My first visit to Vegas was solely for gambling with college buddies. Our finest meal was at P.F. Chang’s. Make your own lettuce cups!

I’ve been for a few software conferences. Buffets of cold cuts abound during the day, but I occasionally struck a free meal at Joe’s Stone Crabs or Il Mulino. Mind you, there are amazing chilled crab claws with tangy mustard sauce at Joe’s, and Il Mulino offers wonderful langoustines and an impossibly crisp veal Milanesa, but I was only scratching the cutting board when it came to this town.

Though it’s nearly impossible to find a restaurant which doesn’t reek of schtick, that doesn’t plaster the celebrity chef name all over the decor, once you shrug off the cloak of shill, you realize some of the top cuisine in the country brews in Vegas.

Think about it. Las Vegas has everything the culinary biosphere needs to survive, which in turn attracts some of the chefs from around the country who desire to learn in kitchens practically devoid of a budget. Vegas has plenty of space, desirable locale, famous people, investors, and most importantly – people willing to part with the green on a scale which is scary and foreign.

For example, a generous (to understate it) friend ordered a $900 bottle of Champagne off the list at Michael Mina’s Stripsteak on our second evening. The sommelier cooly looked off across the restaurant, ”I just sold one to a table over there; that’s the last bottle of that.” There are few places in the world where this is ‘normal’.

The trip was fantastic, though it’s almost embarrassing how well we ate. Almost. So now I share my photos with the internet. May they influence and guide you on your next trip to the greasy LV. (Or incite you will jealousy and rage. Whatever.) Click the name of each restaurant below for the full Flickr set.  

Our first meal was at L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon (website), the French “Chef of the Century’s” workshop style (open kitchen, bar seating) restaurant of which there are a few outposts worldwide. We opted to select three menu items each and share, rather than tackle the full tasting menu. While I wouldn’t put it in my top meals of all time or any outrageous claim like that (and it is priced as if it should be), it was fantastic. Some real home runs (like the wondrous scallop with uni below), stunning wines, and a cool ambience/view of the kitchen. Though my ass and back hurt the entire time in their simple bar seats.

Desserts were of note. The white chocolate, a perfect sphere which melts open as hot raspberry liquid is poured over, was a crowd pleaser. We of course tried Robuchon’s famous mashed potatoes (more butter than potato, too much for me really), and the guilt-laden and well-sized foie gras and Kobe sliders were so damn satisfying; just the right size too. I highly recommend L’Atelier. It’s just a fun spot, some great food, and with impeccable service.

Still full after a few hours of restless sleep (a theme which developed), our lunch the next day was at Lotus of Siam (website), which I’ll dub the “Thai, Riesling-Heavy Bern’s“. Meaning, the wine list is great, relatively cheap, and the place is a lot of fun.

I told one of the blackjack dealers about Lotus, and explained the riesling list. She wrinkled her nose and expressed her displeasure for the varietal. More for me. I guess she probably won’t try these crispy shrimp, with fried shrimp shell “chips” either.

Oh, dinner again so soon? Let’s hit up Stripsteak (website), Michael Mina’s take on the “classic” steak house featuring slow butter poached steaks and riffs on favorites like red onion rings with tomato powder. But what better way to start than Iranian caviar and all the fixin’s? Look how marvelous and perfectly delineated each of those little Osetra eggs are!

My steak was an 8oz, $67 cut off the Wagyu ribeye – a cross section slice of the primal so the steak is comprised of only the tender, fatty cap. Sinfully rich, this buttery beauty was the best steak I never want to have again. It was so rich, one person in our party could only finish half of hers. Four ounces.

Day 3. “Oh my god we have to eat dumplings now”, I think to myself as I wipe the meat sweats from my brow while walking into the impressive Cosmopolitan to dine at China Poblano (website), the subversive amalgamation of Chinese and Mexican from famed chef Jose Andres. Walk in and notice the ladies on your left making the dim sum. But glance to the right and see the short Hispanic women cooking thin corn tortillas on a flat top. It’s so, um, authentic?

While we had a couple of very, very poor dumpling dishes, and I found the Mexican dishes to be stronger overall, I could eat the Sichuan lamb dumplings all day.

And the twenty vegetable fried rice was a show stopper for both vegetarian and flesh-sinners alike.

