28Jun / 2024

Carversteak – Las Vegas, Nevada

Final dinner and final post for Las Vegas. It has been nice salivating for the last two weeks but I am pretty pau with these posts already. This last one is a doozy, PLENTY food as you’re come accustomed to. Oh man, this wrapped up a week of just eating everything. Carversteak was a recommendation from Chan’s colleague and it was a great pick!

Everything Spiced Brioche | $6.00
with blue cheese

Oops, I thought this was complimentary. It’s listed on the menu so I guess not. It was a dang good brioche and yes, you can definitely taste the blue cheese in the bread. Nice butter with sprinkles of salt too. NICE.

Jumbo Prawn Cocktail | $32.00
espelette dijonnaise, horseradish cocktail sauce

When they said jumbo, they weren’t kidding. I love shrimp or prawn cocktail and this was delicious. Yummy!

Korean Glazed Pork Belly | $24.00
pickled mustard seed, scallion

Nice sweet gochujang type glaze, it worked really well. This was a nice starter.

Green Beans | $18.00
slivered almonds, lemon butter

We did not order this side dish and as they dropped it, I told them so that they could just take it back. The waiter told us it can be complimentary. That was very nice of him. The dish sucked (LOL), sorry I didn’t enjoy it.

Potato Gratin | $19.00
layered potato, parmesan cheese, chive

Asian person’s nightmare, look at all that dairy! Tasted good though. I usually prefer a mash with my steak.

Roasted Mushrooms | $19.00
madeira, parsley

Good, not memorable.

Asparagus | $22.00
simply roasted, lemon, olive oil

Haha I just remembered thinking, how come my asparagus is naked lol. Like why did they peel it. It was fine, nice and tender.

Beer-Battered Onion Rings | $15.00
smoked chipotle aioli

Nice and crispy. It was enjoyed by the table!

Striploin (14 oz) | $77.00
wet aged 21 days / creekstone farm

Filet Mignon (8 oz) | $72.00
Add Black Truffle Butter | $6.00
allen brothers / chicago

I can only really comment on my steak and here it is! I got it rare and it was good. They cook it right and it was melt the mouth tender. I don’t think I need to add any truffle butter next time.

Rib Cap (8 oz) | $88.00
Add Black Truffle Butter | $6.00
snake river farms / eastern idaho

Chan was told to order the rib cap, I never heard of that cut before. Chan enjoyed it a lot!

Assorted Sorbet | $10.00
mango/passionfruit and yuzu/lime

Cheesecake | $14.00
strawberry gelee, graham sable, strawberry cremeux

I didn’t have room for dessert but I didn’t want Chan to eat dessert alone (lol, I know you’re thinking that’s an excuse). It was a nice tasting dessert but seriously I couldn’t eat more than a bite. We had a lot of leftovers from this dinner.

I’ve been to Vegas a handful of times and I think this was my favorite visit yet. I had a really good time, my only complaint was of course the hot weather. Just gotta go when it’s not summer time and it would be perfect. Thank you Vegas, see you next time!

Post Views: 810

Permalink 6 Comments

26Jun / 2024

IKEA – Las Vegas, Nevada

Yup.

Swedish Meatballs Plate (12 pcs) | $9.99
Served with Mashed Potatoes and Lingonberry Jam

Classic. Can’t go wrong. I’m wondering if I can ask for the mixed vegetables next time because I am not a fan of the peas.

Garlic Lemon Cod | $8.99
Served with sustainably-sourced lemon garlic cod, served with mashed potatoes

If they had fish and chips, I would have gone that route. They didn’t so I tried this. I liked it! Nice seasoning and nice piece of fish.

French Fries | $2.49

Ah, just whatever. Not good not bad.

Strawberry Shortcake | $3.29

They didn’t have their chocolate cake slice. 🙁 So this is what I had to settle for. I was already full so I didn’t enjoy this cake as much as I would have liked. Was good and not dry!

