Las Vegas

Peppermill – A Ten Egg Omelet and Water that Makes Fire

by Franklin on May 19, 2013

Peppermill Restaurant is amazing and it’s such a unique place. One section of the restaurant is a lounge, called the Fireside lounge. Inside is a bar and seating area for drinks and food. In the middle sits a fire pool where guests can gather and sit around. Neon lights are everywhere. On the main dining area side, you have a typical diner that is flashy and designed to the maximum. The neon lights are a bit toned down and the natural light is able to come in. Waitresses in a skirts a little too short come around in diner style uniforms. The whole experience was quite special.

As we were waiting for our table, we decided to hang out at the Fireside Lounge. Sitting in front of a fire and bubbling pool of water, we enjoyed a nice cup of hot cocoa. Not only was it relaxing, but the neon lights and fire water craziness was kind of trippy. With lights and mirrors everywhere, you get a bit lost in this place.

Not only is the diner aesthetically spectacular, but the food is great too. The one thing everyone mentions about Peppermill is the portions. Never have I ever complained about having too much food, but really, Peppermill over does it on the food. I mean, one dish can probably feed up to 3 hungry girls, or just 1 Frank. I wasn’t able to finish my food, and I was full to the maximum. Nobody has ever eaten here and said, “Hmm, I’m still a little hungry. Who wants dessert?” That is crazy talk. I have never seen portions this big! I guess that is what the Peppermill is all about — good diner style food with huge portions.

I ordered the Maserati omelet. Maserati being an Italian car company, this omelet was done Italian style. Filled with sausage, jack and cheddar cheese, mushrooms, and Italian meat sauce the omelet had a lot of flavor. I never thought of putting meat sauce on a omelet, but it made sense. The mushrooms were hearty and the sausage and meat sauce made this full of protein. If that wasn’t enough protein, this omelet packs it in with 10 eggs. Yeah. This omelet was made with 10 eggs. 3 eggs is enough for an omelet — 4 or 5 eggs is a lot — this one had TEN! Even so, this omelet wasn’t “eggy.” The jack and cheddar cheese melted nicely, but the sprinkled of parmesan cheese made this Italian to the max. It was hearty and after a few bites, I was tired of it. It was just a lot of food. Just to add to the madness of a lot of food, there was a huge heap of hash browns on the side. Unfortunately, they were good — crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. A perfect mix of ketchup and Tabasco made them even better. Oh what a breakfast.

To add to the gorge fest was the Southern Fried Steak and Eggs. I had to get the southern fried steak — we were in a diner after all. The steak was fork tender and I didn’t need a knife. The breading was perfect and crunchy, but the country sausage gravy was a bit tiring. I jazzed it up with some more Tabasco. And yes, I put some on the hash browns and eggs as well. This was a lot of food, almost to a point where it was sickening. A lot of fruit and vegetables is one thing, but a lot of starchy potatoes with a lot of fried beef lathered with much too rich country sausage gravy was just horrifying. I packed all the food in a to go box and left.

This place is for the hungry — really hungry. Actually, the really hungry still won’t finish this stuff. Only athletes and swimmers like Michael Phelps will finish these meals. Definitely over 2000 calories, (> 3000?) these meals are definitely meant to be shared. Though the food was memorable, only because of the size, it was still a fun experience. The lounge was relaxing and different, and the dining area was fun to be a part of. And of course, it was crazy to see all of these oversized plates with mounds and mounds of food. Peppermill is open 24-7, so you can enjoy this place any time. I’m pretty sure the crowd is different at night and might consider it next time.

Peppermill Cafe & Lounge on Urbanspoon

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La Cave (Wynn) – Wine and Food Hideaway

by Franklin on May 3, 2013

The Wynn and Encore are some of my favorite properties in Las Vegas. Their elegant styling with classic and luxurious design cues all make for a perfect resort. Walking into SW Steakhouse with no reservation, I realized I was being too optimistic. Reservations is a must at SW — lesson learned. Scratching that idea, our dinner plans turned into something more casual but elegant at the same time. La Cave at the Wynn is a wine bar, tapas bar, and hideaway all in one. I don’t know what a food hideaway is exactly, but that’s what it is. Their classic tapas items paired with some interesting wine tastings made for an incredible dinner service. SW steakhouse surely wasn’t on the back of our minds.

