Paella is a traditional Spanish rice dish. It is made with arborio rice and you dump in whatever leftovers you have in the fridge. The best I had was on the beaches of Spain 20 years ago. Valencian Gold just re-opened in Vegas. It is not often you find paella on a menu so we had to try. Firefly also does paella but the original location is dark and dreary inside. VG has a nice bright location and atmosphere. I would have preferred a different music selection than the rap crap playing. They have real Iberian jamon hanging from the ceiling and cook the paella in real pans over an open fire. We chose a couple of tapas and the seafood paella. It wasn’t excessively large so we had room for dessert. Food presentation was top notch.
Croquetas were very goodPan con tomate y boquerones (bread with tomato and fish).Paella Mariscos: The rice caramelizes to the pan. I think I like the Firefly paella better as they do a ‘kitchen sink’ version with peas, chicken, chorizo, and seafood. I know some paella purists prefer it this way.Honey Toast: apples, honey, and caramel over a very soft bread
This week’s dining adventure took us to Sammy’s in Henderson. This has been on our list for so long neither of us knew when or why or who recommended this place. No reservations, no masks, no waiting, and got a seat by the windows right by the garden with bunnies and birds.
Pizza was really good with lots of basil. Roasted brussel sprouts are always a favorite. Both were half off during happy hour. The prices are very reasonable and we will come back.
It also happens to be across the street from Cinnaholic – the mocha roll sadly did not survive long enough for a picture.
Brussel sprouts with walnuts, balsamic, and ParmesanMargarita pizza: one of the best aroundChicken tequila Fettuccine: Green noodles, jalapenos in a tangy sauseShort ribs over Cheesy grits: Covered with sage and oh so good
Way out in the hinterlands of Henderson lies a tiny Thai Restaurant that came highly recommended. The atmosphere at Jasmine Rice is great. They had a live singer playing hits from the 70s on guitar in a slow almost Hawaiian style. We were lucky to call ahead for reservations as there were a lot of people outside who could not get in. Of course the singer had to stand behind plexiglass, which was weird, but we have retards making these laws.
I strayed from my usual panang curry to try the fried rice. It was very good as it had a lot of things in it. Not as aromatic as Indian Biryani and not as exotic as a good Spanish Paella but a solid 3rd in the world of rice dishes. For those of you who have never had Asian eggplant, you are missing out. It is very different than the big seedy ones we see here in the grocery stores.
Thai Tea: A must haveCrab RangoonsPineapple Fried RiceEggplant and Tofu
Ramen is more than the 15 cent cup of noodles you see at the store. We have a number of good ramen places around here. We come back to Jinya time and again as they consistently good. They are the gold standard in town for others to match. They have a lot of different ramen broths to choose from and I have not tried them all. I noticed they have a kale noodle now which I will try next time to see how the low carb thing works out. Jinya now has 3 locations in town and 2 of them do a good job. Is it as good as Tajima in San Diego or Danbo in Seattle? I will need more testing.
Tempura brussel sproutsJalapeno corn. New appetizer on menu. finely diced peppers and onion with freshly cut corn. In butter. Not too hot but wonderful.Shrimp Ramen. Wanton wrapped shrimp balls in a chicken/tonkotsu broth. Very good.Spicy Tonkotsu: Thicker noodles and added an egg. The chashu is from a new supplier and not quite as tender but still very good.
La Mojarra Loca Grill is one of the hardest places to get into. We have tried before at 3 in the afternoon and told it is a 2 hour wait. This is a good sign. Most Mexican restaurants in the US have the same menu – this place is different. It has a menu as thick as Cheesecake Factory with page after page of very colorful offerings. The place is loud and ruckus. Big groups singing loudly and having a good time. We had to try the deep fried fish (served head on) and also the volcano bowls. The tortillas are hand made and fresh off the grill. Both corn and flour are worth the trip by itself.
It is worth the wait. There is an office depot next door so you can do your shopping while you wait.
Mojarra Loca: They named the restaurant after this dish. Shrimp and peppersMolcajete is a very hot volcanic stone filled with sauce and a variety of options. Most intense salsa I have ever had.
