Link to article: 5 Best Buffets in Las Vegas

I've only tried three of the five on this list, so I don't know if I totally agree or not, but here's the list from Travel + Leisure.com:

Best Las Vegas Buffets

My experience with Wicked Spoon at Cosmopolitan was just "meh" - it had some good points, but not everything was hot.  We went for breakfast, which is my favorite meal, and we were there at 9:00 a.m., so it's not like stuff had been sitting out all morning.

The Buffet @ Wynn was my favorite for quite a while.  I've gone probably 6 or 7 times for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  I just haven't gone back because there are so many others to try now!  The Jazz Brunch at the Country Club at Wynn is there to compete with it now, but it is only on Sundays and it is a bit pricier.  

Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars Palace is definitely the top on my list (and my mom's, for sure!) right now.  I've been for breakfast and lunch - or a spillover from breakfast TO lunch - on several occasions now, and I really enjoy it.  The key is to take your time, eat slowly, and sit back and talk with your table mates or just people-watch if you're alone.  No need to rush.

I've never been to M Resort and probably won't.  I'm a Strip Girl.  That's where I stay, that's where I play, and that's where I eat.  So I can't say a thing about this one.

Aria's buffet is on my to do list.  I think it could be a worthy contender.  The only problem is getting to it; everything is such a LONG walk because the hotel is so far back from the Strip, then THROUGH the casino, etc.  But good for a solo trip, perhaps.

My favorite "regular priced" buffet is at Harrah's.  They have a good selection and are not too expensive.  All of the top 5 buffets on this list top $30 for breakfast and $50 for dinner.  Harrah's will get you in for $20 for breakfast and $30 for dinner, and you get an extra $1-$2 off for being a Total Rewards member (take your card with you to get your discount).

Keep eating Vegas!

Bacchanal for Brunch (again) in October - with photos

When looking back through my blog posts, I realized that I hadn't posted my Bacchanal brunch photos from my October 2013 trip.  My friend Tania especially wanted to hear about it and see the photos, so this is mostly for her.  :)

Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars Palace recently celebrated their one year anniversary.  Still delicious.  Saturday brunch is as expensive as dinner, so be aware of the price if you go.

Coffee, juice and unlimited mimosas for Saturday brunch: $44.95+tax and tip (take $2 if you are a Total Rewards member).

First round: Sui mai and pot stickers (delicious!), green beans in wine sauce (yummy!), Chinese vegetables (good), bacon and egg pizza (very good and crispy), skirt steak and egg (small plate-pretty good and not overdone), Monte Christo (almost out of shot on the right - interesting...).  Oh, and OJ and pre-mixed mimosas (which are goooooood).  I'd never had a Monte Christo before - it tastes like a jelly doughnut and a ham sandwich had a baby.

 Second round:  Cold boiled shrimp (can't really mess those up), papas con carne (yucky!), hash brown casserole (delicious!), salumi (fresh and good), and a bacon, egg and cheese frittata on the small plate (decent).

Dessert plate!  Of course there's a dessert plate!

Delicious bread pudding, a fruit cup with honeydew, cantaloupe and watermelon (meh!), a lemon strawberry cupcake (also meh), and a warm, ooey-gooey chocolate lava cake, which was soooo good I almost licked the container!  Plus coffee, of course.  I love their coffee.

I also tried their fresh squeezed watermelon juiced and discovered I am NOT a fan.  It was not watermelon-y at all and I felt like I was drinking the leftover water in the bottom of the container that held the watermelon.  Bleh...

I managed to have 4 mimosas and sit there for an hour and a half, enjoying my breakfast and taking my time.  I don't mind eating alone at all, and it was a great chance to sit and people-watch.  The Mexican futbol team, Tigres Dorados, came in for brunch while I was there and had a whole area to themselves.  They were taking more pics of the food than I was!

Looking forward to going back for a visit in January with my mom! 

Buffet Review: Bacchanal Buffet @ Caesars Palace (with photos)

People coming out of the buffet as we're going in.  Thanks for the seats!

This was the buffet experience mom and I had been waiting for:  The Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars Palace.

