fashion forward
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ThE FAShION FORECAST Rated partnered with the Forum Shops at caesars for a stylish fall affair that brought out more than 70 shops within the retail center’s roster. the Festival of Fashion on September 6-7 included in-store events, guest appearances and a Rated style lounge. models wore the current trends from designers such as dKNY, John varvatos and bebe while a dJ entertained the crowd. experts from dior Beauty and Sephora were also on hand at the Fountain of the Gods to give advice and touch-ups to guests. –devIN Howell
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Departments
vegas rated magazine
get to know ... a strip songstress, a Downtown casino boss and a food and beverage maven, three people who are doing it big in las Vegas this month.
19 9 things we love right now
35 Véronic Dicaire sings her way to the strip; seth schorr asks you to rediscover Downtown; and christina clifton shows us how to have our cake and eat it, too
40 mandarin oriental’s super-elite accommodations make new fans
42 The Green Felt Jungle described las Vegas as a city of cash, crime, corruption and sex. What’s so bad about that?
Guides 76 Brogues are stepping up the men’s footwear game. here’s where to find them
keep your summer glow as the temperatures drop with seasonal facials and body treatments
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concerts, art galleries and other notable cultural outings
86 the best night of your life is happening this halloween weekend—plus highlights from Vegas’ wildest parties
On the cover: chef Brian howard of comme Ça in the cosmopolitan of las Vegas created an artful dish of red-wine braised octopus, warm chickpea, harissa and toasted hazelnut. photograph by sabin orr.
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Véronic Dicaire: anthony mair; cocktail: kin lui; hakkasan: spyonVegas
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editor’s letter FOOD FOR THOUGHT I have a long-standing love affair with food. At 20, I started to care about eating well. Plus, dining out was a way to be seen—it was the frst part of a glamorous night on the town—preceded by shopping and followed by a nightclub. Around that age I also started to travel. A big part of those experiences was, of course, food. Researching about where to eat became the best part of going somewhere. just eat it We love to talk about food almost as much as we love to consume it. Tis month, dining editor Grace Bascos curates the ultimate guide to the city’s best eats.
I have since spent the last 10 years as a “culinary tourist,” dining my way through places such as Acapulco, Shanghai, Uruguay, Berlin and Sydney, scouring my favorite blogs and magazines for inspiration on where to eat, drink and be merry. My palate defnitely leans toward that which comforts. I like carbs and tartares. Pork to me is the perfect white meat. I revel in charcuterie and cheese, delicate hamachi and arepas with lime crema. Tacos and dumplings … I’ll take at least two. I don’t eat weird; I just eat well. In this passion I am not alone. The staff of Rated dines around all year to make this particular issue happen. It took an army of the city’s best mouths to compile more than 20 pages of everything you need to know about eating out in Las Vegas right now. Contributing dining editor Grace Bascos led the charge with longtime Las Vegas food critic Max Jacobson, while Jen Chase, Brittany Brussell and many others went along for the ride. Anthony Mair and Sabin Orr snapped the beautiful—and quite appetizing— imagery. Las Vegas’ food scene right now is like a roller coaster without a drop. Since our frst (2011) and second (2012) food issues, Tom Colicchio, Gordon Ramsay and Akira Back have opened new restaurants. Meanwhile, Masaharu Morimoto is on approach and Daniel Boulud is returning, while José Andrés will soon welcome a third Strip establishment. Also, Downtown is starting to boom with a healthy list of offerings, and the Spring Mountain Road corridor continues to get better. To honor our ever-expanding dining empire, we present our very frst cover showcasing food—chef Brian Howard of Comme Ça at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas created the outrageously beautiful octopus dish that leads this issue. Food is art—art that’s far more delicious than oil on canvas. And to answer your question, yes, we can confrm that every morsel on these pages is as delicious as it looks. Don’t be jealous, as you can taste it, too.
