Bouchon Bakery [Las Vegas, NV]

The Venetian Resort & Casino

Las Vegas, NV

 

Lately, I've been in a pastry-craving phase. I kept wanting to visit all these different bakeries and patisseries while in Vancouver and that phase stuck to me while heading to Las Vegas too. While I was researching about places to eat in Vegas, I saw on a food blog that talked about Bouchon Bakery and I immediately added it to my list of places to visit.

 

Bouchon Bakery is owned by Thomas Keller, a chef, restauranteur and cook book writer who is reknowned for his multiple-award winning restaurants The French Laundry in Napa Valley and Per Se in New York. Bouchon Bakery first opened up in Yountville, which is home to Bouchon Bistro, then Beverly Hills and New York. In 2004, Bouchon Bistro opened in Las Vegas and the bakery followed! 

 

It was kind of hard to find the bakery inside The Venetian. We had to look at the directory a few times in order to grasp the location and direction to get there. I was initially looking for a shop but the bakery was actually just a kiosk by the theatre entrance.  It's a modest-sized place that didn't have a tonne of items but I think all the baked goods housed there would be delicious no matter which one you chose.

There were so many goods that I wanted to get and I really wanted to buy some to take home but alas, we were in the middle of our vacation and I knew I probably wouldn't have the time to go back on our last day...so no flaky pastries to take home :(

Top left: Sticky Bun

Butter brioche, pastry cream, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, candied pecans

Top right: Chocolate Almond Croissant

Bottom: Peanut Butter & Jelly Macaron

It was 6pm when we arrived and I KNEW it would ruin our appetites for dinner but I didn't care!! I chose the Sticky Bun because BRIOCHE!!! OMG it was so sinful...soft, sticky, sweet and nutty all wrapped by a buttery brioche bread. The bread was so buttery that it almost resembled a flaky pastry, not a doughy, chewy bread-like texture.

I also chose a macaron because they looked really pretty (perfectly round, smooth, no bumps, and it was a pretty large size. It was around the same size as the macarons from Thierry). Compared to the other regular flavours (chocolate, coffee, lemon etc.), the peanut butter and jelly flavour jumped out at me due to its uniqueness. I don't think I've seen PB&J macarons up in Vancouver. The cookie was just as good and it wasn't too sweet with the addition of the creamy peanut butter.

W went for the chocolate almond croissant. It didn't really look like the usual crescent-shaped pastry as it was more square. Of course, that didn't alter the texture and taste of it! The croissant had two bars of dark chocolate embedded inside along with a small amount of almond paste. It was quite messy eating the croissant since it was so crisp and flaky. With each bite, little bits of almond, icing sugar and pastry rained down onto the table. It made me look like such a messy eater but I swear it's not my fault!

I'm glad I got to pay Bouchon Bakery a visit. It (temporarily) satiated my pastry cravings and I got to cross it off my "to visit" list in Vegas :D

Hoover Dam [NV & AZ]

Lake Mead National Recreation Area
Nevada/Arizona border

After our lunch at In-N-Out Burger, W and I hopped on our bright blue Mustang convertible rental car and drove to Hoover Dam, our sight-seeing attraction of the day! Look, the colour of our car matched the colour of the clear blue sky!

Luckily it was bright and sunny so we got to experience riding the convertible with the top down. However, now I know why all those ladies in those olden movies (and even Bridget in The Bridget Jones Diary) wrapped their head in scarves while riding in convertibles. The wind just whips through your hair like a monster!!

On US Route 93 heading towards Lake Mead

We made a pit stop at the Lake Mead recreation area for a small stretch. Lake Mead was formed as a result of the dam and the water from the lake, as well as the electricity that the dam generates, serves the people living in Nevada, Arizona, and even California. The road through this area follows down to the marina and some camp grounds but access is restricted as you need to go through a toll before entering the grounds.

After the stop, we continued on our way to Hoover Dam on Route 93. There is now a separate exit off of this route to access the dam and one must pass through the security check point first before entering the area around Hoover Dam. Once through the security personnel, we drove up to a look-out point of Lake Mead.

We saw a little squirrel/chipmunk like creature clambering the rocks!

Then, we drove a little further to the Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. We parked our car and walked up a series of stairs and paths to the Nevada end of the bridge. Along the way, there were information plaques about the history and construction of the bridge.

Originally, there was a 2-lane roadway across the top of the dam for vehicles to cross the Colorado River between Nevada and Arizona. Due to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, US authorities quickened the pace to build the Hoover Dam Bypass in order to divert traffic away from the dam (there was already a plan to build the bridge prior to 9/11 but progress was slow). This was how the bridge was born. Construction was completed and opened to traffic in 2010.

You can actually walk across the bridge itself over to the Arizona side (or vice versa) on the pedestrian sidewalk and if you walk to the middle of the bridge, you'll get a nice view of Hoover Dam. The walk across the bridge is not really for the faint of heart. I'm not normally afraid of heights but even I was a little weak in the knees when I got to the middle of the bridge and looked down the valley! And don't even mention W! He went a quarter of the way, left me behind and walked back to the side LOL...

