Tag Archives: Las Vegas

All Posts, Holidays, Travel

2015 Chinese New Year’s in Las Vegas

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.

MGM Grand Lobby
MGM Grand Lobby

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.

Aria Lobby
Aria Lobby

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.

Aria Special Check-In
Aria Special Check-In
Ram for Chinese New Year
Ram for Chinese New Year

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.

BellagioConservatory

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.

Bellagio Conservatory Botanical Gardens
Bellagio Conservatory Botanical Gardens
All Posts, Food, Travel

Breakfast at the Tableau Restaurant in Las Vegas

Las Vegas has some of the best hotels and restaurants in the world. But I’ve always been sort of surprised that there aren’t too many super nice places to eat breakfast in Las Vegas. Las Vegas isn’t really much of an early-morning city.

There are plenty of places to eat breakfast in Vegas but most of them are either buffets or very casual cafe-style restaurants. Probably my favorite restaurant to eat breakfast at is the Tableau restaurant in the Wynn hotel. Tableau has a great menu, great service, and great ambience.

The menu has the basic breakfast items such as eggs with bacon or sausage, and pancakes. But Tableau also has some special items. I love Tableau’s orange and chocolate French toast. And the special Tableau breakfast potatoes are like little potato pancakes.

Tableau4

Breakfast at Tableau, Las Vegas

The presentation at Tableau is always just right. The jams come in elegant little ceramic containers, and there are cute little salt and pepper dispensers. The service at Tableau is a perfect balance of semi-formal and casual.

If you are a breakfast person, the next time you are in Las Vegas, consider making a reservation at the Tableau restaurant in the Wynn hotel.

For more restaurants in Las Vegas, read “Five of My Favorite Places for Breakfast in Vegas” and “Top Ten Restaurants in Las Vegas“

All Posts, Food, Travel

Pool Cabanas at the Aria Hotel

A few weeks ago I stayed at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas. It was the middle of summer time and the weather was hot. Very hot — about 95 degrees F. I decided I’d rent a poolside cabana for the day.

Hotel1

A Cabana at the Aria Hotel

I know it sounds kind of snobbish, but when I go to a pool at a Las Vegas hotel, I really don’t enjoy having to compete with other hotel guests for lounge chairs, towels, and good positions (meaning not too sunny or not too shady). Renting a pool cabana eases those minor annoyances.

Hotel2

View of Pool from Cabana

The price of Vegas pool cabanas varies daily, according to supply and demand. My cabana at the Aria was $200 for the day. That’s quite a bit of money, but, for me at least, it was a good value. I checked in at the cabana reception at 10:00 in the morning. My attendant, Sarah, had just graduated from Boise State.

The cabana had a TV, a refrigerator stocked with fruit, vegetables, soda pop, and bottled water, and chips, and licorice on the table — all included in the price of the cabana. I had a wonderful relaxing day at the Aria pool. The next time you visit Las Vegas, you might want to consider renting a poolside cabana.

All Posts, Travel

My Favorite Regular Las Vegas Hotels

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.

Wynn_Encore_Hotels

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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).

  7. 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.

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

Palazzo Hotel at Las Vegas
Palazzo Hotel at Las Vegas

 

 

All Posts, Travel

The Sky Suites at Aria Hotel in Las Vegas

Where did you stay the last time you went to Las Vegas? I go to Vegas quite often and have some favorite hotels. But I also enjoy trying new places. On a recent trip to Las Vegas, I stayed at the Sky Suites at Aria hotel.

Many hotels in Las Vegas has special sections, for example, MGM Grand has Skyloft suites and Wynn has Tower Suites. When I arrived in Las Vegas I had arranged to be picked up by the Sky Suites limo. The driver took me to a private entrance separate from the main Aria entrance. From there the doorman showed me to the private Sky Suites lobby area, where I checked in to the room.

