Escape from LA: Las Vegas

Bouchon (The Venetian, Las Vegas)
I could eat at Bouchon everyday. Actually, to be precise, I don't have anywhere close the budget to eat at Bouchon everyday. What I mean is that, given the opportunity, Bouchon is comfortable, low key and inviting enough, that I could eat there any time of the day, in my off work uniform of tattered jeans and wrinkly t-shirt and not feel at all intimidated or under-dressed. The food is relatively simple, and even hearty at times. Not to say that Bouchon is not elegant in a basic way. It is. But it's an elegance and a style that lacks pretense, from the relatively simple and spacious kitchen in which it's housed to the utterly gracious and completely helpful service staff that maintain its tables.
But what about the food? Start with the hors d'oeuvres. The Rillettes aux de Saumons arrives in a small canister, sort of like one you might find a candle in at your local Target, at which point your waiter, with the care of wood carver, opens the top, and with a small knife, removes the butter encasing that provides a ceiling to the salmon. The salmon itself, rich and buttery, would be a meal in itself for some. Oysters are available by the dozen and 1/2 dozen, and if your waiter is kind, he'll bring you a selection of several types, with a brief description of the origins and attributes of each. On our visit, there was also a Rabbit Ballatine, paired with small pieces of toast.
From there, we went with the specials for the most part for our entrees. Bouchon's version of Chicken and Waffles is a bit different than Roscoe's, plating a perfectly roasted chicken breast next to a simple stack of bacon and chive waffles, with sauce Chasseurr. The Maine Bouchot mussels, steamed in white wine, mustard and saffron, seem to only grow in number as you attack the iron cask they arrive in, and can be an ideal accompaniment to something so heavy. On the day we visited, there was a special scallop dish that combined four large, wonderfully sauteed scallops with a blend of bernaise and hollandaise sauces, with slighly crisp potato wafers and bits of lobster that I never seemed to find (which was really no big deal). We also tried an open faced sandwich with smoked salmon atop a baguette that I would put in my lunch pail everyday had I the financial means.

Cut (The Venetian, Las Vegas)
Um...Cut is really good. I actually ate a sampler entree with no more than 8 oz of steak that listed at $140. And it's possible it's actually worth the price. Is there anything more to say? Try the Steak Tartare with herb aioli and mustard starter. Out of adjectives for now.