Andrea and I were in Las Vegas last November so she could attend a conference and I could be somewhere other than home. We planned one fancy dinner, to get away from the normal struggles of getting a 2-year old to eat, and Bouchon was it. Aureole in Mandalay Bay was a close second, but as enticing as waitresses on strings was, we decided against it this time. But next time, for sure, we’re going there.
We managed to arrive only slightly late for our reservation at the restaurant. What can I say – my hair is a quarter of an inch long, and I just couldn’t do anything with it. We took the Las Vegas Monorail from the MGM Grand (our hotel for this trip) to Harrah’s, and it was a short walk from there to The Venetian. Well, relatively short – we still had to walk the eight and a half miles through the casino to get to the street.
Bouchon is located on the 10th floor of the Palazzo tower. The resort has the ability to make you feel more important than you actually are because of the sheer magnificence of the place. Hey, I’ve made it – look at these awesome building I’m walking through. I’m somebody. There was more marble between the elevators to the restaurant door than is in all of Lansing. A lot more.
We ordered the still water, which was a mistake because we had to pay for the still water. If you don’t want to pay for water, remember to ask for tap water. I’m not against paying for water if I happened to be in a desert and would die without it within the next hour. Well, come to think of it, I was in the middle of the desert. But I was pretty far from death.
Before the meal we were served bread and warm pistachios. Yes, they gave us nuts. I don’t usually receive nuts pre-meal, but it was a nice touch. We ordered a decent bottle of cabernet franc, mostly because it was one of the cheaper bottles of wine on the menu, being around $40 or $50, if I remember correctly. In Lansing, a cheap bottle of wine will run about a third of that, but we weren’t in Lansing. It’s a fancy restaurant – you’re supposed to overpay for everything.
I had the boulin blanc (which looked like a brat but had a very smooth taste) served with creamy mashed potatoes and prunes. Yes, prunes – those wacky French. Andrea chose the steak served with French fries. The fries were my favorite part of the meal, and I munched on them all through dinner. You just can’t go wrong with fries.
For dessert, Andrea had chocolate mousse and I had doughnuts with chocolate dipping sauce. Fries and doughnuts – does that sound like an expensive meal? And during dessert, we were privileged to listen to some blowhard at the next table try to impress his friends with his knowledge of wine and his ability to be rude to the waiter. Here’s my wine tip – if you like it, drink it, and don’t worry about what goes with what too much.
After our meal, we wandered out into the pool area adjacent to the restaurant. I had to fly home the next morning – a 9:00 AM flight – so we enjoyed a few minutes more of peace before heading back to The Strip and back to the MGM.
Quick update: I saw a post on My Luscious Temple about Bouchon and thought I would post it – there are some nice pictures.