Even for me, the squishy beef tendon with kumamoto oyster taco was too much, but it’s a flavor I won’t soon forget.

Phew, one more dinner. Oh we’re early? Let’s have a snack and some killer Spanish white wine next door at Julian Serrano (website). I loved the fava beans, but they weren’t nearly as picturesque as the black rice with squid below. All four of the dishes were quite well done, great for sharing, classic Spanish flavors, too bad we moved on to…

Sage (website). Expectations were high. Numerous awards were on display, and people had really talked up this place in the super cool Aria hotel. I was into day four of perma-full so I just ordered a few appetizers. This big eye tuna below had a lot going on. Anchovies, orbs and powders of “stuff”, and olives and baby artichokes and probably a bunch of other things that didn’t work together. It was just too much. I couldn’t taste the fish. I found the flavors and textures to be weird and distracting. I’m all for experimentation but this was a miss. By the end of the dish I was wondering if Bar Masa (next door) would bring me a few pieces of nigiri to right my raw fish ship.

Next up was venison carpaccio (not photographed). Again, they dumped all sorts of shit all over it, including large lumps of pureed pears which may as well have been apple sauce. Pass.

Last up, a farm egg with a smoked potato puree and truffles. The flavors were good but I didn’t like the texture of the grainy potato, and the truffles were weak. They loved the truffles at Sage, I saw it on a number of dishes. But they weren’t super fragrant or flavorful; all hat and no cattle. Once you have sampled awesome white alba truffles it’s tough to go back. Oh, excuse me, didn’t mean to hit your face with my snob.

*photos from Sage and Julian Serrano by @atl_legend

And finally (are you still reading? really?) we had brunch at Mesa Grill (website) before departing back to Atlanta. It was brunch, so no need to be hyper critical, but it hit the spot. Sauces, eggs, tortillas, and cheese abound. What’s not to like? The Mesa Grill burger was actually damn good. Though that didn’t stop us from getting some In-And-Out burgers for the ride to the airport.

I went to the doctor after I got home for a shoulder injury, where they weigh me at the start of each visit. Yep, gained six pounds.

Just a quick invitation, as I know a lot of friends and friends-of-friends (and soon to be friends) read this blog from time to time. Our 5th annual chili cook-off is coming up next month – it will take place Saturday, February 18 from 4-8PM at 5 Seasons Westside.  We moved it from Red Brick Brewery (formerly Atlanta Brewing) because they increased the cost and last year their service was terrible.

For $20 a person we have the whole upstairs (indoors and patio), a few beers, and hopefully lots of tasty chili competing fiercely in three categories – spiciest, best unusual, and best overall. If you want to enter, please let us know at lpchilisociety@gmail.com so we can plan accordingly (we provide trays, sterno, serving utensils, cheese, chips, etc). If you have tailgating style tables you can allow us to use it is much appreciated. Also check our evite to RSVP so we can plan resources.

All profits will go to Hands on Atlanta. And a big shout out to Jaimie Cohen from Estoria Social Wedding & Event Planning who has been assisting with the event.

Check out cook offs from prior years – Feb 2011 | Nov 2009

Earlier this month I got together with Brad over at Creative Loafing for a little fried chicken. Check his post on it.

Shamefully, the only fried chicken of the five I’d previously tried was Carver’s. On the plus side, I had no predisposition to any of these chickees. Brad and I pretty much agreed on everything, though I could see that some people could easily feel differently based on the experience they are seeking. Chicken to go? High quality bird? Star Provisions was the clear winner; affordable too.

Star bird too small? Looking for an honest country vibe and outrageously sized breast? Carver’s it is.

Many people visit Colonnade for the sake of tradition and ambience, but damn the chicken was good. By far the hottest and crispiest and most tender; not a touch of dryness in the breast – the only time I could say that of our tour. Large portions too.

JCT was terrible. So bland and soggy, the texture of the meat was pulverized like it had sat in brine for too long, which doesn’t make sense as it was devoid of salt. It’s worth mentioning that the mac and cheese they served with it was a shameful mess of soggy noodles sitting in a unnecessary pool of warm cream. Years ago JCT was my go-to spot on that side of town – the last two years have seen an odious, unfortunate decline.

