Need info on Chicago Chef [+Las Vegas]

Is anyone familiar with chef Paul Bartolatta? He used to run a restaurant in Chicago called Spiaggia . He is now at the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas with a new restaurant to open April 28, called Bartolatta. The wife wants to make reservations for a nice meal while we are there in May. At around $300, maybe a bit more, I need a little confirmation that this guy is good. Anyone know anything about him? Or, any suggestions on a great place to eat in Vegas?

Kurt
King of Kurtopia

Kurtopia wrote:Is anyone familiar with chef Paul Bartolatta? He used to run a restaurant in Chicago called Spiaggia . He is now at the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas with a new restaurant to open April 28, called Bartolatta. The wife wants to make reservations for a nice meal while we are there in May. At around $300, maybe a bit more, I need a little confirmation that this guy is good. Anyone know anything about him? Or, any suggestions on a great place to eat in Vegas?

Kurt
King of Kurtopia

I never ate at Spiaggia when Bartolatta ran the kitchen, but the restaurant itself was VERY hightly acclaimed, earning 4 stars from the Chicago Tribune while Bartolatta was chef.

As to Vegas, see this thread: http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=3182

As in that thread, my standing rec. right now for Vegas is Bouchon in the Venetian--based on desire not actual experience. Places I have been that I like include Chinois, AJ's Steakhouse, Lotus of Siam, and Border Grill.

Rob

I always thought Spiaggi had an incredible atmosphere but the food never lived up to the accolades it received. I've been to Vegas a bunch of times and have sampled many of the restaurants. My recommendation for a big ticket dinner would be Aureole in Mandalay Bay. I've dined at Aureole in New York and the outpost in Vegas and cooked from Charlie Palmer's book and find his food wonderful. Just watching the wine angels at the Vegas restaurant alone is worth the experience. After the initial opening, many of the Vegas restaurants seem to falter when the chef leaves, but not Aureole.

I've eaten at Bouchon in Napa and had a great bistro meal. However, it's just bistro cuisine, albeit done very well. Nob Hill would be another good choice for an expensive dinner. The chef/owner is Michael Mina of Aqua fame in San Francisco. Picasso in Bellagio is supposed to be fabulous, but I've never dined there. Pick up a painting on your way out!

I'm not sure how many nights you'll be there but a fun thing to do is have cocktails at the top of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris hotel. It overlooks the fountains at Bellagio and is beautiful to watch after dark. Jean Joho, from Everest room in Chicago, is the chef and the food is great. Appetizers and cocktails would be the way to go.

Another suggestion would be to graze your way thru Vegas. Appetizers here, split an entree there, more appetizers, etc. It's a fun way to see different casino hotels and sample all the great restaurants. It also can cut down on your food costs as prices are thru the roof at all the "name" restaurants. Expect to see average entree prices starting in the 30's.

You should do 1 lunch at Border Grill in Mandalay. Great margaritas and excellent food.

Kurtopia wrote:The wife wants to make reservations for a nice meal while we are there in May. At around $300, maybe a bit more, I need a little confirmation....

Its hard to comment on the probability of getting your money's worth at any of what basically are theme park high end restaurants that have sprouted on the Strip. The only one I've been to is Craft Steak (well, Nine, too, see below), shortly after RW Apple of the NY Times pronounced Craft Steak the best steak house in LV. Steak was very good, all the rest, well, it was theme park quality. Sommelier was superb and responsive.

Rather, its suggested that the true value of such an evening is the ambience, the opportunity to dress up and step out and bask in luxurious service, take a taxi both ways and have one too many drinks, but carry with you moderate chow expectations.

I've been to LV about a half dozen times in the last two years. For chow, its Lotus of Siam. I would eat there every night (and do, after my wife returns home and I'm left to work) if my wife would allow.

But LOS isn't in the league of dress-up adult places, although its got quite a bit more ambience than a n'hood place near your home, what with its huge wine list and very gracious staff.

Another problem one faces in LV is the difficulty of getting dinner reservations during trade shows or on the weekend. One place I've found that you can get a reservation and a decent meal during those times is at the Redwood Grill at the California Casino downtown. They have a non-advertised special of a 1 lb T-Bone, appetizer, soup/salad, and very decent dessert for about $15. The steak is good quality, USDA Choice (verify with GWIV that I know my meat) not livery Select grade. And you can get a reservation, and a decent bottle of Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages. So while the rest of the town is fighting lemming-like to get into their Fri/Sat night over-crowded over-priced strip theme park places, you can be wallowing in the ambience of the 'Old Vegas' with the mostly Hawaiian clientele who patronize the California, eating decent chow for not much money.

Unlike a decade ago, there's lots to choose from in LV. I guess like anywhere, you have to start with some self-knowledge of what works best for you.

Some other anecdotal rpts: forget dinner at the Bellagio buffet, and skip the Jewish Deli (forgot the name) at the Venetian, and the weekday buffet b'fast at Caesars, and the loud heavily touristed mediocre Nine; but the buffet b'fast out at Green Valley is good--but you need a car from the strip.

Do: try to get to Luv-It Custard, just two minutes drive from LOS.

