| rev:text
| - Located inside the massive compound that is Caesar's Palace; Mesa Grill is brilliantly juxtaposed between the Corinthian columns and marble statues of ancient Greece and the impressive sports book and gaming tables of modern Vegas. The restaurant's facade is cool, it is elegant and refined, yet laid back and calls to mind the island feel of the Caribbean.
We arrived a few minutes early for our reservation and were invited graciously to sit at the bar. We promptly obtained drinks from the bartender, and were ushered to our table without issue. However, our server seemed displeased that we had ordered drinks from the bar thus lessening his sale for our table. We ordered two of the Tiger shrimp tamales which arrived at an unsettlingly fast pace. Any hesitation by the "fast-food" speed with which they appeared was soon dashed by the overwhelming deliciousness that sprang forth from the plates. Having eaten at many superb restaurants I feel compelled to say that these are some of the best starters I have yet to experience.
After the table was cleared I sat in anticipation for the main courses to arrive. Our table had ordered two of the Coffee Rubbed Filets, one of the Black Angus Strips and one Chipotle Glazed Ribeye as well as an order of collard greens, mashed potatoes and, upon recommendation of the server, an order of Brussel sprouts. My steak arrived and I noted how truly pleasing it was to the eye; however, I was disheartened that such an exquisite piece of meat seemed over powered by the bountiful amount of sauce on the plate. Once I had cut into my steak and taken a bite I was instantaneously reminded that this was Chef Bobby Flay's house and his cooking was inextricably linked to him. The protein on my plate was classic and refined and delicious, yet it had been arrogantly and flamboyantly altered to meet the needs of a Chef's personality. The two sauces on the plate competed with the beef and reminded me of an episode of "Throwdown" except no one won, and my palate was an innocent bystander.
I looked for solace in the sides on the table and it was then I noticed that the recommended sprouts were missing. After some time, we got the server's attention and asked him to forget the sprouts since we probably wouldn't need them or have room for them at this point. He blatantly disregarded this request and demanded that we try them, because to do so would somehow be a personal affront to him. We yielded. When the sprouts arrived they were undercooked and over-seasoned to the point of sheer carelessness. We each sampled one for the humor of it but left them on the table as a comedic reminder of how far off this meal had gone.
In summaton, this restaurant has the location, the ambience and the kitchen to be elite. Yet when given an opportunity to let the cuisine evolve into greatness, it seems the staff from the highest to lowest get in the way of their own success.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)