Tag Archives: Bellagio Hotel

Spago Restaurant in the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas

08/06/2018 Shirley

While I was on my business trip to a Deep Learning conference in Las Vegas last month I ate at the new Spago restaurant in the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas. (The Spago restaurant was in their soft opening when I ate there and they were officially opened on Thursday, June 7.)

The Spago restaurant is owned by the celebrity chef, Wolfgang Puck, who has many restaurants including five Spago restaurants (in Beverly Hills, Istanbul, Las Vegas, Maui, Singapore). The Spago restaurant in Las Vegas used to be at The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace, and it’s now re-opened in the Bellagio hotel in June.

The Spago restaurant serves California cuisine, which means it offers fresh ingredients and all-natural meats, and the food is prepared in different cooking styles.

The décor of the new Spago restaurant in the Bellagio is simple and yet has a modernized look and feel. It is located by the Fountains of Bellagio. If you sit at their patio, you will get the close-up view of the fountain show every 30 minutes.

During this Las Vegas trip, I ate at Spago twice; dinner with colleagues on Monday and lunch with a friend on Tuesday. I guess this shows how much I enjoyed their food!

For dinner, my two colleagues and I sat at the patio. We shared Smoked Salmon Pizza, Sweet Corn Agnolotti, Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms, English Pea Soup, Seared Alaskan Halibut, Grilled Prime New York Steak, and Roasted Colorado Lamb Rack. Each dish was delicious. After a day of work, a couple of Dirty Martinis with Gray Goose Vodka, delicious food, and great company were just what I needed!

(Smoked Salmon Pizza)

(Seared Alaskan Halibut)

(Roasted Colorado Lamb Rack)

The next day, I met a friend for lunch and we went to Spago. The menu for lunch is slightly different than previous night’s dinner, but I was glad that they offered the same Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms as the previous night. This pasta dish brings out the best flavor of mushrooms, and it has became my new favorite at the Spago restaurant.

(Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms)

For lunch at the Spago, my friend and I shared Half-Dozen Kusshi & Beausoliel Oysters, Caesar Salad, Tuna Tartare (served in Sesame-Miso cones), Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms, and Grilled Double R Ranch Filet Mignon. We also had assorted treats for dessert.

(Half-Dozen Kusshi & Beausoliel Oysters)

(Tuna Tartare – served in Sesame-Miso cones)

(Grilled Double R Ranch Filet Mignon)

My overall experience at the Spago restaurant in the Bellagio hotel was great! The service on both visits at the restaurant was equally great. I like the fact that they are open for lunch while most fine dinning restaurants at the Bellagio hotel don’t open until dinner.

Next time you visit the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas and are looking for a place for dinning, I recommend that you try the Spago restaurant!

(Desserts)

The featured image of the Spago Restaurant’s patio was from the restaurant’s Web site.)

All Posts, Food, Travel

The Picasso Restaurant at the Bellagio Hotel In Las Vegas

05/25/2017 Shirley

The first fine dinning experience I had in Las Vegas was at the Picasso restaurant (French cuisine) in the Bellagio hotel, back in year 2005. I was there celebrating our best friend’s engagement. My memory of the restaurant was upscale decoration, fancy food, and great wine!

It has been a long time since my last visit to the Picasso restaurant, because there were too many great restaurant options on the Vegas Strip, and the Picasso restaurant was closed sometime during last year for renovation. But I finally had the chance to eat there during my recent trip to Las Vegas!

As I walked into the Picasso restaurant by the award-winning chief, Julian Serrano, I recognized the newly renovated interior. It looked different than what I remembered, but the restaurant was still unique and colorful. And the Picasso paintings were all over the walls just as they used to be.

I’ve dined at most restaurants in the Bellagio property many times, such as the Prime Steakhouse, Le Cirque, and Todd English’s Olives. I’ve also sat at the tables right by the window, where I could enjoy the closer view of the Fountain of Bellagio. But for this time at Picasso, we preferred to sit at the table a slightly away from the window, so I could sat back and get a bigger view of the fountain via the window frames throughout the night.

My friend and I ordered the prix fixe menu ($118 per person). We got to choose from the menu for each part of the three-course meal and a dessert in the end.

I ordered Poached Oysters, Roasted Langoustine, Roasted Milk-Fed Veal Chop. And my friend ordered Crème of Butternut Squash, Sautéed Filet of Scottish Salmon, and Sautéed Filet of Black Bass. (The pictures are presented below in the order of the list.)

Poached Oysters

Roasted Langoustine

Roasted Milk-fed Veal Chop

Crème of Butternut Squash

Sautéed Filet of Scottish Salmon

Sautéed Filet of Black Bass

My friend and I were craving for different food on the night we went to Picasso (as you could tell from the items we ordered). But all of our dishes were delicious.