This is a napkin - proof that I will take a photo of ANYTHING in Vegas!  :)

We decided to try the buffet for breakfast, since we didn't really know what to expect as far as crowds and wait times, and we figured that would be the best time to try it out in order for us to hopefully be able to take our time and allow us to sample both breakfast and lunch items for the same, lower buffet price.  

This is not a new thing for me, going in at an earlier time to get a lower buffet price, and I'm not the only one who does it, either.  Don't judge.

Getting there at 9:30 a.m. meant no line to wait in on a Tuesday morning, and we used our Total Rewards cards to get $1 off the price.  Our buffets came out to $17.99+tax each instead of $18.99+tax each for breakfast.  Another case of the TR cards benefiting the users!

Creative pumpkin carving.

Our hostess was a lovely young lady who pointed out the details and buffet seating "sections" (glass, wood, and steel) a la Vanna White as she walked us to our table in the furthest section: the steel section.  We were seated near the Asian food section at the end, passing the fresh squeezed and bottled juices, desserts, salads, breads, salumis and cheeses, the carving station, pizzas, side dishes and hot selections in turn.  It was hard to know where to begin!  I decided fresh squeezed orange juice was in order, and our sweet, attentive waitress was quick with coffee, water and milk while we got our first selections.

Lovely display behind the salads.  I used the miniature effect on this photo, so the bottom is blurry on purpose.

The breads, cheeses and salumis...

The Asian section, near where we were seated.

Some of the hot breakfast selections.

Looking through the glass seating section to the buffet.

For the most part, the dishes on this buffet are presented in individual, serving-size containers, which seems to help limit people from getting more than what they will be able to eat and hopefully keep them from wasting too much food.  I have seen this at several Las Vegas buffets and I heartily approve of it; nothing bothers me more than seeing people be wasteful and/or rude with food.  I get small samples of things myself, but people aren't always so smart when they go to buffets, are they?

Mom thought the coffee carafe and salt & pepper shakers were cute.
She likes things that match.

Mom's first plate included Kung Pao chicken that lacked the "pow" (not spicy), but had a good flavor.  She also tried a hot cast iron serving dish of skirt steak and an over-easy egg that she described as "heavenly", with a just right steak and a perfectly cooked egg - hard to do for over-easy eggs on a buffet, I think, because of the amount of time a dish could possibly sit out. She also had scrambled eggs and sausage, and a biscuit that she said was a little on the dry side.  I can't remember what other dishes she sampled after that first plate because I became engrossed in my own food choices, so I don't have anything further to report on her meal other than a picture of her dessert plate at the end, sorry.

Mom's first plate.  I forgot about her turkey bacon.  She didn't care for it.
She should have gotten REAL bacon!

I opted to start with a plate that included the bite-sized Croque Madame and Croque Monsieur, as well as Red Velvet pancakes, artisanal sausage, chorizo hash browns, and some saucy shrimp and grits to go with my fresh-squeezed orange juice served in its own little bottle.  Both Madame and Monsieur were magnifique, but the Red Velvet pancakes left something to be desired.  Perhaps I had built them up in my mind too much because I LOVE Red Velvet cake and I was really, REALLY looking forward to trying these pancakes, but mine were a bit dry around the edges and lacked any real Red Velvet flavor, even with the strawberry and whipped cream topping mixed in.  The sausage had a great flavor and was still very warm. The hash browns were just that - hash browns, browned well and a bit crispy around the edges (which I like), not over-done with black edges and/or too much grease.  The shrimp and grits were delicious, as well, though not quite as mind-bending-ly good as the all-time best shrimp and grits I had at the Wynn Jazz Brunch in the Spring. (Seriously, I don't think that dish will ever be topped...ever!)

Off the plate: Croque Monsieur and Red Velvet Pancakes.
Hash browns and artisanal sausage on the left, Croque Madame at the top,
Shrimp & grits on the right.

They look good, but don't have any real flavor.

Shrimp & grits deserves its own picture!

