It was a lazy + super sweet Vegas Sunday. Started in Chinatown at Take It Easy Roasters which has a traditional Colombian bakery. The “dalgona matcha”—honey milk topped with a whipped matcha meringue garnished with fresh cracked sea salt + chocolate shavings—was transcendent. Same goes for the vegan + gluten-free banana bread loaf with seared pecans, plus the bunuelo with cheese. Next up: the Arts District, where we stopped into the antique store Main Street Peddlers before heading back to Chinatown to wander around the sprawling food paradise, Shanghai Plaza, to check out future possibilities. Headed next to Pamplona Cocktails & Tapas Las Vegas, an off-Strip eatery on Sahara that surpassed all expectations + was priced right. Roasted beets salad with mushroom, goat cheese. Roasted potatoes with spicy tomato sauce and oil.  Shrimp in chili garlic oil with white wine. Homemade beef meatballs in Spanish tomato sauce with green beans. Couldn’t say no to dessert. The fried brioche bread with Spanish custard, caramelized sugar + cinnamon powder was sweetness to the square root of infinity.

4/5/21
Rana + I had a perfect Vegas Sunday, starting off at the eclectic Gäbi Coffee & Bakery in Chinatown where the “honeydew latte” tasted as surreal + delicious as it sounded. Headed next to the fun + smart  Charleston Antique Mall on Decatur Blvd…then moved on to dinner at the top-shelf + well-priced Lemongrass at ARIA (pad Thai, black pepper shrimp, sesame chicken). Friendly waiters in chic uniforms + dazzling lighting fixtures in an epic dining room (plus a gorgeous bar area) add to the experience. Walking around the eye candy-rich Aria lobby is always a treat, and we then got in extra steps next door at the massive, high-end  The Shops at Crystals. Didn’t have to pay for parking once…thank you, Vegas!

3/25/21

Celebrated nearly one year of living in Las Vegas last night by going out on the town and supporting businesses…with my wife Rana supplying the abundant polka dots. Started with an early dinner at the fairly new Main St. Provisions in the The Las Vegas Arts District before heading to the Delirious Comedy Club at the nearby Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino where it was a real treat to be in the audience for the first time in over a year. The restaurant’s throwback cool ambience, and its imaginative take on modern American comfort food was soulful and tasty. We had the shrimp + rice grits, the charcoal oven burger with apple smoked walnut cheddar + demi sauce, and the braised greens in an “oat milk white wine broth, crispy shallot and pumpkin oil” (say what?). Over at the club, there was a bigger crowd than I thought there would be—around 75 people, with socially distanced seating…folks laughing while masked…hardly easy I imagine for the three excellent comics (separated by 12 or so feet from the front row) who couldn’t see the facial expressions of those they were entertaining.

3/6/21

Pleasures abound at many excellent off Strip restaurants in Las Vegas, and the massive Limoncello Fresh Italian Kitchen on Sahara is among those leading the pack. We returned for a second time this past Friday night, and the Pappardelle Bolognese and Gnocchi Norma sautéed with eggplant hit our sweet spots, not to mention the limoncello (kindly offered to us complimentary by owner Giuseppe Bavarese). It’s a grand + fun place to eat, with subtitled black-and-white movies projected on the back wall, their fresh fish on display and subtle cocktail lounge disco sounds.

2/24/20

And the hits kept coming last night…in the form of one soul- satisfying plate after another at 8 East, chef Dan Coughlin’s Pan Asian eatery inside the new Circa hotel/casino in downtown Vegas. We’ll definitely be back for  more of those ginger chicken dumplings, pork belly bao, Tokyo crepe, sizzling noodle, and stir fried green beans. Afterwards, we walked around the Circa, with its iconic Vegas Vickie neon sign, not to mention the go-go dancers lighting up the casino floor (their black masks suggested something other than life during a pandemic). Stepped outside the hotel’s doors to the Fremont Street Experience…a total sensory overload a la “Blade Runner” with eye-popping light shows displayed on the massive LED canopy that runs around four blocks…whew!

2/7/21

Checking in from the massive art installation + entertainment space Area 15 + having lunch (Singapore Noodles) there at acclaimed chef Todd English’s new food hall,  The Beast. Taking my hat off to all of the creatives who have made this what may be one of the most exciting places on Earth.

1/28/2021

This is a Chinatown gem that folks have pointed me to: the palatial and artfully appointed Gäbi Coffee & Bakery. Ordered the quite mesmerizing Butterfly Latte: Butterfly Pea Tea, Steamed Milk, Banana Pure.