2007’s food trends included upscale burgers and downsized desserts, while local restaurants are ever more interesting and ethnically diverse. I had dozens of terrific dishes that didn’t get into this column, including almost anything I tasted at Jöel Robuchon and Guy Savoy; the phyllo-crusted Dover sole at Michael Mina; and the olive-oil-fried chicken at Bazic, a new Korean joint on Spring Mountain Road. Here, then, are 10 dishes to chew on.
Famous Homemade Meatball at Café Martorano
Inside the Rio, 777-7777
Steve Martorano doesn’t compromise, and that’s upsetting to some of his detractors. I am not one of them. Just for the meatball he makes, I’d forgive anything within reason. It might be the best one I’ve ever tasted. What makes it so good? The chef uses a mixture of pork, veal and beef, bound with seasoned bread crumbs. Ah, sweet mystery of life.
Kang hoh at Lotus of Siam
953 E. Sahara Ave., 735-3033
You have to ask for Saipin Chutima’s Northern Thai menu at Lotus of Siam. That’s the plastic-coated insert where she hides dishes from her native Chaing Mai, such as Thai dip with green chilies, pork curry and Burmese-style khao soi noodles. But the glorious kang hoh, glass noodles tossed with bits of dried pork, Thai eggplant, green beans and spices, is my favorite dish here. Say no more.
Shankleesh at Ali Baba
8826 S. Eastern Ave., 688-4182
Lebanese cuisine is famous for mezze, small, savory appetizers from which one can make an entire meal. One of the most satisfying and hard to find among them is called shankleesh, aged white cheese mixed with oregano, sumac leaves, sesame seeds, onions, tomatoes, parsley and olive oil. This dish is hard to make, and most Lebanese restaurants will give you an excuse about why they don’t have it. Ali Baba does its version brilliantly.
Beef Wellington at Eiffel Tower
Inside Paris Las Vegas, 948-6937
Executive Chef Young Sohn is a disciple of Jean Joho, and she rules the stoves at his Paris Las Vegas restaurant. She makes beef Wellington with a mushroom duxelle instead of the foie gras that is used to line the puff pastry in the classic version, but at one dinner, she made it the old-fashioned, artery-clogging way. Simply put, it was the first time I understood why this impossibly rich dish has remained an enduring favorite.
Spicy guiyang soup with chicken at Yunnan Garden
3934 Schiff Drive, 869-8885
Yunnan Garden specializes in the mouth-numbing foods of southwest China, where the fagara pepper, bright red, dusky and deadly, is king. Spicy guiyang soup is not for novice Chinese restaurant-goers; it’s definitely the expert slope. The top is mostly reddish oil, the broth beneath stocked with about a half-pound of chicken. Don’t heat your house the day you try this.
New Orleans-style BBQ shrimp at Louis’s Fish Camp
In Town Square, 463-3000
There are loads of delicious items at this casual place, which serves the low-country cuisine of owner Louis Osteen’s native South Carolina. The she-crab soup and shrimp-and-okra gumbo are both exemplary, but oddly enough, the dish I keep coming back to is New Orleans BBQ shrimp, a simple preparation of butter, black pepper, Worcestershire sauce and ketchup, bathing fresh, shelled shrimp. You can’t eat just one.
Lombardi’s white clam pizza at Nove
Inside the Palms, 942-6800
Suddenly, Vegas has become a good pizza town, what with the opening of Grimaldi’s on south Eastern and the success of Henderson’s Neapolitan-style Settebello. Still, I’m a fan of Nove’s white clam pizza, a clone of the one made at the famous Spring Street Soho pizzeria. Chef Geno Bernardo’s crusty, cheesy white pizza, sprinkled generously with tiny chopped clams, remains my fantasy Vegas pie.
Smoked ham with bamboo shoot at Dong Ting Spring
3959 Schiff Drive, 387-7888
This restaurant represents the new breed of Chinese restaurants that have opened lately, authentic, regional and heretofore absent in our city. Dong Ting Spring serves the food of Mao Tse Tung’s home province Hunan, a smoky, spicy cuisine that Westerners love passionately. Bamboo absorbs fat and smoke like a sponge, so the slices of intense bacon, here called ham, invade your palate like Genghis Khan’s hordes.
Quiche Lorraine at Patisserie Payard
Inside Caesars Palace, 731-7110
Francois Payard, the famed Paris and New York pastry chef, has recently opened a smart new retail space and restaurant, a foil for his eye-popping pastries, chocolates and sundries. His quiche Lorraine, however, flaky, crusty and beautifully textured, makes the perfect lunch, paired with mixed greens laced with perfect vinaigrette. This is one quiche any real man can eat with impunity.
Beignet doughnuts at Le Burger Brasserie
Inside Paris Las Vegas, 946-7000
Haute hamburgers are here to stay—for a while. The sweets, thick milk shakes and terrific desserts are the real surprises here, however. I’m willing to bet these beignet doughnuts, buttery dough filled with rich vanilla custard and splashed with mixed berries and powdered sugar, have more calories than a Big Mac and large fries.