I love to sample a variety of foods. I was very satisfied with my choices. The Poached Oysters (garnished with Osetra Cariar) were slightly warmer than the regular chilled oysters, but they were delicious.

The Roasted Langoustine was prepared exactly to my liking. The other restaurant that makes a great langoustine is Joel Robuchon in MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. And the Roasted Milk-Fed Veal Chop is the perfect main course. It was tender and flavorful.

I tried a bit of my friend’s dishes; they were also very tasty.

I’d say no fancy meal is completed without a nice drink. I ordered a Hemingway Daiquiri cocktail drink. It is made of Bacardi Light, Luxardo Maraschino Cherries, Fresh Grapefruit Juice, and Fresh Lime Juice. The drink tasted different than other Hemingway Daiquiris I’ve had in the past, but it was definitely very good.

Hemingway Daiquiri

After we finished our delicious three-course meal, we were pretty stuffed. When it came to ordering the desserts in the end, I got to make the choices for both of us, because my friend wasn’t as into desserts and I was.

For desserts, we ordered Chocolate Bread Pudding and Pineapple Tart. My friend only had a few bites of each dessert, and I basically ate all of the them. (When it comes to desserts, I just couldn’t resist the temptation of the delicious sweets sitting right in front of me! )

Chocolate Bread Pudding

Pineapple Tart

Our overall experience of the Picasso restaurant in the Bellagio hotel was great! The services was outstanding, food was unique, and the ambience was perfect.

I’d say for a fancy restaurant like the Picasso in the Bellagio Hotel, the price we paid for our meal was well spent.

All Posts, Food, Travel

Harvest by Roy Ellamar Restaurant at Bellagio Las Vegas

03/24/2017 Shirley

Last year July, I ate at the Harvest by Roy Ellamar restaurant in the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. The Harvest by Roy Ellamar restaurant was the new additional to the Bellagio property. It replaced the Sensi restaurant (Italian, Asian, American and Seafood fusion), at the location by the Bellagio Spa Tower.

It has been too long since I dined at the Sensi restaurant (in Year 2009), so my memory of the dinning experience at the restaurant is limited to good service and some pictures of my meal. It was good, but wasn’t good enough for me to have the urge to go back there again.

During my first visit to the new Harvest by Roy Ellamar restaurants in July 2016, my friend and I shared a bone-in ribeye steak and pork chop for the main entre, crushed potatoes, creamed spinach, and sautéed spinach for side dishes.

(Picture of the Bone-in Ribeye steak)

(Picture of the Pork Chop)

(Picture of the Sides: Crushed Potatoes, Creamed Spinach, and Sautéed Spinach)

The sautéed spinach wasn’t on the menu. But my friend and I were craving for it, so we asked our waiter to put in a special request for it.

And as always, our craving was much bigger than the amount we could actually eat! I walked into the Harvest by Roy Ellamar restaurant with an open mind for trying the new restaurant and ended up with a fully satisfied tummy. The food and the service at the Harvest by Roy Ellamar were great! Especially the bone-in ribeye steak we had.

During the past holiday season, I came across the picture of the ribeye steak I ate at the Harvest by Roy Ellamar restaurant, and it made me crave for the same ribeye steak I had.

A few months later, I finally got the chance to go back to the Harvest by Roy Ellamar restaurant. My friend and I shared the bone-in ribeye I’d been longing for and the Harvest rotisserie chicken. We limited our sides to just crushed potatoes and brussels sprouts. (We learned our lesson from last time; three sides was too much!)

(Picture of the Harvest Rotisserie Chicken)

(Picture of the Brussels Sprouts)

My second dinning experience at Harvest by Roy Ellamar was as great as the first one! The bone-in ribeye steak tasted even better than I remembered (given that it was very good on my first visit already). The Rotisserie Chicken was surprisingly flavorful and tender. Both the crushed potatoes and the brussels sprouts complemented the ribeye steak and the rotisserie chicken perfectly.

I have to say the two dinning experience at Harvest by Roy Ellamar were equally great! I will definitely include this restaurant in my Top Ten Restaurants in Las Vegas Strip list!

All Posts, Holidays, Travel

I Love the Bellagio Conservatory!

08/19/2016 Shirley

I enjoy going to Las Vegas. The restaurants, the shows, and people watching are the best in the world.

One of my top three properties in Las Vegas is the Bellagio Hotel. I stayed at the Bellagio recently. The Bellagio has several world-famous areas, including the Fountains, the registration ceiling glass sculptures, and the Conservatory.

The Conservatory is amazing. There are flowers and plants and displays that will astound you. The Conservatory does a major change-over about every 10 weeks or so, to correspond to the season (Christmas, Chinese New Year, Spring/Easter, etc.)

