Delmonico Steakhouse, Las Vegas Nevada

Having taken the early flight to Vegas and catching a quick breakfast at Payard, a late lunch at Delmonico was just what the doctor ordered...after all, it was 5:00PM EST. Not a steak eater, the choice may seem a tad unusual until one realizes that this was now my fourth Emeril restaurant and fourth time I'd be sampling his take on Shrimp and Bread Pudding. To be fair, I find it unfortunate that so many people consider Emeril a "sell-out" because he is on TV....he is still a good cook with some great recipes and one of the few celeb chefs who actually keeps his restaurants open for lunch along with dinner.

On first impression, Delmonico seems rather boring in design. A front bar/lounge and a back dining room with mostly whites and woods - Elegant but "home-y" would be the best way to describe it, yet slightly odd with the single spotlights peering down on each table. Arriving around 1:45 I was toward the end of lunch hour, but was seated immediately at a four top in the front.

The menu and bread were delivered swiftly, yet despite my knowing exactly what I wanted it took 15 minutes before the waiter returned for my order. Creamy BBQ Shrimp with Fresh Baked Rosemary Biscuit, please. Order placed, I was given "bread" and "butter" from a side serving table....the bread was cool and dry while the butter was a block of ice....poor form.

Unchecked upon until the arrival of my shrimp around 2:30pm, I sat and listened to the table behind me and took some pictures. Thankfully, when my meal did arrive, the Chef's cooking once again spoke volumes. 7 huge shrimp, 3 small rosemary biscuits, and a sauce that can only be described as a mixture of honey, hickory, and cream with a slight bit of spice....it was lovely. With all the shrimp finished and significant sauce left over, I requested more bread and this time was thankfully brought two piping hot rolls glistening with butter. While these were delicious and used for mopping up the sauce, it does not excuse the awful first bread service....don't serve unfresh food, period.

With my main gone a different waiter appeared and asked if I'd like dessert. Darn right I said, having sampled 3 of Emeril's Bread Puddings in the past (one of them twice....we actually went back to Emeril's of Orlando for Bread Pudding after the version at Emeril's Tchoup Chop disappointed....not that I'm obsessed with bread pudding or anything.) On the menu at Delmonico? Banana Bread Pudding with Oreo Ice Cream.

Served in a tiny pot, the moist and liquidy Banana Bread was fantastic, yet so hot that it had
turned the ice cream into a melting puddle before it even arrived. The icecream itself was pretty standard fare and didn't really compliment nor detract from the pudding. Having had Banana Bread Pudding twice in the past, this was the worst of the three and nowhere near as good as the Sweet Potato Bread Pudding at Emeril's Fish House or the Bourbon Cinnamon version at Citywalk Orlando. As many have noted before, Vegas seems to have a thing for runny bread pudding, yet the three best I've tried in Vegas have all been the more dry version.

All told, the shrimp was truly standout while all other aspects of the meal were pretty average....and the cold bread....poor poor from. From what I've heard the steaks here are delicious and I'd certainly return to sample other menu items, but given the vast number of Vegas choices (and two better Emeril restaurants, IMO) I doubt I'll be back.

Payard Patisserie and Bistro, Las Vegas Nevada

Tucked away in the corner of Caesars Palace it is no wonder that many people do not even realize Payard exists, let alone the fact that it serves up some of the most delectable breakfast items in Vegas. Known for his New York Outpost, Payard himself is rarely found at this location (unlike Jean-Philippe over at the Bellagio) but the shop, scene, and food are no less impressive.

Arriving in Vegas around 8am local time after a non-stop flight, I got checked in and made my way to Payard by 10:05 for breakfast. Though the all-you-can-eat continental buffet was still ongoing, I first stopped in the Patisserie to browse chocolate and dessert selections, and to pick up some candies for my mother and aunt. While everything was beautiful and the crepes appeared wonderful, the prices were decidedly even worse than Jean Phillipe and the selection less impressive. After making my purchase I made my way next door for breakfast.

Seating was readily available and the friendly attendant/waitress seated me near a window next to two rather crude foreign businessmen who preceded to discuss their sex lives quite loudly in public. Though the waitress once asked them to keep it down, it did not really help. So much for class.....thankfully they were easy to ignore as I watched the chef perform his craft at the wide open kitchen station in the middle of the restaurant.

Coffee was pretty standard fare and was served quickly and refilled mostly adequately (I was empty for a good 5 minutes between cups 2 and 3) despite there being multiple servers who appeared to be standing around chatting amongst themselves. For breakfast I opted for the Almond Croissant and the Payard Chocolate Waffles with Nutella and Caramelized Bananas.