Post Views: 501

Permalink 4 Comments

24Jun / 2024

Trader Joe’s Haul – Las Vegas, Nevada

A trip to the mainland and mean one thing and one thing only. Okay, one of two things. A must is always Trader Joe’s. Just gotta. Gotta get your own snacks and of course omiyage to bring home. On our second shopping trip, the cashier knew we were from Hawaii without even asking. Haha! Their mini cooler bags also came out while we were in Vegas but there was no way we were going to get one. The cashier told me they were sold out within minutes of opening – that’s crazy. I don’t need a mini cooler bag.

Anyway, since our hotel had a kitchenette, we bought some frozen foods to try! Yay, I finally get to try their ready made foods!

Butter Chicken with Basmati Rice | $4.49

Love me a good butter chicken and love basmati rice! Chan’s friend told us this one was good so we tried it! I am happy to report that it was good!

Steamed Pork & Ginger Soup Dumplings | $3.49

Ehhh, wouldn’t get this again. This was exactly like the ones they sell here in Costco. Is it the bibigo brand? Exactly the same only this one doesn’t even come with the sauce on the side. Boo. Tastes fine but nothing special.

Kimbap | $3.99

Biggest bummer of the haul. I mean I knew it wouldn’t be good as fresh, how could it be right? Well, I followed instructions on how to heat it up and it was just awful. The rice was super hard and the taste wasn’t even good. What a bummer. No buy this. Just go to the Korean market and get the fresh ones! The one I got from Longs here was better.

Longs had this Japchae frozen kimbap on sale the other week for like $5.99 I think, it was pretty good to me! And heated up nicely so the roll was nice and soft. Still, I would just go to the Korean market to get fresh rolls. Glad to have tried, wouldn’t get it again.

Post Views: 608

Permalink 8 Comments

21Jun / 2024

Hell’s Kitchen – Las Vegas, Nevada

Always hear about how good Hell’s Kitchen is so I am happy to report that I finally got to try it. And I’ve always wanted to try beef wellington and sticky toffee pudding so where better to go?? It was hot as heck this day. I feel like I am burning just looking at this picture.

Hell’s Red Infusion (mocktail) | $12.95
apple, strawberry, rhubard puree, simple syrup, fever-tree ginger beer

This drink was as good as it sounds. I loved it! And I don’t know if you can see but the skewer holding the strawberries – what is that called? A devil’s staff? It was pretty cool.

Steak Tartare | $26.95
piedmontese beef, dijon mustard aioli, black truffle caviar, sous vide egg yolk

The steak tartare was delicious. The big pringle chips went well with it (lol)!

Lobster Risotto | $33.95
butter poached lobster tail, truffle risotto, crispy onions

This was Bryson’s dish but he shared a bit with us and it was delicious! Yum!

Pan Seared Scallops | $30.95
english pea puree, bacon lardons, pickled fennel, chicken jus

The scallops were cooked and seasoned well but I am not a big fan of pea purees. I am listing the ala carte prices but we actually ordered the HK Signature prix fixe menu so it was three courses for $105.95.

Beef Wellington | $73.95
potato puree, glazed root vegetables, red wine demi-glace

Look at how perfectly that meat is cooked. It was perfection. The meat is perfectly red and rare and tender encased in a buttery flaky pastry. I get the hype. And the mash potatoes? SO GOOD.

Sticky Toffee Pudding | $15.95
speculoos ice cream

OH-MY-GOD. I’ve seen this dessert on many British cooking shows and finally got to try it. It is so incredibly bad for you. I just know it. There is no way this could ever be a health food. But did I ask for health food? No. So good. I absolutely loved our meal here and would definitely demand a return visit. They were also so quick bringing out the food but even as quick as they were, the food quality was amazing. Great restaurant!

Post Views: 688

Permalink 8 Comments

19Jun / 2024

Mott 32 – Las Vegas, Nevada

Mott 32 was one of the most highly anticipated meals for Vegas. Chan knows my love for Roast Duck so we made a reservation here. It’s quite pricey and if you order the duck, you have to put in the order in advance. The restaurant is very fancy – almost felt weird eating Chinese food in such a fancy place (lol).

Fancy accompaniments for the Roast Duck. They swirl the sauce at the table, it’s pretty cool! I believe that’s sesame paste and hoisin sauce, hoisin sauce and then brown sugar at the bottom.