We started thngs off with the La Cave Caesar salad. With the Romaine lettuce left whole, we cut into it like a steak. Wrapped in the most delectable, yet really salty prosciutto, I was all smiles. Mixed all together with their lemon anchovy dressing, the salad was a great ice breaker for our meal. The addition of fried anchovy made this Caesar salad a legit one.

Who orders soup at a restaurant, let alone, a tapas bar? This guy! Their onion soup really looked good with the puff pastry “poofed” up on top. With gruyere cheese mixed up all in the puff pastry, the dough had a great toasted cheese taste. The broth in it was rich and addicting. I just didn’t want it to end. Mixing the broth with the cheesy puff pastry made for a perfect bite.

It was time for wine! I opted to try the Spanish wine tasting selection. With four different kinds from specific regions, I was bound to find at least one that I like.

I find myself ordering bacon wrapped dates at every tapas joint I go to. The salty and sweet combo is done all the time and I like to try them all and compare. Most of the restaurants prepare them similarly, but they are never the same. At La Cave, the dates were huge. This meant really big sweet flavors. The bacon’s saltiness wasn’t enough to counter balance the sweet dates, so the help of blue cheese fondue did the trick.

Just as the bacon wrapped dates, every tapas needs to have good flatbread options. Their chicken flatbread was a good option. With Thai basil, chili sauce, and garlic aioli, the flatbread had lots of flavor. For what it was, the dough and crust was decent as well. Possibly, any of the classic flat breads on the menu would have been good as well.

I love a perfectly cooked shrimp, and theirs was just that. Mixed in with chopped piquillo peppers, fingerling potatoes, and roasted garlic, the flavors popped in your mouth. The piquillo peppers made this dish as it was all I could really taste. I think a better crust on the shrimp with the addition of extra salt would have perfected this dish nicely.

Not eating at SW Steakhouse meant we had to find our beef elsewhere. We found it in their beef filet. Siting on top of crostini with some blue cheese melted on top, this was a perfect filet. I felt the beef could have been cooked a little more on the rare. The slightly over cooked meat was forgiven with the 2 sauces that came with it. One was a thickened onion based sauce, and the other was a mushroom/truffle reduced cream sauce. Both were exceptional with this beef, but the white mushroom/truffle cream reduction was just heavenly. I shamelessly just lathered this stuff on each bite.

After seeing the bill, I realized I probably would have spent this much at SW. The only difference is, and it’s a big difference, I would have only eaten beef and some side item of starch. Granted, that beef would have been quite nice, and the bread and butter would have perfect, I had diversity. That is the beauty of tapas. Where other restaurants are all about doing one thing and doing it right, tapas is all about trying new things and repeating that over and over. La Cave was an awesome detour for dinner. The place was busy and the crowd was young and hip. It was dark in there though, hence the crappy pictures. I mean, it is a “hideaway” afterall.

La Cave on Urbanspoon

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Gordon Ramsey Steak (Paris) – Through the English Channel

by Franklin on April 9, 2013

We all know Gordon Ramsey. The ill tempered celebrity chef from England made a name for himself. When I think of him, he isn’t smiling or laughing. I think of angry eyes, wrinkles on the forehead, and fire coming out of his mouth. That imagery to me, is more laughable than scary. But truly, Gordon Ramsey did make a name for himself, literally. The guy names his restaurants after his name. Gordon Ramsey at The London, and this blog post, Gordon Ramsey Steak at Paris. You must be pretty full of yourself if you name your restaurants after your first name. If Gordon Ramsey has the audacity to put him name (again, literally) on his restaurants, he must be pretty confident in it. With that kind of thinking, I expect top notch flavors and cuisine.

Ramsey’s vision to transport you to the U.K. is accomplished through the “English Channel.” This is exactly what it does. You are transformed from Paris to the UK, just like the real thing! The inside really does transport you to England. The red accents and obviously, the U.K. flag gave it that ambiance.

Another thing that was cool was the beverage selection. The menu is on an iPad and guests can swipe through craft beers, wines, and cocktails. The price and drink description are all available. This was an experience in itself, which probably pushed me to order the Primm’s Cup.

The night started with a cocktail. The Primm’s Cup was the cocktail of choice. It had Primm’s No. 1 and sparkling lemonade. It had a complex flavor and wasn’t too sweet. It was spicy and had a fruity citric flavor. I wanted something with a little bite so that it went well with a steak. The Primm’s Cup wouldn’t be my first choice if it was enjoyed alone. For a meal though, I think this was a successful choice.

