Columnist Muriel Stevens: Las Vegas’ best restaurants talk turkey

Friday, Nov. 19, 2004 | 8:34 a.m.

"Over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother's house we go." Remember those days? Today's version might include a ride through the harrowing traffic of freeways and byways to a favorite restaurant.

It doesn't matter where you dine as long as you are fortunate enough to be able to share this favorite American holiday with family, friends and neighbors.

The Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group is offering holiday meals at Spago, Postrio, Trattoria del Lupo or Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill. Thanksgiving menus were created by each of the executive chefs. Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill at MGM Grand will feature a traditional turkey plate as well as well as a la carte desserts and more. For reservations, call 891-3000.

Spago in the Forum Shops at Caesars and Postrio in the Canal Shoppes in the Venetian offer Thanksgiving dinner and a head start on shopping. Don't forget your list. A variety of Thanksgiving entrees at both restaurants are available, as well as a smashing selection of meats other than turkey and delectable desserts. The Spago reservation number is 369-6300; for Postrio reservations, call 796-1110.

For $21, Trattoria del Lupo at Mandalay Bay offers a traditional turkey platter with all the trimmings or a choice of filet of pork, roasted baby chicken or porcini mushroom risotto ($21-$26). Call 450-5522.

Thanksgiving Day all of Andre Rochat's French restaurants will offer multicourse, non-inclusive, prix fixe dinners. Service at Mistral at Las Vegas Hilton is from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. The price per person is $70, and includes a choice of appetizer, second course, sorbet, entree, dessert and coffee, tea and petit fours. Call 732-5111.

Alize at the Top of the Palms offers service from 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at $85 per person for three courses, sorbet, dessert and coffee, tea and petit fours. Call 942-7777.

Andre at the Monte Carlo offers service from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Dinner is $80 per person, and includes an amuse-bouche, a large selection of appetizers, sorbet, choice of entree, dessert and coffee or tea and petit fours. Call 730-7777.

The original Andre's on South Sixth Street offers seatings from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Price is $65 per person, and includes a glass of sweet or hard cider, appetizer, Cape Cod cranberry sorbet, a choice of entree, dessert, coffee or tea. Call 385-5016.

The newly refurbished beautiful Verandah restaurant at the Four Seasons will offer a four-course Thanksgiving dinner for $60 per person (a separate children's menu is available). A choice of such appetizers as a cold seafood sampler or lobster and corn chowder, a choice of entree (includes turkey with apple-sage cornbread dressing) and a host of desserts. Service is from 11:30 a.m. to 7:15 p.m. (last seating.) Call 632-5000.

Billy Bob's Steakhouse & Saloon in Sam's Town on Boulder Highway celebrates Thanksgiving Day with brunch from noon to 4 p.m. Traditional Thanksgiving dinners are served until 9 p.m. as well as the regular menu. Brunch and dinner entrees are priced from $16. Call 456-7777.

On Thanksgiving Day, Tsunami Asian Grill & Sushi Bar inside the Venetian will offer traditional dishes with their own spin. It's a cool twist that includes such dishes as five spice roasted duck and a host of other choices. Tsunami's Thanksgiving menu is priced at $48 per person. Tsunami's regular menu will be available from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Call 414-1980.

Memphis Championship Barbecue will offer family-style Thanksgiving dinners from noon to 7 p.m. at the Rainbow Boulevard, Santa Fe Station, Warm Springs Road, and Las Vegas Boulevard and Craig locations. The touted "down home" holiday dinner will include country smoked ham and smoked turkey served with a green salad with house dressing and a choice of five side dishes. Each meal includes rolls, honey butter and a choice of pumpkin or apple pie or peach cobbler.

Dine-in dinners are $15.99 per person; takeout is $13.99 per person. Reservations are recommended, but walk-ins are welcome. Pre-order family dinners to go should be ordered by Nov. 22. Also available are whole turkeys, turkey breasts, spiral-cut hams and boneless pit hams. Call any of the locations for more information.

Gustav Maler's Spiedini restaurant inside the Rampart Casino in Summerlin will feature a family-style Thanksgiving dinner from noon to 8 p.m. The price is $29.99 per adult; $14.99 for children 4 to 12 years. Includes a choice of starter, spit-roasted turkey with all the trimmings and pumpkin pie. To reserve, call 869-8500.

There's only one time of the year when Lawry's The Prime Rib on Howard Hughes Parkway offers turkey dinners -- Thanksgiving. Of course, the trimmings are always served with the prime rib. They're also a good fit with turkey, the turkey dinner ($26) includes gravy, dressing, candied sweets, cranberry compote, the spinning salad bowl and pumpkin pie. Call 893-2223 for more information or reservations.

Lutece at the Venetian will serve an elegant French dinner priced at $105 per person. Included are such starters as roasted butternut squash with chicken quenelles, roasted free-range turkey with accompaniments and a pumpkin souffle for dessert. Wine pairing with dinner is $180. Dinner service is from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations are required. Call 414-2220.

Turkey from Sears may seem a bit off the wall, but until 10 p.m. today Sears Grand in Las Vegas at 4355 Grand Canyon Drive (Flamingo and Grand Canyon, past I-215) is offering 12- to 14-pound Jenny-O turkeys for 50 cents per pound. Along with the traditional turkey, stuffing and such, Thanksgiving shoppers will find everything they need at Sears Grand, including tablecloths, decorative items, even antacids. Hurry, there's not much time left.

