I made reservations on OpenTable. The reservations are only for indoor dining, but if you want to be seated on the patio with the view of the Bellagio fountains, just ask and they'll try to accommodate. I wasn't sure if I wanted to sit out there since it was 110 degrees outside, but thankfully one of the customers standing at the hostess station said that it was really nice outdoors. We were seated at a table that had shade from a large umbrella, so that and the occasional air conditioning breeze made our table comfortable for the 30 minutes it took for the sun to fall behind the Bellagio hotel. Celebrity sighting...on the way to the table, Penn Jillette of Penn and Teller was seated on the patio. He was there for about 20 minutes and then suddenly was gone. I'm sure celebrities have mastered the art of disappearing as to not get mobbed by fans.
The server brought a fresh baguette in a paper sack, some softened garlic butter, and a dish of fresh corn and grape tomatoes (most likely a seasonal amuse-bouche). Too bad I'm allergic to corn, but I did try one kernel and it was delicious. The tomatoes were good too. Corn was the ingredient of the day, as all of the daily specials included corn in some form or another. Pre-dinner drinks included a nice Merlot and rose champagne. A glass of "frangria" came later, a kind of French sangria.
Appetizers included a bowl of French onion soup and escargots. Everything looked so good that we ate it all before I realized that I forgot to take a picture. :P The French onion soup was the best I ever had, and I've tried lots of bowls. There was a sweetness to the onions (though I suspect MSG was in it, as my neck and shoulder muscles ached for a short duration), and they were cooked all the way through. Very cheesy. Sharing a bowl was perfect for the two of us. I've had better escargots, but I did enjoy dipping chunks of baguette into the leftover hot melted garlic butter.
Babe ordered "steak frites" in bordelaise sauce (caramelized onions and red wine sauce) and I got the seared sea scallops. The sirloin was done well (medium rare) and the caramelized onions were reminiscent of the French onion soup. The fries were a bit thinner and blander than I expected (had to shake salt and pepper on them) and got soggy from the sauce. I think next time, I'd ask for the frites on the side. The sea scallops were perfectly seasoned and prepared. It was accompanied by a creamy cauliflower mash and garlic spinach. The mash was really good! I'm sure there was a lot of cream in there. The spinach was a bit salty even for my tastes, but it was cooked well.
Dessert was the crepe of the day, which was mixed berry. The crepe batter wasn't as good as Jean-Philippe, but the ingredients and price made up for it: a scoop of vanilla ice cream wrapped in the center, generous portion of fresh mixed berries (huge berries!), whipped cream, and powdered sugar...all for $7.95! The table next to us asked how it was, as they pretty much wanted to eat it when it arrived on our table.
After dessert, the fountains performed to the Bellagio theme song "Con Te Partiro". A great way to end the meal!
When we went back to the Encore, I played a little bit of video poker to create some activity so that the hotel will send me another "suite deal". (I don't even know how they got my name in the first place, as I don't have a Red Card) It was cool that the room key also served as the player's card, so I didn't need to get in line to get one. Our last night at the Encore, boo hoo! The next morning, it was back on the airplane, and straight to work. Gotta maximize the weekend time.
The Encore is my new favorite hotel. I used to like the Bellagio, and then when I was gambling in Harrah's properties, I liked Paris. But I really like the Encore because of its size...not as huge as the Venetian and other hotels that focus on conventions. Because the hotel is mid-sized, everything was convenient to the guest such as the self-parking, the lobby, the elevators, the pool...nothing required a long walk. The suites are very comfortable and if you wait for a sale or a promo code, the value is good. I don't think I can get another deal like this one in the future, but I wouldn't mind staying at the Encore again if they offered ~$150/night rates.
What's next on the agenda? Yosemite for Labor Day! I'll continue Time Machine entries in the meantime.
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