Stonecutters (Mocktail) | $12.00
passion fruit / miso honey / lemon verbena / plum

Ehh, this drink was just alright. Sounds better than it tasted.

Traditional Iberico Pork Shanghainese Soup Dumplings | $14.00

A nice starter! Can’t go wrong with XLB…

Signature Crispy Sugar-Coated Charcoal Pork Buns | $16.00

Look at how fancy these are. And the name of the dish – wowowow. But can I say something? It was worth the hype, these were so good. The sugar crust on top balanced the pork filling so well. I really enjoyed this dish!

Look at the red filling, reminds me of home!

Barbecue Iberico Pork, Yellow Mountain Honey | $68.00
Each cut of pork comes from top-grade Iberian pigs that are raised on a diet of acorns, grass and herbs, giving the meat a soft and succulent quality that is further emphasised by the traditional roasting methods employed by our barbecue chefs. A light glaze of Yellow Mountain Honey is brushed over the pork to finish, adding a final sweet and rich touch.

Okay, no look at the price. Yes, it’s basically char siu. Was it good? How can it not be? It was delicious! This is a limited daily dish so you have to pre-order it. Super good but was it worth $68? Hmm…

Apple Wood Roasted Peking Duck “Mott 32 Cut” | $128.00
Mott 32 has carefully sourced and selected the best ducks to create the most flavorful and perfectly crispy duck. Our Signature 42 day Apple Wood Roasted Peking Duck is carved using a unique technique developed by our Culinary Team that locks in all the juices making it a true feast fit for royalty as it was intended. It is served tableside with freshly steamed pancakes, thinly sliced cucumber, scallions, raw cane sugar, and house-made special hoisin sauce; the juicy cucumber will allow a refreshing lift as you bite into the crispy, moist, and smoky duck skin.

I had to paste their own description of the duck so you folks can look past the price tag lol. It’s a beautiful duck. They carve it for you table side and you get all the nice crackly skin and the tender meat morsels.

Freshly Steamed Pancakes

Duck Skin sprinked with Brown Sugar

No worries, it was much more than this plate. They just sliced off the best of the skin for us to make our peking buns with.

Minced Duck Fried Rice | $28.00

You also have the option for them to create a second course with the rest of the duck meat. Either a peking style spicy crispy duck rack or fried rice. We went with the fried rice. I’m not sure what the first style would be. The carcass deep fried? I don’t know. But this was good because it served as the carb for our meal.

Wok-fried Snow Pea Tips | $32.00
with minced garlic

Whew everything is expensive here. But snow pea tips are hard to find which also explains the price tag. Needed some greens to balance our all the meat! Was good!

Mott 32 was a good experience. Our waitress was a bit pushy, the guys still had their alcohol glasses half full and she kept trying to push for another drink. That soured the experience for us a little bit. Mott 32 is an international brand so I’m excited to try this place in Asia! I find that restaurant in Asia tend to be better. Yummy! For now, I am content with getting my roast duck and char siu fix from Chinatown.

Post Views: 711

Permalink 6 Comments

17Jun / 2024

Shang Artisan Noodle – Las Vegas, Nevada

Wanna hear a funny story? Well it’s kind of funny. I came to Vegas back in 2022 and went to a little Thai restaurant in this strip mall. It was right next to Shang Artisan Noodle but we ate at the Thai restaurant instead. Shang has since expanded into the Thai restaurant’s lot. It was funny because as we pulled into this lot, I kept saying how familiar this place looked. Crazy stuff huh? Chan said they have the best beef noodle soup so of course we had to come. And of course, I end up ordering something else. My noodles were good too but when I tasted Chan’s bowl, I knew I would have to get the beef noodle soup from here on out. They make their own noodles and the broth is so deep with flavor. No worries, we ended up going to Shang’s new location at the new Durango Casino and Resort at the end of our trip so I got my beef noodle soup!!!

Spicy Wonton | $8.97
pork wontons with spicy soy sauce, green onion

These spicy wontons were good! Look at them, they’re swimming in chili oil. It’s spicy! Take their word for it!!

