Jean Georges Steakhouse [Las Vegas, NV]

Aria Resort & Casino
Las Vegas, NV

By staying at Aria for our trip, we received a $100 dining credit that is good for any restaurant inside the hotel! Sweet! Since W and I had to go see a Cirque Du Soleil show later that evening, we had to have an early dinner nearby. Thus, we decided pay Jean Georges Steakhouse inside Aria a visit for a quick fine-dining excursion.

This place was opened by Jean-Georges Vongerichten, another famous chef, cook book writer, and restauranteur with many restaurants opened in Boston, New York, Arizona, and Las Vegas. W and I had previously eaten at his first restaurant in Canada, Market by Jean-Georges, and we had a good impression of it.

We arrived at 5:30pm and we were quickly greeted. We had to wait a few minutes for a table to be ready though. The interior of the steakhouse had a dark, sleek and contemporary design. There was a partially enclosed private dining area with walls lined with bottles of wine which created a unique focal point to the floor.

When we were seated at our table, our server handed out menus and an iPad to us!! The iPad was actually their drinks menu and it was opened to their own application that showed their extensive wine list, cocktails, and other libations. I was in the mood for a cocktail and after perusing their list, I narrowed my choice down to 2. I had a hard time deciding and asked my server for a recommendation. He said his favourite was the Orange Elderflower Cosmo so I took his advice!

Orange Elderflower Cosmo (feature cocktail) $16

Our server's recommendation was good! The Cosmo was soooooo delicious!! One of the best cocktails I've had! There was a fragrant aroma of elderflower with a bit of floral aftertaste while the blood orange was sweet and a little tangy. I forgot what type of liquor was in it but it went down very easy (it definitely gave me an Asian glow though).

Warm salted pretzel, cherry pecan bread, French baguette, some sort of spiced crisps, butter

After making our order, we were presented with a complimentary bread basket to start. I loved how they included a variety of baked items! The flat, thin crisps were dusted with some spices (I didn't catch what they were when the server described it); crispy and savoury, the chips-like cracker were quite addictive.

The pretzel looked like a large sausage. It was dense but the bread was still soft and easy to eat. It's the type that you can easily get full from so we refrained ourselves from eating too much of it. My favourite was the cherry pecan bread. It was soft but still held up when I spread butter on it and I liked the pops of sweetness from the fruit embedded inside.

Grilled Wagyu Filet Mignon $65 - roasted broccoli, soy-miso butter, grilled to medium

Our server told us that they were featuring an excellent 5A Wagyu steak that night for $30 an ounce. $30 an ounce!!!! And the minimum size was 6oz!! That would be $180 for a steak!!!! Omigoodness....ummm no thanks!

We opted for the more "affordable" $65 Wagyu filet mignon in the regular menu. Hey, we still wanted to try Wagyu beef but baby steps, people, baby steps... No need to go for the very best for our first time.

When we took our first bites of this steak, we knew we fell hard. Badly. It was just SO RIDICULOUSLY DELICIOUS!!! The beef was melt-in-your-mouth tender because of the marbled fat all throughout the meat, but it still had a little chew to it. The soy-miso butter sauce was freakin' fantastic and full of umami flavours!! It was sooooo good but it didn't overpower the beefy taste of the Wagyu steak either. The roasted broccoli was a good agent to soak up the remaining sauce. YUM-O!!!

JG Cheeseburger $26 - Truffle mayonnaise, brie cheese, yuzu pickles and truffle fries, patty grilled to medium

When I saw this on the menu, I really wanted to try it because the description sounded like a genuinly gourmet burger without a hefty price-tag. If we didn't order the Wagyu beef, I would have thought that the JG burger was awesome but unfortunately the Wagyu filet mignon stole the show and the burger had to play second fiddle to our foodgasm foodie gushings LOL...

I opted to have the patty grilled to a medium-rare and it was done perfectly with a light pink hue in the middle. The beef was really juicy and delicious. I loved the yuzu pickles because they were made from fresh cucumbers so it still had that fresh crisp crunch. The brie cheese was a bit too mild so it was lost amidst the flavours of the other ingredients. Same with the truffled mayonnaise; I couldn't detect much of it in the burger either.

The fries, on the other hand, were filled with the earthy aroma of truffles and they were topped with shaved black truffles too! I'm new to the world of truffles so I thought this was absolutely decadent.

After finishing up our food, we wanted to linger longer but we had a show to catch. I was afraid we were going to be late because our server was too busy to come over. Since we were at a fine dining establishment, we didn't really feel like flagging him down like we were at a HK-style cafe but we just wanted to pay and leave! Despite that little hiccup, this was the best dinner I've had in Vegas! (And I can't go back to regular beef now! My standard for steak has risen to a new level now! Doh!)

Market Cafe Vdara [Las Vegas, NV]

Vdara Hotel & Spa
Las Vegas, NV

W and I decided to include a "lazy day" in Vegas. We planned to sleep in, hang out in Aria's hot tub and pool, watch tv back in our room, have a nice dinner and then head over to Bellagio to watch the Cirque du Soleil O Show. Such a nice leisurely day!

After waking up, we made our way over to Vdara to try its cafe for a quick but relaxed brunch. There weren't many dining options inside this condo-hotel. It only had the Bar Vdara, which served sit-down meals and alcoholic beverages, and Market Cafe Vdara, which was more of a casual, grab-n-go type place. The Market Cafe included a small gourmet grocery section where you could pick up items (like meat, pasta, cheese, frozen meals, wine etc.) to cook in your hotel room (Vdara's rooms included a small kitchen). The other section had some tables to sit and eat, and a chilled glass case with various sandwiches, cakes, and breakfast items that were re-heated when ordered. There was a menu to select made-to-order food, coffee, and other beverages like smoothies too.

