Restaurant Review - STRIPSTEAK

Tonight we had an opportunity to take advantage of Restaurant Week here in Vegas. It's an annual event that includes some of the best eateries in the city. If you're going to be in or around the Vegas area and for more info, click here. 

So we thought we would expand the blog a little and since we love good food, we thought we'd start reviewing some of the places we eat at - so that you can either take advantage or avoid them. The first is STRIPSTEAK at Mandalay Bay...

STRIPSTEAK is Michael Mina's first fore into steakhouses. It features a menu rife with imaginative interpretations of steakhouse favorites. Mina uses only the highest quality ingredients, and the menu includes three kinds of beef, Certified Angus, American Kobe, and "A5" Japanese Kobe.

We arrived early for our reservation and were greeted by a welcoming hostess. We took seats at the beautiful bar and ordered a pear martini and bourbon, respectively. The pear martini was excellent and soon we were being taken to our seats. The dining room is very comfortable with the tables far enough apart to allow for privacy in conversation. 

Our first hint that this would be a good meal was when instead of your typical bread and butter, the chef sent out a trio of "duck fat" fries, accompanied by three dipping sauces. Nate's favorite was the white truffle fries, while I was partial to the smoked paprika. 

The server was wonderful and gave fantastic suggestions. She even poured Nate a small portion of a wine he was contemplating, in order to better help him decide. 

My first course was Sweet Onion Soup with Maine Lobster. It was excellent and the flavors were spot on.

For an entree, I chose the prime rib. It was a perfect medium-rare, and perfectly seasoned. Although the beef was good, what truly made the dish were the sides, which included white truffle mac and cheese, creamed spinach and Jalapeno creamed corn. Can we just talk about the creamed corn for a minute? The server suggested it, billing it as "the best thing on the menu", her words did not disappoint. It was incredible. 

Finally on to dessert. We both had the beignets with butterscotch pudding. It was the perfect end to an awesome meal. 

 Overall, the service was impeccable and the food was exceptional. In a world full of Morton's, Capital Grille and Ruth Chris, STRIPSTEAK does what these others only make an attempt at. This is not your grandfather's steakhouse....thank goodness.