Overall, I’d rate the Aria Sky Suites with eight out of ten. I especially liked the complimentary refreshments throughout the day; it was at least as good as any of the other special suites I stayed in Las Vegas. The hotel design and the décor was modern and sophisticated, but I slightly prefer the Wynn/Encore and Bellagio suites.

From a value point of view, the Aria Sky Suites offers slightly larger rooms and a slightly lower rate compared to my favorite specialty suites, the Wynn/Encore, MGM Skyloft, Bellagio suites, and the Palazzo. The Sky Suites at Aria are really nice, but the Tower Suites at Wynn/Encore are still my favorites. However, the next time you are in Las Vegas consider the Sky Suites at Aria.

Aria Sky Suites - One Bedroom Aria Suite
Aria Sky Suites – One Bedroom Aria Suite
Aria Sky Suites - Bedroom
Aria Sky Suites – Bedroom
Aria Sky Suites Private Lounge
Aria Sky Suites Private Lounge
Aria Sky Suites Complimentary Refreshments
Aria Sky Suites Complimentary Refreshments
All Posts, Food, Travel

Joel Robuchon at MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas

Image

Joel Robuchon is one of my favorite restaurants in Las Vegas. It is located inside the MGM Grand Hotel. The last time I was there I had one of their preconfigured four-course meals. The food was very good and the experience was great!

Before my meal began, the server pulled up a cart full of freshly baked bread for us to pick. There were about twenty options and each of them looked very tasty. I wished I could just sit there and sample the bread the entire night. I had to stop myself from eating the bread, so I could leave some room for my meal.

Each part of my four-course meal was delicious, but especially the grilled spiny lobster wrapped in buckwheat frill. The dish was cooked perfectly; the lobster was tender and full of taste. So was my beef cheeks braised with red miso and ginger.

My last course was Joel Robuchon’s famous Le Soufflé. It was a freshly baked chocolate soufflé. The server put it right in front of me and placed the ice cream on it. Although I was already beyond being full, the anticipation of watching the ice cream been absorbed by the hot soufflé raised my appetite again!

Just when I though I was done with my meal for the night, the server pulled up another cart. This time, instead of variety of baked bread, it was chocolates and sweets. I am a weak person when it comes to desserts and chocolates. It was hard for me to limit my option to five treats, but I had to.

After my first time eating at the Joel Robuchon in Las Vegas, I highly recommended it to anyone who is into food. Joel Robuchon is an upscale fancy restaurant. The food was delicious and the service was great. Although it was pricy (the four-course meal was $190 per person), the experience is priceless. After all, you are in Vegas, why not indulge yourself!

Joel Robuchon - Fresh Butter
Joel Robuchon – Fresh Butter

 

Joel Robuchon - Bread from the top of the cart
Joel Robuchon – Bread from the top of the cart
Joel Robuchon - Bread
Joel Robuchon – Bread
Joel Robuchon - La Langouste (girlled spiny lobsters)
Joel Robuchon – La Langouste (grilled spiny lobsters)
Joel Robuchon - Soup
Joel Robuchon – Soup
Joel Robuchon - Le Bceuf (beef cheeks braised with red miso and ginger)
Joel Robuchon – Le Bceuf (beef cheeks braised with red miso and ginger)
Joel Robuchon - Le Black Cod - semi smoked black code with eggplant puree
Joel Robuchon – Le Black Cod – semi smoked black code with eggplant puree
Joel Robuchon - Le Souffle - Chocolate Hot Souffle
Joel Robuchon – Le Souffle – Chocolate Hot Souffle
Joel Robuchon - Chocolate and Sweets
Joel Robuchon – Chocolate and Sweets

 

All Posts, Top Five

5 Things to Try This Month – July 2013

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Here are my top five things I would like to try this month.

