Vegas: Fleur by Hubert Keller

While most of what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, there are at least some good meals to talk about.   My first one was included some divine duck tongue tacos, and it only seemed appropriate that the next one included a whole lotta beef.

Fleur by Hubert Keller

We went to Fleur by Hubert Keller in the Mandalay Bay.  Keller is French, so naturally j'adore him, but his menu in Vegas touches upon many different countries, so my friends could adore him as well.  Places like Spain, France, Italy and USA were listed with a half dozen selections under each, but we bypassed the countries and went straight to the "Butchery."

As you might expect, my friends are not teetotalling, paleo-juicing-carb-free-vegan eaters.  We didn't need to prove that to anyone, but when we all decided steak sounded good for dinner, we went in on the 40 ounce prime Tomahawk ribeye.  I will say we were ladies in that we refrained from the wagyu beef, foie gras, truffle burger served with a bottle of '95 Petrus for the low price of $5,000.

We did touch on the USA section of the menu for a traditional caesar salad, and a wedge salad with pancetta and pickled beets.  Both were on par, but where we really blew it was the wine.  There is an extensive wine list and we asked our server for some assistance, but ended up on our own with a mediocre red and white that did nothing for the meal. 

And when you're eating a massive, juicy steak, you want a bold red to prop it up, and sadly we couldn't get a proper recommendation and chose poorly.  Worry not though.  We're in Vegas and the 40 ounces they put down before us was sublime.

I asked several times about the origin of the beef and never got an answer, so I'm just going to go with a really happy farm, really close by. It was tender, juicy and cooked to perfection.  The sides ranged from decadent to dull.  The kale salad with red peppers was lifeless with no expression.  The wild mushroom ragout was a woodsy melange of forest tastes that I could have eaten another helping of, but the mega hit was the creamy polenta, with emphasis on creamy.  I'm guessing it was a majority cream and butter with a minority of polenta, but it was a wonderful companion to the meaty steak.

I'm embarrassed to say that we didn't have dessert, and perhaps you're relieved.  If it's any consolation, the meat cooks down so we each ate less than 10 ounces each, which did worry a friend at one point, concerned it wouldn't be enough.  It was plenty.

And perhaps some of us did get to enjoy a little dessert at the end after all.   

Sorry Lisa. What happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas, but if anyone could taste this steak, they would have done the same.