Next I tried the Eggs Benedict, pappas con chorizo, a shirred egg with mushroom, and a spinach and mushroom quiche in it's own little pan.  The Eggs Benedict had good flavor and the egg wasn't over-done at all (which happens to Eggs Benedict on a buffet more often than not), but I wish I'd seen the Southern Eggs Benedict first, because I have no idea what the "Southern" ingredient was and would've liked to have tried it, but when I finally saw that dish I'd run out of space in my stomach.  The shirred egg with mushroom was actually TOO mushroom-y for me because of the small size of the dish, and I generally love mushrooms in any dish, but it was just too rich for me.  The pappas con chorizo (chorizo hash browns, really) were deliciously spicy, which this South Texas girl loves.  I was not a fan of the spinach and mushroom quiche and I can't remember exactly why.  I think it may have been a bit too salty for such a small dish, but I marked down that I was "not a fan" when I was listing my dishes, so that's what I'm sticking with.

Eggs Benedict, pappas con chorizo, and shirred egg with mushroom.

Spinach and mushroom quiche.  Not yummy.  :(

For my final selections after the lunch changeover (which was around 10:30 a.m.), I chose three salumi slices, a bacon, egg and spinach salad, a su Mia dumpling, a leek dumpling, a pork pot sticker, as well as beef and broccoli.  They had a large selection of pre-sliced salumis, including proscuitto, pancetta, coppa, lardo, and culatello, and they were all labeled, but I chose proscuitto, pancetta and the salumi salami for my tasting.  All three were thinly sliced and had very good flavor, fresh and aromatic, and I wish I'd tried more.  I've become a bit of a salumi and cheese buff, and I'm reading up on the different varieties so I won't be afraid to try new things next time I'm faced with choices like this.  The bacon, egg and spinach salad (with onions) was one of my very favorite dishes, with the flavors blending well and just enough light balsalmic vinaigrette dressing mixed in.  I could have eaten a whole plate of that salad by itself.  The su Mia dumpling was another favorite selection from this buffet - absolutely yummy and literally bursting with spices and flavor.  The pork pot sticker had a nice, crispy bottom and was also very flavorful, and the leek dumpling served in a little tin was almost as tasty.  The beef and broccoli was perfectly done; the broccoli was not limp or over-cooked, and the beef was delicious and tender, and it came apart easily when I cut it with my fork.  (Can you tell I tend to lean towards Asian foods?  Asian and Cajun food are my very favorites.  Sorry - back to the review.)

Salumis, su Mia dumpling, leek dumpling (in the tin), pork pot sticker, beef and broccoli
and bacon, egg and spinach salad up front.

I'm glad they don't just supply little, tiny dessert plates for the Bacchanal dessert station.  The plates are just as big as the plates at the other stations, and that makes my mom and I very happy because we both LOVE dessert!  You should always leave room for desserts at a buffet, because you can try unusual stuff in small portions without committing yourself to a new flavor you're not ready for.

Mom's desserts: chocolate mousse (in the glass), pecan pie bar, a chocolate-covered strawberry, and a chocolate muffin topped with peanut butter frosting and a chocolate "coin".
It was the day before Halloween.

 For dessert I tried the custard with angel food cake and raspberry infusion (served in a syringe) which was VERY sweet.  Too sweet, I think.  I also had a delicious miniature pumpkin pie that was probably the best dessert I've ever eaten at a buffet, top to bottom, from the perfectly flaky crust to the yummy, warm pumpkin filling and all the way up to the creamy topping.  I could have eaten a couple of those bite-sized pies without blinking, they were so good.  The chocolate mousse served in a chocolate-dipped mini waffle cone was also deliciously creamy.  It would be a great dessert at any restaurant, I think.  The mini cupcake was very chocolately, but I wasn't wow'ed by the peanut butter frosting.  It was a cute presentation for Halloween, though.

My desserts, clockwise from the top: custard with angel food cake and raspberry sauce (in the glass), pumpkin pie, chocolate mousse in a chocolate waffle cone, and a chocolate muffin with peanut butter frosting.

There were way too many desserts to even begin to sample, including numerous varieties of cookies, gelatos, and cakes and pies presented in individual serving sizes.  I would love to go back and try more things.

Buffet guardian or Halloween decoration?

It was a lot of food, and it was good.  Almost 2 1/2 hours of eating and chatting, sampling items from the breakfast and lunch buffets, and just enjoying a nice Vegas buffet with great wait staff and bussers keeping our table free of clutter and refreshed regularly with coffee, cream and water.

