Eating Better for Less - Las Vegas - page 85

For dessert, they have the same molten chocolate cake that everyone else in town
has, along with some other forgettable choices (you'll do better elsewhere for that
course).
$$-$$$$ Isla Mexican Kitchen and Tequila Bar 555 (in TI at the Mirage;
% 702/894-7111; www.treasureisland.com; Sun-Tues and Thurs 4-11pm, Wed
and Fri-Sat 4pm-midnight; AE, DISC, MC, V) is Sushi Roku's Mexican equivalent:
an ultrasexy spot that attracts an ultrasexy crowd who substitute tequila for sake,
calling on the cleavage-laden “Tequila Goddess” to create a tree of tequila flights
(actually an elaborate metal candelabra-like contraption with shot glasses on it).
This lovely hostess then educates you on the vintages, which you sip carefully as
tequila is a heck of a lot more potent than wine, even in “tasting” sizes. If you
don't do the tasting—and it's a pricey entertainment that has the potential for
putting you under the table, so you may want to skip it—you'll still find much to
catch your eye and tempt your palate. Designed by Jeffrey Beers, the chic, large
dining room has all the vibrant colors of a Yucatan sunrise, from the tiled bright
aqua wall in the back (a stand-in for the Caribbean sea) to the deep oranges and
reds of the vaguely Aztec paintings along the walls. The food is a creative retread
of Mexican classics by Chef Richard Sandoval, with a number of excellent
entrees—tacos, enchiladas and tamales—in the under-$15 range (a rarity for a
Strip restaurant with this level of chicness). Though it's a bit clichéd, the roving
guacamole cart is a nice little show, and the guac, made fresh at your table and
mixed with pumpkin seeds ($9), is a knock-out and perfect for a group to share.
If you'd like other starters beyond the guacamole, pick the corn soup ($7), which
tastes like summer, its sweetness balanced by a crisp ribbon of huitacoche (black
fungus) vinaigrette that the chef squiggles across the soup (it's so colorful it looks
a bit like a late Matisse collage). Pork is also a specialty, whether you have it grilled
in a taco with an excellent pineapple salsa ($10), pulled into juicy threads and
stuck in a tamale with a fiery chipotle sauce ($14), or marinated with tamarind
and then roasted and served with an exquisite sauce or roasted corn and pump-
kin seeds ($20, a family recipe). Vegetarians will enjoy the peppery fish tacos
($13), which are nestled in real old-fashioned tortillas, made daily on a traditional
comal. Don't skip dessert, a very grown-up treat here, with not-too-sweet dulce de
leche ($6) acting as an exclamation point on a terrific meal.
$$$-$$$$ The priciest of the three—well, what do you want, it's French
food— Bouchon 555 (in the Venetian; % 702/414-6200; www.bouchonbistro.
com; Sun-Thurs 7am-10pm, Fri-Sat 7am-11pm; AE, DISC, MC, V) is the almost-
too-perfect bistro from famed chef Thomas Keller (who founded the French
Laundry in the Napa Valley, widely considered to be the finest restaurant in the
United States). Set right in the very heart of the casino—you actually have to ride
the elevators up several floors to get here—it gives the impression of being lifted
right off a street on the Left Bank in Paris. Everything is very correct, from the
slightly worn but pretty tile floors to the classic zinc bar to the huge vases stuffed
with giant stalks of flowers that stand bolt upright, like soldiers at a review. The
ceiling is soaring, the crowd sophisticated (and slightly older), and the food
is comme il faut. Order the classic Steak Frites ($33), and it will be tender enough
to forego a steak knife; the mussels ($25) come in a saffron broth so richly