New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta and Los Angeles may be some of the finalists but the winner for best food and wine is clearly Las Vegas. There are 170 Master Sommeliers in the world (the result of wine knowledge and blind tastings are part of the rigorous exam), 74 live in the USA and of those 17 work in Las Vegas. There are 75 Wine Spectator Grand Award winning restaurants worldwide and six are in Las Vegas. 33 of the 788 Best of Award of Excellence restaurants are also situated there. With that as a basis, follow along with me as I slice, dice and slurp my way through the best food and wine of Fun City.Janelle Brown of the New York Times in 2004 wrote: "When the Rat Pack moved out, Las Vegas lost its reputation for chic. Between the ubiquitous frozen margaritas, the roving bachelorette parties, the theme-park decor (and don't forget the $3.99 buffets), the town scared away the nation's arbiters of taste. The emerging Las Vegas is now sexy rather than tacky, knows its contemporary design and is definitely priced for the high-roller crowd."This list is obviously not all inclusive as one would have to reside in Vegas to savor all that is has to offer over an extended period of time; it would be like trying to make it to all the great places to eat in New York.MGM Resorts International operates 10 Las Vegas properties: CityCenter which includes Aria and Vdara, MGM Grand, Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, The Mirage, Monte Carlo, Luxor, New York-New York, Excalibur and Circus Circus.MGM Grand-“Home to an impressive 14 sommeliers (the most in the US) MGM Grand is dedicated to quality wine service and helping guests discover that next transcendent bottle of wine,” said MGM Grand Director of Wine Brian Weitzman. “We take pride in providing the best in service and experiences. Aside from our outstanding wine program, we also have 11 certified sake sommeliers--the most at any property in the country--to further enhance our offerings.” Approximately 52,000 bottles of wine are housed within the walls of MGM Grand, representing 4,710 wine labels and 156 selections available by the glass.Joël Robuchon and L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon. Chef Robuchon visits his restaurants at least four times a year. He was named Chef of the Century and his Joel Robuchon restaurant has won a Forbes 5 Star restaurant (one of 17 in the U.S.) as well as an AAA Five-Diamond Award. The five-room space recalls the glamour and elegance of 1930's Paris and enjoys almost 2,000 selections of wine. L'Atelier presents his cuisine in an accessible, informal style. Wine Director Harley Carbery is great at food and wine pairings. L'Atelier has 750 wines and is tres cher and elegant.NOBHILL TAVERN by Michael Mina- 800 wines, 70 champagnes. Try to get one of the semi-private cabanas by the entrance. The restaurant is meant to recreate the atmosphere and cuisine of San Francisco.Emeril's New Orleans Fish House has 1,375 wines and a Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence.Tom Colicchio’s Craftsteak has 2,700 wines and 200 scotches and other whiskies. They have applied for a WS Grand Award.Fiamma Trattotia has almost 800 wines.Bellagio-Bellagio has established the record for the most Master Sommeliers at a single property anywhere in the world. The resort currently had three Master Sommeliers including Jason Smith, the property’s director of wine.Celebrity restaurateur Sirio Maccioni sent his son Mario to Las Vegas when the Bellagio first opened in 1998. Le Cirque & Osteria del Circo has more than 900 wines and the elegance the Maccioni's bring to everything they touch is evident. Both restaurants have a Wine Spectator Best Award of Excellence award. Le Cirque is an eight-time AAA Five Diamond recipient.Picasso has more than 1,600 wines on their list assembled by Master Sommelier Robert Smith. Another Wine Spectator Grand Award winner and a 10-time winner of the AAA Five Diamond award. Think French cuisine with a hint of Spanish influence.Prime has more than 825 wines with Jason Quinn as the lead sommelier. They have a Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence.Jasmine