Last night’s dinner was such a treat. We ate at StripSteak inside Mandalay Bay. It was absolutely ridiculous. We tried three different grades of beef last night: Prime, Kobe, and A5. They also make foie gras sliders (mini burgers) and specialize in Rib Cap (otherwise known to me as Outside Rib Eye). On top of that we had some pretty cool appetizers, sides, and fried dessert. Apparently Karrie (Kev’s wife) knows a lot of people in the industry because their general manager came out to greet us and we got complimentary champagne and duck fat fries. The service was also very good. When the main courses and sides came out, it took about 4-5 people to carry it all out at once and each dish was explained with great detail. It’s also one of those places where they refold your napkin each time to get up to use the restroom. Here are some photos of the dishes. I must say this was a very indulgent dinner. (The photos are a little grainy because of the low light and no flash.)

kobe carpaccio ($165 – yikes!)

my prime rib with side of truffle mac n cheese and creamed spinach
It was rather large but I shared most of it with the table.

Man, it’s probably time for me to detox this week with a bowl of oatmeal per day…maybe two.

I’m writing from Las Vegas right now. We’re staying at Kevin’s house just 20 mins from The Strip. It’s our usual Vegas trip, no gambling, no drinking, no crazy nights. Just a lot of driving around, hanging out at the house, and tasting some good food. We got up early this morning to catch an 8 am flight and were picked up by Kev himself. We stopped at the Whole Foods to buy some breakfast and spent the rest of the morning at the house. Jes was on a conference call all morning and I played around with a new software that allows you to stitch multiple photos together for a cool panoramic photo.

Later, we drove to The Venetian to check out some photos in a gallery. We then walked over to Wynn, which I had never seen before.  I’m not sure what all the hype is about because it was plus/minus…your average high-end casino. Next stop was Bellagio to check out their Christmas-themed atrium packed with fake snow, huge polar bears made of carnations, and jumping water fountains. We then came back to the house to enjoy the tastiest ham and cheese sandwiches ever. They’re found at the Bouchon Bakery on the first floor of The Venetian. It’s an extension of Thomas Keller’s Bouchon (also owner and founder of The French Laundry). The sandwich was so simple but so yummy…good french bread, ham, cheese, and butter. They also had really good macaroons (big ones) and their Napolean is pretty good too. Johnny – I’m going to have to bring back a macaroon to show you what it should really taste like.