MeLInDA SHeCkeLLS Editor-in-Chief Follow us on Twitter @vegasrated
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by the numbers
1 SHOP
Way to Breathe Easier Most things are born out of necessity, right? So goes The Vapery, opened in July by local Sherwin Yumul after successfully kicking his own ciggy habit with alternative smoking (vaping). The Vapery’s innards are sleek, swank and befits Las Vegas’ energy, and it carries accoutrements for puffing on those little electric aerosol inhalers that vaporize liquid and simulate tobacco smoke. “We wanted to provide a more sexy vibe to fit the Las Vegas market and cater to an older demographic targeting mostly the 30-andabove crowd, like me, who always wanted to escape the analog [cigarette],” Yumul says. With the tag “Escape the Analog,” The Vapery started offering
something unique this fall. Adding to its 70-some e-liquid inventory, The Vapery now has its own e-liquid mixes. Yumul, a 20-year smoker before he saw the vaping light, says the natural flavorings “make me feel better since I know what’s in them.” As the shop grows, expect a more differentiated vaporizing experience by customizing the amount of nicotine in your e-liquids and choosing your own flavoring. Loyalty cards are on the horizon, too, and will become quite possibly the first time smokers of any kind were rewarded for anything related to their vice. The Vapery LV, 8060 S. Rainbow Blvd., Suite 105; thevaperylv.com –JEn ChASE PHotoGraPH by aNtHoNy maIr
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2000 Collins Ave. Miami Beach, FL. 33139
ClubAdore.com
Opening Fall 2013
AdoreMiami
ClubAdoreMiami
STRIP SEARCH
Voice Over Véronic DiCaire makes an impression on the Strip
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n the wee hours of a hot April night in 2001, songstress Véronic DiCaire found herself in Death Valley alongside an Elvis impersonator. She was in town flming her frst music video. During the shoot, the young Elvis jokingly asked DiCaire if she knew Celine Dion—assuming all French Canadians know each other, naturally. “No, I don’t know her. Well, yes, I know of her, but I don’t know her,” she responded. Fast-forward a decade later and DiCaire and Dion not only share a ZIP code, but Dion and her husband, René Angélil, produce Véronic’s career, which includes a headlining gig at Bally’s called Véronic Voices. Billed as an impressionist with an arsenal of 50 different voices, DiCaire’s transition into Strip headliner—performing the likes of Karen Carpenter, Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera—from creating her own music came with some resistance. Initially encouraged by her life partner and manager, Remon Boulerice, DiCaire started incorporating fve artists’ voices into her act. (Boulerice saw potential in what DiCaire simply used to do to get a chuckle out of friends and family.) But she didn’t hit the crossroad until an encounter with Marc Dupré, the son-in-law of Dion and Angélil. Dupré, who was working on DiCaire’s third album, asked her if she’d be interested in performing as Dion’s opening act, but only as an impressionist. The answer was yes, but it wasn’t an easy decision. “At frst I had to convince myself that it was OK to change the road—to turn right instead of left,” DiCaire says. Boulerice thought that’s where a successful career lay for DiCaire, and, with his support, she moved forward. “I was in front of 25,000 people for 14 nights, doing my impressions—my little number of 28 minutes. That’s when I realized, ‘OK, this is my new journey.’” With two French albums and some acting under her belt— she played Roxie Hart in a Montreal production of Chicago—it’s no doubt DiCaire belongs on the stage. Her humor is charming and helps carry her show, but it’s her ability to hit some of the hardest notes ever written that’s so captivating. She notes “the divas,” which includes Dion, of course, as a highlight of artists she impersonates. DiCaire has embraced her new path. Her loyal Canadian following is still by her side, as well as new showgoers who are rapidly spreading the word of mouth for Voices, leading to its recent extension through December. “Can you imagine how weird life is?” DiCaire says of her journey to Vegas and Dion’s infuence, recalling that day in Death Valley. “Back then I was not working with [Celine and René]—she was not my producer. And we were talking about her while flming my music video. After, I was in a car dancing with Elvis.” Tickets start at $30, Thursdays at 9:30 p.m. and Friday-Saturday at 7 p.m. Bally’s, 702.777.2782; veronicvoices.com –JESSI C. ACuñA Feeling social?
Follow Véronic on Twitter @veronicdicaire
“To be able to do impressions, like Danny Gans used to do, and Gordie Brown does, is a gift,” DiCaire, who poses above at a penthouse in Bally’s, says. “I don’t have two sets of vocal cords or magical cords; I think it’s just something you’re able to do.”
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STRIP SEARCH
Mistress of Her Domain
What’s cookin’ in Christina Clifton’s kitchen?
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Photographed at L’atelier de Joël Robuchon inside MGM Grand.