Smothered chicken – Busy Bee

Fried chicken – Busy Bee

The Colonnade

Chicken fried chicken with gravy - The Colonnade

Fried chicken - The Colonnade

JCT Springer Mountain Fried Chicken

Unfortunately, no photos from Star or Carver’s – forgot my camera!

So this is fantastic. A restaurant in Atlanta featuring dishes with punny rap names? I hope this is real. Personal favorites include the Wu Tang Clams and Snoop Doggy Corn Dogs, which of course is “4 fresh fried corndoggs that ain’t leavin til six in the mornin. So what you wanna do?”.

On another note, I’ve been eating Las Vegas for the last 48 hours and it’s nuts here. So much good food. You know the fatty cap side of a ribeye steak which many people love? In Vegas, for $60 and a little piece of your soul, they’ll make you a Kobe ribeye steak that is a cross cut of JUST THAT PIECE. Ridiculous.

We tried the kumamoto and beausoleil oysters, ankimo, lobster roll, salt and pepper shrimp, uni pasta, and rabbit cavetelli.

My photos are extra terrible because it’s darker than Mordor in there. For a real review, check out Besha’s post. But for haiku’s describing what I ate, read below.

briny and well shucked
fairly priced taste of the sea
beasoleils bested

the oceans pate
roe pops across silk liver
it was sort of bland

the musk of butter
chilly crustacean delights
I don’t deserve this

oh plump crispy prawn
you’re overcooked though piquant
slurp the pungent head

gonads I crave you
lovely fresh pasta so sweet
but not quite funky

chicken and dumplings
but pasta with cauliflower
bested the classic

I’ve been traveling all over the place, for work and for pleasure, hence the lack of restaurant and cooking project posts in January. Once I got back from Savannah yesterday afternoon, I spent the rest of the day cooking and watching football, and it was pure pleasure spending some time in the dojo.

As I’ve been getting settled in this morning, I realized I do have a bunch of miscellaneous photos from the last few weeks. So here you go, get ready for a bunch of ‘em.

First up, my brother and I took my father to Bern’s for his birthday. The wine and service were amazing, as was this large strip steak that we split three ways (pictured is just part of my portion).

The next day we went to Arco Iris, where these crispy braised pork nuggets were the jam.

The next week I visited Miso Izakaya again with some friends. I loved the oden dish they were trying out (I don’t think it’s on the menu), though we ate it early in the meal and it sat quite heavy. Tons of luscious soft bone marrow and firm root veggies.

I finally tried their ramen, which was good, though a touch sweet for my tastes. I have no idea if this was a good representation of this dish though; the kitchen was slammed and we were told they didn’t have ramen, then they brought it out later in the evening.

Last week I took a tour of Inland seafood. They sent me home with some crab dips and such, though I was hoping for a case of these Shigoku oysters. Shit, I would have even accepted a case of beau soleils from Nova Scotia. I requested this tour for a post I’m working on – more on that in the coming weeks.

I also got together with friends for some home cooked pizza and wine. My friend John is apparently on a mission to keep me in the poor house, as he continues to introduce me to expensive things which I desire. Old Barolo is amazing. It’s like dirty, mulchy, tar-laden Burgundy.

I stopped at Chat Patti (Vegetarian Indian) for the first time in a while. The thali special is always a good deal. Not as flavorful (or spicy) vegetables as I remember, but still chock full of great breads and vibrant sauces.

There’s now an excellent coffee shop in Columbia, called Drip. They serve breakfast and lunch too – I tried a duck confit biscuit with honey that is crave-worthy. Flaky, sweet, fatty, etc.

On the way to the coast I stopped in Orangeburg SC at the famous Duke’s Bar-B-Q. They told me it was the best I’d ever try, though in my experience 90% of SC BBQ is terrible (I’ve yet to try Sweatman’s or Scott’s). It’s mostly buffets and steam tray pork. Duke’s was no different. The tomato-rich hash was fine, in a I-don’t-get-to-eat-this-very-often sort of way. It was like a pureed Brunswick stew. And look at that sweet and cloying yellow mustard sauce – looks appetizing, huh?

I ate mussels and fried shrimp at 11th Street Dockside in Beaufort, it was serviceable. I’d order the shrimp again.