The concrete dam is situated in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River. It was built between 1931 and 1936. Though the dam is now named Hoover Dam after the US president Herbert Hoover, it was initially named Boulder Dam because the dam was located near the town Boulder City in Nevada which was specifically created to house all the workers and their families while they built the massive structure. Above is Lake Mead and below is the Colorado river where the water spills into.

Too bad the sun cast a shadow of the bridge over the dam or else it would've been a nice photo of the dam from a different angle.

After viewing the dam from afar, it was time see it up close and personal. There were 2 different tours of Hoover Dam provided by the Bureau of Reclamation of the Lower Colorado Region: the guided powerplant tour ($11 for adults and lasts 30 minutes) and the guided dam tour ($30 for adults and lasts 1 hour). If you only want to access the visitor center which grants admission to the Observation Deck, tickets are $8 for adults (prices current as of this post).

Electrical generators inside the dam

Both tours offer a combo of presentations by the guide, audio and film presentations (though the film was soooo old and it sort of felt like watching a propaganda film), exhibits, an elevator ride down the rock wall of the Black Canyon, a stop at the Penstock Viewing area, a visit to the powerplant generators, and access to the visitor center.

The difference between the 2 tours are that the dam tour also includes more access to the Inspection Galleries (the tunnels in the dam itself).

View from the Observation Deck

Alternatively, you can still walk across the top of the dam and look at some outdoor displays and exhibits at street level which is free (although you must still pay for parking if you are not traveling with one of those pre-arranged tour groups).

Street level displays include the Winged figures of the Republic (memorial for all the workers that died while building the dam), and the Old Exhibit Building (the dam's first visitor center). It houses education exhibits and a topographical model, but it was closed when we were there.

Walking across the top of the dam, you can also take in the views of the Nevada and Arizona Spillways, the Nevada Intake Towers, Lake Mead, the dam face, and the Memorial Bridge. I know it's cheesy, but I made W stand on the Arizona side while I stood on the Nevada side while holding hands haha...

 

It was fun and interesting while visiting Hoover Dam. I especially loved the view of the lake, how the colour of the water mimicked the crisp blue hue of the sky! It was a good idea to take this side trip so we could be away from the bright city lights, loud noises and smokey/perfumed air and come here to breathe in some fresh air and take in some natural scenery, even for just a few hours.

In-n-Out Burger [Las Vegas, NV]

4888 Dean Martin Drive
Las Vegas, NV  

 

For some reason or other, I became intrigued by In-N-Out Burger when I read about this "animal style" burger on a food blog. Adding on the fact that In-N-Out Burger outlets were only located in a few US states that were not within reasonable driving distance from my home town (i.e. in California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona and Texas), this exclusivity made me want to try it even more!

 

 

I had my chance when I saw that they opened up a couple places in Las Vegas! Yes!! The closest one was just a 10 minute drive away from our hotel!

 

 

We arrived there around 11:30am and the place was already packed with people! There were people lining up to order food, a crowd of people waiting to pick their orders, and people hovering around occupied tables waiting for them to finish eating so they could claim it!  

 

As you can see from the photo above, their menu is really small and simple. There's only a few items listed with 3 different meal combos to choose from as well. HOWEVER! There is a "not so secret menu" posted on their website. If you didn't check their website, you probably wouldn't know of this menu unless you've heard of it from someone else.

 

Aside from the items on their regular menu, there are other options on their "secret menu":

 

Double meat - Hamburger with 2 beef patties

3 x 3 - Hamburger with 3 beef patties and 3 slices of cheese

4 x 4 - Hamburger with 4 beef patties and 4 slices of cheese

Grilled Cheese - 2 slices of cheese, with lettuce, tomato, spread, with or without onions on a bun

Protein-style - Your choice of burger wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun

Animal-style - Extra lettuce, tomato, sauce, pickles and sauteed onions on any hamburger of choice (or even on your fries!)

 

I know that opting for animal-style does not incur extra charges but I'm not sure about the other options...

 

Top: Cheeseburger (combo $5.15)

Bottom: Hamburger - animal style ($1.90)

Left: Pink lemonade

Right: Fresh cut fries

W and I decided to order a cheeseburger combo plus a hamburger (animal style) to share between the 2 of us. It was a good idea because there were A LOT of fries that came with the combo! We also shared the drink because the soda fountain was self-serve and that basically meant all-you-can-drink! LOL!

Both the hamburger and the cheeseburger were simply done but the ingredients were fresh (minus the processed cheese of course) and tasty. The fries were more stiff and starchy than other fast food restaurant's fries (e.g. McD's or A&W) but I think that's because they were freshly cut and deep-fried to order. Still, the fries were full of golden, crispy goodness!

For a meal this cheap, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food. Service was quick and friendly (all the people working there were males...not sure about inside the kitchen though; just something I noticed) and you know, I would rather eat at In-N-Out than McD's now after trying their food. Seriously, McD's burger quality has gone down...although I'll forever love McD's fries haha...

In-N-Out Burger should expand up to the Pacific Northwest!!! Let's start a petition, shall we?!