Craftsteak...wow

This is our 3rd time going to Craftsteak, and it was the most delicious and most expensive trip yet there! We did the Wagyu beef tasting menu, and it really is the way to do it there. It is an insane amount of food, but worth every penny (and it was a lot of them!). We also did the wine pairing (not sure I'd recommend it, might have been cheaper to just do 3 wines by the glass). The first course came with caesar salad, grilled prawns, kobe beef tartare, frisee salad with lardons, and the best ever porter house rolls. This in itself would've been a meal! Next came the main course with Wagyu rib eye and filet (holy cow...no pun intended!), wild mushroom risotto, roasted asparagus, and roasted mushrooms. The risotto and beef were other wordly they were so good. The risotto gave the beef a run for its money as far as how delicious it was. We were so full for dessert, but still forced it down anyways. It had a monkeybread that Ryan loved (not a fan of nuts myself but it looked good). I was in heaven with the blod orange sorbet. There were other desserts, but honestly I was so full I don't even remember eating them! It is quite an experience to go there, and makes me have a lot of respect for Top Chef!

http://www.mgmgrand.com/restaurants/craftsteak-steak-house.aspx

Lunch throwdown with Bobby Flay

This seems like it's the 100th time Ryan and I have eaten at Mesa Grill...but it is so darn good for lunch it's hard not to go back! Both Paul and I started with the cactus pear margarita, which was awesome and Helena's bloody mary was too. I had the prix fixe lunch (a good deal at $30) which came with the blue corn pancake with barbeque duck (amazing!!), lamb cobb salad, and an expresso pot du creme (one of the best desserts I've ever had!). The salad was a little disappointing, as was Ryan's 16 spice chicken salad. On both of our salads, it was like they forgot to wash the greens, they were very gritty. Helena and Paul had the spicy beef tartare to start that was really delicious. Paul's prawns were good as were Helena's pork tenderloin sandwich. This wasn't the best trip as far as the food, but it was a blast being there. It is a beautiful restaurant too.

http://www.mesagrill.com/las-vegas-restaurant/

Bouchon...best breakfast in Vegas

We were fortunate to eat at Bouchon last June, and have been thinking about returning ever since. Neither Ryan or I really eat breakfast when we're traveling, so for us to get up and ready is a big compliment to Bouchon! It is in an absolutely beautiful part of the Venetian (the Venezia tower), and so classily decorated (almost a Belle Epoque feel). Once again I had the french toast and Ryan (after being totally jealous last time of my meal) ordered the same. We also split some potatoes and bacon and Ryan had a banana nut muffin. The french toast was just as delicious as I remembered. This will remain a must-do everytime we're in Vegas. It is a perfect way to begin a day!

http://www.venetian.com/Las-Vegas-Restaurants/Fine-Dining/Bouchon/

Society Cafe

Our first night, we at Society Cafe at the Encore. The four of us were completely exhausted, so figured it'd be best to stay close. It was rated by Esquire as one of the best new restaurants. We had reservations for 9, but once we got there we realized that there was no need for reservations, it was pretty dead (actually the whole town was that week). We started with some ahi tuna tartare tacos that were really delicious! I wasn't too hungry for dinner, so I had philly cheesesteak dumplings. They were just okay. Ryan had filet which was good...although we were all jealous of Helena, because she ordered the best thing on the menu: scallops on cauliflower puree. It was outstanding. If I were to go back I'd get the tuna tacos again and the scallops. Our cocktails were delicious (any cocktail with champagane gets my vote!). For dessert Ryan and I split homemade donuts with caramel and chocolate dipping sauce. I was expecting them to be the best donuts ever, and they weren't stellar or anything, but pretty good. On a grading scale, I'd give it a B-. Hard to justify a trip back when there's so many amazing places in Vegas, but perhaps!

http://www.wynnlasvegas.com/dining/society-cafe-encore

Vegas 4.0

I have been a royal slacker when it comes to writing! Ryan and I got back from Vegas several weeks ago, but I haven't had a chance to write about it. We had an unbelievable time. We were fortunate enough that Ryan's brother, Paul, and his wife, Helena, came with us. This was the best trip so far...our only complaint was that it was too short. Somehow Ryan managed to score 3 free nights at the Encore...so we had extra spending money (for food of course!). We got to visit the Hoover Dam, hike in Red Rock Canyon, do a tad of gambling, see a shortened version of Cirque's Ka (technical difficulties cut it short after about 20 minutes), hang out at some awesome bars and clubs, eat at some of the best restaurants, but the most fun was being with family and laughing our heads off. Some of the restaurants we've been to before, but I thought I'd include them in our blog as a refresher. Our biggest question now is: do we visit Vegas again this summer or wait until winter break?? If you ever go, we have tons of restaurant recommendations...maybe we should just move there!

Valentine's

Valentine's day is kind of like New Year's, total pain trying to go out and total amateur night. Especially with Valentine's being on a Monday, I decided to surprise Ryan with a feast at home. It began with freshly squeezed blood-orange juice mimosas. We had pototoes dauphinois and beef wellington for dinner and a homemade vanilla cake with chocolate frosting for dessert. It was really delicious! It took the three hours Ryan was at the middle school volleyball game to prepare. Here are just a few pictures of our special night. Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's day!

PS. 2 weeks until we're in Las Vegas!

Superbowl...Go??

Well this is the first time in awhile that I really didn't care who won the Superbowl. I really don't like either team. So instead we focused on spending a fun day (still watched the game of course) and good food. For the actual game we made nachos, guacamole, caramelized onion dip, and chipotle wings with crema fresca.