I went to Vegas for the first time in 2006. I hated it. If I had my way, I would have never gone back, but, of course, circumstances arose and it was pretty much required. I learned, on my second time there, that Vegas is survivable even if you don’t love it.
For the record, the real problem is me. I needed to change my expectations. I wanted, this time, to make Vegas highbrow. And though I packed Sagan’s Bonjour Tristesse and Morrison’s The Bluest Eye and would have welcomed a discussion on health care or human rights in Zimbabwe with anyone, everyone else was too busy having a good time. A screaming drunk good time. I did manage, however, to enjoy a few things about Vegas.
First, the restaurants: Vegas has a dense concentration of restaurants from some of the best restauranteurs in the world. Robuchon? Boulud? Colicchio? All here. My suggestion? Keep eating and do not stop. During my trip, I went to Shibuya in the MGM Grand, Aureole in Mandalay Bay, and Daniel Boulud Brasserie in the Wynn. All were delicious. Our very attentive sake sommelier at Shibuya quickly became our friend after recommending a bottle, and threatened to give some of the best service I have ever had in a restaurant. When the computerized wine list at Aureole featuring over 3,000 bottles almost confused us, we enjoyed watching the “suspended wine getter” fetch bottles from their glass cellar. I treated a friend who had taken care of me all weekend (getting us on guest lists, picking me up from the airport, taking me to In-N-Out Burger and introducing me to their “vegetarian” options) to Boulud Brasserie, where she had the DB burger (typically served at DB Bistro Moderne), the famous sirloin burger stuffed with foie gras and black truffles. I may not have liked Vegas, but I LOVED the restaurants there.
Also, the shopping: Vegas is a shopping mecca, of course. Because if you win at the casinos, you’re going to need to spend that money somewhere. I found the Palazzo and Fashion Square Mall to be relatively quiet, relaxing shopping centers. Barney’s New York was nearly empty. With only three potential customers, the sales personnel outnumbered us. I’m sure everyone else was busy picking which of the multiple Louis Vuitton “flagships” should be the center of their window shopping…
…Or they were at the pool: If someone told me there were one hundred pools on The Strip alone, I’d believe them. The MGM Grand itself has six swimming pools, one of which is Wet Republic, where they host pool parties complete with a DJ, drinks, and a velvet rope at the entrance. Pools are the new clubs, in Vegas. You’ll need to be on a guest list or have a reduced admission card to avoid paying $20 or more at the “door.” But this does not a relaxing afternoon make. The other pools around catch the run off of people who don’t want to pay a cover to swim, so the surrounding pools were just as rowdy and filled with people ready to party. An experience that has its place, but it wasn’t what I was looking for.
Lucky me, I was given VIP pool passes to the Wynn. At the time, I had no idea what that meant so I found my way to the Tower Suites, the portion of the hotel that was independently evaluated and granted the first five-star rating in Vegas, to pick up my pass from the concierge and subsequently passed easily by the doorman to find:
It was so beautiful, I had to hold back my excitement when I got to the pool. I reconciled my feelings by saying to myself “Obviously, this was modeled off of Hotel du Cap in Antibes. That’s why I like it so much.” So, I spent the rest of my day reading Bonjour Tristesse in an oversized hat, smiling…until a drunk hotel guest came around threatening to throw a lifeguard chair into the pool. By I decided it was time to enjoy dinner by Boulud.
xo
J. Justine
Shibuya, MGM Grand, 3799 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Aureole, Mandalay Bay, 3950 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89119
Daniel Boulud Brasserie, Wynn Las Vegas, 3131 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
In-N-Out Burger, 2900 W. Sahara Avenue, Las Vegas 89102
DB Bistro Moderne, 55 West 44th Street, New York City 10036
The Shoppes at the Palazzo, 3325 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Fashion Square Mall, 3200 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Barney’s New York, The Shoppes at the Palazzo, 3325 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Louis Vuitton, 3200 and 3500 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
MGM Grand, 3799 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Wet Republic, MGM Grand, 3799 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Wynn Las Vegas, 3131 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas 89109
Hotel du Cap, Blvd JF Kennedy, Cap-d’Antibes 06160
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