Spicy Beef Dumpling | $9.25
minced beef, white onion, green onion, spicy soy sauce

Look at the fancy lace around the dumplings. Actually the lace for me is not needed. I do like my dumplings pan fried though. Sorry to folks who enjoy deep fried mandoo, it’s not my thing. These were good!

Shang Beef Noodle (Spicy) | $14.97
beef & chicken broth (brown), braised beef brisket, veggies, green onion

That is comfort in a bowl. And they make their noodles in house, I believe Chan gets this dish with their hand pulled noodles. Yum! As an FYI, the original location has three noodle options: hand pulled noodles, knife-shaved noodles and plain noodles. The Durango location only has two options – no plain noodles.

Dan Dan Noodle | $13.97
minced pork, preserved veggie, spicy soy sauce, green onion

Look at how I take care of you folks. I even did a noodle pull! I guess in the 100-something degree weather, I wasn’t really feeling like a big bowl of hot soup and noodles you know? So I opted for the cold noodle option – I got my dish with knife-cut noodles. Been on a knife-cut noodles kick. It was good! But once again, I would order the beef noodle soup the next time around. Actually what am I doing? Here’s what we got on our final visit lol…

My beef noodle bowl! Yum yum! Tasted great and the same at both locations!

Wonton Soup | $12.97
Add noodles | $3.00
pork & chicken broth (white), house-made wonton, egg, seaweed, green onion

Chan’s wonton noodle soup! He likes to eat a bit lighter on days of travel so this is his dish. He enjoyed it! I’m sure if we weren’t flying out that day, he would have gotten the beef noodle soup again!

Post Views: 588

Permalink 6 Comments

14Jun / 2024

Wakuda – Las Vegas, Nevada

Another night of gluttony and alcohol. Okay just gluttony for me! Tonight is Wakuda and the cuisine is fancy Japanese food, they are located at the Palazzo Lobby at The Venetian Resort!

Big Eye Tuna Sashimi Toast | $30.00
toasted bread, wasabi butter, shallots, avruga caviar

Great start to the meal! Can’t go wrong with tuna and caviar and butter and shallots…I mean come on!

King Salmon Nigiri | $13.00 (per piece, 2 pc minimum)

Good but expected, nothing special you know?

Tobanyaki Japanese Scallops | $30.00
garlic yuzu butter, japanese mushrooms

Oh yum, this was so good. The scallops were cooked perfect, so nice and tender. Give me a bowl of rice so I can pour this over…mm…

New Zealand Lamb | $55.00
mustard miso

Lamb lamb lamb! I love char-grilled lamb. They served these little red berries with the lamb. Gosh, we asked the waiter what they were and he told us and I forgot already! You’re supposed to eat the berry after the lamb to cleanse your pallet. They look like peppers but is more like…a crunchy tomato texture!

Grilled Octopus | $30.00
spicy sudachi vinaigrette, kabocha miso puree, squid ink tapioca cracker, seaweed, radish

Fancy looking dish! I did try a piece of octopus but I think I was too into the other dishes to truly savor this dish. Chan and Bryson enjoyed it!

Seabass Miso | $65.00
patagonian toothfish marinatede in original saikyo miso from kyoto

Yikes, a bit pricey. I just noticed! But was it good? Yes. I don’t know if you can tell but it was a pretty big piece of fish and it was cooked to perfection. Moist and it flaked beautifully.

Foie Gras | $45.00
cassis, sudachi puree

Very interesting dish! The purees help cut into the richeness of the foie gras. Yum!

Otoro / Supreme-Fat Tuna Belly | $28.00 (per piece, 2 pc minimum)

Meh. I’ve had better otoro elsewhere, I don’t think this was worth it.

Wagyu Gyoza | $35.00
spicy ponzu sauce

Wagyu gyoza! Okay sorry, it was good but I don’t think it was worth it. When something is made into gyoza filling, I don’t feel like super high quality meat should be used, you know? No can tell it was wagyu. Delicious but not worth it.

Nope, I didn’t double post the same picture. We got this dish twice and I ate two pieces from this order lol. I love lamb. It was so good!!