And I took a boat ride in Savannah, then ate steamed oysters and drank $3 margaritas at Bonna Bella Yacht Club. It was 77F and sunny with a gorgeous sunset and plenty of frosty Miller High Life on the boat. Perfect day.

Finally I got home and cooked. During the dreary ride back I was struck with a craving for Beef Bourguignon. It was fairly well done though the sauce wasn’t quite on point. Hopefully the flavors came together a little more overnight, and I may add more demi-glace today.

I have another 1.5lbs of beef chuck in my sous vide machine, which has been running at 140F since 4PM yesterday. Tonight I’m going to compare with the four hour braised beef and see who wins.

I never met my great grandfather and quite enjoyed this rare connection to the past. He didn’t relay much personal sentiment in his journal; most of it is a simple chronicle of events, often a sentence or two, and he wasn’t wildly consistent. There is no reference to the horror of war. It makes me wonder if the gaps in time were spent in trenches, and if he didn’t mention it because he wanted his thoughts elsewhere when recording them.

When he isn’t talking about the death of Teddy Roosevelt, or how five men were swept overboard and lost from the U.S.S.G.W., he frequently talked about food. Quite often, in fact. There truly is nothing like a great, warm meal.

Subsistence: Bacon, Beans, Beans Baked, Bread, Coffee, Flour, Fruit, Lard, Meat – Fresh Beef, Milk, Onions, Potatoes, Salt, Sugar, Vinegar, Tomatoes, Pepper

On foregoing page 16 is giving list of subsistence of the main food stuffs as used in the Army. To follow this list closely is not only a good principle for the army but also for the home. To buy staples, especially flour, dry groceries, potatoes, etc in quantity is a big money saving proposition, also a time saver as it does away with ? daily shopping trip which time could be used by better advantage. It is also a good idea to follow the army’s way of planning supplies and meals four or five days or more ahead, will save a lot of worry. 

December 25, 1917

Saw <> steamer towed in torpedoed, bow sunk, stern in air. Christmas dinner. Menu on board U.S.S.G.W.
Steak – Ham – Onion Sauce
Mashed potatoes – Peas – Bread – Butter
Coffee – <?> and Pumpkin Pie

Jan 1 1918 (in France)

Had dinner in a restaurant. Menu. Ham omelett, bread, butter, leg of chicken, French fried potatoes, coffee, rice pudding. 

]]> http://www.eatitatlanta.com/2012/01/18/world-war-i-dining/feed/ 5 http://www.eatitatlanta.com/2012/01/16/cookbooks-of-yore-aka-are-you-gonna-eat-your-cream-toast/ http://www.eatitatlanta.com/2012/01/16/cookbooks-of-yore-aka-are-you-gonna-eat-your-cream-toast/#comments Mon, 16 Jan 2012 21:53:02 +0000 Jimmy http://www.eatitatlanta.com/?p=5321

While going through some old photos with my mother we came across some old cookbooks, mostly numerous versions of the Metropolitan Cook Book and Royal Baking Cook Book, published by an insurance company and baking powder producer, respectively. I found it interesting to see the types of food made, old technique and now uncommon ingredients. Some dishes don’t exist in their old form because they have been improved upon, others because we are lazy or because no one can find a particular ingredient. Good luck even finding beef suet around Atlanta. The books are from 1911 to 1927. I’ve included a few photos below that may or may not be worth checking out.

This recipe for soup calls for one pound of meat, three cents of soup greens, one penny worth of barley, and noodles.

“A high-priced article may have little food value, while a low-priced article may have high food value.”

True that.

“Cookery for the Sick”.

Wow, I’d heal right up if I had to eat Wine Whey, which consists of scalded milk and wine. I think they call that “Prison Wine” now.

Mmmm, cream toast. I still prefer biscuits and gravy. This must be a yankee cookbook.

Some egg recipes, including “Plain and Fancy Baked Eggs” and “Scotch Woodcock”, the latter sounding like a bechamel sauce with chopped hard boiled eggs, ham, and spices.

Here are some wines I picked up at Capital City Package store at the corner of Collier and Howell Mill. Now, a few people commented on a recent post, saying they tend to glaze over when I post about wine. But one person did elaborate, saying I tend to talk a lot about wines that aren’t readily available around town. Guilty.

As mentioned in my recent Le Caveau post, I do want to purchase more wine in Atlanta – develop a relationship, talk to someone in person who knows more than I, and support their efforts (and our local economy).