Whole Foods market in Summerlin has a plethora of holiday take-out items and foods for every holiday, including Hanukkah. Whole Foods Hanukkah bakery menu is available in the store from Dec. 6 through Dec. 18. A Hanukkah menu is available now. For Hanukkah orders visit the prepared foods department. Christmas and New Year's menus are also available. All of the items listed are available in the prepared-foods section.

Marie's Gourmet Bakery in the David's Bridal Shop Center at 2600 W. Sahara Ave. is offering a variety of holiday desserts, including Dutch apple pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pecan, sweet potato and pumpkin pies, chocolate mousse cake, breads of every description including yeast breads and holiday fruit breads. Don't delay. Call owner "Tod" for a complete list -- 367-1065.

Just in time for the holidays comes Bleu Gourmet, "A purveyor of fine wine and food." Bleu Gourmet is a combination fine wine and spirits shop offering domestic and imported cheeses, a charcuterie, international foods, pastries, pizzas and sandwiches. Bleu Gourmet is owned and operated by Sonny Ahuja. Bleu Gourmet opens Dec. 1. For more information call Ahuja at 363-2538.

Order now through Dec. 2 the wonderful pastries made by the members of the Philoptochos Society of St. John Greek Orthodox church. The society is a nonprofit organization that gives assistance to selected local charities. This is the 15th annual pastry sale.

Holiday tins holding 24 pastries are $27. Delivery is offered for orders of 10 or more tins. Pickup is at the church, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 10. Call 646-7243 or 456-3536 for more information or directions to the church at 5300 S. El Camino Road.

Restaurant ratings a puzzlement: Mobil Travel Guide announced its 2005 four- and five-star winners Nov. 8. There were no surprises for Las Vegas restaurants and hotels. Four stars for our best hotels and restaurants appears to be the norm.

Mobil Travel Guide is hardly up to date. Michael Mina at Bellagio is still listed by its former name, Aqua, and the guide did not note that Renoir at the Mirage has closed. The Las Vegas Four Star restaurants are: Michael Mina at Bellagio, Aureole at Mandalay Bay, Bradley Ogden at Caesars Palace and Picasso at Bellagio.

The Las Vegas 2005 AAA Five Diamond Awards were announced at a lunch Tuesday at Le Cirque at Bellagio. Five Diamond restaurants: Picasso at Bellagio, Le Cirque at Bellagio and Renoir at the Mirage (which closed after the departure of Chef Alex Stratta). This was acknowledged at the lunch.

This is the fourth win for Picasso and Executive Chef Julian Serrano. It was the second Five Diamond Award for Le Cirque.

Five Diamond hotels: Bellagio, Four Seasons and the Ritz-Carlton at Lake Las Vegas. Bellagio has been honored with Five Diamonds four times, the Four Seasons six times and Ritz-Carlton at Lake Las Vegas twice. Bellagio is the only hotel in the country to have two Five Diamond restaurants in the same hotel, and is also a Five Diamond winner.

Transitions: Aureole Executive Chef Philippe Rispoli is leaving the restaurant Dec. 1 to join Wynn Resorts. Aureole's Executive Sous Chef, Vincent Poussel, will become Aureole's Executive Chef. Poussel was the chef at the Jules Verne restaurant at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, before coming to Las Vegas, where he worked with Rispoli at the exclusive Mansion at MGM Grand.

Wynn Resorts: With the opening of the Wynn Resorts Las Vegas property fast approaching, the number of chefs already inked continues to grow. Jimmy Sneed will bring his regional American cooking to Wynn; Eric Klein, formerly with Maple Drive in Los Angeles, will offer his bold style; Paul Bartolotta, the founder of Chicago's Spiaggia, is on board (Oprah Winfrey lived in the apartment building above his restaurant before she owned the world); and so are Stephen Kalt (Spartina and Spazzia, NYC) and Takashi Yagihashi, whose superb cuisine enticed Princess Caroline to the Detroit suburb of Tribute. Daniel Boulud was the first to sign. All but Boulud are moving to Las Vegas. That's nice.

My sincere thanks to all of you who call for long-forgotten recipes, advice and general cooking information. The volume of mail and phone calls makes it impossible for me to respond. I do care and will happily answer in my column any questions you have. Just be patient.

I do have somewhere in my files the original recipe for the Alpine Village chicken soup. Alpine Village owner Herschel Leverton shared it with me many years ago. One caveat -- the recipe gives all the ingredients, but not amounts. If you've never tasted this soup, you're in for an adventure in the kitchen. Practiced soup makers will not have trouble figuring it out. Alpine Village was a homespun German restaurant that delighted Las Vegans and visitors for many years.

And to those who call and ask for a recipe they heard on my radio show 20 years ago ... One quick response for a testy caller who wanted to know what kind of filet was wrapped around the asparagus served at Sushi Roku. You are right, dear caller. A filet can be anything. In this case it was a thin tender slice of beef.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. If you have any turkey problems call the Butterball hot line -- 800-BUTTERBALL or www.butterball.com.

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