has 875 wines with strength in California and Burgundy and a Best of Award of Excellence from the Wine Spectator.MICHAEL MINA is a seafood restaurant with over 800 wines on the list and a best of Award of Excellence.Sensi has a Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence list of more than 800 wines to match its Asian cuisine.Mandalay Bay-Aureole- William Sherer- Master Sommelier and wine director - a Charlie Palmer restaurant. No other place in Las Vegas comes close as a wine lover's Mecca. This Wine Spectator Grand Award winner with over 5,000 selections has a temperature-controlled wine tower with "wine angels Stewards" who use a high-tech suspension system to gracefully retrieve each order. . Their rare wine collection includes half-a-dozen examples of the prestigious 1900 vintage in Bordeaux (the 1900 Petrus is $42,000).Fleur by Hubert Keller- The modernized menu offers an array of small plates inspired by cuisine from Chef Keller's travels around the globe. There are more than 500 wines on the list.STRIPSTEAK, a Michael Mina Restaurant with more than 600 wines including a rare collection of cult classic California wines and a separate Single Malt Scotch list of more than 100.Rick Moonen’s rm seafood- at Mandalay Place at Mandalay Bay. Chef Rick Moon is in the kitchen five or six nights a week, with an international list of 600 selections from sustainable producers.miX is an Alain Ducasse restaurant located on the 64th floor of THEhotel at Mandalay Bay. Christopher Tassan oversees the more than 1,100 selections. You must see the 15,000-piece “champagne bubble” chandelier.Monte Carlo-Andre's Restaurant & Lounge is a Wine Spectator Best of Award winner with 1,500 wines. Chef/owner Andre Rochat patterned this restaurant, opened in 1997, after his longtime first venture opened in 1980 on the Fremont Street area. The chef has assembled the most extensive collection of rare vintage Cognacs this side of the Atlantic. The Lounge located upstairs is the best place to enjoy a fine cigar and rare Cognac.Aria Resort- Part of CityCenter, which was developed by the MGM Resorts International Group.Bar Masa and Shaboo- The Michelin 3-star chef Masayoshi Takayama has the 150-seat Bar Masa and the 52 seats Shaboo with 100 bottled varieties of Sake and 20 by the glass, as well as a 250 selection wine list.AMERICAN FISH by Michael Mina. His wine list is organized by taste, rather than region. Try the cocktail list with an emphasis on cocktails created before 1940.Julian Serrano- Tapas and new interpretive Spanish dishes from the multiple award-winning chef. Over 500 wines with emphasis on Spanish varietals as well as Spanish brandies.Sirio Ristorante- Traditional Italian cuisine from Sirio Maccioni and son Mario, of Le Cirque. Extensive wine list with one of Las Vegas’ largest selections of Italian wines.The Mandarin Oriental Hotel is part of CityCenter. Pierre Gagnaire has opened Twist, his first U.S. restaurant. There are almost 600 wines on the list with a large Bordeaux selection.The Las Vegas Sands has added the Palazzo and Venezia Tower to its other hotel.Venetian-Piero Selvaggio Valentino- Wine Spectator Grand Award winner - 2,400 wines. Sister restaurant to world-renowned Valentino's in Santa Monica. Voted best Italian restaurant in Las Vegas.Delmonico Steak House- Owned by Emeril Lagasse; Master Sommelier Kevin Vogt is in charge of the collection of almost 2,000 wines. Another Wine Spectator Grand Award winner.Pinot Brasserie- Almost 700 wines on the list.Bouchon by Thomas Keller has opened in the Venezia Tower, with 500 wines on the list.The Palazzo Las Vegas-Carnevino- Celebrity chef Mario Batali's take on steak. Wine selection (600) chosen by winemaker Joe Bastianich.B&B- Mario Batali & Joe Bastianich- 750 wines with an emphasis on Piedmont and Tuscany. Dos Caminos- 150 premium tequilas.Morels- 30 farmhouse and artisinal cheeses. 60 wines by the glass. 500 by the bottle. Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence.Harrah’s/Caesars group includes 9 hotels- Caesars Palace, Harrah Las Vegas, Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, Paris Las Vegas, Bally's, Planet Hollywood, Imperial Palace, Bill’s Gambling Hall & Saloon and the Flamingo.Caesars Palace-Tim Wilson is the Director of Beverage for Wolfgang Puck's Spago in the Forum Shop area that features California-style cuisine. They have more than 600 wine selections.Also in the Forum Shops is Joe's, from the famous original Miami Beach location, with their stone crabs and over 360 different wines including 20 by the glass.Guy Savoy’s first American restaurant has a 2,200 bottle wine list including: 14 Krug Champagnes, 23 Le Montrachet, 42 DRC’s, 14 vintages of Château Mouton & Lafite Rothschild, 13 Château Margaux’s, 15 Château Petrus, 29 Guigal Grand Cru Côte Rôtie’s and 17 vintages of Château d’YQuem. His son Franck is director of food and beverage overseeing all the restaurants at Caesars Palace.Bradley Ogden restaurant opened by the superstar chef from San Francisco. There are nearly 200 wines on their list. Patricia Beck D.W.S is studying for her Masters of Wine.Rio-The Wine Cellar offering over 1,400 wines at retail, 100 wines by the glass and a 50,000 bottle wine inventory. The wine bar has munchies and cheese platters to enhance your wine enjoyment. Custom wine and food dinners are also served here. The oldest bottle in stock is the 1800 Thomas Jefferson Madeira. The 1924 6- Liter Mouton Rothschild sells for $200,000 and there are 170 vintages of Château d’YQuem dating back to 1855, which can be yours for a mere $1.5 million. There are 50,000 bottles of wine, including 1800 Madeira from Thomas Jefferson's cellar.Paris Las Vegas:Eiffel Tower Restaurant boasts a wine list that contains over 1,000 wines including 47 different half-bottle selections. Almost the entire list is French and Californian with 16 vintages of Chateau Latour & 17 of Chateau Mouton Rothschild. The 1982 Chateau Petrus is the most expensive at $12,000 & a DRC Le Montrachet 2003 is $4,600. Located 11 stories up it has a panoramic view of the strip.Napoleon's Champagne Bar- 100 champagnes and sparkling wines.Palms-N9NE Steak House- Pronounced as Nine. Christian Margesson- wine director- has 850 wines. Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence. Also renowned for its champagne and caviar bar.Alize on the 56th floor of the Palms Hotel with 1,900 wines and another Best of Award of Excellence is operated by Andre Rochat (see Andre’s).Wynn Las Vegas- There are 17 sommelier in house with 100,000 bottles of wine. The all-Italian wine list at Bartolotta, Ristorante di Mare is 23 pages including 23 dessert wines.Danielle Price is Executive Director of Wine and has over 800 wines at SW Steakhouse and 600 at Switch. This restaurant is located next door at Wynn’s Encore.The Cosmopolitan Hotel opened in December 2010. Mark Mendoza is the Wine Director for acclaimed Los Angeles Chef David Myers Group. He has received his Wine & Spirit Educational Trust Advanced Certification. The almost 400 wines are exclusively American and French.Master Sommelier Paolo Barberi oversees a selection of over 500 regional Italian wines by the bottle and 20 selections by the glass at Chef Scott Conant’s D.O.C.G, a new wine bar named after the highest level of Italian wine origin.Master Sommelier Chris Janz has a 300 bottle mainly Greek wine list at Estiatorioo Milos restaurant. Having eaten in their New York restaurant I know that the fish is flown in fresh daily.Off the strip, located across the street from UNLV is Freakin’ Frog Bar/Lounge, with its collection of 900 beers and ales. Above the bar is the Whisky Attic, a private club with over 600 whiskies including Rye, Irish, Canadian, Bourbon, Scotch and International products. It boasts the largest collection in a whisky-only bar in the world. If anyone knows of a larger collection, please let me know.Whew! It was not easy but someone has to do it so you are prepared when you get to Las Vegas.For More Information-www.lvcva.comwww.visitlasvegas.comwww.bellagio.comwww.caesarspalace.comwww.mandalaybay.comwww.montecarlo.comwww.mgmresorts.comwww.harrahs.comwww.palms,comwww.parislasvegas.comwww.riolasvegas.comwww.venetian.comwww.wynnlasvegaswww.palazzo.comwww.arialasvegas.comwww.cosmopolitanlasvegas.comwww.freakinfrog.com