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Clifton has fond memories of sipping her dad’s piña coladas and mai tais. “So colorful and beautiful,” she says of the drinks adorned with flowers and umbrellas. “Presentation was so important.”
aven’t women made enough advancements in high-powered positions at banks, boardrooms—NASA, for God’s sake—for us to forget that “a woman’s place is in the kitchen” was ever printed? (Actually, that phrase started out by letting us roam the whole “home,” with the kitchen mention appearing a lot later … but I digress). For Christina Clifton, there’s been no forgetting. Long before her successes—14 years as director of food and beverage at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and posts as vice president of the same division for The Mirage and Aria—Clifton learned that to be a woman governing a big kitchen meant she’d have to know how to navigate every inch of one. “Being female was diffcult in the beginning because [food and beverage operations] were so male-dominated,” Clifton says. “If they said I didn’t know enough, I’d go out and learn it before the next promotion.” She taught herself the history of cutlery, got tutored in deciphering French wine labels and spent weeks at a time with line cooks learning different preparations and skills. “They’d have to give [the job] to me by skill alone. That’s how I made my way in.” Clifton started learning the food part around age 6 beside her Filipina grandmother, seasoning rice and baking pie, and the beverage aspects watching the mixology mastery of her father as he served drinks at the Polynesian restaurant he opened in Tucson, Arizona, where Clifton visited him after school. “I think you can learn through osmosis,” she says. “I sat on the barstools and could correct him,” though from the sound of it, mistakes were far and few. “My dad was probably one of the frst fare mixologists in the ’60s,” she says, with “fare” connoting not some Tom Cruise bottle-finging Cocktail wannabe, but the sublime style a mixologist uses to handle spoons and shakers just so. Little Christina observed his technique, but also that a good bartender must be a great conversationalist—has to talk sports, be a psychologist. You could say it was by his side she learned that the nuance of a good waitstaff, as much as that of a dish and the room in which it’s served, is what makes or breaks a diner’s Las Vegas adventure. Something of a dining fxer (think Olivia Pope of Scandal fame), Clifton’s understanding of food trends, prep, service and the people who ferry food and drink from A to B has invigorated the dining programs wherever she’s worked. In April she struck out on her own with Fishfork, a consultancy that helps hospitality clients develop restaurant concepts (Dom DeMarco’s Pizzeria and Bar in Las Vegas) and promote brands (Angel Champagne) throughout the country. “I’ve been very lucky. I’ve been able to talk food with some very incredible chefs,” Clifton says of her personal and professional connections with greats such as Daniel Boulud, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Thomas Keller and Laurent Tourondel. “With my background I have a very discerning palate. I’m very fortunate I have that reputation.” –JeN CHASe
SUITE SENSATION
a gem in plain sight the mandarin Oriental’s luxury suites are glimmering jewels on the las Vegas strip
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Let’s
Eat
Food goes well beyond its basic purpose of sustenance when the palate-pleasing choices are endless. Over the next 22 pages we embark on the massive undertaking of digesting Las Vegas’ culinary scene. You’ll fnd our top choices for the best eats, from burgers to sushi to desserts and everything in between. You’ll meet some of the city’s most innovative chefs—the old guard and the new—and discover ingenious dishes (lobster cappuccino, anyone?). Let the hunger games begin ...