We were given complimentary bread. This was a good start — it was some of the best and most flavorful of restaurant complimentary breads. There was walnut bread; lemon, thyme, and olive focacia; and pancetta and mushroom truffle bread roll. This was accompanied with and English Devonshire butter with sea salt. If not the bread, this butter was amazing. It had a cheese like consistency and flavor. My ultimate goal now was to find English Devonshire butter back in L.A. A “shmeer” of this stuff on the bread was purely exceptional. The pop of the sea salt and the creamy butter was purely eventful in my mouth. Sometimes, all a man needs is good butter and good bread. This was surely a great start.

Another item I wanted to start off with was the bone marrow. A personal favorite at any restaurant, I was happy to see it on the menu. The fatty bone marrow on the crostini was delightful. The chimichurri was zesty and added the acidity to the dish. It was a perfect flavor meld of fat and fat.

The waiter came to our table with a display of steaks. All of the steaks were real, and displayed to show texture, and marbling. This was nearly useless to me as I was going to order the beef Wellington, but useful to others not knowing what to order. Table side presentation of steaks, as Wolfgang Puck’s CUT does it is an added wow factor. It is cool to see your steak as is before its cooked off.

My main dish of course, was the roasted Beef Wellington. Being Gordon Ramsey’s signature dish, I was overly excited to try it. Seeing up and coming, “red team, blue team” contestants mess this up time and time again, it was almost like a super star. The beef was cooked perfectly to a medium rare, and soft as ever can be. The beefy flavor was enhanced by the duxelles (mixture of minced mushrooms, onions, shallots, herbs, and butter) inside the flaky crust. Sitting on aside some root vegetables, potato puree, and a red wine demi glace, the entire dish was savory to a great degree. Steakhouses are one of many in Vegas, and the typical bone in ribeye was getting boring. I am glad I ordered and tried the Beef Wellington. Surprisingly, I liked it. Beef Wellington form Gordon Ramsey can now be checked off from the bucket list.

A perfect side dish was the mac and cheese. This may be one of my favorite mac and cheeses of all time! The combination of cheddar, blue cheese, parmesan, and truffle made this perfectly balanced taste. The cheese blend was unctuous and the noodles had a perfect texture. I normally prefer the southern style man and cheese — the one that is custardy and cheddar molested. Gordon Ramsey Steak’s mac and cheese impressed me a lot. I would take this over any other mac and cheese out there.

Another dish I couldn’t pass up was the Maine lobster. The chorizo stuffed Maine lobster was poached in butter. To top it all off, it sat in a pool of brandied lobster cream sauce. The lobster was cooked perfectly and had a nice chew to it. The chorizo wasn’t overpowering, and the lobster just shined. The rich butter and cream sauce was decadent and flavorful. I as expecting a small lobster piece of a tail, but it was quite large. Screw the steak! I’ll just eat this for protein.

And awesome dinner ended with an even more awesome dessert. From chocolate layer cake, to spiced caramel apple cake, it was a hard decision to make. I went with the sticky toffee pudding and never looked back. The waiter poured the brown sugar toffee over the sweet pudding cake. Glazed all over, the dessert was so sweet! The cake was moist and fluffy. What stood out was the brown sugar toffee. It was simple and devilishly addicting. I wanted to just pour that spout of toffee in my mouth. It was warm and gooey, and went perfectly with the brown butter ice cream. A bite of the warm sweet toffee pudding cake and then a bite of the creamy, not too sweet ice cream to wash it all down was so perfect. The end.

I was honestly expecting great things from Gordon Ramsey and his steak restaurant — for the most part, I got what I expected. The cuisine was top notch and the Beef Wellington was finally off my to do list. The atmosphere here is quite hip and loud. You aren’t going to get that quiet and mellow steak house with slow classical music playing in the background. You aren’t going to get neutral colors and very boring waiters. What you do get is a very fast paced, in your face experience. The loud red colors and people chatting and laughing fills the air. That’s just the vibe you get here. Gordon Ramsey’s steak house inside the Paris Resort is a destination. The Paris Resort was lacking in the quality restaurant department, and this one just set it to the top.