I rank this new buffet right up there with the Wynn and Bellagio buffets for it's great selection. There are a couple of more expensive buffets that I love but can't (won't) afford to eat on a regular visit, but I hope to go back and try this one again someday.  Hopefully they will be able to sustain the quality of their food and the great selection.  Time will tell if they survive Las Vegas.  I hope they do.

The Bacchanal Buffet serves breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m.  Current prices as of this posting are $18.99 for breakfast, $21.99 for lunch, and $24.99 for dinner.  January 19, 2013 - The prices have drastically changed since October.  I'm guessing Caesars decided they could raise them without cutting back on their guests, but I think that remains to be seen.  The Total Rewards website now shows the prices as are follows:

Breakfast: $24.99        
Lunch: $31.99
Dinner Mon-Thurs: $44.99
Dinner Sat-Sun: $49.99
Brunch Sat-Sun: $40.99

Get $1 off for each of those prices with your Total Rewards card.

Given the price changes, I don't think it's one of the best values in tasty Las Vegas buffets anymore.  Breakfast, fine, and lunch, maybe, but they seem like they are about to price themselves right out of a market that's hungry (pun intended) for a good, competitively priced buffet. 

10 Best Buffets in Vegas? (Link to article, and a few comments of my own...)

LasVegasDirect.com has an article titled "The Top 10 Las Vegas Buffets" on their website.  It (obviously) lists their opinions of the top ten Las Vegas buffets, as well as a buffet 'survival guide' that has tips on everything from waiting in a buffet line to tipping the buffet waitstaff for service, and it includes a listing of Las Vegas buffets at the end.  Here's a link to the website:  Nom nom nom!

Of the top ten buffets listed, I've eaten at six:  The Bellagio Buffet, The Buffet at Wynn, Le Village Buffet at Paris, Cravings at The Mirage, The Wicked Spoon Buffet at Cosmopolitan and Spice Market Buffet at Planet Hollywood.  I have reviews for each of these buffets already listed on my blog if you'd like to read them (click the "buffet reviews" link on the right to check them out).  My favorite two of those - by far - are The Bellagio Buffet and The Buffet at Wynn.  I have been to both of them multiple times, and I would definitely go to either one again.

It seems to be a slightly weighted buffet listing by some, since it lists mostly Caesars Entertainment and MLife properties, but it makes perfect sense to me because I stay on the Strip and I don't venture far away.  Maybe the author of the article does the same, and therefore hasn't ever tried the M's buffet, or the MSS buffet downtown, both of which I hear are very good, but I don't know.

The article does mention the Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars but states that it's just "too new" and that it needs time before they determine if it should be on the list.  From what I've heard about it - and what I hope to experience myself - is that the Bacchanal Buffet is, indeed, very good and should be at the top of the list.  Time and tasting will tell...

For the record, buffets are hard things to review in general, because there are so many choices, and a reviewer (such as myself) may not like certain things, like veal or lamb, or even seemingly innocuous vegetable items like beets and yams - which I call "God's mistakes" because I really don't like the flavor, smell or texture of either one of them - and they won't give what everyone would consider a well-rounded review because they avoid these items altogether.  In addition, I think people who have dietary restrictions or allergies of any kind can't really enjoy buffets the way most people can, because they have to limit themselves when it comes to things like salt or sugar intake, gluten, or even shellfish, dairy and nut products.  Still, I do my best to sample a bit of everything because I really DO like to try new things, and I certainly have a hard time passing up nice buffet presentations...or desserts.

Do yourself a favor and try one of these buffets on your next trip to Vegas so you can see for yourself what all the fuss is about.

Bacchanal Buffet opens at Caesars Palace (with a link to some info and delicious photos!)

Oh, my!

The new Bacchanal Buffet opened at Caesars Palace on Tuesday, September 11th.  Here's a link to the Caesars Entertainment blog post about the grand opening, along with some great opening day photos, including about 75 of them in a slideshow at the end - YUM!

Delicioso!

What a delicious-looking bunch of food there is on this buffet!  Almost 500 choices between breakfast, lunch and dinner?  Lots of dishes served in individual serving containers?  And three beautiful areas to eat in, each one prettier than the last one?  I'm sure the lines will be long at first, but with the buffet open from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. on a daily basis, I'll bet there will be times when there's no line a'tall...