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FIRST THINGS FIRST
Four Great Places to Break Bread Spago With Kamel Guechida now in charge of the baked goods at Wolfgang Puck’s fagship restaurant, its bread game has been upped considerably. Te basket that arrives at the table has a selection of simple yet well-crafted breads made in the traditional style, with dough fermentation processes that range from 24 to 36 hours, to allow each bread’s distinct favors and textures to develop. Te big round, slightly acidic boule of pain de champagne, considered the French sourdough, gets sliced to order for guests, along with baguettes, cherry walnut and ciabatta. Te individual baguettes, with their perfectly crunchy crust and soft centers, are best eaten while still warm and slathered with salted room-temperature butter. In Te Forum Shops at Caesars, 702.369.6300; wolfgangpuck.com Joël Robuchon executive pastry chef Salvatore martone is the one responsible for the opulent bread display that gets rolled into the dining room of Joël robuchon night after night. although the breads are seasonal, the guest expressions of awe never change at the sight of it. more than a dozen breads are featured on the cart, and are so fresh they’re pulled from the oven only minutes before service begins. Tere are several diferent varieties of airy brioche, sharp-pointed baguettine and other country-style options, but no one ever passes up the decadent bacon and mustard baguette. In MGM Grand, 702.891.7925; mgmgrand.com Restaurant Guy Savoy Te bread service at restaurant Guy Savoy (pictured) also arrives via cart with a broad array of loaves from which you can choose. can’t decide between the seaweed baguette and the olive ciabatta? Not sure if you need a baguette with or without poppy seeds? Te bread sommelier (because that really is a thing) is happy to pair pain to each of your courses. In Caesars Palace, 702.731.7286; caesarspalace.com Brand Steakhouse Soft white bread is often considered the devil, but it’s nearly impossible to say no to it—which is perhaps why the Parker House rolls at brand are only available if you ask for them. Te warm rolls arrive in a cast-iron skillet, shiny and buttery. milk, cream and a little bit of sugar make them just soft enough to hit the sweet spot in your brain that turns of all self-control. In Monte Carlo, 702.730.6700; montecarlo.com –Grace baScoS
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Power Lunch
How to eat out Properly Five simple rules to getting the most out of your dining experience in Las vegas Make a reservation. It takes fve minutes and saves you the trouble of having to wait an hour for a table or hunt for another restaurant if you can’t wait. Plus, it’s always cool to have the hostess smile right at you and say “right this way” as you walk past all the other jokers who couldn’t bother to call ahead. Dress properly (casual edition). You are presumably a grown-up. If you are coming to Las vegas, dress like one. You don’t have to don a suit or a cocktail dress to go to the bufet, but if you are leaving the comfort of your hotel room to eat, please look somewhat presentable.
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Eat somewhere that doesn’t exist in your hometown. Why would you come all the way here to dine at a place you eat at every week? there are hundreds of new experiences—and even if you’re not so adventurous, chances are there’s an eatery that has a similar menu for you to navigate. Let’s flip our motto: What you eat in your hometown should stay in your hometown. Understand that the celebrity chef probably won’t be there, but the food will still be good. Sorry, Gordon ramsay isn’t here tonight. Neither is mario Batali or Bobby Flay. But the food you know them for? Tat’s defnitely here. Tey’ve charged their executive chefs to run the restaurants they’ve put their names on, and those guys are not phoning it in. to be fair, the celebrity chef is just a pretty face these days. If you want serious food, the chefs who are best at it are anchored frmly here. –Grace BaScoS
Chef’s ChoiCe
omakase, or the chef ’s choice menu, is an integral part of the Japanese culinary experience. Akira Back has not only embraced it in his two Strip restaurants, Yellowtail at Bellagio and Kumi in Mandalay Bay, he has redefined it. Breaking boundaries comes second nature to the Korean-born, Colorado-raised Back, and while his California roll is as good as they come, you can get that anywhere. Don’t be afraid to go off the menu. On a recent culinary adventure (which is the only fitting description for a night dining under Back’s tutelage), we sampled foie gras chawanmushi, a silky soft tofu concoction and the Osakana box, containing his special catch of the day. Oh, and don’t forget the eel, which he ices and beheads right before serving. Spend 10 minutes with the gregarious Back, who is a master of self-promotion, and he will gladly lay out his plan to conquer the world, one diner at a time. Just don’t ask to touch his knife. 702.693.8300, yellowtaillasvegas.com; 702.632.7200, mandalaybay.com –MeLiNDA sheCKeLLs
ILLUStratIoN: JeSSe SUtHerLaNd
Dress properly (fnedining edition). If the restaurant has a strict dress code, when you make a reservation (see what I did there?) they will likely inform you as to whether men are required to wear a jacket. While some restaurants may be more fexible than others, it never hurts to be respectful: no fip
fops, no shorts and no baseball caps. Tough the restaurant may not shame you if you’re woefully underdressed, you will defnitely feel that way once you’re seated in an opulent dining room that clashes with your Juicy couture sweatpants.