Served first, the Croissant was heavenly with a buttery crisp crust surrounding a flawlessly fluffy center stuffed (and I mean jam packed) with almond compote. Sweet yet savory, this was and still is the best Croissant I've ever tasted in terms of texture and second best in terms of taste (sorry, the Almond Chocolate Croissant at Bouchon is a revelation.)

My second dish was the Waffles and all I can do is be amazed. Small yet incredibly decadent, the portion was just right.....any more and I'd have been overly full. The waffles were soft and fluffy (unlike the super-crisp chocolate waffles at Norma's NYC) while the Bananas were perfectly sweet and succulent. The Nutella was more than ample, as well. All said, a beautiful and tasty dish that I'd certainly recommend.

My only complaint aside from my co-diners and the coffee would be the fact that everything felt quite rushed....my whole meal lasting a mere 40 minutes and check delivered without asking if there was anything else I wanted. My server only visited the table when delivering an item or to collect the bill and the to-go coffee I was promised was never delivered. All told, fantastic food in a so-so environment with so-so service. High prices, but absolutely worth it, and a breakfast that would be "best of" in many other cities.

Kihachi, Columbus Ohio

In a city typically considered to be lacking in diversity and dominated by chains, one often must go out of their way to look for a great experience and great food....sometimes one even has to look for a strip mall off of Sawmill where the owner answers his own phones, has to respell your name five times due to his thick accent, and specifically states "if you have never eaten here....is not a sushi bar, is traditional Japanese cooking" on the phone. Welcome to Kihachi, welcome to something you'd NEVER expect in "Cowtown."

Seated at a reserved table for two near the wide-open kitchen manned by chef Ryuji Kimura and one other chef, the menu (all Japanese with short translations of some dishes) was described to us in full detail by one of two wonderful female servers. One menu included a set list of meals from Soba to Udon to Tempura to Rice dishes while the second entailed a list of sushi options and daily inspired appetizers gathered at local markets. Some of the options ranged from ultra-high-end such as Bluefin Oh-toro and brined Berkshire Pork cheeks while others such as eel stuffed
with diced lotus and arrow root simply reminded me of the sorts of dishes described by those who've dined at Masa Or Ursawa. After much debate we made our selections and began a rollercoaster tasting at a perfect pace while marveling at dishes brought to other diners.

Course one consisted of six perfectly poached whole baby octopus in a lemon ginger dressing. While the appearance alone was off-putting to my mother, the flavors were a perfect combination of brine and sweet with a fleshy yet smooth texture that dazzled.

Course two, included with my mother's dinner, was a relatively standard miso soup and sweet salad with creamy miso dressing. While both dishes were relatively 'standard' for a Japanese meal, both were excellent in quality and presentation.

Course three, from the daily inspiration menu was Mirugai muta, or Geoduck clam with sweet pea pods in cream sauce. While pricey, this dish was absolutely sublime in presenting a flawlessly fleshy clam contrast against crisp peapods in a decadent sauce. Having only had Geoduck once prior (and significantly more expensive) I can state that I'd certainly opt for Kihachi's presentation on future visits.

Course four consisted of Ebi Tukariage, an enormous sweet shrimp which was flash fried and meant to be consumed head-to-tail along with tempura lotus root and arrow root and a ginger soy sauce. Crispy yet smooth, sweet yet meaty, this dish was as fun to look at as it was to eat. Certainly not for the faint of heart I must say the head and carapace certainly had a different taste and texture from the body or tail, but like everything else I'd strongly recommend the experience if it were available.

Our mains arrived next. For myself I opted for the warm duck soba which paired thin buckwheat noodles in a salty broth with fatty duck breast and thin scallions. Definitely better than any soba I've experienced in Columbus and on par with the versions at Nobu SoHo or Lily Toronto....knowing the quality of everyting, next visit I'll certainly opt for the mixed Soba with Japanese Eggplant and Hot-Yam.

My mother chose the tempura platter with Shrimp, lotus, sweet potato, onion, broccoli, asparagus, zucchini as her main and for $17 I must say the portion was enormous. While everything was certainly fresh, well done, and good I guess I'm just not that big on tempura and this dish seemed pretty "standard" to me. Certainly not bad and I guess it is good to have a safe option for those not so keen on eating whole crustacean's or cephalopods.