Here's a link to a post from late last summer http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t= ... t=bellagio

Can we anticipate a report after your return?

Kurt,

Here is a link to a recent Vegas discussion http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=227&highlight=. In it , I linked to a couple of posts I made last April on another board. There's some good information in there. I would also add a recommendation for a visit to Zefferino's in the Venetian. The chef was the Pesto maker to the Pope (until his death last weekend). I can believe it becasuse everything I had there was heavenly. There are some great pictures on the wall of the chef with the Pope right next to one of the chef with Frank Sinatra. What more recommendation could you ask for?

For a very old-school Itlaian American place (Chicago/NY vibe) with very good food, try Piero's.

Apparently, it is a local favorite.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/bestoflv/2 ... estID=7045

It has received some unwanted press lately due to a federal arrest of two alleged mob hitmen, ex-NYC cops, there in a sting. Truth is stranger than fiction. The place had a scene in "Casino" and one of the alleged felons (a highly decorated NYPD retiree) has long done bit parts in Mafia movies.

There is no suggestion that Piero's is involved in anything illicit. In fact, one might guess that the management was cooperative with the FBI, who had undercover officers sitting at the bar when the accused came in for their reservation.

All I know about the place is that it is very good.

JeffB wrote:For a very old-school Itlaian American place (Chicago/NY vibe) with very good food, try Piero's.

A voice on another board I've found to be most reliable comments with regards to Piero's and where its epononomous (spellchecker, where art thou?) chef now cooks http://www.chowhound.com/southwest/boar ... /8145.html

Fwiw, if I were coming from Chicago, seeking out a place such as Piero's or Cafe Chloe would be like schlepping sand to the desert.

Agreed on that, but the OP is coming from the Northwest. What's more Vegas than Chicago?

JeffB wrote: What's more Vegas than Chicago?

You're right on that count. Its one of the things I love most about Gianotti's.

I'm sure we're all interested in Las Vegas dining. However, this is the listing for Chicagoland restaurants. Therefore, please move your Las Vegas posts to the beyond Chicagoland restaurant area. This thread will be removed shortly.

stevez wrote:Kurt,

Here is a link to a recent Vegas discussion http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=227&highlight=. In it , I linked to a couple of posts I made last April on another board. There's some good information in there. I would also add a recommendation for a visit to Zefferino's in the Venetian. The chef was the Pesto maker to the Pope (until his death last weekend). I can believe it becasuse everything I had there was heavenly. There are some great pictures on the wall of the chef with the Pope right next to one of the chef with Frank Sinatra. What more recommendation could you ask for?

I'm glad you had a great experience at Zefferino's. I feel compelled to add a counterpoint that the one time my group dined there it was probably the single most miserable dining experience I've ever had at a Vegas restaurant. This was shortly after they had opened so perhaps you had the benefit of some maturation but we found the service both rude and incompetent and the food was extremely uneven. I don't believe there's one person in our party of ~14 that would ever consider returning. This is from a group of quasi-regular Vegas visitors with a lot of familiarity with the many restaurant options. You know it's not going to be a good night when your servers start screaming at each other - in plain view of your table.

RevrendAndy wrote:I'm sure we're all interested in Las Vegas dining. However, this is the listing for Chicagoland restaurants. Therefore, please move your Las Vegas posts to the beyond Chicagoland restaurant area. This thread will be removed shortly.

Wouldn't it be more appropriate if, rather than outright remove it, a mod just moved the thread to the Beyond Chicagoland area?

Kman wrote:

RevrendAndy wrote:I'm sure we're all interested in Las Vegas dining. However, this is the listing for Chicagoland restaurants. Therefore, please move your Las Vegas posts to the beyond Chicagoland restaurant area. This thread will be removed shortly.

Wouldn't it be more appropriate if, rather than outright remove it, a mod just moved the thread to the Beyond Chicagoland area?

Done.

Kman wrote:

stevez wrote:Kurt,

Here is a link to a recent Vegas discussion http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=227&highlight=. In it , I linked to a couple of posts I made last April on another board. There's some good information in there. I would also add a recommendation for a visit to Zefferino's in the Venetian. The chef was the Pesto maker to the Pope (until his death last weekend). I can believe it becasuse everything I had there was heavenly. There are some great pictures on the wall of the chef with the Pope right next to one of the chef with Frank Sinatra. What more recommendation could you ask for?

I'm glad you had a great experience at Zefferino's. I feel compelled to add a counterpoint that the one time my group dined there it was probably the single most miserable dining experience I've ever had at a Vegas restaurant. This was shortly after they had opened so perhaps you had the benefit of some maturation but we found the service both rude and incompetent and the food was extremely uneven.

I have not been there in 2 years, but after my first good experience, I returned 4 months later and it was just as good. Evidently, they got over whatever problems they were having when they first opened. I found it quite enjoyable both times I went. Of course, there are countless newer and more "of the moment" places that have opened since then.