In a hurry and need to grab a quick bite? Look no further than The Palm in The Forum Shops at Caesars for a simple midday recharge designed with health and convenience in mind. Appropriately titled the Modern Power Lunch, this restaurant’s offerings complement a day of extreme shopping or for those in a hurry to get out the door and back to their desk— from start to fnish the meal takes less than an hour. Select from a full page of options such as Atlantic salmon flet; Nova Scotia lobster BLT sandwich with crispy bacon, oven-dried tomatoes, baby arugula and Goddess dressing; or the blackened New York steak chop-chop salad. You can also go for it all with the Three Course Power Lunch (frst, second and something small and sweet). $26, in The Forum Shops at Caesars, 702.732.7256; thepalm.com –DevIN HoweLL
LUNCHTIME
Around the World in Seven Sandwiches “All of humankind has one thing in common: the sandwich,” proclaimed Liz Lemon on 30 Rock, and she’s right. No matter where you go in the world, each culture has some representation of its quintessential cuisine nestled in between two slices of bread meant to nourish and comfort, even if it’s just a quick snack. We tracked down the city’s fnest international portable bites (well, some of them), from Mexican tortas to Vietnamese banh mi. Now you can eat around the world without leaving Las Vegas. AdobAdA TorTA, PhAT PhrAnks You may have had Mexican tortas engulfed by a giant bun before, but this isn’t the case at Phat Phrank’s. The bread is fat, similar to what you’d fnd on a Cuban, but not buttered, with good integrity that doesn’t go soggy even if all the sandwich innards may be spilling out the sides. Phrank’s signature pork adobada is cooked on the fat top so the meat caramelizes with a nice crisp to it, then it's piled onto the toasted bread with a mix of chopped lettuce and tomatoes tossed with “secret sauce,” an almost creamy mayo mixture with a hint of cilantro. $8, 4850 W. Sunset Rd., Suite 120, 702.247.6528; phatphranks.com bbQ Pork bAnh mi, Lee’s sAndwiches It was the French who introduced the baguette to Vietnam, but the flling of this sandwich are pure Asian. The red-hued, slightly sweet Chinese barbecue pork is thinly sliced then tucked into the bread, fresh loaves of which are baked every hour. The remaining accoutrements are quintessentially Vietnamese in favors and texture: slivers of jalapeño for heat, pickled daikon radish and carrot for crunch, and stems of cilantro for a verdant bite. $4, 3989 Spring Mountain Rd., 702.331.9999; leesandwiches.com FALAFeL sAndwich, sAbAbA Rami Cohen, owner of the kosher and Middle Eastern Sababa, boasts that he has the best falafel in Las Vegas, and we’re inclined to agree. Each order of the ground chickpea balls are fried to order then tucked into a warm pita that has been insulated with a healthy smear of hummus. Ask for everything: tart pickles, salad and tomatoes, but be wary of Sababa’s hot sauce. It’s green, which is always a suspicious color for hot sauces, but the blend of herbs, garlic and chilies knocks the socks off even the most hard-core spice freaks. $7, 3220 S. Durango Dr., 702.547.5556; sababarestaurant.com
reuben, cArnegie deLi “It’s like a football covered in cheese,” the waitress at Carnegie Deli says when I ask her about their version of the New York classic. With a description like that, how can I resist? Served open-faced, the sandwich is a good pound of both corned beef and pastrami piled comically high along with fresh sauerkraut, then smothered with Swiss cheese. When you cut into it, the thing isn’t a complete mess, either. Each of the brined meats has its own distinct favor, the sauerkraut still has good bite to it, and the cheese insulates all the heat inside. Yes, it’s not cheap, but the sheer volume of the thing will give you at least another two good meals. $23, in The Mirage, 702.791.7310; mirage.com reinA PePiAdA, ViVA LAs ArePAs The Venezuelan street snack’s method of delivery is the arepa, a fatbread made from maize four that’s split in half. The Reina Pepiada, or curvy queen, is allegedly named for the country’s frst international beauty queen, Susana Dujim, who was crowned Miss World in 1955. Her legacy lives on through one the most popular late-night varieties of arepa, stuffed with shredded chicken breast, avocado, mayo and cilantro. $5, 1616 Las Vegas Blvd. South, 702.366.9696; vivalasarepas.com croQue monsieur, PAyArd PATisserie & bisTro Europeans aren’t so good at the sandwich—they don’t believe in overflling them, and even if they’re not open-faced, they eat them with a knife and fork. The French, however, redeem their continent by Frenching up the ham and cheese sandwich into the Croque Monsieur. Payard’s is made with cheese-crusted brioche, good ham, Gruyère cheese and béchamel. Monsieur becomes Madame when you put an egg on it, and as we all know, a fried egg on top makes everything a thousand times better. $17, in Caesars Palace, 702.731.7292; caesarspalace.com Pork beLLy bAo, FAT choy The steamed, fuffy Chinese bao is a bigger, doughier version of a dumpling skin, with perfect integrity to stand up to heartier fllings. Pork belly is roasted until it becomes meltingly tender, so much so that you can bite into it without having to struggle. The fattiness of the belly is offset by bitter and tart pickled mustard greens, while crushed peanuts add crunch and texture. $7, in Eureka Casino, 702.794.3464; fatchoylv.com –GRACE BASCOS PHotoGraPHY bY sabin orr
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Holsteins sets the Gold Standard.
