The Rumble in Part II primarily refers to my stomach although our
entertainment experiences are covered as well. I will note whenever
applicable the source of any discount coupons or certificates used on
this trip. Abbreviations: ACG = American Casino Guide, E =
Entertainment, POV = Las Vegas Advisor, and R.com = restaurant.com.
Most mornings Ms. Piggy & I visited the troughs at the Orleans or
Gold Coast buffets (ACG) so I will summarize our breakfast
experiences to avoid repetition. These buffets are near carbon
copies of each other and are regarded by many; my self included, as
the best of the mid priced buffets. We particularly enjoy the fresh
fruit selection that includes grapefruit, grapes, cantaloupe,
watermelon, oranges, bananas, and honeydew melon. Try as we may and
against our best intentions, we seldom fail to over indulge. My
downfall is attributed to the huevos rancheros that I assemble while
Ms. Westie has seldom been seen passing without pausing for a "small"
wedge of bread pudding. Note: the bread pudding is only offered at
the Gold Coast buffet, but she substitutes cheese blintzes as
necessary to maintain her strength. Rating: 3.5 forks out of a
potential 5.
The only other breakfast buffet we tried was Main Street Station
(POV). Neither of us enjoyed this buffet which is quite small in
comparison to those at Coast Casinos. The fresh fruit was limited to
dry grapefruit segments and unripened cantaloupe. The Italian
section was limited to pizza, the Mexican section closed and the
Asian section limited to rice and egg foo yuck. In addition, the
chef preparing the omelets was having a bad day with them sticking to
the pans. I settled for overdone easy over eggs and Ms. Westie
wolfed down a tiny portion of cold scrambled eggs. Rating: 1 Fork.
Sunday mornings found us at Ellis Island (ACG) for the bargain priced
($1.95) vanilla French toast. Rating: 2.5 Forks.
Day 1 After stopping off at Wal-Mart for soda, water and a few
incidentals, we checked in at Sam's Town for the next 11 nights. I
had 4 back-to-back reservations, (2) direct and (2) through
hotels.com, that the clerk combined for us. After resting for
awhile, we drove over to Bangkok Boom (E), a Thai restaurant, only to
discover it had apparently ceased operations. Ever resourceful, we
drove over to Al Basha (E) on South Maryland Parkway, a small
Mediterranean storefront restaurant. I ordered kafta kabob with beef
in special spices, which was accompanied by grilled eggplant, rice
and some additional vegetables. Ms. Westie's mousaka arrived
accompanied by a salad and rice. We also received a basket of pita
bread and complimentary baklavas. Rating: 3.5 Forks.
Day 2 After breakfast at the Gold Coast, we drove over to Bellagio
in order to view the Chinese New Year exhibit in the Conservatory
before it closed the Rooster was particularly impressive. Next stop
was Jean Phillipe's Patisserie with a floor-to-ceiling chocolate
fountain that included a series of melted chocolate cascades. The
made-to-order fruit crepes looked oh so tempting and are now on our
To Do list for the next trip. The remainder of the day was devoted
to reading and a long nap.
Dinner was chicken fajitas (ACG) at Don Miguels in the Orleans.
These were a very poor example of this popular Tex-Mex dish, but we
enjoyed the excellent taco chips and margaritas. Rating: 1.5
Forks.
This evening's entertainment was the James Darren show at the
Orleans. Seniors may remember him as Moondoggie in those Grade B
Gidget movies of yesteryear or in roles on such TV "classics" as TJ
Hooker and the more recent Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. If not, how
about his hit record "Goodbye Cruel World".
http://www.webfitz.com/lyrics/Lyrics/1961/591961.html
This night's performance should have been subtitled "Performs The
Sinatra/Bennett Songbook". I felt his act might be more suitable to
the lounge at Casa di Amore or, better yet, Battista's should the guy
with the accordion finally retire. Rating: 2 Claps out of a
potential 5.
We followed this up with one set of classic rock by the Las Vegas-
based Smith Brothers at the Orleans' Bourbon Street Cabaret. Rating:
3.5 claps.
Day 3 I somehow managed to become hungry 4 hours after visiting the
Orleans breakfast buffet, so we split an appetizer of lettuce wraps
at the Baja Café in Fiesta-Henderson using some of my Amigo points.
PF Chang's doesn't have to worry about the competition. Rating: 1
Fork.