I'm with RevrendAndy on the old Spiaggia under Bartolotta. The room and service have always been terrific, but the food wasn't quite up to the setting and price, in my experience. Plus, Bartolotta's cooking was more Italian inspired than authentic renderings of classic dishes. So, unless Paul B has changed something, I'm seconding JeffB: Though in a completely different class than a Bartolotta restaurant, any place Piero is cooking, I'm happy to go. Piero's under the Chef did a great job with Italian standards (a perfect spaghetti alle vongole the last time I was there), plus he usually had one or two new and interesting dishes or somthing with a hard-to-find ingredient.

RevrendAndy wrote:I'm sure we're all interested in Las Vegas dining. However, this is the listing for Chicagoland restaurants. Therefore, please move your Las Vegas posts to the beyond Chicagoland restaurant area. This thread will be removed shortly.

You're right Rev. I only posted where I did, because the chef was known in Chicago. It has been moved. My appology.

Kurt

Thanks everyone for some of the tips. I will say that while many feel that Las Vegas food is just a front for ambience and so forth, I have had some good meals there. I've also had some bad ones. That is why I was researching Bartolatta. The Wynn Resort, which is scheduled to open on April 28, will have good restaurants. Steve Wynn said he will not even consider a chef to lend his name to a restaurant in that resort. The chef must work there or it's a no go. I'll keep checking on them to see what else they offer up in the near future.

Kurt

Kurtopia wrote:Thanks everyone for some of the tips. I will say that while many feel that Las Vegas food is just a front for ambience and so forth, I have had some good meals there. I've also had some bad ones. That is why I was researching Bartolatta. The Wynn Resort, which is scheduled to open on April 28, will have good restaurants. Steve Wynn said he will not even consider a chef to lend his name to a restaurant in that resort. The chef must work there or it's a no go. I'll keep checking on them to see what else they offer up in the near future.

Kurt

I think there is (surely) some truth to what you say, and what others say about Vegas dining. I mean, after all, it is Vegas. Me, I've had a few bad experiences at name places, Prime and Charlie Parker Steakhouse specifically, but I on a whole love Vegas, and one of the reasons I love it is the food.

Yes, there is something beguiling about Vegas. The way one cannot explain exactly how much fun Mardi Gras is without ever being there. All those buffets may not be good food on a lot of levels, but they are good eating nonetheless. Some times style is substance. Yet, I do not give it all to fantasy. Many places in Las Vegas DO serve good food, with good service. There are illusions of gastronomy. There are not. There is no reason to think you will not eat well in Las Vegas.

Rob

In Las Vegas, there are so many good restaurants throughout the city that never attract attention as most people focus their attention on the restaurants located in the major casinos.

I tend to head to Las Vegas once every year or two just for the pleasant weather during the winter months. I generally hang in the locals joints in Summerlin area and get to meet a lot of the locals. The locals generally come from around the country and they tend avoid most of the Strip places. They are also generally, a good source of small local restaurants.

BTW, there was a recent post on SH about the student run restaurant at the Community College of Southern Nevada. I understand that the chow is pretty good and at very reasonable priced.

JeffB wrote:For a very old-school Itlaian American place (Chicago/NY vibe) with very good food, try Piero's.

Apparently, it is a local favorite.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/bestoflv/2 ... estID=7045

It has received some unwanted press lately due to a federal arrest of two alleged mob hitmen, ex-NYC cops, there in a sting. Truth is stranger than fiction. The place had a scene in "Casino" and one of the alleged felons (a highly decorated NYPD retiree) has long done bit parts in Mafia movies.

There is no suggestion that Piero's is involved in anything illicit. In fact, one might guess that the management was cooperative with the FBI, who had undercover officers sitting at the bar when the accused came in for their reservation.

All I know about the place is that it is very good.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/ ... 48612.html

FYI:

The Wynn Las Vegas has launched its website, which includes a little bit of information about all of the restaurants and chefs there.

The only one where it looks like the chef will be there in name only is Daniel Boulud, but his page also mentions the executive chef for the Wynn outpost, so it looks like Wynn made a special exception.

http://www.wynnlasvegas.com/

Frankly, it looks like a great hotel. And Steve Wynn certainly knows how to build a nice hotel.

For the poker players: Daniel Negreanu has agreed with Wynn to play in cash games at the Wynn exclusively when he is in vegas. He'll still be able to play in tournaments at other hotels, and cash games outside of Las Vegas, but it's still quite a nice deal for Wynn. Negreanu is a fairly high profile player, after all. Kind of similar to Doyle Brunson and the Bellagio..

I'm leaving for Vegas on Sunday. I'll check to see if the Wynn is open yet. I thought the grand opening date is a couple of weeks from now, but they may be open anyway. If so, I'll stop in and report.

stevez wrote:I'm leaving for Vegas on Sunday. I'll check to see if the Wynn is open yet. I thought the grand opening date is a couple of weeks from now, but they may be open anyway. If so, I'll stop in and report.

It's not opening until the 28th, they've just launched the site early.

It's not opening until the 28th, they've just launched the site early.[/quote]

Yep, not until the 28th, and that will be pushing it.

BTW- I received a Dear John letter from them the other day. I had applied for the Assistant Chef position. Looks like I'll be staying here in Salem for a while.

Kurt