When I stayed at the Bellagio, the Conservatory had a sea-theme. I loved the huge jellyfish hanging from the ceiling but my favorite thing was the sea turtle. Vegas — an incredibly amazing place.

All Posts, Food, Travel

Le Cirque Restaurant at Bellagio Las Vegas

08/16/2016 Shirley

I was in Las Vegas recently, staying at the Bellagio Hotel. It’s one of my top three favorite resorts in Vegas.

One night during my stay, I decided to eat at Le Cirque restaurant with a friend who had never eaten there.

Before I go on, let me say that the Bellagio, for many years, had two restaurants right next to each other — Le Cirque and Circo. Many people, including me, would confuse these two restaurants because their names were so similar (and owned by the same family).

Anyway, after 15 years, Circo closed down in late 2014 and was replaced by a new restaurant “Lago” by chef Julian Serrano. Circo was an Italian – Mediterranean style place. Le Cirque is more French inspired.

So, one evening I ate at Le Cirque with my fried. The restaurant was very fancy. The experience was every bit as excellent as the last time I was there with a gang of girlfriends, the last time I ate there.

If you’re ever in Vegas, Le Cirque at Bellagio should be on your list of places to consider if you’re in the mood for a very fancy dinner!

All Posts, Food, Travel

The Prime Steakhouse Restaurant at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas

03/25/2015 Shirley 1 Comment

Las Vegas has incredible restaurants — many are world-class. On a recent trip to Las Vegas, I stayed at the Bellagio Hotel and ate dinner at their Prime Steakhouse restaurant.

The Prime is notable because it faces the large manmade lake in front of the hotel, and while dining you can watch the world famous Fountains of Bellagio water and light show.

I had an early reservation at 5:00 just at opening time. My friend and I had a table for two in a great location to see the water show. Before dinner I had a glass of red wine. It may sound silly, but many Las Vegas restaurants have amazing bread and butter before dinner. I forced myself to only eat a little bit of bread and butter because I knew the serving sizes at Las Vegas restaurants are huge.

My friend and I decided to share. We ordered a 28 oz. bone-in rib eye steak, medium rare, and Chilean sea bass. For side dishes we had Brussel sprouts with bacon and pear, and mashed potatoes.

PrimeDinner — Restaurant server cutting our Bone-in Rib Eye

Everything was amazing as I had expected for a famous restaurant. What surprised me a little bit was how good the Brussel sprouts were — I could have made an entire meal of just them and the mashed potatoes.

We saw the water show several times during out meal. Even though I’ve seen the Bellagio Fountain Show many times, it was still amazing.

PrimeWaterShow — The view of the Fountains of Bellagio by our window seats.

For dessert, we ordered coconut soufflé, served with chocolate gelato. Just like everything else, dessert was incredibly good.

Our total bill was just over $300. Sure, that’s a lot of money, but in my mind the dinner and view and service were well worth the price. If you’re ever in Las Vegas, be sure to consider the Prime Steakhouse at Bellagio.

PrimeInterior — Chandelier inside of the Prime Steakhouse Restaurant

Sauces: Peppercorn, Béarnaise, and Soy-rice Wine

All Posts, Holidays, Travel

2015 Chinese New Year’s in Las Vegas

03/02/2015 Shirley

I went to Las Vegas in February 2015 with three of my Chinese friends during the two weeks of Chinese New Year’s celebration. One my friends and I stayed at the Aria Hotel. The other two girls stayed at a different hotel.

I’ve been to Vegas many times, but not too often during Chinese New Year’s. I noticed that most of the nicer Vegas hotels had Chinese themed decor. But other Las Vegas hotels, like the Excalibur and the Luxor, did not have any Chinese themed decorations.

This fact reinforced the idea that there’s a somewhat clear distinction between the very best hotels in Las Vegas — those that adapt to different seasons — and those non-elite hotels that more or less remain static all throughout the year.

For example, at the nice Aria and the Wynn hotels, I saw many red lanterns and Chinese dragon decorations. And at the Bellagio, MGM Grand, and Encore resorts, I saw decorations for the ram animal, because this is the Chinese year of the ram.

Also, at the Aria (even though I didn’t get to take a photograph), I noticed that the employee name badges they wore had their name in English plus the Chinese characters for the ram animal.

I have no major conclusion, but if you’re going to Las Vegas, in my opinion, it’s worth it to spend a little bit more to stay at a top end hotel (Wynn, Encore, Bellagio, Venetian, Palazzo, and Aria) and get a lot of extras that can make your visit more special.

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My Favorite Regular Las Vegas Hotels

08/26/2014 Shirley

Some time ago I posted a blog that describes my favorite upscale / luxury suites in Las Vegas. But I don’t always get to stay in upscale rooms; I sometime stay in what I’ll call ordinary hotel rooms (even though Las Vegas is far from ordinary).

