I am a steak lover, but I also want to keep my pants and not get bent over just to have one. But you know what they say, "when in Rome," especially if Rome involves a total stranger treating the entire meal!
So I learned that an acquaintance from Hawaii turned good friend was in town for a security convention, the same convention my sister was in town but was reluctant to inform me until she asked me to swoop her up at the airport. Both nice surprises to say the least.
The great thing about these conventions is that they tend to boost the economy some, whether is be the party scene, pool parties, gambling revenue and my favorite, the foodie spots! Yet the best perk of all is that most companies provide a per diem or allowance for the necessities and sometimes just to splurge on clients.
After taking my sister around to the local favorite spots, my buddy wanted to meet up at MGM and have a small dinner with his boss before heading out for some drinks to catch up and reminisce. Little did I know that a small dinner would be at Tom Colicchio's Craftsteak. I had never eaten here, but heard some good things from other friends visiting in town.
Upon arrival, the first thing another LV local and I was thinking was, "$#!+, can I afford this on a spur of the moment and on a Tuesday of all things??" I was scanning the wall menu for cheap eats and the closest thing I came up with was a salad of some sort for nearly $30, if I recall correctly.
We were seated almost outside the establishment, in view of the outside bathrooms. Could it be we didn't fit the part? Maybe they weren't convinced that aloha shirts and slippers is considered formal wear in the islands, lol. We sat down and everyone, but my friend's boss ordered a beer, Innis & Gunn to be exact. What my friend's boss did order, was skirt steak that was beyond a hundo a way past my threshold of spending on meat that night. He did, however, say "order whatever you want, the company got it, except for alcohol." It didn't quite register until both my homies ordered the New York Strip, probably because it was the cheapest on the menu at around $50. I went with the rib eye since it was not much more than the strip and got it rare.
Word to the wise, as good as a steak spot this was, don't ever order rare rib eye, unless you want to be chewing on fat and cramping your jaws. It would have been a much more enjoyable experience if it was a leaner cut, I suppose. I also had a few bites of the strip steak and can't say that it blew my mind. In any event, I can only imagine the skirt steak was well worth the price tag since oh dude literally drank his plate.
All and all, the food was not that impressive, the service was not to die for and I was not able to fully assess the scenery, unless it pertains to the outside of the restaurant on the walkway outside the restaurant. Although, the camaraderie and laughs made up for this being a bummer. So I would give it a 2 (overall) + 1 (just to say I ate here) +1 (since the bad boy was free, even though we spent nearly $70 worth of drinks per person).