Category: Reviews

SLS Turns 1 as its Suppers Continue to Shine

When ELV — the man, the myth, the inveterate, insatiable, fastidious fresser — announced (on Facebook) he was about to do a dinner crawl through the SLS Hotel and Casino last month (to see how its eateries have held up after a year in operation), the comments he received both shocked and disappointed him.

“It used to be good, but isn’t anymore.”

“That place is always empty.”

“It’s about to go out of business.”

“You’ll find that most of the restaurants have either closed or have changed hands.”

Yep, that was the tenor of the comments he received….even as his staff was plowing through dish after tasty dish at the hotel….and he was live-tweeting about how extraordinary each mouthful was.

Well, nothing could be further from the truth.

Continue reading “SLS Turns 1 as its Suppers Continue to Shine”

Kerry’s Crowning Achievement

ELV note: As proud as we are of this recently published article in VEGAS magazine, our happiness is muted by the fact that Kerry Simon was recently admitted to a local hospital because of pneumonia. To anyone suffering from multiple system atrophy, as Simon is, such an illness is a very serious condition, and does not portend any kind of healthy recovery. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Simon and his family.

 

Rainbow cauliflower, from Carson Kitchen’s farm-fresh menu. (Rainbow cauliflower, from Carson Kitchen’s farm fresh menu.)

If someone had told me a year ago that Kerry Simon’s Carson Kitchen would be both a raging success and the spark of a restaurant renaissance, I would have looked at them with the same bemusement I usually reserve for conspiracy theorists and Chicago Cubs fans. A year ago (or three, 10, or 20 years ago), Downtown Las Vegas was a restaurant wasteland. The idea that young couples, suburbanites, professionals, and entire families would come here to eat seemed as far-fetched as having a mob lawyer for a mayor.

Continue reading “Kerry’s Crowning Achievement”

Addicted, But Not to CHILE ADDICTION

http://www.centralmarket.com/getattachment/32bd1caf-4619-406e-a65f-f0708e2f9ee7/2013-Hatch-Chile-Harvest.aspx

The above picture is of New Mexican chilies. It was taken two years ago during the southern New Mexico chile harvest. The chilies pictured are call New Mexican or Anaheim chilies, depending on with whom you are speaking. They can range from somewhat mild to medium hot to Scotch Bonnet hot, depending upon the batch and where they are grown.

Having said that, a grandma-friendly, totally sweet, heat-free New Mexican chile in New Mexico is rarer than a heterosexual male at a Lady Gaga concert.

Continue reading “Addicted, But Not to CHILE ADDICTION”