Dining
In My Shoes
Follow along with Vegas Seven style editor Melinda Sheckells as she tours California's Napa Valley
May 2nd, 2013
Cinco de Mayo 2013
Cinco-pated Rhythm
The fifth of May comes but once a year—you’re gonna need a game plan
April 30th, 2013
Time to kick the tires on your liver. Cinco de Mayo is right around the corner. Not to be confused with Mexican Independence Day (September 15-16) Cinco de Mayo commemorates Mexico’s defeat of the French in 1862. And with so many dining, party and drinking options, don’t even think about letting “Cinco de Drink-o” go by uncelebrated. Las Vegas has some plans for you, my friend. And after a few tequila shots, well, you know how she gets. Read more »
Drinking
There’s No Need to Crawl
The next wave of hotel bars will be front, center and beautiful
April 30th, 2013
What with MGM Grand rolling out the carpet (and blowing out a few walls) for Hakkasan, and Mandalay Bay welcoming the valet-adjacent Light to its lineup, hotel bars might be feeling like Cinderella’s stepsisters post-shoeing. Never one to miss an opportunity for reinvention, while all eyes have been on the debutantes, three properties have been toiling away on their center and lobby bars, turning those natural meeting places and pre/post vortexes into destinations in their own right. Read more »
Cocktail Culture
Run for the Roses with Kentucky Derby Cocktails at Social
April 30th, 2013
Seersucker, a proper hat, 10-to-1 odds on a horse named after a war (there were three to choose from). Now all you need is a drink—bourbon, preferably. After all, it’s America’s native spirit, and the official tipple of the Kentucky Derby. But tiptoe past the juleps on May 4 and do Derby Day your way. Read more »
Scene Stirs
UNLVino’s Top Sip, Guest Chef Duty and Meet SBE’s Downhome Side
April 30th, 2013
I’m writing this week from the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America convention in Orlando, Florida, my old stomping grounds. (Throughout college, I worked at Disney World, where we probably drank more white zinfandel than water; I called our apartment Zin City. Happily, there’s none in sight. Not yet, anyway.) The convention is a hotbed of emerging beverage industry brands, more so than consumer-focused events. So I’m up to my ears in new spirits looking for distribution. Nevada is often excluded from the first-round launches, but I have a feeling we’ll be seeing Teaz vodka in the not-too-distant future (the bottle is shaped like a stripper on her pole). More from the convention floor next week. Read more »
Diner's Notebook
UNLVino Shines, The Springs Café Cooks and Sambalatte Grows
April 30th, 2013
UNLVino celebrated its 39th year April 18-21, and I attended the Grand Tasting and the new Sunday Bar-B-Q. As always, organizers Southern Wine & Spirits put on a great show for a huge turnout. Read more »
A Small Bite
Bellagio Dining Is Right On Trend
April 30th, 2013
Thanks to shows like Chopped, Master Chef and Food Network Star, cooking competitions have gone from spectator sport to something that anyone can try his hand at, spawning a breed of rabid fans who not only want to taste what their idols are making on the screen, but also make it themselves. Bellagio has wisely served up a duo of opportunities for guests to get their hands in the game, or if they are so inspired, get them dirty. Read more »
Dining
A Milder Dos Caminos Opens in Suburban Location
April 30th, 2013
Despite rumors to the contrary, our food scene is not as cutting edge as that of New York, London or Tokyo, and that goes double when we’re talking the ’burbs. So when a Strip venue makes that rare move to one of our outlying neighborhoods, both the menu and the décor tend to be more conservative and less flashy than the original. Read more »