Gordon Ramsay Steak on Urbanspoon

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Raku – Japanese Cuisine to a Higher Level

by Franklin on March 11, 2013

I came across Raku from Andrew Zimmern. I was watching a random Youtube video about Las Vegas eats, and Mr. Zimmern swears Raku as an anti-Vegas destination with some of the best Japanese food around. I immediately dropped everything and headed off the strip. Raku, located in a dismal looking strip mall in Las Vegas’ very own Chinatown, concentrates on good quality Japanese cuisine. More of a Japanese “tapas” bar, most of their items are shared amongst the table. Most people associate Japanese cuisine with sushi. Chef and owner, Mitsuo Endo showcases a menu with Japanese cuisine as an all-inclusive whole. There is no sushi on the menu, though there is raw fish and sashimi. Everything is masterfully prepared and they use only the best ingredients.

We started things off with the uni soup. This was a simple dish that was so refreshing. The broth was soy sauce based and had a subtle seafood essence. Filled with seaweed and a few slivers of uni, it was an interesting soup. The uni was flavorful and mellow — the warm soup made it more toned down and silky. I don’t it that is a good thing, but it was delicious. This was a great start to an awesome late night eat.

We ordered the pork belly to feed the carnivore within. It wasn’t necessarily special. The quality and bite of the pork belly was a lot better though. Most places will just put some thinly sliced pork belly on a stick, grill it and call it day. Raku’s was thicker, and more meaty. All in all, it was a deliciously cooked yakitori — no sauce needed.

Some of the best things I have ever eaten was Raku’s Agedashi Tofu. It is probably the best tofu I ever had. Some sad days, I would be home alone. I’d open up a tub of tofu, microwave it, make some kind of soy sauce concoction, and pour it over the tofu. For what it was, it was tasty and I was happy. This agedashi tofu really changed my life. The tofu is made daily, in house. The fried exterior had a little crispiness with a hint of chewiness. Inside, it was completely different — smooth and silky, and custard like. The broth in itself makes this dish so good. I don’t know what was in it, but soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and dashi was definitely in the mix. There was a smudge of red pepper puree on the bowl for a bit of spice. Topped with ikira (salmon roe), scallions, and nori, the tofu dish was complex, yet perfectly balanced.

We ended things with one of my favorite chicken dishes of all time. The juicy deep fried chicken, as they call it, was exactly what the name suggests — It was juicy. It was deep fried, and it’s…chicken. The thigh meat is rolled up skin on, battered, and then fried. The roll is cut up into slices and then served on some vinaigrette dressed spinach. The vinaigrette on the spinach helped with the fatty chicken. As the picture shows, the chicken is a bit pink in the center — might be a little alarming for sensitive types. For me though, the chicken was so juicy and flavorful — probably achieved from this near “medium well” cooking. It was an exceptional dish in both flavor and texture.

If you want to eat at Raku, make reservations. I was given the stink eye when I walked in and said I didn’t have reservations. Luckily, I was seated within 10 minutes as long as we ate “quickly.” Most likely, that won’t happen to you unless you make a reservation for this small 48 seater restaurant. I was very impressed with the food at Raku. The ingredients are of the highest quality and simply prepared. Even the water is treated with respect, filtered with a giant charcoal log. Details like this, with a passion for perfection makes Raku very special. It’s not just some Japanese restaurant off the strip. It’s possibly one of the best in the country.

Raku on Urbanspoon

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Holstein’s (Cosmopolitan) – Only on the Outside, Not Inside

by Franklin on February 22, 2013

First of all, I want to start off by saying that the Cosmopolitan is starting to irritate me. Everything that is the Cosmopolitan is now obnoxious and boring. The types of people the property attracts is just garbage — the bottom of the barrel. Don’t get me wrong. The building and architecture and design of it all is fantastic. LCD screens everywhere, hip little touches here and there make this property great. I just can’t stand how un-classically Vegas it is. They try so hard to be different, that in the end of it all, they lose themselves. The addition of Holsteins Shakes and Buns to the property is just the cherry on top. I heard ravenous reviews about Holsteins and I was excited to try this place. Things like, “the best burgers in Vegas,” and “I Love Love Love Hoslteins” were some of many glowing reviews. Here is my 2 cents.

The lobster mac and cheese was good, but not great. Surprisingly, the dish had a lot of lobster in it. Unfortunately, the lobster taste was lacking and the texture was not there as well. Lobster usually has a familiarly soft yet firm feeling when you bite it. Theirs was rubbery and lacked flavor. The truffle panko crust on top was nice, but the lack of lobster taste really disappointed me. My favorite part of this dish was the one chip on the side. It consisted of this lobster salad that was full of flavor.