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HOW TO
Eat Shanghai Soup dumplingS ... thE right way
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Step 1: Pick the bao up carefully by the top with chopsticks—because if you’re going to appreciate the soup dumpling, you really should have mastered basic chopstick skills by now. Get it together. Step 2: Should XLB not be in the aforementioned individual foil tin (the better ones come eight to 10 in an order in the steamer), in addition to your chopsticks, you’re going to need a Chinese soupspoon. Once you’ve released the dumpling from the paper lining in the bamboo steamer without tearing the wrapper, just slip the soupspoon directly under it. Step 3: Bring the dumpling close to your mouth and bite the top off, just below where the wrapper has been pleated shut. If the dumpling was heated and served immediately, the wrapper should open just a little bit, and fragrant steam should be given off from the heady, rich broth that has been waiting to escape its thin wrapper prison. Sometimes we can be a bit overzealous and tear too much off and the wrapper collapses, releasing all the precious soup. Aren’t you glad you’re using a soupspoon now? Step 4: This is the time when you get to enjoy the soup. Slurp it, slowly, as it should still be hot, appreciating its fragrance and how it got to be soup. Step 5: Now that you’ve drained the soup from the dumpling, you may want to pour a touch of the vinegar and/or shredded ginger that accompanies the dish. Just a few drops though—the vinegar brightens the bite and cuts through the little bit of fatty richness of the pork, while the ginger will add subtle heat and texture. Step 6: Take a bite out of the dumpling itself, enjoying the morsel of pork hidden within. It’s really only a two-bite process, so if you don’t get it right the frst time, there’s at least a few more left in the steamer with your name on them. –GrACE BASCOS Where to eat xiao long bao: China Mama, 3420 S. Jones Blvd., 702.873.1977 KJ Dim Sum & Seafood, Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, 702.731.7778; riolasvegas.com Bund Shanghai, 3545 S. Decatur Blvd., 702.272.1777; shanghairestaurantlasvegas.com PHOTOGRAPH BY AnTHOnY mAiR
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ou’ve seen them at dim sum or at the dumpling restaurants around Chinatown, the puffy, saggy-looking packets that jiggle a little bit when they’re freshly steamed—sometimes inside their own tinfoil in a bamboo steamer. Inside is a bit of pork flling and, if made properly, about a tablespoon of hot, rich broth. These are Shanghai soup dumplings, or xiao long bao (pronounced “show” like in “shower,” as in you’ll be showered in soup if you don’t eat it correctly, “long,” and “bow,” as in if you do, please take a bow). The uninitiated may think, “Hey, it’s a dumpling, what’s not to like?” Then you take a bite and a gush of soup squirts out and you think, “What is happening right now and why is my face being scalded with hot liquid?” Without proper instruction, these little bombs of deliciousness can be dangerous. A little history: The Shanghai soup dumplings originated in—you guessed it—Shanghai, about a century ago. They became popular in the 1980s in Taipei at a restaurant called Din Tai Fung, which now has outposts in Los Angeles and Seattle. So how does the soup get inside the wrapper? The broth, usually made from pork bones and skin, is chilled so the liquid becomes a gelatin solid, making it easier to wrap. This is tucked in with a bit of pork and folded into a thin wrapper. The process is all about controlled chaos: The delicate skin must be thin enough so that the meat and soup gelatin can be steamed properly, but thick enough so once the gelatin enters the liquid state, it doesn’t tear. The top of the dumpling is pleated to seal so it creates a little bag around the flling. Once the dumpling is steamed, the gelatin melts from its solid state into liquid, et voila! Hot soup in a paper-thin wrapper, coming right up! The frst problem is getting the dumpling from the steamer basket in the vicinity of your mouth. Even if you’re not particularly dexterous with chopsticks, with regular dim sum you can get away with picking it up and hurriedly eating it. Xiao long bao, however, takes a little bit of fnagling. Here are the steps that you need to become a xiao master. Hop to it, little grasshopper.