WAKUDA’s House Special | $14.00
soft-serve miso ice cream

Fancy yeah with the gold? I’m not a big fan of vanilla ice cream but I had to try their take on miso ice cream! It’s actually very good, a nice blend of miso and vanilla. If you enjoy a nice vanilla ice cream, get this!

Kakigori with Candy Floss | $25.00
kanazawa shaved ice, seasoned fruit puree, seasonal sorbet, milk syrup, citrus & berries

What a sight! Look at this cotton candy cloud on top of the shave ice. And the ice was supposedly from Japan? Ho da fancy! It was delicious too. I really enjoyed this dessert!!

Post Views: 726

Permalink 8 Comments

12Jun / 2024

Aloha Kitchen – Las Vegas, Nevada

Oh boy did this trip prove how Asian I am. I needed rice the morning after we landed. I wasn’t even 24 hours out of Hawaii yet. We did a water run at Target and I looked up a place to grab breakfast and found Aloha Kitchen. No regrets!!!

Longanisa and Spam Breakfast Platter | $16.29

Chan’s breakfast, two scoop rice and scrambled eggs. Kind of pricey for the plate but they actually give choke!

Portuguese Sausage & Longanisa Platter | $16.29

My platter! I wanted my pocho sausage. The sausage was just alright. I like to get my eggs over medium. Great portions! We had enough leftover for another day of breakfast. Thankfully our room had a little kitchenette!

Side Order Tater Tots | $5.29

LOL, what you want me to say. It’s like mini hash browns okay!

Kind of a double post, anytime I go mainland, I have to go Bambu! Since it closed down in Hawaii, I haven’t been able to get my number 10 dessert fix.

Almost forgot to take a picture, it is too hot outside to do anything so I took one in the car. Was it good? Uh, yeah! Should have got another one of these during the trip. Along with playing more games of craps!!!!

Post Views: 672

Permalink 7 Comments

10Jun / 2024

Sparrow + Wolf – Las Vegas, Nevada

I’m back and ready to post! Chan and I had a wonderful trip to Vegas, hung out with his friend Bryson and boy oh boy, cruising with two foodies made such a difference in our meals. We went all out during dinners and it’s some of the best food I ever had! I apologize that I do not partake in alcohol – I don’t have much to share on that end, but I will say they enjoyed their alcohol pairings. Sparrow + Wolf is a restaurant Chan tried before and that Bryson is a regular at so we had EXCELLENT service. The food, service and drinks were *chef’s kiss*. I would call their menu…neo-American and Asian fusion style? Didn’t have a single bad dish!

Sage Me From Myself (proofless) | $10.00
cold pressed blueberry, raspberry, pineapple, and fennel bulb

You will however get to check out all the non-alcoholic drinks I tried! I was told that they have like an $11,000 juicer in the kitchen which is why this drink is so so so good. He was right. I drank two of them. Yum!

Grass fed Beef Tartare | $22.00
grass fed beef tartare, confit egg yolk, grilled sourdough

All our orders were at the recommendation of our awesome server, we did no ordering on our own. They matched the foods perfectly to Chan and Bryson’s drinks. The foods all matched my tummy’s needs. 🙂 This dish looks interesting and not like your typical tartare, I was like, why they bringing out imitation crab salad? Haha! No worries, you mix it up and eat it with the bread and it is just really good beef tartare!

Kanpachi | $23.00
kanpachi tiradito blood orange aji amarillo, olive oil

Nice bite! Was it the most memorable dish of the night? Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t good! Blood orange with kanpachi, who would’ve thunk it?

Spring Onion Cappalletti | $28.00
ramps, calamansi, garlic flower, miso

OKAY YUM. It’s a really interesting dish, calamansi is a strong flavor of it but it also had a nice buttery miso taste to it. I can’t explain it! It was so good! Frothy pasta shell, sounds weird but tasted great!!

Bánh Cuốn | $20.00
ground duck, wood ear mushroom, habanero, coconut

Bánh Cuốn is vietnamese rice rolls. I would call this dish like Bánh Cuốn deconstructed, there were strips of rice paper around the dish with the “innards”, very soupy as you can see but delicious! And isn’t it pretty?

