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5.23.2011

last lunch at venetian/palazzo.

For someone who eats out as much as I do (way too much), I have surprising few regular dining companions. And now I have lost one. My friend and former colleague Lauren has run off to New York, and it's a big loss for lunching. She finished up her Vegas era working for the Venetian and Palazzo resorts, which meant that we did some serious work on the many restaurants in these two big, beautiful Strip properties.


We made some mistakes, just a few. We went to First Food & Bar and Grand Lux Cafe a few times too many, getting stuck in mediocrity. We didn't go to Bouchon enough, but that's not our fault; only recently has the place been open for a proper lunch. We had decent lunches at restaurants that should be visited at dinner, like Valentino and Pinot Brasserie. Wolfgang Puck's Postrio is okay, but straight across from it, Mario Batali's Enoteca Otto is better, with some of the best pizza and pasta around. And, to my surprise, the lasagna at Zeffirino is outstanding, as is pretty much everything at the quiet Zine Noodles & Dim Sum.


The last lunch was last week, and we closed our run at Emeril Lagasse's Table 10. This place is hidden in the second story shops in Palazzo, above the casino, between a closed space that used to be Woo pan-Asian and the genre-bending SushiSamba. If this sounds confusing, that's because it is. Many of the restaurants at Palazzo have struggled due to strange placement (see Restaurant Charlie, as in Trotter).


Table 10, despite the big name chef on the marquee, also has been somewhat forgotten, but that may be changing. The menu, described as a New Orleans eatery with market fresh ingredients, has taken a prominent turn toward the market. There's a nice little frisee salad with a poached farm egg, smoked bacon, parmesan reggiano and red wine vinaigrette with a mini brioche on the side (above pic). There are "snacks" on the lunch menu including candied North Country farm bacon, fried Great Lakes smelt with lemon mayo, and veal cheeks with wild mushrooms and fava beans. Sure, there is some heavy stuff, like these amazing Kurobuta baby back rotisserie ribs (pic) and a killer ribeye sandwich with grilled portobello and horseradish, but there's also seared tuna with a farro salad and some simple po-boy sandwiches. At dinner, there's Colorado beef and lamb, suckling pig porchetta from Iowa and Hawaiian snapper. Don't do like we did and eat way too much meat. Save room for dessert, since Emeril's spots always do sweets right: banana cream pie, coconut cheesecake, or a chocolate flourless cake with a Kona coffee milkshake.


You can't really eat your way through all the restaurants in these huge, bajillion-dollar hotel casinos. There are just too many great choices, and once you find some food you love and go back for more, that's one more missed opportunity, one more tally for the still-have-to-try-it list. It's a tough job, take it from me. I probably won't be dining frequently in the Venetian or Palazzo now that Lauren's gone, but I will return to Table 10. It's worth it.

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