Las Vegas thread and MSE guide 2009 part 2

wagster_2

Stew68 wrote: »

Hi Wagster,

Couple of personal reccomendations in that area, inside the MGM is a restaurant called Craftsteak, it is pretty expensive but the steak and service is fantastic. (My mouth is drooling with the memory!!). Alternatively you could go accross the road to New York, New York and eat at a place called Gallaghers, I ate there earlier this year and had a great piece of steak.

There is also a place just outside the MGM called Smith & Wollensky, I haven't tried it myself yet but it does look quite nice.

Hope that helps,

Stew

Had a quick look at Craftsteak before i posted the question but as you said i think cost might put me off but never no. Will take a look at the other 2 you suggested, any idea on cost though?

ferf1223 wrote: »

It's not close to MGM as such, but very easy by monorail - Envy mentioned earlier in this thread...right by the convention centre monorail stop - so monorail from Envy to MGM would be very easy. Great steaks and with a restaurant.com voucher good value too...not cheap, but not break the bank.

http://www.envysteakhouse.com/food/dinner-menu.aspx

Thought about going here too but was concerned about how long it takes to get to the MGM from there, dont want to end up missing the show due to time delays, how long does it take to get from Envy to MGM on the monorail?

Thanks for all your suggestions.

ferf1223

October , November

wagster wrote: »

Thought about going here too but was concerned about how long it takes to get to the MGM from there, dont want to end up missing the show due to time delays, how long does it take to get from Envy to MGM on the monorail?

Thanks for all your suggestions.

The full route (MGM->Sahara, 7 stations) takes 15 minutes...the Convention Centre stop is the 3rd one going south. So 10 minutes probably plus about a 2 minute walk to the station...they run every 5-6 minutes most of the day (longer gaps earlier and later). Probably faster than a taxi from that location as they don't have a taxi rank - they hail one from the street to the front of the hotel for you. But I understand if you don't want to risk being too far away with a show scheduled.

wagster_2

ferf1223 wrote: »

The full route (MGM->Sahara, 7 stations) takes 15 minutes...the Convention Centre stop is the 3rd one going south. So 10 minutes probably plus about a 2 minute walk to the station...they run every 5-6 minutes most of the day (longer gaps earlier and later). Probably faster than a taxi from that location as they don't have a taxi rank - they hail one from the street to the front of the hotel for you. But I understand if you don't want to risk being too far away with a show scheduled.

thanks ferf, just pulled up the info on the monorail and after all this time of planning things never realised how quick the monorail really is.

As i guess you have eaten at the Envy before, if i wanted to be at the show at the MGM no later than 9pm, what time would you suggest on reserving a table at Envy for to allow sufficient time to eat and then get to MGM for 9pm?

ferf1223

October , November

Well, we've only eaten there once and did experience a longer wait than normal with my ordering a steak medium well, but I would think you'd be fine with a booking for 6:30 or 7. Though really depends on how leisurely you like your meal to be - will you have starters, main and dessert? After dinner drinks? Etc...that sort of thing can impact timings quite a lot.

Just looked at our planner (it was the trip with my in-laws where we planned quite a lot more than normal so I have better records than normal). We went at 7pm on a Saturday - had the extra wait for my steak - and made it downtown by taxi with time to spare for the 9pm FSE Queen show (I remember this as we really, really wanted to make it for the Queen show for my FIL and it was only on at 9pm when we were there). We didn't have starters, desserts or drinks/coffee after dinner.

Oh - and the monorail is quick - but it's not always great value...sometimes with 2 of you a taxi will cost about the same as a trip on the monorail (exception being all-day or 3-day passes which can get expensive).

duchy

August

Unless you are great walkers then the all day monorail pass is pretty good value-depending on where you are going along the Strip. I was put off it on a past visit by the trek through a hotel onto the Strip at one stop but we used it again this trip and really enjoyed it-certainly better than the Deuce for certain journeys.

Other bits and pieces from my trip this time...... Orleans does the all day buffet (3 visits) for $21 especially good on Sundays when brunch is about $14.