This evening we drove to the Rampart and dined at the Carmel Room
(POV). This is a beautiful, upscale restaurant with service to
match. When I ordered a melange salad ($6.95) to share, the waiter
informed us of a $5 charge if they divided the salad in the kitchen,
but he would gladly deliver a second plate to us for free. Come on
restaurant management 5 waiters serving 10 patrons on a Friday
night and you want to charge extra for dividing up 16 baby lettuce
leaves and a couple of pieces of fruit? Our disappointment continued
when Ms.Westie's salmon arrived on a plate unadorned except by a lone
lemon segment. The salmon was cooked to perfection, but would have
benefited by the addition of either a sauce or glaze. Her twice-
baked potato side order was good, but who ran off the requested
chives? My seafood (New Zealand mussels, scallops, 2 shrimp and 2
teeny weenie clams) in some sort of cream sauce over pasta would have
benefited from the addition of some seasoning or fresh herbs. I can
only conclude this chef was afraid to offend anyone's taste buds.
Rating: 2 Forks.
We then visited the nearby Suncoast to attend the Chuck Mangione
show. I was not prepared for how much I would enjoy this Grammy
award winner's music. He was quite obviously uncomfortable speaking
onstage, but his music made the entire audience "Feels So Good".
Rating: 4 claps.
Our evening concluded with me getting lost after taking a detour off
the Summerlin Highway.
Day 4 I now know how Pavlov's dog felt as I begin to salivate at
the mere mention of the word buffet. Again I defied all gastronomic
logic by getting hungry 4 hours after our breakfast. We headed over
Hue's Thai Sandwiches, 5115 Spring Mountain Road, for the house
special sandwich three cuts of pork-based cold cuts, pickled
radish, cucumber and carrot in light vinegar dressing.
http://www.usmenuguide.com/huethaissandwichesmenu.htm
We shared the sandwich in our car and thought it was on the dry side
and would have benefited by additional dressing. Rating: 2 Forks.
Our next dining adventure was at the Mayflower Cuisiner (R.com) on
West Sahara. http://www.usmenuguide.com/mayflowermenu.html
This is a beautifully decorated Asian restaurant with service to
match. It has been the recipient of a Best of Las Vegas award in the
Chinese restaurant category. The restaurant is co-owned by the chef
and her brother who served as our waiter. There were many dishes on
the menu that looked appealing, but we both settled on the sake-miso
crusted seabass accompanied by 4 chicken ravioli and ginger brown
rice cake. This was the best dish I have had in recent memory.
Rating: 5 Forks.
After dinner we drove to the Fiesta-Rancho for a Rod Stewart tribute
show. Free tickets to these Saturday tribute shows are available at
the Amigo (slot) club counter. The key to enjoying this type of show
is to forget what is missing (i.e. Rod Stewart, a band etc.) and
simply kick back with your favorite beverage, appreciate the company
you are with and listen to the many memorable tunes. We had a great
time. Rating: 2.5 Claps.
Day 5 - We drove to the Westin Casuarina to purchase show tickets for
Forbidden Vegas with a 2/1 coupon from the Review Journal. A few
days later another ad appeared in the Review Journal offering $40 in
free slot/VP play if you purchased a show ticket for the same price.
I believe this promotion could be combined with the excellent new
sign-up promotion, pay $30 and receive $60 action.
Lunch today was a freebie at Gardunos Express at the Fiesta-Rancho
that was sent to each of us. Anyone else remember Gardunos of a few
years back when there were long lines for both dinner and the Sunday
Margarita brunch? Well, you won't need to stand too long in line
these days. At lunch this is a steam table affair offering fajitas,
menudo, cream-based soup, two varieties of enchiladas, tacos,
mussels, assorted desserts, taco chips, salsa and a cornbread mix.
Everything but the cornbread and menudo was below mediocre. Rating:
0.5 Fork.
In the late afternoon we stopped in at Casino MonteLago for free
drinks (ACG) and to enter the free slot tournament. We managed to
continue a family tradition by failing to place in the money. We
were both stuffed from lunch so we decided to get a sandwich at the
Gold Rush (ACG). One look at what is jokingly referred to as their
restaurant and we made an abrupt U-turn and headed for the Fiesta-
Henderson. We ended up spliting a very good club sandwich at the
Baja Café using my Amigo points. Rating: 3 Forks.
Day 6 Ms. Westie drove over to the Palms for a Swedish massage
(POV) while I read and napped. Prior to dinner, we stopped in at
Casino MonteLago for a session of VP and (2) free drinks (ACG).
Dinner was at Cool Place Cuba Café (E) on Tropicana where we both
enjoyed the mango salmon entrée serve with an interesting veggie rice
and delicious cole slaw. http://www.usmenuguide.com/cubacafemenu.html
Rating: 4 Forks.
This evening's entertainment was Mama Mia. There has been much
deserved praise of this show both in the Review Journal and the
various discussion boards. This was one of the best shows we have
seen in Las Vegas. Kudos to GVRBill for posting a discount code on
the LV Talk Board. Rating: westie 4.5 Claps, Ms. Westie 5 Claps.