Current Prices:  Breakfast $19.99, Lunch $24.99, Weekday Dinner $34.99, Weekend Dinner $39.99 and Weekend Brunch $31.99.  Take $3 off each of those prices if you've got a Total Rewards card and show it when you pay.  In addition to THAT, remember that they waive the taxes if you use your Total Rewards points to pay for your meals at Caesars Entertainment properties.  Woo hoo!

Buffet Review: Jazz Brunch at The Wynn Country Club

My mom and I had reservations for the Jazz Brunch at the Wynn Country Club for Sunday morning at 11 a.m. during our March Madness trip.  This brunch is currently only offered on Sundays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. in the Wynn Country Club Restaurant, and regular breakfast service is suspended during this time.

The brunch was mom’s birthday celebration gift from me.  I cannot say enough good things about this brunch; it was a fantastic experience from beginning to end.  It was easily the best meal of our trip and on par with the Jasmine Brunch at Bellagio, even though the menus and experiences are vastly different.  The cost is $59 per person as of this writing, and that does not include any beverages (even coffee or tea).  With two coffees and tax the total was $132 before tip. 

They have a very good selection of Cajun food on their buffet, as well as several items you can order off of a separate brunch menu.  The brunch menu items are prepared fresh and brought directly to your table upon request.  We sampled some great items from the buffet selection already on the table before we ordered from the menu.  

New Orleans Shrimp, Crawfish and Andouille Sausage Gumbo, Red King Crab, Jumbo Shrimp, Andouille Sausage, Carrots and Asparagus

I enjoyed the split Red King Crag Legs, fresh carrots and asparagus, salumi and artisan cheese before diving into a bowl of their delicious New Orleans Shrimp, Crawfish and Andouille Gumbo.  We both could have made a meal out of the gumbo alone because it was very, very good, but we were determined to try as many things as possible.  In addition, I had several pieces of Creole Spice Rubbed Jumbo Shrimp, which were large enough - and yummy enough - to make yet ANOTHER meal on their own.  The Chile Rubbed Turkey Breast was delicious, tender and moist, but just didn't compare to the seafood dishes on the buffet.  The Grilled Chicken and Cherry Sausage was well seasoned and not overly sweet, which is important to me because I generally don't like sweetened meats .  I think the House-smoked Andouille Sausage I tried after that was even better, and I stopped myself from getting a third helping with the last of my willpower.


I requested the Shrimp and Grits from the brunch menu first.  The grits were absolutely fantastic; very creamy, with a delicious gravy throughout, and cooked to perfection.  The huge shrimp accompanying the grits were just as good, and the Creole spices were a great compliment to the overall flavor of the dish.  They are probably the best grits I've ever had, and I would've loved to have ordered another plate of them if I'd had the room.  

Shrimp and Grits - Best.Damn.Dish.Ever!

My mom ordered the omelet of the day – which was made with pepper jack cheese, bacon and green onions – and said it was absolutely delicious.  I declined to take a bite because I was intent on my own selections, but I include it here because she couldn't stop talking about the omelet and liked it very much.

Omelet of the day - with Pepper Jack Cheese, Bacon and Green Onions

We decided we had to try their French toast bread pudding as our "dessert".  It was topped with Vermont Maple Syrup, fresh berries, candied pecans, and applewood smoked bacon.  It was absolutely heavenly, warm, smooth and creamy, and we received a second one that we hadn't even ordered before we finished our brunch.  I think they might have heard us "ooh" and "aah" with every bite, or accidentally gave us someone else's order.  Either way, we ate every bite.

French Toast Bread Pudding - OMG, this is good stuff!

Our waiter brought mom a special mango sorbet with berries and a "Happy Birthday" sign made from white chocolate at the end of our meal, but she broke it when she tried to hide it in her purse and take it with her.  

Happy birthday delivered via a Mango Sorbet

Mom's random desserts I forget the names of.  I think it was a Chocolate Mousse, candied pecans, and some sort of layered chocolate dessert with gold leaf on top.

So I had Chile Shrimp with my French Macaroon and mini banana for dessert.  So what?

We enjoyed live music from the Jazz quartet throughout our meal, and I only managed a couple of somewhat blurry photos of their mustachioed sax player as they roamed throughout the restaurant playing for the diners and generally keeping people entertained with special request songs.

