ELV note: Occasional commenter rideslowLV recently rode into our restaurant round-table roustabout with this well-reasoned(?) retort:
This shit is getting real gay…. half you bitches talk about the death of French food in Vegas. Go to Andres at the Monte Carlo and taste the BEST french food in Las Vegas. you idiots have no clue. GFX knows what up!!!
But john curtas wont tell you how good that is, because he is not humble enough to just shut the fuck up and enjoy a top notch meal. Pure White Trash.
French cuisine with its NEW SCHOOL twists has just begun. All you bitches talking about club crowds and revenue, you have no clue what a restaurant should pull monthly, budget allowances, etc.
Look at Jet Tila, that fool is kicking ass, sinatra is kicking ass, SW is still in the top 5 steakhouses in Las Vegas.
You guys are all bitches, and seriously if you dine the way you act on this blog, keep your fucking money or throw it into a machine and save the bullshit for the McDonalds drive thru. Your all white trash.
Signed,
Buncha C*NT$
ELV responds:
Eating Las Vegas has one and only one rule regarding censorship of comments made to this site: No witless profanity and no personal attacks on other commenters or individuals mentioned. (Okay, that’s two, but we never could count…that’s why we went to law school.)
Everything else is fair game, including personal attacks/criticisms of ELV — because we’re a big boy and because a critic needs to be able take as well as dish it out — and because critiquing the critic is half the raison d’etre of this site.
ELV doubts rideslowLV grasps these concepts, as we’re guessing he’s a line cook who thinks he’s hot stuff, regardless of never having traveled east of Vegas or north of Bakersfield.
Regardless, this comment/opinion came close to the line, but we at ELV thought our bitch, gay, white trash readership might appreciate the wealth of insight contained therein.
Bitch-i-ly yours,
ELV
So… gay bitches don’t have taste buds?
Nice to know Mr. Wynn reads your column.
True, SW is one of the top grossing restaurants on the Strip (is that the Top 5 he means? Because it’s not one of the *best* five steakhouses on the Strip, though I would not dispute it being in the top 15 and maybe 10)
True, Jet Tila is kicking ass, though I’m pretty sure he doesn’t need Mr. T’s pity.
As for Sinatra… maybe I should try it again. When I did, I felt overcharged and underwhelmed. I think Chef Schonegger, like Chef Lenger would show their best if they were allowed to do their own menus unfettered.
And I do think Gary LaMorte is very talented–and the distinction between Andre’s and Alize tells you all you need to know on that score.
PS it was Wynn PR that talked about the death of French food in LV. French food is obviously far from dead in LV.
Speaking of white trash, is this what inspired the Strip Club food review, JC? lol
Sinatras was a terrible disappointment. The service was horrid. Out of dumb luck we got the table under Sinatras picture with the fedora which evidently is Steve’s tasble and if Steve had the lack of service we did, he would shut the place down.
I have no problem with SW, but it doesn’t distinguish intelf over any other steakhouse in this town.
And John, dont change. I don’t agree with half your stuff, but at least I get an honest appraisal, and I feel well informed as to the going on’s in this town.
Keep it up, you keep me entertained
I’m kind of speechless, I think I got props in that post but I’m not sure…I do applaud you John for posting the good, bad, and rest. It takes a village, and it’s a fun effin village we live here in LV.
“Eating Las Vegas has one and only one rule regarding censorship of comments made to this site: No witless profanity and no personal attacks on other commenters or individuals mentioned. … Everything else is fair game, including personal attacks/criticisms of ELV – because we’re a big boy and because a critic needs to be able take as well as dish it out — and because critiquing the critic is half the raison d’etre of this site.”
Well said, sir, I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s not easy to absorb gracefully such slings and arrows, but it helps when the contrast in, uh, styles is so apparent.
“So… gay bitches don’t have taste buds?”
Ummm, this “gay white trash bitch” does! And “rideslowLV” obviously doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about. And hey, Mr. ELV is a much respected critic in this town, so why should he “shut the f*ck up”?
To be honest, I’ve enjoyed Sinatra at Encore. It’s a solid restaurant serving solid Italian fare IMHO… But is the cuisine there at the same level as the top gastronomic palaces in this town? I want to say yes, but I honestly can’t.
And EC is correct about SW. The food there is good, but not great. Just because a restaurant makes a ton of money doesn’t mean the food is the best. (If that were the case, I’d be raving about the dishes at Tao and Lavo.)
And yes, I also refuse to believe that fine French dining is “dead”. It’s alive and well in this town, and it’s just too bad that Wynncore doesn’t care about its culinary reputation any more.
One day, someone eloquent will write a letter in this vein that is not only informative, but brilliant and fun to read.
cheers John
Tom
Opinions..everyone’s got ’em.
Line cooks have broader vocabularies than this joker. Keep fighting the good fight John, thoroughly enjoy your reviews. Cheers!
Hmm. I’m confused, (which isn’t a surprise). I thought a “bitch” was a female dog and while I am neither a female, nor a dog….I have been known to drink a concoction called the “hair of the dog” after a night of over-indulging in intoxicants.
As far as “white trash” is concerned, I do put out a lot of trash, (in words more often than deeds), yet most of it is a hue more blue than white.
As Homer Simpson once enthusiastically expressed arising from his enjoyment of a short subject film involving an elderly man being hit in the crotch with a football: “It just works on so many levels!” This letter deserves similar acclaim.
I agree with rideslow and Eric on one point: Gary LaMorte is an incredible chef — one of the best, most creative young guns in Vegas! I also agree with Eric that I was underwhelmed during my only visit to Sinatra. But I really want to give it another try. Damn — di I just agree with Eric Gladstone twice in a row? That’s got to be a record.