Pick the bao up carefully by the top with chopsticks.
Place dumpling in soupspoon.
ILLUSTRATION: JeSSe SUTHeRLANd
PHOTOGRAPH BY XX
Bite the top of the dumpling, just below where the wrapper has been pleated shut.
Add a touch of the vinegar and shredded ginger. eat the dumpling then repeat.
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better with age Te red-lit, glassed-in room at the entrance of Te Steak House at circus circus is defnitely a conversation starter— frst, when you see the platter of the cuts of meat available in the window; then, when you see the hanging sides of beef and you're channeling your inner rocky Balboa. Tis room is where the magic happens:
Whole prime ribs are dry aging, with the help of some friendly microbes, at the end of a 21-to28-day process. Bob o’Brien, Te Steak House executive chef, took us on a tour of the carefully curated room. Why dry age meat? during the 21-to-28day dry-aging period, the meat dries out,
intensifying the flavor and giving it that prized funky edge, and the muscles break down for trademark tenderness. don’t be scared by the moldy crust developing on the outside—that gets sliced away to reveal the gem inside. Te coolest room in Vegas It’s a brisk 36 degrees in the aging room with 67
percent humidity— about the same as a damp, latefall day. Te temperature and humidity have to be kept constant at all times to keep control of the aging process, and essentially for food safety. “You’ve got to keep an eye on the humidity,” o’Brien says. “otherwise you’ve got a big problem. Tere’s a big diference between ‘this steak is beautiful’
and ‘this steak is rotten.’” Red-light special You know how you’re supposed to keep things you don’t want to go bad in a cool, dark place? Te red light bulbs illuminating the room have as much to do with the aging process as do temperature and humidity. Te ultraviolet light helps retard mold and bacteria growth.
Meat’s on the menu Te Steak House at circus circus will go through anywhere from three to fve whole prime ribs in a night, six if it’s really busy. Tat’s about 250 pounds of meat at about a pound per person, before the waste and molded crust are cut of. 702.794.3767; circuscircus.com –Grace BaScoS
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If you’re a pork lover, this is one swine celebration you won’t want to miss. Celebrating its ffth anniversary, the Cochon U.S. tour makes its fnal stop in Las Vegas on October 20, and it’s going to be pig—er, big! After months of touring the country and spreading its message that family farms provide better food choices and better-tasting, healthier options, Cochon closes out its milestone year in Downtown Las Vegas with the All-Star Cochon whole-hog competition. Ten chefs prepare a “snout-to-tail” menu for the tasting, featuring heritage breed pigs sourced in the competitors’ respective markets and including more than 40 swine-focused dishes, two butchering demos, reserve wines, artisan cocktails, craft brews and—you knew this was coming— pork-infused desserts. “We are excited to extend the tour once again into Las Vegas; it’s the ultimate place to celebrate the favor benefts of heritage breed pigs,” event founder and Taste Network principal Brady Lowe says. As part of the celebration, other events will be held throughout the weekend. Keep an eye on amusecochon.com for updates and tickets. –KATe STOWeLL
DON’T MISS NEVADA BALLET THEATRE & CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: A CHOREOGRAPHERS’ SHOWCASE october 6 and 13 Tickets start at $25 Mystère Teatre 702.894.7722; nevadaballet.org. THE AVETT BROTHERS october 6 Tickets are $40 Boulevard Pool in Te Cosmopolitan 702.698.7000; cosmopolitanlasvegas.com PHOENIX october 8 Tickets are $35 Boulevard Pool in Te Cosmopolitan 702.698.7000; cosmopolitanlasvegas.com CONOR OBERST october 9 Tickets are $30 House of Blues in Mandalay Bay 702.632.7600; houseofblues.com PANIC! AT THE DISCO october 11 Tickets are $26.50 Boulevard Pool in Te Cosmopolitan 702.698.7000; cosmopolitanlasvegas.com GOGOL BORDELLO october 12 Tickets are $25 Boulevard Pool in Te Cosmopolitan 702.698.7000; cosmopolitanlasvegas.com MICHAEL FRANTI & SPEARHEAD october 18 Tickets are $25 House of Blues in Mandalay Bay 702.632.7600; houseofblues.com THE NAKED AND FAMOUS october 24 Tickets are $20 Te Boulevard Pool in Te Cosmopolitan 702.698.7000; cosmopolitanlasvegas.com MARK KNOPFLER october 25 Tickets start at $66 Te Pearl at Palms 702.944.3200; palms.com ALICE IN CHAINS october 26 Tickets start at $70 Te Pearl at Palms 702.944.3200; palms.com SELENA GOMEZ November 9 Tickets start at $30.50 Mandalay Bay Events Center 702.632.7777; mandalaybay.com