 Quiche Lorraine - eggs, cheese, ham

Coffee ($3.50), Caramel Macchiato ($5)
 

Despite it being early afternoon already, we wanted to have some breakfast food haha... Technically, we just woke up so it's still breakfast time for us! From the chilled display case, we opted for the Quiche Lorraine. The server then had it re-heated for us. The size was a little small and no additional sides came with it so the plate seemed a little sparse. The quiche was tasty though and even though it was re-heated, the eggs were not too rubbery and overcooked.

 

To wake ourselves up, I drank a comforting Caramel Macchiato while W had regular coffee.

 

Breakfast Pizza ($14) - scrambled eggs, avocado, mushrooms, onions, ham, bacon, cheese

 

From the made-to-order menu, we selected the breakfast pizza because it sounded like an easily shareable item. The pizza consisted of a long list of ingredients that we could choose to have what we wanted on top. The scrambled eggs were, of course, the basic requirement so next we opted to have avocado, mushrooms, onions, ham, bacon, and cheese as the toppings. There were other options like smoked salmon, tomatoes, sausage among many others.

 

It took some time to come out since it was freshly baked. Although the eggs were obviously liquid scrambled eggs from a carton rather than freshly beaten scrambled eggs (the texture was not fluffy), the pizza was simple and good.

 

With our tummies satisfied yet not filled to the brim, we immediately went to relax in the hot tub back at Aria after brunch! Ahh this is the life :)

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?!

The Buffet at Wynn ~ Photo-log V.2 Dessert [Las Vegas, NV]

Wynn Las Vegas Resort & Casino

3131 South Las Vegas Blvd

Las Vegas, NV  

 

Continuing on with my dinner at The Buffet at Wynn... The desserts in the Wynn buffet definitely deserved a post of its own. This was because the dessert stations were like a whole 'nother world! And in order to sample all of it, you really needed a whole second stomach. Unfortunately, I did not have a second stomach so I only got to eat a few of the sweets :( There was just too much variety!! The photos below do not even reflect all of the desserts that I saw!!

 

Mini cupcakes

Various cookies

Chocolate orange cups, Creme brulee

I didn't try the chocolate orange cups, but it looked like orange flavoured custard topped with chocolate mousse and chocolate cookie crumbles.

Rice crispy treats

Warm desserts station

L-R: warm bread pudding, warm chocolate brownie, warm apple and cranberry cobbler

Perfect for people who would like some tummy warming desserts.

Dark chocolate brownie cup

Dark chocolate mousse topped with white chocolate (I don't remember if it's also a mousse or a pudding), dark chocolate ganache and brownie crumbles

Mango tapioca pudding

Carrot cake, cheesecake cups(?)

Lemon tart glass

Various gelato and toppings

Gelato: chocolate mint, strawberry, mango sorbet, coffee chocolate chip, vanilla bean etc.

Toppings: shredded coconut, rainbow sprinkles, cookie crumbles, Oreo crumbles, mini M&M's, almond slices

Chocolate-dipped marshmallows

Tres Leche Cake (dolce de leche)

This was a sponge cake sandwiching a thick and creamy dolce de leche with a dollop of meringue on top. Dolce de leche is made from sweetened condensed milk which is simmered in heat until it turns into a thick, creamy, caramel consistency.

Variety of sugar-free desserts

There were also some sugar-free desserts but in comparison to the rest of the desserts, these looked so blasé and plain.

W and I selected some desserts to share between the 2 of us. One plate consisted of non-chocolate desserts while the second plate was chocolate-only desserts haha...

The Tres Leche Cake had a nice creamy and thick consistency which paired nicely with the sponge cake but overall I thought it was too sweet. W liked this one more than me.

The lemon custard/curd in the Lemon Tart Glass on the other hand was very tart and lemony. Really good for lemon lovers but my mouth puckered up when I took my first bite! However, the flavours balanced out when spooned with the sweet meringue on top.

The creme brulee was my favourite dessert out of all!! There were real vanilla beans dotted throughout the custard, it was not very sweet (but then again, everything wouldn't be as sweet compared to the Tres Leche Cake) and the not-too-thin/thick torched sugar topping was crunchy and sweet. Some tops of creme brulees can be torched too long creating a bitter taste to the carmelized sugar. This one was pretty good.

On the left of the plate was the Rocky Road Cake. It had a thin bottom chocolate cake layer and a thicker chocolate mousse layer topped with a marshmallow and a brownie chunk. I thought it was kind of plain but it was still a good dessert nonetheless. Maybe I was too full to actually appreciate this dessert.

The warm chocolate brownie (middle) was alright too. It was good at first because it was still warm and soft but when it cooled down, the brownie became hard so it was tough to spoon out from the dish. Maybe it would have been better if I added a scoop of vanilla gelato to it!

The dark chocolate brownie cup on the right would be perfect for chocolate lovers! A rich, not too sweet, dark chocolate mousse, a sweeter white chocolate layer, and a thin layer of dark chocolate ganache accompanied with small crumbles of chocolate brownies for a textural contrast. What's not to love?!

I really liked the buffet at Wynn because (1) the food layout was one straight-ish path so it was easy to get around, (2) the placement of the stations and the food itself was well organized, and (3) overall, the food was really well prepared and tasty! My inner glutton had been satisfied!