Dessert, like the rest of the meal, was truly unique. Though multiple options from Japanese grapes to green tea icecrea to a peach boiled in red wine were available, we opted for the Azuki Shiratam - Glutinous Rice flour dumplings with anko sweet beans and the Sasadango - sticky red bean filled rice balls wrapped in bamboo leaves. While definitely not YOUR traditional desserts, these options are apparently very traditional in Japan and both were unique and equally pleasing to the eyes and the palate with the Shiratam unlike anything I'd ever experienced....something like the flavor of Boston Baked Beans combined with fluffy jello balls and the Sasadango like a fruit roll-up perfected.

All told, I was extremely impressed by every aspect of Kihachi and absolutely astounded that I'd missed out on going for so long. When the owner states that this is not a sushi restaurant it is the truth....sure they have some stellar looking sushi....but there is so much more and you owe it to yourself to check it out. Blink and you might miss it, the place isn't easy to find, yet from the
moment you enter the door to the moment you leave (for us, 2 hours and 20 minutes) the experience is challening yet simplified, complex yet refined, formal yet fun, and all-in-all wonderful. If this were "a sushi bar," it'd be the best I'd ever been to.....alas, it will just have to settle for best Japanese place that also happens to serve sushi. Fantastic.

La Chatelaine, Worthington Ohio

Desiring a quick breakfast on a Saturday morning in Columbus is always a hit-or-miss affair. Sure there is the wonderful ZenCha, overrated yet good Northstar, obnoxiously crowded and scenester dominated Banana Bean, or downright awful Tee-Jays, First Watch, or Bob Evans. Sure I could pop in for a bagel at Panera or Einstein, but sometimes a little variety is good. Being out at the Worthington Farmer's market and having heard good things, we opted for La Chatelaine.

Set up as a quaint French bistro, yet with a kitchen full of highschool guys and servers/cashiers no older than sixteen I must say I rather doubt the cullinary expertise of the staff. All things being equal, though, the servers did a good job of describing items and filling orders, so I cannot complain.

Between the two of us we ordered two coffees, a half baguette, a croissant, a chicken and olive quiche, a chocolate mouse, and a pistacchio croissant. Standouts included the fantastic pistacchio croissant and the elegant yet delicious chocolate mouse as well as the stupendous french caramel coffee with unlimited refills. Lowlights were the lack of Nutella, a MUST at any legit french bistro (or American equivalents such as Bouchon,) high prices for quality/portion ($25 for the breakfast,) and the pre-prepared nature of the quiche which simply made the crust too dry by the time we arrived at 10am.

In reality, I have to say I enjoyed the meal but believe that it was overpriced. On future visits I'd certainly opt for a chocolate mouse or berry tarte and coffee, but my search for a good French bistro in Columbus will have to continue. Not bad, but not "great" either.

Seldom Blues Gospel Brunch, Detroit Michigan

Sure I can eat a lot and sure I love food....I mean, I used to be 280lbs....but still, buffet tends to mean low quality and I'm not a low quality kinda guy. The last buffet I dined at? Either Bellagio or Paris in Las Vegas. With that said, when I heard that there was an upscale, white-tablecloth soulfood brunch buffet with included Gospel/Jazz performance at Seldom Blues, I had to check it out.

Arriving at the beautiful Renaissance center in the midst of Detroit's Jazz fest was quite interesting despite the continued I-75 construction disaster....I've honestly not seen Detroit so busy since the Superbowl was in town. The riverfront was beautiful and the vibe was great while parking was ample despite the huge numbers of people in town.

Finding our way to Seldom Blues we were quickly seated at an excellent table off to the corner of the stage by the incredibly gracious staff and after a quick trip to the restroom to wash up (A restroom attendant? Stylin!) the food-fest began. Southern Chicken, Cornbread, Sweet Potato Muffins, a Southern Waffle station, Bread Pudding, Cornmeal Oysters, Mac n' Cheese....there was no doubt I was going to leave stuffed.

Before getting into the food, I must say the music was fantastic as the Michael McDonald lookalike played everything from Miles Davis to Luther Vandross flawlessly on the Sax and managed to sound Bluesy with his vocals without sounding cheesy. Twice he left the stage to personally serenade Birthday parties and an elder couple enjoying their anniversary stood to dance. The restaurant itself is equally impressive with a great view of the river, multiple
divided rooms for private parties (there was a group there mourning the loss of a loved one in one room and a wedding party in another,) and the buffet layed out in sections of mains + sides, salads + breads, desserts, and the waffle station in the kitchen. Now onward to the food.