Asian-inspired Fine Dining in Las Vegas

Andreas Restaurant at Encore, Las Vegas

Andrea’s restaurant in Las Vegas is the latest addition to the Encore hotel. I’ve been wanting to go there since they opened. It’s a trendy restaurant with steak, seafood, Chinese Dim Sum, and Japanese sushi.

Dream Interpretation Journey

It’s a unique kind of spa experience offered in QUA Baths & Spa at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. During the session, the trained dream coach will help you to better understand your dreams using Jungian archetypes (whatever that means!). For fun, I’d like to try it while I am in Las Vegas for my friend’s bachelorette party.

Pamper Your Skin with the Secret Oil

Kate Somerville’s Dilo Oil Restorative Treatment

Try Kate Somerville’s Dilo Oil Restorative Treatment,$65. Dilo oil is the common natural ingredient the native women on Fiji Island use to protect their skin from aging. Kate Somerville’s Dilo Oil Restorative Treatment combines dilo oil with other beneficial ingredients to improve skin hydration and firmness.

Reinvented Louis Vuitton Speedy 30

Louis Vuitton Speedy for Prefall 2013

Louis Vuitton has reinvented its iconic Speedy 30 with sequins on Damier canvas for Prefall 2013 – Damier Paillettes. The bag has already been launched and comes in three colors: red, blue, and black. The bag in black is my favorite.

Unlined Sexy Demi Bra for Summer

Victoria's Secret New Unlined Demi Bra

Victoria’s Secret launched new unlined demi bra for its “Body by Victoria” collection. The new bra is made of thin layer of lace. It’s sexy and perfect for summer weather. I have my eyes set on “Lilac Frost” and “Timeless Pink”.

All Posts, Food, Travel

Wolfgang Puck Pizzeria and Cucina in Vegas

Wolfgang Puck has several restaurants in Las Vegas, ranging from casual (Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill in the MGM Grand) to fine dining (Cut at the Palazzo). On my most recent trip to Vegas I ate at the Wolfgang Puck Pizzeria and Cucina located in the Crystals Shopping Center right next to the Aria Hotel. I’d classify WP Cucina as a mid-range restaurant, somewhere between casual and fine dining.

I was looking forward to ordering lasagna so I could compare it to other lasagnas I’ve had in Vegas. To be honest, the lasagna at WP Cucina was a mild disappointment. It wasn’t bad by all means but it clearly didn’t come close to the lasagnas I’ve had at Sinatra (Encore Hotel) or Allegro (Wynn). The WP Cucina lasagna’s cheese was a bit too mild and soft for my taste.

I also shared an Italian Sausage pizza with Rapini, Caramelized Garlic, and Pecorino Romano. The pecorino (sheep’s cheese) and rapini (a type of broccoli) gave the pizza a very different but good taste. And it is one of my traditions to always have at least one side order of meatballs every trip, so I ordered the Grilled Meatballs, Red Pepper-Olive Ragu, Pecorino Toscano. The meatballs’ taste was also different but interesting and good. My friend had Rigatoncini (pasta), Piedmontese Meat Sauce, Parmesan, which was the best dish of the evening, and Tuscan White Bean Soup, Prosciutto, Rigatoni Pasta, that was also excellent.

All in all, I highly recommend Wolfgang Puck Pizzeria and Cucina at the Crystals Shopping Center if you’re in the mood for an medium-upscale Italian restaurant in Las Vegas.

Wolfgang Puck Bread
Wolfgang Puck Bread
Wolfgang Puck Grilled Meatballs
Grilled Meatballs, Red Pepper-Olive Ragu, Pecorino Toscano
Italian Sausage pizza with Rapini, Caramelized Garlic, and Pecorino Romano
Italian Sausage pizza with Rapini, Caramelized Garlic, and Pecorino Romano
Wolfgang Puck Lasagna
Wolfgang Puck Lasagna
Rigatoncini (pasta), Piedmontese Meat Sauce, Parmesan
Rigatoncini (pasta), Piedmontese Meat Sauce, Parmesan