Raw deals abound in Las Vegas

Max Jacobson

Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2003 | 8:29 a.m.

There is something irresistibly sensual about the concept of sitting at a raw seafood bar, where fresh-from-the-sea mollusks and crustaceans are piled onto platters stocked with lemons, cocktail sauce and, depending on the restaurant, a variety of other sauces.

Several restaurants that specialize in seafood, for instance McCormick and Schmick, don't display their wares but rather hide them in the kitchen, in spite of offering four to six types of non-pasteurized oysters daily, clams on the half-shell and other sea creatures.

But there are a spate of local places to enjoy seafood this way, and others on the way. The newly opened Ventano in Henderson, where Chef Arnaud Briand is behind the stoves, is on the threshold of opening a live seafood bar.

Emeril's New Orleans Fish House Inside the MGM Grand

Perhaps the most colorful and creative raw bar can be found at celebrity Chef Emeril Lagasse's eponymous restaurant. It's possible to sit within arm's length of your seafood at the restaurant's 18-seat, curved bar, or at a table adjacent to the bar, in an informal setting.

Chef Jean-Paul Labadie always has a variety of oysters on hand, often Gulf oysters from Lake Charles, Louisiana or around the Texas coast, or Northwest oysters such as Fanny Bay, Hood Canal or Malpeques. There are always large, spicy peel-and-eat shrimp on display, and in season, fare such as Dungeness crab. A half-dozen oysters is $9, freshly shucked-to-order clams are $7 per half dozen and the shrimp are $15.

The seafood is served with Emeril's famous Kick-It-Up sauce, and also with a delicious homemade cocktail sauce, but what makes it really fun to eat here is the chance to try a few of the chef's other specialties.

The oyster and shrimp po'boy sandwiches ($11) are especially good, and so is Emeril's banana cream pie, a state-of-the-art concoction with a banana crust, chocolate shavings, caramel sauce and a thick layer of rich, fresh whipped cream. Bam!

Bleu Blanc Rouge

Inside Mandalay Bay

The newest, and surely one of the most dramatic, of the city's raw bars is to be found in this slick, attractive place, recently opened by the people who also run China Grill, rumjungle and Red Square.

The name refers to blue, white and red, the three colors of the French flag. Each color signifies a different part of the restaurant -- a cafe, a pastry shop and a brasserie.

The rouge, or red, section is the fine dining room, done up with white tablecloths and red leather chairs, similar to a tony Paris brasserie. It features a glassed-in room containing an iced display of oysters, clams and other seafood.

Service here is just like on the Boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris, which translates to grand platters of shellfish served with lemon, mustard sauce, a red wine vinaigrette, cocktail sauce and a seaweed garnish.

The least-expensive outing is Le Grand Plateau, $25, laden with assorted oysters, a half-dozen clams, Tiger shrimp and black mussels from Prince Edward Island. La Cascade, $80, is a more elaborate, two-tiered affair that adds crab, either Blue or Dungeness (depending what Chef Francois Meulien has that day), and the granddaddy of them all, La Cascade Royale, $90, adds lobster.

With a glass of wine and the restaurant's crusty rolls, it is hard to imagine that France is so far away.

Big Al's Oyster Bar

Inside The Orleans

The good Cajun restaurant La Louisiane was torn out of here, but at least the casino kept this Cajun-themed oyster bar, which remains a pleasant alternative to the pedestrian Italian and steakhouses in so many of the casinos that rely on local clientele.

This is a fairly Spartan place that is basically in the middle of the casino floor. Oysters on the half shell are $8.95 by the half-dozen, $15.95 a dozen, and clams on the half shell are $7.95 and $12.95, respectively. The choices vary seasonally, and the selection isn't quite as varied as it is in the aforementioned places.

One thing Big Al's does really well, though, is an oyster shooter. A Kamikaze shooter ($5.95) is a fresh oyster in a shot of Pearl vodka splashed with Triple Sec and a squeeze of lime. Another item worth trying is a holdover from La Louisiane, a delicious, powerfully filling gumbo made with shrimp, chicken and andouille sausage.

The Oyster Bar

Inside Sunset Station

For sheer value and variety, it is hard to beat this cavelike establishment, where the smell of garlic from pan roasts permeates the air. The best seats are at the 20-seat bar, but there are tiny tables, tucked up against faux stalagmites, for a more intimate oyster bar experience.

These are the lowest prices in town, about $1 to $3 a dish lower than the competition. The one drawback, if it can be called one, is the seafood isn't really visible from the bar, but rather hidden in the kitchen.

One of the best deals is peel-and-eat shrimp, hot or cold -- a half pound for $8.99 or a full pound for $15.99. Little neck clams, served in a garlic, herb, white wine and butter marinade, also get a top recommendation.

And we shouldn't forget these pan roasts, since every second customer seems to be eating one. The roasts consist of fresh shellfish sauteed in steam kettles perched just behind the bar, finished off in a sort of creamy tomato seafood bisque. They are made with shrimp, crab, lobster or a combination of all three. The prices are $15.99 without lobster, $16.99 with.

Pan roasts are available at most of the oyster bars.