Black Pepper Honey Pork Secreto | $38.00
sweet potato banana puree, peanut nuoc cham

Another winners dish. Super tender slices of pork and wonderfully seasoned. I love vietnamese flavors in dishes so it was a winner!!!

Charred Brocollini | $16.00
green goddess, black garlic, fines herbes crumb

I don’t know if this is vegan or not but I assume it is and I would be dang happy to eat this as an entree if I was! I love brocollini so much and they charred it perfectly, great dish!

Kalbi Eye of Rib | $59.00
chili lobster gratin, thai basil, lime, garlic breadcrumb

HELLO. This was a great ender for the meal! Lobster and rib eye? No can go wrong brada! So good and cooked perfectly. By the way, all dishes are served family style.

Chocolate Ganache Torte | $12.00
pistachio gelato, toasted coconut

Nice little dessert to share at the end of the meal. Very rich chocolate ganache torte, maybe a bit much for me since we had choke food. I still helped myself to a few bites hehe. It was good especially if you love chocolate.

Post Views: 503

Permalink 6 Comments

02Nov / 2022

Las Vegas Eats Part #1 (April 2022)

Okay, these pictures are 6 months old. Sorry, a lot has happened since this trip. I don’t know what was up with me but I was sick for almost the entire trip. I got super air sick and just when I thought it was better, it flared up again the next day. It was such a bummer. I still tried to eat some good stuff while I was there. I also came home and tested positive for covid a day after I came home so I don’t know if I was going through it with Covid during the trip or…from the travel home. My constant travel companion that shared a room with me did not get covid so it was all very confusing.

This was my 3rd trip to Vegas and I did enjoy it despite the sickness. I think it is because I am older and wiser (debateable), anyway it was nice traveling again after a 2 year forced break. First stop after we landed? It was late night so we found a ramen joint that is open very late hours, Shokku Ramen. We ordered takeout to bring back to the room because the wait to eat in was too long.

Ichiraku | $24.20
traditional pork broth served with yellow noodles, pork chashu, soy-cured egg, bamboo shoots, naruto, nori & green onions

Not my dish, it was enjoyed but is that worth $25? I don’t know.

Large Chasu Fried Rice | $13.20
egg rice, seasoned and wok-fried with pork, imitation crab, green onions & ginger

Yeah, so I was still feeling kind of nauseous so I went for a comfort food. Fried rice. I thought it was alright, nothing to write home about (even though I am writing a blog about it)

Gyoza | $12.10
7 grilled japanese dumplings

Once again. Nothing special. It was probably made in-house which is nice but $12 for a few gyoza is not my idea of a good time. I am looking at their website and noticed their dining in menu is way cheaper than their take-out menu. That’s dirty.

Next place is Korean! Once again, wasn’t feeling great nor was I wanting anything to eat but I think when you’re sick, you should be hydrated and fed! So we ordered take-out from Seoul Tofu, they are old school so we had to do a phone order.

Seafood and Green Onion Pancake | $14.95

Really good! I wish I wasn’t sick so I could eat more of this.

Free Banchan!

I love how they packed this and I liked the sides they give! Sometimes banchan is my favorite part of the meal.

Bibimbap | $14.95

Ugh, I don’t know how much of a thing this is in all Korean restaurants but they had quite a bit of romaine lettuce in this. I did not like it. I don’t like romaine lettuce in my bibimbap. Other than that, this dish would have been good! Part 1 pau!

Post Views: 824

Permalink 4 Comments

maybeitsjenny

Tag Archives: Las Vegas

Carversteak – Las Vegas, Nevada

IKEA – Las Vegas, Nevada

Trader Joe’s Haul – Las Vegas, Nevada

Hell’s Kitchen – Las Vegas, Nevada

Mott 32 – Las Vegas, Nevada

Shang Artisan Noodle – Las Vegas, Nevada

Wakuda – Las Vegas, Nevada

Aloha Kitchen – Las Vegas, Nevada

Sparrow + Wolf – Las Vegas, Nevada

Las Vegas Eats Part #1 (April 2022)