 hours or more...But it is not 'slow service' by any means.

Have seen many o' celebrities there myself--Jerry Lewis, George Foreman, Penny Marshall, to name a few.

Impossible to get a table on Friday-Saturday nights unless booked at least a week in advance...Two seatings nightly, I think like 7 and 9:30. Very small place, I think 15-16 tables, including a large 10-person table in the back.

I am leaving for Vegas tonight with my group of 14 people ranging in age from 21 to 78. We are hoping to celebrate my son's birthday somewhere special.

I've heard very good things about Delmonico's at the Venetian (which is where we are staying) but I was also thinking of the Top of the World restaurant in the Stratsophere (they do offer private rooms).

Some of these folks have never been to Vegas before and may not return for a long time. We'd like to make it an evening everyone will remember.



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Argue with a fool and
you have two fools
arguing~

I haven't been to the Startosphere but have never heard it recommended until now.

Since you mentioned it, though, I'm guessing you're after atmoshpere. In that case, there's no beating one of the overpriced restaurants overlooking the Bellagio fountains. Picasso is the best, but it may be difficult to get a party of 14 and the menu is very limited if there are any picky eaters. Prime has the same view but has persistent service problems. I've heard great things about Jasmine, the Chinese restaurant, but haven't been there. All these are at the Bellagio and look out on Lake Bellagio.

Another possibility is the very overpriced Eiffel Tower restaurant across the street, with arguably an even better view of the fountain show. For a much more reasonable cost, I frequently go to the new Asian restaurant Ah Sin. Both of these are at Paris.

Personally I would take my party of 14 to the fabulous new restaurant Craftsteak at the MGM Grand. It has no view but is probably the best overall restaurant in town now.

QL

On QuietLion's recommendation, I ate at "Bradley Ogden" in Caesars last Tuesday night. Food, decor, and service was excellent. Mr. Ogden is one of the hottest chef/restauranteur's in the Western U.S.

It is quite pricey, but will be memorable.