Day 7 - After breakfast and several laps around the Gold Coast, we
headed to the Green Valley Ranch Library in order to check our junk
mail. Ms. Westie won this contest with 583 pieces of garbage.
In the evening we stopped in CML for a little VP and drinks (ACG)
before driving to Viaggio (R.com) for dinner.
http://www.viaggiorestaurant.com/html/dinner.shtml
The restaurant is ideally situated on a hill overlooking the Las
Vegas Valley. We split an excellent spinach and beet salad that
included goat cheese in a rasberry-cabernet vinagarette. Ms. Westie
chose the highly touted fresh snow crab ravioli entrée while I
settled on frutti de mare. Service complemented the view and food.
Rating: 4.5 Forks.
Day 8 - I can tell the mid-point of our vacation has been reached
because the cupboard is bare time to visit our friendly wash and
fold laundromat. After dropping our clothes off, we drove to the
Tuscany to purchase tickets to the Performing As Live show. We were
advised at the slot booth/box office that a) the box office was
closed and would not reopen until 4PM, b) there was no longer a
9:30PM show, and c) the complimentary passes I purchased on Ebay may
no longer be valid Ooch! Later that night we successfully picked
up both our laundry and show tickets.
Dinner was at an old favorite, the Blue Agave (POV) in the Palms.
Ms. Westie settled on the king crab pan roast while I decided to try
the gumbo. She had one Margarita, I had two. Her entree was
excellent, mine mediocre. She was happy, I was very HAPPY. Rating:
4 Forks by Ms. Westie, 2.5 Forks by me.
We rushed over to the Tuscany in order to stake out a place in line
for the "Performing as Live: Sinatra/ Streisand" show. Not a
problem the room is basically a lounge and there wasn't much of a
line. We ended up seated in the center about 10 feet from the stage.
This is a very small, but wonderful show featuring several duets and
a bit of comedy. The Streisand impersonator was fantastic. Rating:
3.5 Claps.
After the show we walked over to the Piazzia Lounge in order to
listen to the funky Kurtis Maye. Wednesday night was free drinks for
the ladies until 10PM so there were several hotties from a nearby
nursing home. Rating: 2.5 Claps.
Day 9 - After breakfast we drove to the Fashion Show Mall to purchase
tickets for that evening's Gladys Knight performance. The listing of
available tickets was posted around 11:25AM and I was first in the
VIP line courtesy of an online coupon.
Lunch was at El Coqui (E), a small Puerto Rican restaurant located in
a small shopping center at 2210 Paradise Road.
http://www.usmenuguide.com/elcoquimenu.html
We each had a cup, more like a bowl, of delicious chicken noodle
soup. This wasn't Campbell's, but the real deal with large chunks of
chicken still on the bone. Rating: 3.5 Forks.
A note to anyone who has frequented the highly regarded India Oven on
Sahara, be advised that the owners have lost their lease and will be
re-opening in this shopping center in the not too distant future.
Dinner this evening was at India Palace (E), 505 Twain Avenue.
http://www.usmenuguide.com/indiapalacemenu.html
We arrived at about 6PM to find the parking lot almost full due to a
birthday celebration by a large group of Red Hats. I became
concerned we would be late for our show because of a back up in the
kitchen, but we were able to place our orders first. We split orders
of chicken tika marsala, chicken korma, naan and basmati rice. The
chicken was extremely tender and everything was delicious as usual.
Rating: 4.5 Forks.
We then rushed over to the Barbary Coast in order to park and then
walked to the Flamingo to attend the Gladys Knight show. This lady
has a wondeful stage presence as she skillfully takes the audience on
a musical journey through her career. Four talented singers and an
excellent band back her up with brother Bubba providing the comedic
relief. The 1.5 hours flew by and we were left wanting more. Rating
4.5 Claps.
Still on a high from the show, we walked over to Harrahs to catch the
first set of Dueling Pianos. The twins are cute, but I thought the
quality of the music improved when the male third of the show
performed.
http://www.vegas4locals.com/freeduelingpianos.html Rating: 2 Claps.
Day 10 - After suffering through another bout of indigestion courtesy
of Gardunos' Express, I promised myself I would immediately destroy
any and all coupons for this meal that I receive in the future.
Rating: 0.5 Forks.
We had a couple of before dinner drinks (ACG) at Casino MonteLago and
then drove over to the nearby Mira Lago (R.com) where we had
reservations for 7PM. This beautiful restaurant in the Reflection Bay
Golf Club, Lake Las Vegas overlooks the water and golf course.
