The new Superfrico—at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas—definitely makes good on its “Italian American  Psychedelic” branding. It’s an imaginative + creative fun house—an excellent Italian restaurant-bar-meets-art gallery meets-performance art space, with theatrical stage lighting throughout, roving surrealist performers and a DJ (Kat Matutina, aka DJ Pickpocket) spinning lots of throwback dance music like Evelyn “Champagne” King and the SOS Band. Everything was a home run—the Chicken Parm, the Sicilian Salad, the Branzino Piccata—including the let’s-live-now desserts. We went all-in for the Tiramisu (coffee, mascarpone, lemon, espresso crumble) + Banana Walnut Tartufo (miso caramel, torched meringue).  It was an elevated experience—one of our best nights in Vegas.

There are many restaurant gems—one after another—here in Vegas’ massive Chinatown which covers three miles. Like Rincon De Buenos Aires, which just celebrated its 25th anniversary. It’s a warm and intimate Argentinian restaurant + Italian deli, located in the Cathay Hills Plaza, with transcendent baked spinach empanadas, lemon-rich chicken piccata (pictured), pizza, flan and tiramisu…all under one welcoming bi-ethnic roof. Had my eye on the Pizza Napoletano, with ham, tomato slices, red  peppers + olives, which was staring back at me from a nearby table. Next time!

Terrific to see L.A. Guns roll into Vegas this past weekend with SRO PR clients Budderside—two bands from Hollywood, CA—for a pair of packed shows at Count’s Vamp’d on Sahara. Budderside, fronted charismatically by Patrick Alan Stone, came on strong with its alt-rock, metal + grunge blend and songs from their 2021 debut album ‘Spiritual Violence’ plus new single “Too Far” that dig deep into mental health turmoil. L.A. Guns delivered the goods as well. With Tracii Guns and Phil Lewis still at the helm, they remain appealingly tough + skillful, and it felt good to hear their  blunt sing-a-longs “Sex Action” and “Kiss My Love Goodbye” alongside tunes from their new album ‘Checkered Past.’ It was a perfect + satisfying double bill…

Last night was a perfect one to see comedian + actor Eddie Griffin; it  marked the birthday of his hero—Richard Pryor—which he noted from the outset. As part of his ongoing residency at the newly remodeled + atmospherically hip Sahara Las Vegas, Griffin dug his heels deep into racial injustice, vaccination mistrust, religious hypocrisy + more (he grew up unhappily as a Jehovah’s Witness). With drink in hand, Griffin remains freewheeling, outrageously funny + enlightening. He can make some folks feel uncomfortable, but I think they’re better for it. We started the evening by admiring the vintage Sahara hotel photos in the lobby before segueing into the excellent + stylish Uno Mas Tacos. Really nice to see a taco with Impossible meat on the menu. Extra points for that, not to mention their beaded lighting fixtures. ?

Master chef James Trees owns three restaurants here in Las Vegas that are at the top of the list: Esther’s Kitchen, Al Solito Posto and Ada’s Wine + Tapas.  Now Trees’ soul-satisfying creativity lights up Mozz Bar, his Italian sandwiches food counter at Resorts World’s impressively sprawling food hall. Try the eggplant Parmesan sandwich, with pomodoro sauce, mozzarella, basil + arugula, on a soft house-made sesame roll—it’s the stuff that dreams are made of. Definitely putting Mozz Bar into my regular rotation.

It’s not hard to find, but you do have to be on the lookout for it: Here Kitty Kitty Vice Den, the speakeasy at Resorts World. Walking through the massive Famous Foods Street Eats area, you’ll see a sign for Ms. Meow’s Mamak Stall + then a sexy hostess will lead you behind a hidden door where everything is glowing + the lighting is sympathetic. There are fancy cocktails, including one that’s called Ghost Kitty with Bombay Sapphire Gin + banana juice + rice milk. It’s a cool intimate place, tucked away from the food hall + casino crowds, with modern design + traditional Chinese touches + even mini disco mirror balls. Definitely worth a visit—and if you like cats…

With their layered harmonies, warm acoustic guitars + ringing electrics, America brought the goods last night to the packed Golden Nugget Las Vegas. Gerry Beckley‘s “Sister Golden Hair” achieved lift-off, with one of the most transcendent choruses in pop music, and Dewey Bunnell’s “Sandman”—written in part from conversations with returning airmen from Vietnam—is as haunting as ever.

The band, a longtime Schneider Rondan Organization client, is now in their 51st year + still going strong. They count the Beatles, Beach Boys + CSNY among their influences, as Dewey discusses in the new issue of Goldmine: The Music Collector’s Marketplace in his “10 Albums That Changed My Life” piece.

Sometimes you gotta go into the rabbit hole of desserts. And last night we did just that, Hong Kong style, at the Vegas outpost of the Asian worldwide chain SweetHoney Dessert, located on the second floor of sprawling Shanghai Plaza in Chinatown. You can’t go wrong with their soft and creamy strawberry soufflé pancakes or the coconut soufflé pancakes combo, while sitting outside on their terrace with the Palms Hotel (which will hopefully reopen in 2022) off in the distance.

Scored a last minute ticket this past Friday night to see Tommy James and the Shondells at the packed Golden Nugget Las Vegas, one of my favorite venues in town. Really satisfying gig—the ‘60s pop-rock icon jumped headlong into “Draggin’ The Line” and closed with “Mony Mony” before an encore including “Sweet Cherry Wine.”

With a muscular + tight six-piece band behind him, his voice was still thrillingly resonant. For me, it was especially cool to see James do his signature hit “Mony Mony” having heard Billy Idol perform his excellent version a week before at the Cosmopolitan. The hits kept coming: “I Think We’re Alone Now,” “Crystal Blue Persuasion,” “Crimson & Clover” + more.

These songs were all released on Roulette Records, which was controlled by scary Morris Levy as a front for the Genovese crime family. This is all part of James’ 2010 page-turning autobiography “Me, The Mob and the Music,” which he said onstage was finally close to being made into a big Hollywood movie.

10/27/21

Always fun to drop into Hash House A Go Go on Sahara…between their “twisted farm food” with monster portions (I had the relatively sane sundried tomato, basil + goat cheese egg scramble) and the best music in town (I heard Spoon, Curtis Mayfield, Ramones, T.Rex + Killers while there yesterday). Couldn’t resist taking the heavenly churro waffle to go!