five hits on the stRiP Absinthe Vulgar and delightful, freaky and frivolous, Absinthe is a tripped-out, tent-bound carnival of sights you can’t stand to miss. Dark: Monday. Tickets start at $99. In Caesars Palace, 800.745.3000; absinthevegas.com the beAtles love The mesmerizing music of The Beatles is brought to life by psychedelic imagery and awe-inspiring acrobatic feats suitable for fower children of all ages. Dark: Tuesday-Wednesday. Tickets start at $79. In The Mirage, 702.792.7777; cirquedusoleil.com Pin UP Playboy’s 2011 Playmate of the Year Claire Sinclair teases and tickles in a musical homage to the retro glamour of pinup models. Dark: TuesdayWednesday. Tickets
start at $50. In the Stratosphere, 702.380.7777; stratospherehotel.com Million DollAr QUArtet A history lesson with heart, soul and strings, Million Dollar Quartet sheds light on the 1956 recording session with Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins. Dark: Saturday. Tickets start at $55. In Harrah’s Las Vegas, 702.369.5111; harrahslasvegas.com véronic voices We may never see Rihanna, Aretha and Adele all on one stage, but thanks to FrenchCanadian impressionist Véronic DiCaire (and her dozens of voices), we can close our eyes and get pretty darn close. Dark: Sunday-Wednesday. Tickets start at $30. In Bally’s, 702.777.2782; ballyslasvegas.com
SENSATION NATION Besides being home to some of the biggest DJ residencies in the world, Las Vegas is building on the success of electronic dance music by playing host to a variety of tours including the upcoming stop for Sensation: The Ocean of White on October 5. Billed as a water world, expect canals and fountains throughout MGM Grand Garden set to the soundtrack of house and techno grooves. Tickets are $150 for general admission and $250 for VIP. 702.891.1111; sensation.com –JESSI C. ACuñA
Phoenix Rising Laurent Brancowitz on indie success, European weirdness and fear of artistic failure French indie rockers Phoenix formed in 1999 and enjoyed moderate success for 10 years before 2009’s Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix won a Grammy for Best Alternative Album, propelling the group into mainstream consciousness and festival headliner slots. This year Phoenix released their ffth studio album, Bankrupt!, the band’s highest charting album to date, and continued headlining festivals from Coachella to Lollapalooza. Phoenix plays October 8 at The Boulevard Pool in The Cosmopolitan. You told nPr, “We’re more editors than musicians.” Describe Phoenix’s editing process. We try to be brief with our music. We keep it kind of freaky, like magicians who want to be amazed by our own magic tricks. You have to put yourself in the position of not really knowing what’s happening, even if you know the secret. You have to be in this position of being amaze-able by your own music, which is really hard! We create lots and lots of music in this kind of trend. We listen back, but a few days after. So we have sort of forgotten our intention.
ironically, your commercial success came after moving from a major label to an indie label. Why? Because our music has always been a bit weird compared to what’s on the radio and what people believe music should sound like to be successful. We needed to fnd the right label, one that was as crazy and as fearless as us. We needed people who had the same attitude in terms of putting out a record in an inventive way. We needed them to have fexibility. It was a good matchup. how did the success of Wolfgang affect making Bankrupt!? We knew we could go a bit further than usual, and we knew that people would give us the beneft of the doubt. So we could push the envelope a bit. We went a bit too far, which is always a great pleasure when you’re creating something, when you make the contrast a bit too intense. how does fear of failure materialize in the creative process? When we are writing an album, we know that fear and discomfort is very important; if it wasn’t the case, it wouldn’t be a very good sign. It’s like someone is walking on a tightrope with a net under him. When you compare it to a guy doing the same thing without the net, it’s a radical difference. The fact that you can fall and die is crucial; it changes everything. We are scared, because we are afraid that we may not achieve what we want. –SAm GLASER
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