Capital City is under new ownership since the end of this past summer, and over the last few months they’ve made significant renovations and capital improvements, including a much larger wine selection. The person managing the wine program is David Metz, whom I’ve had the chance to talk with a few times about these changes, and he’s pointed me in the direction of some cool wines, such as the Zind Humbrecht selections above. Dave is very friendly, knowledgeable (he’s sportin’ a fly CSW), with a broad interest in many types of juice, from more popular large production California wines, to quirky small scale Italian producers, or maybe you fancy the lush but acidified sweet Grand Cru riesling from Alsace that I purchased (and drank) this past Friday. It was really excellent.

For you ballers, Capital City has installed a separate fridge for some big time 1st growth Bordeaux from the early 80′s and 90′s. I’m eyeing the ’81 Haut Brion, my birth year. If you refresh this page 130,000 times I’ll get enough ad revenue to afford it. Get clicking!

The most expensive tuna ever was sold last week in Japan, at the famous Tsukiji market in Tokyo. Tsukiji is not only the largest supplier of fish in the world, but like the options for goods traded on the floor of the Merc in Chicago, the auctions at Tsukiji have a global impact on the price of fish around the world.

A blog called Sushi Otaku points out that the fish, which was purchased for $736,000, or $1238 per pound, is going to be sold at a loss to consumers. The WSJ estimates that each sliver of tuna will be sold to consumers for $1.75 to $5.45. Resources I’ve found online estimate there are 15-25 pieces of nigiri per pound of fish. Depending on the thickness of cut, a sushi chef would have to charge between $50-100 per piece just to cover costs.

Sushi Otaku points out, part of the reason for the exorbitant cost is the celebration of the new year at the market, where the record setting auction is symbolic for prosperity, buoyed further by the public desire to support an industry which has been greatly hurt by last year’s disasters.

But this got me thinking about high quality tuna (such as the otoro pictured below-left from Sushi Huku), the best of which is quickly disappearing from our menus, and not just because of overfishing. Many chefs simply cannot afford to put it on their menu anymore. At a meal at MF Buckhead last year, Chef Kinjo told me the bluefin otoro he was serving us cost about $400 for a 1.5lb piece, which means he would have to charge $20-30 per piece of nigiri to even make it worth their while. Many wouldn’t even bother putting it on the menu at this price, so the loss is subsidized by the profit on other items (as is the case on this sashimi platter below), the tuna seemingly used as a reward for excellent customers.

I recall an online review of Soto (in NYC, formerly Atlanta) where a customer was complaining that he ordered fatty tuna, having seen another customer order some, but Soto told him no, he didn’t deserve it. The customer was pissed. I think this shows respect for the fish on the part of Soto-San. But it’s also a financial decision. If Soto is rewarding a regular customer who drops thousands on fish a year, the tuna is a very valuable tool to him.

Of course this argument/discussion of price is moot if restaurants cannot find good tuna anymore. I’ve seen Taka lament on his blog that he may have to learn how to operate without tuna.

Tuna ? There is no hope this year. This is the true story. Let’s say they had 100 of big eye tuna before. 40 went to NY, 20 went to and there 5 came to Atlanta. But the total amount of tuna is not much now. Let’s say they have 30 of big eye tuna. 20 go to NY, 5 go to LA and we can get less than 1. And the price is high and restaurants owners don’t want to buy. We do not want blue fin tuna because of high price. But we can buy big eye tuna.

Which restaurant can buy these kind of good tuna? Taka, Tomo, MF and maybe Nakato. only 4 restaurants can buy. And if they get a large size tuna, they cannot sell all of them. And they do not want to take a risk.

I buy O2 tuna from Philippine and buy farm raised and frozen blue fin oh toro from Australia. This buying will continue for a while.

Some may object to eating bluefin tuna due to scarcity and overfishing, but I think the chances of convincing Japan (which consumes 80% of the world’s bluefin tuna) to stop eating it is somewhere between slim and asking Tebow to renounce Christ. I personally don’t crave fatty tuna much, but I appreciate the gesture and am certainly not going to turn it down when it’s offered my way. It would be downright disrespectful.

Both photos in this post by @atl_legend.

Check out this good tuna breakdown video from Eater.