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| - My first run-in with Bacchanal was a 2.5 hour wait for an expensive Sunday brunch, which we ended up giving up on. Flash forward to a Tuesday evening. There was still a 45-minute wait and the price was $55 for dinner on a weeknight. Fortunately, we were given a ticket to bypass the wait time, but I was still surprised by the price compared to Wicked Spoon. But, I convinced myself that I had to try Bacchanal at least once before forming judgment.
The "#1 rated buffet in Vegas" failed to live up to its hype on several fronts. Let's start with the good. You're basically paying the price tag for the amazing seafood and carving station options. The crab legs/claws were some of the best I've had at a buffet and I really went to town on the jumbo shrimp. They also had oysters on the half shell, which were mediocre. Several amuse-bouches included a good seafood ceviche, oyster shooter, and a salmon spread. Another winner was the scallops Rockefeller. I found the brioche crust to be perfect. For meats, the prime rib was bloody excellent, and I loved the rack of lamb. Head to the Mexican station to grab freshly-squeezed guava, pineapple, strawberry, or horchata juice served in a bottle on ice.
Where does this buffet fail? Pretty much everything else. There were some pretty bad dishes including an extremely dry cod and awfully salty BBQ ribs. But, I really didn't like the offering of sushi, pizza, and desserts. If you're paying top dollar, should you really be serving pizza sitting under a heat lamp? How about something different like flatbread? The sushi was pretty much like any other buffet sushi - dried out rice with old-tasting fish. I liked the ice cream offerings, but all the other desserts and pastries tasted stale and dry.
Forget the stupid ticketing system and heavy wait times. Forget the expensive price. Forget all the disappointing food. I'll take Wicked Spoon or a nice steak dinner any day.
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