So, here are my current top 10 places to stay in Las Vegas, assuming I’m not going to stay at a luxury suite of some sort.

Encore – I love the Encore Hotel. It’s at the north end of the Strip which means I can’t walk to a lot of venues, but other than that, Encore is just about perfect. It’s hard to describe, but the Encore just feels right. The prices here are a bit higher than most hotels, but well worth it in my opinion.
Wynn – The Wynn and the Encore are practically the same — the two hotels are connected and many times are referred to as Wynn/Encore collectively. I love the Wynn, especially the restaurants, which I think, as a group, are the best of any hotel in Vegas.
Bellagio – The Bellagio has a different feel than the Wynn and Encore — it’s hard to describe, but the Bellagio is a bit more conservative in some ways, mostly the décor I think. I’ve noticed that staying at the Bellagio either before or after staying at the Wynn/Encore makes the experience at all three hotels seem even better.
Palazzo – The Palazzo has great rooms — essentially all suites. And the Palazzo is directly connected to the Venetian which has a lot of great restaurants and shopping.
Aria – The Aria doesn’t seem to have one characteristic that makes it really stand out, but the property is good in a lot of ways. Nice location near the center of the Strip, nice rooms, good restaurants, and one of my all-time favorite bakeries (Jean Philippe).
The Venetian – Every time I stay at the Venetian I recall one of my all-time favorite shows, The Phantom of the Opera. I like the rooms at the Venetian (all 700+ square feet), and the shopping arcade with restaurants by the indoor canal.
Cosmopolitan – The Cosmopolitan is a nice hotel, but clearly a notch below the hotels I’ve listed above. The Cosmopolitan tries a bit too hard to be trendy, but it’s still a good hotel, and much better than older properties like the Luxor and the Tropicana.
The MGM Grand – the MGM is maybe one of the best values in Vegas. On the downside, MGM is near the very south end of the Strip which makes it impractical to walk to many other places. But the MGM has a lot going for it, and I’ve often stayed there.
Mandalay Bay – The Mandalay Bay is a good hotel, but not in the same league with my top five Vegas hotels. Mandalay has good (but not great) restaurants, good (but not great rooms), good (but not great) service, and so on.

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My Choice of the Song for the Fountains of Bellagio

01/31/2014 Shirley 1 Comment

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Michael Mina Restaurant at Bellagio in Vegas

11/02/2012 Shirley

During my most recent trip to Las Vegas, I ate dinner at Michael Mina (MM) in the Bellagio Hotel. Michael Mina is classified as an “innovative seafood” restaurant. Overall, the meal and experience were fantastic, and when I update my list of Top Ten Restaurants in Vegas, I’m certain that Michael Mina will bump an existing restaurant off and join the list.

The entrance to MM is near the Bellagio’s famous conservatory which is a must-see if you’re anywhere near Bellagio. MM is what I’d call medium-size and the initial visual impression was very nice.

Our waiter, Paul, was excellent. Paul carefully answered all my questions about the menu items – there were lots of items that I had no idea what they were. I decided to order the chef’s tasting menu.

The meal started with tuna tartare. It was very different from others I’ve had; it had pine seeds, Asian pear, and sesame oil which gave the dish a unique taste. After the appetizer, I had Michael Mina’s house specialty lobster pot pie. It was delicious – very rich but the moderate portion was just right. My second main course was American Wagyu ribeye steak. The portion was small, about 3 ounces, but it complemented the pot pie perfectly. My dessert had three items: cheesecake with blueberries, passion fruit panna cotta, a mini root beer float, and chocolate chip cookies.

I talked to the restaurant manager David, and complimented the service, food, and experience. He was very gracious and gave me his business card. I learned he has been promoted to the general manager of a MM restaurant in Dana Point, California.

Michael Mina was a bit pricey, but really only just a bit more than other fine restaurants in Las Vegas. I felt MM was a great value considering the entire experience. MM isn’t for everyone, but if you don’t mind paying a premium price for a premium meal, I recommend Michael Mina.

Michael Mina at Bellagio — Ahi Tuna Tartare at Michael Mina restaurant

Shirley Style

Tag Archives: Bellagio Hotel

Spago Restaurant in the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas

The Picasso Restaurant at the Bellagio Hotel In Las Vegas

Harvest by Roy Ellamar Restaurant at Bellagio Las Vegas

I Love the Bellagio Conservatory!

Le Cirque Restaurant at Bellagio Las Vegas

The Prime Steakhouse Restaurant at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas

2015 Chinese New Year’s in Las Vegas

My Favorite Regular Las Vegas Hotels

My Choice of the Song for the Fountains of Bellagio

Michael Mina Restaurant at Bellagio in Vegas

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