The $89 JOEL ROBUCHON Menu Is a Steal
It’s a steal because the bread and cheese cart selections alone are worth at least half that, and the accommodating staff let’s you chow down on those as much as you want. (FYI: you do pay a $15 surcharge for the cheese cart, but that’s an even bigger bargain if you’re a certified Franco-philic fromage forager like yours truly.
The veal cheeks are so good, deeply-imbued with veal-ness and surrounded by a subtle Thai/herb/green curry broth, and downright unctuousness, that you’ll wave them off after only a few bites (to save room for the cheese cart, of course, and because you’ve just had the equivalent of six courses of bread). Ignore the fact that they’re a tad on the salty side (face it: all, French chefs oversalt their food, but none of them will have you gulping H20 like a Chinese banquet), and applaud Executive Chef Claude Le Tohic for being able to pack so much punch into such a modest-sized dish.
You’ll find no flaws in the mackerel in a traditional mustard sauce, or in the layers of lobster gelee, Dungeness crab and fennel cream underneath the bright oscetra pearls. It’s a serious concoction that gives Guy Savoy’s oysters en gelee a serious run for your seafood dollars.
Flawless as well was the gently poached Australian spiny lobster in a sake broth — once again, just faintly perfumed with said sake so as not to interrupt the essence of the fish, and poached mackerel that was a revelation in how a traditional mustard sauce can work with an oily fish — neither overwhelming the other.
This is fine wine drinking food no doubt. Each dish is calibrated with that in mind, and it’s a downright sin to not work your way through a meal, sipping as you go. That being said, the $78 of Premier Cru Chablis (Fourchaume ‘04), went splendidly with all the courses. And it appears the higher-ups at the MGM-Mirage Corp. are (finally) re-thinking the astronomical wine prices they’ve been getting away with for the past few years. A cursory inspection of the list found dozens of good bottles under $100 when two years ago we had trouble finding one.
You expect the food to be flawless at Joel Robuchon, but usually you’re paying upwards of two hundy a head for all that perfection. At ninety bucks a pop, in this setting, with this level of obsequiousness (everyone gets supplicatory servicing here, not just the mega-famous ELV and his staff), it might be the best deal on the planet.
To summarize (and compare a previous post): at Prime you pay over $150/head for good steaks, properly cooked vegetables, and decent apps; while at Joel Robuchon you pay $90 for some of the most finely-wrought, inventive, and hyper-delicious food in the world. YOU MAKE THE CALL!
When ELV says his meal was a steal, he means it. He didn’t pay for his $89 supper (it was comped), but did leave a $50 tip.
JOEL ROBUCHON
MGM Grand Hotel and Casino
3799 Las Vegas Blvd. South
Las Vegas, NV 89109
702.891.7358
Restaurant reviews, quips, picks and pans-with some seriously salivating history-from the man who eats his way through Sin City every day.
June 26th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
Any word on why the $115 menu doesn’t list dessert among the courses?
June 26th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Your description sounds a lot better than that on MGM’s web site. The $89 is listed as two courses – entree and dessert – with no mention of some of things like caviar.
June 27th, 2009 at 5:34 am
Dude, WTF is up with Keith Richards’ eyes???
June 27th, 2009 at 8:13 am
This is the best restaurant I have ever eaten in, and I have eaten in some of the finest restaurants in the world. This is an incredible bargain. To see some videos of my food experiences here, go to my YouTube page. http://tinyurl.com/dyj2ky (click through to page 3 and 4)
June 27th, 2009 at 5:36 pm
I had the $115 menu and desserts are indeed extra – though probably not necessary as the portions for the first and second courses are substantial and the amuse is almost like an entire first course in itself. Like John, I opted for the $15 cheese cart, and was more than spleased with my selection.
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:35 am
ehhhh, ate there last nite. not really impressed, if forced to choose i would go to guy savoy 7 days a week and twice on sunday!
food tended to either be over seasoned or lack any seasoning at all, there was no happy medium. foie gras torchon was full of veins (someone needs to show the commise chef how to clean a lobe properly)
everything looked ‘pretty’ but lacked focus on the main ingredient flavor. for example a amuse bouche, foie gras parfait with parmesan foam and port reduction, all you taste is salty parmesan cheese, foie gras which should be the focus was non-existent. guess if i had eaten for free i would kiss thier ass too, but the bill for 2 was 500. so im not sucking up to anyone here!