Got a double upgrade at the Flamingo with no tip. Our basic Go room wasn't ready at 11 am (no big deal our bags were still at the Orleans I hopped on the shuttle whilst son was still sleeping) but she allocated us a Go room with a view and told us to come back in 2 hours. Went back just after 3pm -still not ready so I asked about maybe upgrading and added I really didn't want to pay more but it was a special birthday trip for my son yadda yadda. She found me an executive Go room and then asked a manager if she could waive the upgrade fee so we got a 27th floor Go room with a fabulous view of the fountains-for $70. Also Harrahs have a new policy if you prepay your room you don't need to put a deposit on the room at check in. My last visit it took 3 weeks for the hold to drop off my card so I offered a cash deposit this time but they told me if I didn't want charge facilities I didn't need to do so (I did in the end as I wanted internet so left $100)

One thing we do that is becoming a bit of a tradition for us is to go see an Imax movie at the Palms. We saw the newish Harry Potter which was also 3D in parts-the Palms also has some nice eating places. Very easy to get to as it is right opposite the Gold Coast so hop on the Gold Coast shuttle and cross the road.

Stew68

Hi Wagster,

Clicking on the link below will take you to the page where you can look at the menus for Gallaghers. I seem to remember that I had the cowboy steak at $38.00, can't remember the sides (too many fat tire beers!!)

http://www.nynyhotelcasino.com/restaurants/restaurants_gallagherssteakhouse.aspx

Smith & Wollensky don't have prices on their menus i'm afraid.

Our Craftsteak meal was very expensive, we went for a taster menu, the final bill was more than i've ever paid for a meal (probably 3 meals all told!!) but I was only 40 once!! The service was fantastic, our waitress was from the UK and we found that her mother lived just round the corner from my brother, its a small world!!

Zazie

April

Talking of food, I thought this might be of interest to those of you who will be there later this month
PAella cooking demo

Saturday, September 26 - 10:00 A.M.

Learn how to cook that perfect paella! Join us for a paella cooking class starting at 10 a.m. followed by lunch with wines and sherries. Paella recipe book included. $35 per person, plus tax.
For more information or reservations, please call Caf! Ba-Ba-Reeba! Las Vegas at 702.258.1211

Zazie

April

Or just stick to the booze if you are not driving:

Bodega Ba-Ba-Reeba!

Tuesday, October 13 - 6:00 P.M.

Caf! Ba-Ba-Reeba! offers wine enthusiasts an opportunity to hone their tasting skills and meet other wine lovers by spending an evening with Las Vegas’ top wine importers as they offer over 30 of Spain’s best wines, sherries and brandies. Along with a wine tasting booklet, guests will enjoy a wide selection of tapas and paella. Wines available for purchase at great value during this event! Event cost is $30 per person, plus tax.
Please call 702.258.1211 for registration

ferf1223

October , November

duchy wrote: »

Unless you are great walkers then the all day monorail pass is pretty good value-depending on where you are going along the Strip. I was put off it on a past visit by the trek through a hotel onto the Strip at one stop but we used it again this trip and really enjoyed it-certainly better than the Deuce for certain journeys.

I agree that it can be good value and can be reasonably convenient - we don't really mind the walk from station to casino except at MGM...we just got spoiled by the shareable 10-ride passes good for a year (and 2-for-1 vouchers for them) so we were used to get 20 rides for about $35...so now $5/ride seems extortionate and even the 1-day pass at $13 seems quite a lot for the number of times we would use it in a day especially since we would have to buy 2 of them for the pair of us. I do like the monorail itself though - it's quick, clean, nicely air conditioned, etc. And I like that you get to see things you can't see from the strip.

ferf1223

October , November

This was on Mon Ami Gabi's Facebook page in case it interests anyone...it's vaguely interesting to me but as I'm not a massive fan of French food in general and not a wine drinker, we'll give it a miss I think.

Mon Ami Gabi - Las Vegas On Saturday,October 3 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Executive Chef Terry Lynch will teach you how to cook a three-course French and Julia Child inspired meal at Mon Ami Gabi. Indulge in these specialties while enjoying a French wine tasting! Cost is $40 per guest. Please call 702.944.4224 to register!