Distinct and Distinguished: DELMONICO

Like a few other time-worn and treasured eateries, Delmonico has been around so long we tend to take it for granted. (Eating Las Vegas is gruntled by the fact that our food revolution has now been going on for so long that we actually have excellent restaurants that can be considered gastronomic treasures. When we moved back to Vegas in September 1990, the town’s idea of a gourmet landmark was Piero’s and the Alpine Village Inn.)

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EMERIL the Unforgiven

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I’ll never forget the day the music died. The day the magic left. The day I realized that great food, restaurants and chefs in Vegas was just a big p.r. game, being played to the hilt by our big hotels. The day I realized that it was no longer about the food, it was all about celebrities shilling for that food.

Unfortunately, it was Emeril Lagasse — the man who put the “celebrity” in “chef” — who taught me that lesson. For it was Emeril who first seduced and then disappointed me, and therein lies a cautionary tale that I have yet to tell until now.

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Holy Molting Batman! It’s Soft Shell Crab Season!

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As sure as the cool April winds give way to blistering, 100 degree days in our humble burg, you can be sure that the east coast delicacies known as Callinectes sapidus (“beautiful savory swimmer” – aka the Maryland Blue Crab) will be hitting our better restaurants, ready to be munched on whole, without the necessity of pounding, poking and pricking your way into all those crabby delights.

Yep….that’s right….you eat ’em whole, skin and all, biting right through the claws and the soft carapace to get to all that good meat.

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