Dinner at Cut

 Our dinner started with a nice selection of breads. We each chose a couple and these were mine. The pretzel roll was warm, soft and delicious. I had two. The other was a soft, moist bread with caramelized onions on top. It was very good also. They were served with a pad of butter with sea salt sprinkled on top. This was a good start to our meal.

Next came the appetizers. I chose the Bone Marrow Flan, Mushroom Marmalade and Parsley Salad. It was served with toast points. This was a little over the top for Dawn but she did try it. I thought it was rich, creamy and very beefy. I've had bone marrow before and this version was the best. Usually its very fatty and greasy, but made into a savory flan it takes on a creamy texture. Very good but very, very rich. You can't eat much. The mushroom marmalade was a nice accompaniment that cut through some of the richness of the flan.

 Dawn and I ordered this one to share. It is a Maple Glazed Pork Belly with Asian Spices, Watercress, Sesame-Orange Dressing with Huckleberry Compote. Overall, while i thought this was good, the pork belly was a tad chewy and I'm just not a huge fan of sweet and savory together. I'm glad we tried it, but would probably not order it again.

Here is Dawn's Maryland Blue Crab & Carolina Shrimp "Louis" Cocktail , Spicy Tomato-Horseradish. The shrimp and crab were made into a kind of seafood salad mixed with a remoulade sauce. Under that was a layer of avocado and on the bottom a horseradish panna cotta. We both liked this one. It was creamy, savory and tasty. I would order it again. Dawn even liked the fresh tomatoes. 

 My Entree. A Tasting of New York Sirloin. On the left is: USDA Prime Nebraska corn fed, dry aged 35 days. In the middle, American Wagyu / Angus "Kobe Style" Beef from Snake River Farms, Idaho. And on the right, True Japanese 100% Wagyu Beef from Saga Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan. This was fairly pricey ($135) but it was my birthday and Dawn encouraged me to get what i wanted so i did. I would put this beef up with the top couple of steaks I've tasted if not at the top. The USDA aged beef had better flavor then anything i have tasted. It was rich, beefy with a great charred crust. Wow I'm getting hungry typing this. The American Wagyu in the middle had the best combination of flavor and tenderness and was my favorite of the three. True Kobe is pretty strange. Very rich and fatty but in a good way. When you chew, it basically just dissolves in your mouth. It reminded me of sea urchin if you've tried that. It only came with 2oz of the Kobe but with the richness that was plenty. Dawn tried them all and I think the USDA aged was her favorite. All in all a great group of steaks that were fun to compare to each other.

 Here is a closeup of the American Wagyu and the Kobe Beef. You can really see the fat marbling in the Kobe. If it looks grisly it isn't. It's melt in your mouth tender.

 Dawn went with seafood and chose the Pan-Roasted Maine Lobster with Black Truffle Sabayon. We both agreed it was the best lobster we've had. It was cooked perfectly and the Sabayon was fabulous for dipping in. The presentation was pretty neat. It came out in the shell and claws. The waiter de shelled and plated it table side. He even asked if she wanted the roe...which Dawn declined.

 One of our sides and the dipping sauces that came with my steaks. The potatoes were a Yukon Gold Puree.  They were creamy and good. Honestly I don't remember much about the sauces. The steak was so good it didn't need anything. I tried the one of the left, it was the house made steak sauce. It was good but a bit sweet. I believe the middle is the Argentinean Chimichurri. I can't remember what the one on the right is.

 Another side dish. Cavatappi Pasta "Mac & Cheese" with Quebec Cheddar. Outstanding mac and cheese! I wish i wouldn't have been so full but i just couldn't eat much of it.

Dessert. They surprised me with a free dessert for my birthday. It was a raspberry cake with ice cream on the side. Tasty.

Dawn had the Banana Cream Pie, Creme Brulee, Caramel Sauce and Banana Ice Cream. It was a very good banana cream pie but i think i would give Emeril's the top spot in the category.

Two happy diners getting ready for the meal of a lifetime.

Cut is a restaurant at Palazzo I've wanted to try for quite awhile. The first "fancy" restaurant I ate at was Spago back in the 90's. I've wanted to try another of Wolfgang Puck's restaurants since then and finally got a chance to. I'm glad we decided to give it a try. Al Mancini (a Las Vegas food critic) recommended it to me on twitter. I'm glad I listened to his advice Everything we had was top of the line. I don't know how a steak could get much better. Everything was so good and rich.  The service was very good with out being overbearing. Our head server was very friendly and chatted with us often. The complimentary dessert was a great way to end the meal. This was a very pricey meal for us but if i had another chance to eat here i would jump at it. A truly upscale and delicious dining experience. Well done Cut and Wolfgang Puck.

Here is a link to the menu if you're interested in prices or other items.

Al Mancini is @AlManciniVegas on twitter

Happy New Year! A Few Pics From the Last Year

Ahhh...what a cozy living room 

 

 We stopped in Garnet on the way home from Missoula last fall. It was a really interesting stop. Lots of history in this little ghost town. I even bought a gold nugget.

 Mom and Dad's 40th wedding anniversary party at Howard's

 Michael and Yosh at the old Depot.

 Michael's first hunting trip

 Football! Michael played hard and had a good season. This was his first year of tackle.

 And the first fish....it was a year of firsts for Michael. He was pretty 

proud of this.

Avery playing in my backyard.

2012 was a pretty good year. We did quite a bit of traveling. Vegas three times and a trip to Seattle. Mom and Dad celebrated 40 years of being together...wow. We even got to spend lots of time with Avery and Anders....that's always fun. Congrats to Brady and Kristy on having Liam. Hopefully everyone else had as good of a year as we did. Here's to a great 2013!