The 3T’s dining club ventured out to a trendy and happening Italian kitchen. This place was loud and crowded with tables difficult to come by. It’s a nice building with private rooms, outdoor patios, rooftop dining and wine cellars. Caprese Salad was good, Lasagna was good, Clams were good, Eggplant was good. We will try to come back and try the osso bucco and butternut ravioli.
Big T’s Cantina is where the old scary doll shop was downtown. This is a great improvement just in that alone. This is a small but good menu where you want to try everything. A few unique things on the menu which is something that we look out for. We went with a few neighbors so we got to try a number of things. We will have to go back to try the others – cannot wait.
Not pictured was the Holy Shrimp platter, Fried Chicken, and Flank Steak. I wanted to try their Masitas (which sounds similar to Mofongo that you would find in Puerto Rico) but they were out of plantains. The owner stopped by and told us to try the queso fundido next time too. I also saw sopapitas on the dessert menu and I will have to also try those next time.
The atmosphere is open with big windows and the staff was very helpful.
Mexican Corn: When you see this on a menu it is usually corn on the cob with lots of stuff on it. What is awesome here is they take it off the cob and mix it so it can be shared as a dip. This is a must try.Asada Taco: I could eat a dozen of theseChicken BurritoSwordfish, Shrimp and Carnitas tacos
There are a number of Thai restaurants in the area which are good but not great. My favorite Thai restaurant /by far/ is Chatthai 92 miles away out in Pahrump. We had high hopes after reading the reviews for Nittaya’s. It is 45 miles away in a beautiful modern building and has a great menu and great wait staff. The first thing I noticed was they have both Shishito Peppers and Angel wings on the menu – 2 of my favorite things. They also have some unique items on the menu not commonly seen elsewhere.
I have only seen shishito peppers at upscale Japanese restaurants. These were supposed to be charred with garlic and scallions. Angel wings are tough to find – probably because they are hard to make. You take a chicken wing and carefully dissect the upper arm bone and meat keeping the skin intact. Mix the chicken with some pork, onion, veg and re-stuff it back in the wing. Fry it up and you have a strange looking egg roll. This by itself is worth the 92 mile drive out to Pahrump.
All in all it is the best so far in the Vegas valley but takes the Silver medal when compared the Chatthai kids in Nye county. It is a bit spendy (as we say in Minnesota) but we will go back as there are a number of other things on the menu that need to be tried.
Shishito Peppers: with garlic, scallion, sea salt. Not ‘charred’ as specified but very goodAngel Wing: Nice and crispy. Best one in the Vegas area so far.Kao-Soi: Pork shoulder in a Panang curry with crispy egg noodles. Panang really needs a bit more kafir leaf in it but the egg noodles are a nice touch.Green curry with flank steak, avocado, zucchini. Well balanced and creamy.
Birthdays mean one thing around here: Food. One thing that is not commonly found on menus is the classic Beef Wellington. It is hard to make because you have to bake the filet inside a pastry sheet where you cant poke or prod it to tell how done it is. Chef Gordon Ramsey is famous for this and we happen to have 4 of his restaurants in town. (along with all the other FoodTV personalities)
The Pub and Grill is inside the wonderful Caesars complex (my favorite casino). The food and service was good, but the bill did reflect that. Casinos are expensive and you are paying for Gordon’s name.
Overall we would have to agree that the Beef Wellington across the street at the Paris Eiffel Tower was better in looks, taste, size, and sides. Plus you can watch the Bellagio fountains. Thank you for a fun birthday evening
French Onion Soup: Very good. Not very hot, but good flavor balanceLobster Shrimp Roll: They added lemon and cucumber to cut the heavy fattiness. Very good.Beef Wellington: This was very rare not medium rare as specified. Gordon would be screaming at the cooks if he saw this. Good but could have used some more salt / seasoning. The wine demi was more like a brown gravy than a wine reduction.Sticky Toffee Pudding: Very goodBurning off those calories in the forum shopsTres Leches Cake and flowers (Yahtzee Lavender Mums in the back)Who Dat?
I come across so much awful Mexican food around the country in my travels. I need to restore my faith by hitting up the taco truck in town. The workers are super friendly and there is a good comradery among the other patrons as you wait for your order. Their street tacos are superb. So good that I have yet to get a picture of them. I did remember to take a picture of the Big Dam Burrito. I still have a few things on the menu I need to try.
