Columnist Muriel Stevens: National media display big appetite for Las Vegas

Friday, Oct. 19, 2001 | 9:35 a.m.

Muriel Stevens' dining column appears Fridays. Her shopping and travel columns appear Friday. Reach her at 259-4080 or muriel@lasvegassun.com.

For many years I have been a member of the highly regarded Association of Food Journalists. Each year the AFJ sponsors an annual conference. Until last week the conference had never come to Las Vegas. The few times that I mentioned the possibility it was not taken seriously. Twenty years ago no one took dining in Las Vegas seriously. Prices were low, portions were large and that was as good as it got.

Fast forward to Las Vegas today. Everybody takes our restaurant scene seriously, even the AFJ. When the call came from conference chairman and AFJ immediate Past President Michael Bauer (the San Francisco Chronicle food editor and restaurant critic) that the annual conference would take place in Las Vegas, I was elated. So were the board members who came here to check us out.

They came, they saw, Las Vegas conquered.

The conference committee, led by Bauer, chose Mandalay Bay as its headquarters for the four-day event. It planned a series of seminars with such high-profile panelists as Spago's Wolfgang Puck, Aureole's Charlie Palmer, Olives' Todd English and Pinot Brasserie's Joachim Spichal. Restaurant consultant Clarke Wolf, Kevin Steussi, VP of food and beverage at Wynn Resorts; Andy Nazarechuk, director of UNLV's Hospitality Research & Development Center, and a host of others contributed their expertise.

Seminar subjects covered everything from "How to Throw a Wedding With an Hour's Notice" to "How to Expand Your Food Writing Vocabulary." There was even a panel to discuss the ways Las Vegas hotels treat their high rollers, known affectionately as "whales."

Moderator and AFJ Executive Director Carol DeMasters asked the panel -- MGM Grand Vice President of Food and Beverage Tobias Mattstedt and Mandalay Bay's Vice President of Food and Beverage Dennis Khanh -- what someone who has a $1 million on deposit at a casino can expect. Comped goodies, for sure.

There were a number of delightful dining opportunities -- a beachside lunch at Border Grill at Mandalay Bay with chef/owners Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken, lunch at Olives at Bellagio prepared by chef/owner Todd English and a Gospel Brunch at House of Blues at Mandalay Bay.

Simply spectacular was the opening-night dinner at the Mansion at MGM Grand, and the dining extravaganza at Aureole that ended the conference.

The Mansion has never been open to the public. It is for the exclusive use of the highest of the high rollers. I once lunched there and have never forgotten the grandeur and beauty of this small palace. The gardens, furnishings, art and the exquisite appointments are memorable. Add an impeccable staff that anticipates every demand, and suites fit for a rajah and ranee who are willing to wager a few million and you've got a picture of the Mansion.

Space in the dining room is limited, so for the AFJ dinner there were two seatings. Lucky for me, since I was committed to the Chaine dinner at 8-0-8 at Caesars Palace (more about this later). By dining at the second seating I was able do both.

I arrived just as the first group was leaving the dining room. Dessert awaited them on the terrace. I couldn't resist perusing the sizeable sideboard filled with a lavish array of sweets and desserts. It was gorgeous, but I was heading for serious food. Dessert would wait.

Dinner at the Mansion was orchestrated by Michael Mina, who with partner Charles Condy owns Aqua, Charles Nob Hill and Pisces in San Francisco, Aqua at Bellagio, NOBHILL at MGM Grand and Aqua at St. Regis Monarch Beach.

In the kitchen with Mina were Puck (Spago, Chinois, Lupo, Postrio) Palmer (Aureole, Charlie Palmer Steak), Andre Rochat (Andre's, Alize), Luciano Pellagrini (Valentino), Julian Serrano (Picasso), Spichal (Pinot Brasserie and Patina), Alessandro Stratta (Renoir), Todd English (Olives), Jean Joho (Eiffel Tower Las Vegas and Everest Chicago), Grant MacPherson (Bellagio Executive Chef) and Kim Canteenwalla (MGM Grand Executive Chef).

As soon as I sat down I looked for a menu. There was none. At each place setting there was a small envelope. With each course came a card sized for the envelope. The names of the dish, the chefs, the signature of the chefs and the name of the wine were imprinted. Very chic. I lost a couple of the cards so can only tell you about six of the courses. Yes, I know, I had already tasted a few courses at the previous stop, but no matter how wonderful a dish, one must refrain from eating every bite!

From Canteenwalla and Rispoli came assorted hors d'oeuvres; English offered sweet corn ravioli with bacala and caviar; from Mina, grilled Maine lobster salad, heirloom tomatoes, lime guacamole and Sausalito Springs watercress; MacPherson's contribution was oolong-scented Scottish red leg of partridge, Savoy cabbage cake and glazed chestnuts with natural jus; Palmer and Joe Romano, executive chef at Aureole Las Vegas, titillated the taste buds with a filet of Angus beef topped with roasted porcini and a layer of oxtail Parmentier. A poached pear with nougat glace Marco Polo from Rochat and Michael Demers, executive chef at Andre's Alize, completed the splendid repast.

Dinner at Aureole: Do food writers and restaurant critics ever tire of fine dining experiences? Not at an AFJ conference.

On the final night, after the AFJ Awards Competition winners were announced, everyone came to Aureole for a dinner prepared by Palmer, Romano and Megan Romano of Aureole; Puck and Mark Ferguson, executive chef at Puck's Lupo at Mandalay Bay; Mandalay Bay Executive Chef David Kellaway and Border Grill's Feniger (Mary Sue had to return to Los Angeles).

Palmer had closed the restaurant on a Saturday night so that he could host this party with his chef friends. Food stations throughout the dining room were manned (womened?) by the chefs. What a terrific selection of foods. Guests visited the various stations and brought the food back to the table.

We had barely finished these dishes when we enjoyed an endless stream of foods, including lamb shank osso buco style; cochinita pibil -- pork marinated in achiote then roasted in banana leaves; scampi; a wondrous array of assorted shellfish from Aureole's help-yourself station with mountains of lobster, jumbo shrimp, clams and oysters; and mulitas de hongos, a new Border Grill creation, a Napoleon of portobella mushroom, black beans, roasted peppers, three Mexican cheeses and a roasted tomato sauce.

The stream of dishes was endless. We ate with great abandon, eating some dishes twice because we forgot what we had already eaten.

As each empty dish was removed, more were received. Then came scrumptious desserts -- another steady stream. When Charlie addressed us we thought it was to say goodbye. Nope, it was to tell us there was yet another treat. The patio had been turned into a Charlie's speakeasy, with a live jazz band, after-dinner drinks, cigars and mingling. What a joyful bash.

Birkenstocks and bistro treats: Only in Las Vegas would a celebrity chef join with a shoe store to celebrate a sale. Award-winning chef Joseph Keller will add a bit of fun and food to Desert Birkenstock's annual Black & White sale Saturday at 2192 N. Rainbow in the Best of the West Shopping Center. Just in case you didn't know, Keller is just one of the top chefs to wear the comfy shoes on the job. Keller will mingle with customers and offer tastes of some of the menu items from his Josef's Brasserie at Desert Passage at the Aladdin. Join him Saturday, 2-4 p.m.

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