A Touch of Summer in the Middle of Winter

 Beautiful view of Willow Creek Reservoir with Saw Tooth in the background. 

Hard to beat that view.

 Dawn having fun on the wave runner

 Lacy, Dawn and the kids playing in the sand

 Funny dogs

We only made it out one time last summer. Seems like the summers get shorter as the years go by. Had a good time playing and relaxing at the lake. The water was really low so there was a nice beach for the kids. I think Michael and Avery would live in the water if we would let them. I'm thinking next summer we could have a big seafood boil at the lake....what do you guys think?

Quick Vegas Getaway

Dawn at the Gold Lounge...free stuff!!

Gambling and free booze.....good night

A garden at Wynn...very pretty

Spicy Szechwan Beef Soup with beef tendon from Noodle Asia at The Venetian. It was rich, fatty and very spicy. Good soup. The tendon was strange...kind of like beef jelly

Another picture of the best soup ever. Lobster Bisque from AquaKnox. So Good. AquaKnox is easily our favorite  restaurant. This was our second time there and we plan to hit it again in March. 

Prime Fillet and Maine Scallops on apple wood smoked bacon polenta. Yes, it was as good as it looks. The scallops were cooked perfectly. 

Dessert at AquaKnox. 

We had lunch at Public house again. It's a great place to try some new things and grab a beer. Dawn and I shared a few things this time. Above is the Heirloom Tomatoes with herb goat cheese, pesto, petite lettuces and balsamic. Quite tasty. The tomatoes were very firm and flavorful.

Pork sandwich with Manchego cheese, garlic aioli and poblano chili from Public House. Dawn and I both agreed that it was one of the better sandwiches we've had. The pork was really tender.

Here's where we came to a bit of a disagreement. These were the Bouchot Mussels with beer, shallots, bacon and creme fraiche. I loved them and thought they were some of the better mussels i had had. Dawn on the other hand didn't like them. Oh well....more  for me :)

Scotch Egg appetizer. A hard boiled egg covered in barley wine sausage and deep fried. Bacon mustard sauce on the side. Really good but man this has to be an artery clogger

Chocolate Trio from Jean Philippe Patisserie. It consisted of creme brulee, raspberry macaroon and a homemade candy bar pop. Kind of like a snickers. The base was chocolate.

Jean Philippe's at Bellagio

Breakfast at Mon Ami Gabi. The Croque Madame...one of my favorite breakfasts.

Dawn's Waffles from Mon Ami. She liked them.


Another fun, quick trip to Vegas. We're trying to hit a different restaurant every time. This time was Noodle Asia. The soup was good and Dawn's Mongolian Beef was good but we would probably try somewhere else next time. I didn't have room for pics but we also hit Max Brenner (had a salted carmel shake) PJ Clarkes for the awesome oyster happy hour and Morels for breakfast at Palazzo. I'm probably forgetting something but overall it was a great trip with great food. AquaKnox is still on top for us.
We finally made gold status at the Palazzo so now we can use the gold lounge. Free food, drinks and a nice place to relax. Good times

Summer Fun in Las Vegas

 Our favorite slot machine. Looks like we have a spin coming.

 Japanese hot pot at Swish...a tradition. I think Dawn's mom even enjoyed it

 Secret Pizza at the Cosmopolitan. Great pizza that's very hard to find without directions. Loved the pizza didn't care for the casino.

 Eggs Benedict at Mon Ami Gabi. My Dad finally got me to try this restaurant and now i see why they walk down for breakfast often. Good food and great atmosphere.

 Another good meal at Public house. These are the Crispy Frog Legs. This was my first time for frog legs. Tasted basically like small chicken wings. The way they were cooked and the sauce are what made this dish.

 More Public House pics. At the top is Grilled Octopus. It was good. Tender with a slightly charred flavor .Below that is an order of Poutine...best fries ever! On the bottom is a chicken sandwich on a pretzel roll. It was quite tasty altho i thought the chicken was a bit on the dry side.

 Checking out at the Palazzo...leaving always sucks

 dorks

 Between the Venetian and Palazzo

 Dinner at Aquaknox. One of, if not the best meal I've ever had. Amazing food. Above is the lobster bisque. Probably the best soup I've tasted. It was rich and creamy with a great lobster flavor with chunks of Maine lobster, caviar and crem fraiche.

 Dawn and her mom enjoying a fabulous meal.

 Dawn and Carol tried the surf and turf. It was half a crab stuffed Maine lobster and a prime filet on potato puree with madeira mustard reduction. She said it was the best steak she's ever had and after the bite i had, i would have to agree. Melt in your mouth goodness.

 I had Chef Moloney's Fish Soup. It had Maine lobster, John Dory, mussels, clams, prawns and couscous in a tomato-saffron broth. Everything was so tender and flavorful. You can defiantly tell when you're dealing with fresh seafood. Aquaknox has all theirs flown in daily.

 Seafood Trio appetizer. It was lobster, shrimp and crab. Good stuff.

We took the kids to Max Brenner for some fondue and chocolate syringes. They liked roasting the marshmallows and dipping in chocolate. I had a pizza that was surprisingly good. Dawn had a sundae and her mom a banana waffle thing.

Another trip to vegas in in the books. This time we drove down with Dawns mom and met my parents down there. The Palazzo and Rio were our hotels. Rio was nice but kind of out of the way. Palazzo was great. Huge rooms just like the Venetian. We crammed allot into this trip. Lots of good eats, shopping, swimming, gambling and just wondering around. We even managed to get desert from Delmonico. I thought the banana cream pie was my fav but i think his pecan pie has taken over that spot.  Whole Foods was fun to check out. I even managed to get some cheese home. No easy task with the temps topping out around 110. I think the highlight of the trip was Aquaknox..we will defiantly be going back. Another great trip and i can't wait for the next one!