Noted Chicago restaurateurs come to Vegas

Thursday, June 3, 1999 | 11:15 a.m.

Park Place Entertainment Corp. of Las Vegas said award-winning chefs Jean Joho and Gabino Sotelino will bring French restaurants to the Paris Las Vegas hotel-casino when it opens this September.

Park Place said its 2,916-room Paris property is teaming with a private restaurant company, Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises Inc., to open the two French restaurants: Mon Ami Gabi and the resort's signature Eiffel Tower restaurant.

This will bring to eight the number of French-inspired restaurants at the resort on the Las Vegas Strip.

"The Eiffel Tower restaurant will be Las Vegas' premier Parisian dining destination, offering exquisite French cuisine and ambiance high above the Las Vegas Strip," said Paul V. Pusateri, president of Paris Las Vegas and and its adjacent sister resort, Bally's.

Joho, chef and owner of Chicago's Everest and Brasserie Jo restaurants, will develop classic French cuisine at Eiffel Tower restaurant. It will be on the 11th floor of the 50-story Eiffel Tower replica.

Zagat's Chicago restaurant guide lists Everest as a Top 10 in food and service and No. 1 in Chicago in decor. With prices in the $73 range, it scored 27 on Zagat's scale of 1 to 30 and is praised for attention to subtle detail. Brasserie Jo received a ranking of 21 in food and 20 in service. It's described by Zagat's as a favorite with the trendy crowd in Chicago with meals costing about $31.

Sotelino, who is a recipient of the prestigious James Beard Foundation's Perrier-Jouet Chef award, will develop Mon Ami Gabi, which will mirror the Chicago Mon Ami Gabi restaurant.

With a capacity of 250 people, Mon Ami Gabi will offer outdoor seating on the Strip and will feature simple lunch and dinner fares including Classic Steak Frites (thick french fries) and Fruits de Mer (seafood).

Sotelino received the James Beard award in 1997. It recognizes chefs who achieve a new or consistent standard of excellence in their region. Sotelino won it for his Ambria restaurant.