Reservations were hardly required, as there were only 6 other
patrons, on this stormy Friday night. We each chose the macadamia-
crusted sea bass in lobster sauce entrée that was served over garlic
mashed potatoes and accompanied by baby vegetables. The wait staff
was quite friendly and competent. Rating: 4.5 Forks
Day 11 - After breakfast we decided to do a little shopping at
the Las Vegas Premium Outlets. Ms. Westie returned home with a new
bag and a belt, I arrived with blisters. Dinner this evening was at
the Hawaiian Plantation (E), 10940 South Eastern, Henderson. We
split an coconut shrimp appetizer and each ordered the kona crab
filled salmon katsu that shared the plate with a very large salad.
Refer to review for a complete description.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2002/Aug-09-Fri-
2002/weekly/19280699.html
Rating; 4 Forks.
We rolled out of the restaurant and proceeded to the Westin for the
Forbidden Vegas Las Vegas show. This is a cabaret show with only
four actors and a piano player. We were seated in the fourth row
center. Unfortunately for us an understudy assumed the roles
played by regular cast member Michael West. The show involves many
song parodies, frequent costume changes and lots of good-natured
fun. I felt the spoofs of Celine, Rita, Sarah Brightman and Cirque
du Soleil (can you sing YMCA?) were hilarious. Rating: 4 Claps.
Day 12 - The end of this trip is in sight and I realized how many
items remain on my To Do list (reason to return ASAP). This is our
day to move from Sam's to a recently renovated room at the Fiesta-
Henderson.
Dinner this evening was at the Blackjack Lodge (R.com), 6200 South
Rainbow Blvd.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Oct-15-Fri-
2004/weekly/24970590.html\
We again allowed Heidi to lead the way as we shared the crab cake
appetizer with roasted jalapeno aioli and a full rack of St. Louis
spare ribs. The meat on these beauties was both bountiful and
tender. Rating: 3 Forks.
After a short drive, we arrived at the Suncoast for the Air Supply
show. I barely remembered this 80's Australian soft rock group, but
we found their music and show to be thoroughly entertaining, if not a
bit too sweet. Rating: Ms. Westie 4 Claps, westie 3.5 Claps.
Day 13 - We decided to get a little fresh air and exercise after
breakfast so we walked the one mile trail in Sunset Park. The town
has established runs for both small and large dogs so we took this an
opportunity to share some love with a few of the local canine
residents.
We drove Downtown in the late afternoon in order to catch Bobby
Ruffin's Tribute to the Drifters (LVA) at Fitzgerald's. The free
ticket came with a free drink. I wisely chose a bottled beer. Ms.
Westie was served a merlot that was a notch down from the awful wine
they serve at Ellis Island. The show covered most of the Drifters'
hits and was quite a bit better than one would reasonably expect
given the venue and price. Rating: 2.5 Claps.
Our dinner reservations were at the Great Moments Room (E) in the
Vegas Club. This is an old style room with excellent service that is
sure to please most people. Entrees include choice of salad or soup,
a starch and veggies. Ms. Westie wisely chose the filet mignon. I
ordered the New York steak that must have been broiled and was not
very flavorful. We were not overly impressed by the oriental salad
with chicken.
Rating: Ms. Westie 3.5 Forks, westie 2 Forks.
Day 14 - One last visit to the library to check our email and a quick
circuit of Sunset Park concluded our morning's activities. Late in
the afternoon we drove over to Casino MonteLago to download our
accumulated cashback. While walking through the casino, I noticed
the Big East Women's Basketball championship game featuring our
beloved UCONN Huskies was being played on one of the overhead TV's.
I tried unsuccessfully to get Ms. Westie off the machines, but she
was displaying her Do Not Disturb sign. About 2 minutes after UCONN
finished off Rutgers for the title, Westie showed up and we
celebrated with a couple of Cosmos (ACG) before heading over to
Ventano Italian Corner & Oyster Bar (R.com).
This Henderson restaurant is beautifully situated overlooking the Las
Vegas Valley. We split our customary Caesar's salad, an order of
eggplant rollatini and a crème brulee.
http://www.usmenuguide.com/ventanomenu.html
Rating: 4 Forks.
Day 15 - I wake up thinking how does a two-week trip go by so fast?
After a quick breakfast at the Baja Café, we managed to squeeze in a
quick VP session before it is time to say sayanora to Las Vegas, the
warm weather and our money. On the way to Alamo's remote lot, I
refill the gas tank for the last time and pick-up a grilled chicken
breast sub at Subway for our flight home. This sub looked great as
it was being prepared, but it turned nasty 4 hours later when I
pulled it out of my backpack. Rating: 2 Forks (appearance 0.5
Forks).
Anyone who has stayed with me and read this entire condensed version
of War & Peace deserves, at a minimum, a Purple Heart and my
gratitude.