Upon request, which I thought was complimentary, was popcorn. Though it wasn’t your ordinary popcorn, this one was flavored in some weird mixture. I read that it was truffle popcorn. Excited for some truffle infused popcorn, theirs was definitely not so. It was a mixture of a vinegary, buttery flavor that coated the popcorn. This was a weird mix and though not appetizing, I found myself reaching for the popcorn. I ate it, forgot how it tasted like, and then tried it again. The sting from the popcorn seasoning alone was enough for me not to eat it again. I guess my curiosity superseded my palate.

Quite possibly my favorite food, and naturally, the food I am most knit picking about, the burger is a classic. From the bun to the type of meat, and the almost infinite sauces and toppings you can put on, the burger is a great vessel to work with. With such an iconic item, at a restaurant that supposedly specializes in this stuff, you can’t mess it up.

And now, the Rising Sun burger — It had Kobe beef, teriyaki glaze, nori furikake, crispy yam, spicy mayo, & tempura avocado. Their take on a Japanese burger sounds good on paper. The fried avocado alone would make me happy. It was fried and crispy, and velvety smooth at the same time. I just didn’t have enough of it. That probably was the only thing good about this burger. Everything else was a mistake. First of all, what is wrong with this is the Kobe. I hate when restaurants advertise as serving Kobe when we all know most of that is just an American breed, if not, from Australia. Second of all, when you cook a “Kobe” beef burger, it has to be rare. Nothing else will do. What I got was all grey inside. The crust was overly marinated and glazed and turned the meat super dry, and the inside wasn’t any different. That is one way to kill an almost perfect burger. The teriyaki glaze was much too overwhelming and the crispy yam didn’t help with the cloyingly sweet flavors. Did I order the wrong burger? Maybe, but that still doesn’t make up for the overcooked patty.

If anything, the drunken monkey shake may have been the only thing that was considerably good. It had malted banana gelato and peanut butter crunch. The adult version has Frangelico, a hazelnut liqueur from Italy. I opted out and went with just a regular. “You are in Vegas. Live a little!”, you say? In hind sight, maybe I should have made this shake alcoholic. It would have made me feel better about the sub-par meal I just had. Still though, the shake was sweet and the use of gelato made the shave quite delicate and smooth.

Pretentious, and yet casual, the restaurant has no identity. I just can’t associate this restaurant with good food. The same food could be served at a restaurant that looks like, maybe Johnny Rockets, with a lower price, and I still wouldn’t think twice about it. I mean, they have red and yellow squeeze bottles for ketchup and mustard. Come on! The food really needs an upgrade. How awesome would it be if finally, the Las Vegas Strip had a go-to burger spot that was hip, and of course, delicious? I think that is a home run and a much needed thing on the strip. I guess I just have to wait a couple years for that to happen. For now at the Cosmo, I guess Secret Pizza will have to do.

Holstein's on Urbanspoon

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Dine Delish Turns 2!

February 9, 2013

Happy Birthday to Dine Delish!! Today, this food blog turns 2 years old! I started this food blog 2 years ago, wth my first post on February 9, 2011. I remember because it was right around the time it was Chinese New Year. Relatively a baby in the food blogging club, the past 2 years [...]

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Cravings Buffet (Mirage) – Underrated with a Variety, I’m Stuffed

January 17, 2013

When going to Vegas, some just eat purely at buffets. For some reason, buffets an Las Vegas go hand in hand. They won’t eat at buffets every day when they are at home, but when at Vegas, its buffet after buffet. Hence, they made the Buffet of Buffets, which is a 24 hours pass to [...]

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Ellis Island Casino & Brewery – A Pauper Meal Fit for a King

December 26, 2012

You got to love Las Vegas. As much as you can find the high end of things, you can equally find the lower end. When I say lower end, I don’t mean cheap as in quality — I am talking about bargains. Lost a lot of money on one of those rigged slot machines? Highly [...]

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Tom Colicchio’s Craftsteak (MGM) – Beef Me Top Chef

November 12, 2012

There comes a time when you just go all out.  Whether you are in the right mindset or not, you just go for it.  You don’t think about cost or consequences thereafter.  You just close your eyes and hope for the best.  With Tom Colicchio’s Craftsteak at the MGM, I did just that. I knew [...]

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