First off, everything was beautiful, fresh, and high quality....better than even the best Vegas buffets in quality and presentation. Skipping over the salads (I eat 2-3lbs of veggies daily, a day off is okay) I grabbed a cornbread and sweet potato muffin, two southern fried chicken breasts, and a scoop of 4-cheese macaroni. The chicken was juicy, crispy, and tender with a perfect
flavor....as good as any fried chicken I've ever tasted and definitely on par with Roscoe's "famous" version in LA. The cornbread was relatively standard, perhaps a little too finely ground, while the sweet potato muffin was wonderful with a lot of density and even more flavor. The showstealer of the plate, however, was the Mac n' cheese with its thick cheesy topping and perfect creaminess. No oily residue from any of the items was noted, a great indicator
that the ingredients used were of good quality.

Plate number two was a trip to the waffle station....or should I say sundae station? Hand poured buttermilk waffles were made to order and toppings included three butters (plain, banana walnut, and mixed berry), 5 types of fresh fruit (apples, bananas, blueberry, raspberry, strawberries), whipped cream, walnuts, and Michigan Maple syrup. Feeling gluttonous I opted for the berry butter, whipped cream, nuts, syrup, and blueberries, raspberries, and
strawberries. Perfect. The butter was fantastic and should be served everywhere, the berries were fresh, and the waffle....lets just avoid the Roscoe comparison and say its was better, and vastly superior in flavor and consistency to the ones served at Detroit Breakfast House as well.

Plate three entailed handmade garlic creamed corn, more mac n' cheese, cornmeal oysters, roasted fingerling potatoes, another cornbread, and a biscuit with country gravy. The corn was a tad garlicky, even for myself while the potatoes were excellent in taste, texture, and saltiness. The oysters were appropriately briney yet perfect in texture and not overtaken by the batter. Finally, the biscuit....wow.....the gravy was decent and thankfully light on the pepper, but
that biscuit was transcendent.

Plate four, not yet full enough for dessert, I opted for another piece of chicken and 1/2 a waffle, this time with the almond banana butter, whipped cream, walnuts and syrup. Another hit. In addition I tried the jalapeno cheddar grits which, while good, were a little too runny for my taste. Again, however, looking at my plates, no grease at all.

Plate five was two small plates of desserts from which I ate 1/2 of a peanut butter macadamia nut cookie, a thin slice of carrot cake, and a sizeable scoop of bread pudding. While the carrot cake was delicious and the frosting perfect, I'm not a big carrot cake guy and gave most of the slice to my dining companions while focusing my attention first on the remarkably crisp yet buttery cookie and the remarkable bread pudding. Normally buffet bread pudding is pretty mediocre, but this stuff was better than any I've found at a restaurant menu in the midwest. Cubed brioche, cherries, cranberries, raisins, butter, bourbon, and cinnamon all melded to form a very complex flavor that bested any cinnamon roll and despite being kept in a serving tray, no aspect of the pudding was too dry or too wet. Wonderful execution, worthy of a menu anywhere.

Not quite stuffed I opted to try the cherry cheesecake in addition to another helping of bread pudding and a small lemon meringue. The cheesecake was excellent with a good balance of density and flavor, but being stuffed I only ate a very small part of what I took. The meringue was quite good, albeit too dense for my level of satiety. The bread pudding? Well, I was willing to feel stuffed for that.

All told, the meal was quite delicious and everything was of the utmost quality. The flaws of Seldom Blues Gospel Brunch, however, are twofold. One correctable, the other perhaps me being cheap. First of all, the price is not cheap. While we were quoted $34 on the phone, the actual price was $38 per person. Taking into account the quality of the food served its not a "bad"
deal, especially with the live (and excellent) entertainment and great view, but a $38 buffet in Vegas usually entails a variety of seafood (yet certainly not the best quality.)

The bigger issue was the service. While everyone was quite cordial, it took my sister nearly 45 minutes to receive hot tea and my mother almost 30 to get cold tea....and refills were scant. There was the excuse of "being busy," which is certainly true, but like Breakfast House the management needs to have more servers if this is the case. In addition to this gripe, I must admit I was a tad annoyed (despite being quite full) that despite saying they serve from
11:00-4:00, they began titrating down the dessert table at 2:00. When we arrived, a fine looking white cake, chocolate cake, and Turtle Cheesecake were all available, yet by 2:00 none of these were around and the dessert table looked like it had been ravaged by a tornado. For the price and quality of the food, more attention to detail would be a vast benefit.

All told, I had a great time and the food was stellar, but likely not worth the price for a repeat visit. Browsing the evening menu, perhaps adding the crabcakes and froglegs, salmon, calamari, etc would make the price more fitting, or perhaps simply hiring a few more servers would make things run a bit more smoothly. I realize this buffet is a new concept for the restaurant so clearly it will need a little fine tuning, but for now I'd say it is good with room to
be great.