The sax player had a great mustache!  Too bad I didn't get a better photo...

The weather was too windy for us to sit out on the patio, but we saw several people attempt to make it work because the weather was beautiful.  Our table just inside by a floor-to-ceiling window was more than adequate for us to enjoy the beauty of the Wynn golf course and the city of Las Vegas just beyond.

The view of the Wynn Golf Course from our table

Standing on the patio - view of the Wynn Golf Course to the left...

...and view of the golf course and Las Vegas Strip to the right.

I would love to eat here again.  We realized we completely missed the macaroni and cheese, fresh veggies and mini cheeseburgers on the end of the dessert table as we were getting ready to leave, but we were completely stuffed and there was no way we could have eaten anything else.

One note about the buffet/restaurant dress code: it is listed as “business casual/no jeans”, and we took clothes so that we wouldn’t be under-dressed, but there were people in the restaurant wearing pool cover-ups and flip flops.  Of course, they could be high roller children, because they were younger people who were part of a larger group of Brits, but why aren’t restaurants enforcing the dress codes if they have them?  This isn’t the first time I’ve encountered this situation recently; Olives in Bellagio last July was another occasion I found people way under-dressed for the restaurant.


I give this restaurant and dining experience a perfect 10!  It was a fantastic time, and my mom is still talking about it.  I already made her reservation to visit again during her July trip with my cousin, so she will get to enjoy it sooner than I will.


You can make reservations for The Wynn Country Club restaurant through their website Wynn reservations, or through OpenTable.com at their website OpenTable.com.

Wicked Spoon Buffet at The Cosmopolitan - a review

Chicken Adobo taco (in bowl), Pecan Swirl French Toast, Moroccan Rice Salad, Antipasti and Asparagus

Bacon & Spinach Quiche (top), Mac-and-cheese (left), Eggs Benedict (right), California rolls

The Wicked Spoon Buffet at The Cosmopolitan is one of the newest buffets on the Las Vegas Strip.  It's in the lower mid-price range of all the buffets on the Strip, with the Imperial Palace's Emperor's Buffet being the lowest at about $12 per person and the popular, Sunday-only Jasmine Brunch at the Bellagio starting at $55 before drinks on the higher end.  (For the record, Bally's Sunday Sterling Brunch is the highest priced at $78 per person, but they automatically include champagne with the price of every brunch buffet, so I think their price is on-par with the Jasmine Brunch.)

I was really looking forward to trying this buffet because I took it off of my “to do” list in July.   On that trip I ended up grossly overeating every day when I booked too many restaurants in my plans.  On this day Hayley and I were properly hungry, but not starving, so I personally was ready to try some new dishes and was looking forward to sampling lots of new things.  

There are two services available at this buffet:  brunch is served from 8 a.m. - 2 p.m. daily, with a full selection of breakfast and lunch dishes, and dinner is served from 5:00 p.m. - 10 p.m. daily with dinner entrees.  There was no line just before 10 a.m., and we were seated and choosing our first dishes in less than 5 minutes. 

The Wicked Spoon buffet area itself is very pretty and modern, with lots of seating and great artistic touches everywhere.  The food items are laid out by region (Italy, Morocco, etc.) as well as by separate breakfast and lunch selections across the back of the buffet, so there’s no winding around to find something hidden somewhere.  I was very happy that the brunch seating included equal offerings of breakfast and lunch items because I hate to have more choices of one than the other, but that's a personal preference for me when it comes to buffets.  

Here are some of the selections we tried: 

Bacon, tomato and cheese omelet - Hayley ordered from the omelet chef.  The eggs were perfectly cooked and the omelet was a nice size, but maybe a little too much for a buffet.

Buttermilk pancakes - Served with lots of maple syrup, these were light and fluffy.  Hayley said she could've eaten a couple of stacks, but she was saving room for other things, too.

Pecan Swirl French toast - This was my favorite breakfast item of the day.  They were delicious, fluffy, warm, filled with nuts and slightly caramelized.  Add on the hot maple syrup and it was a very good way to start the day.  

Bacon and spinach quiche - Light and perfectly cooked, the quiche was topped with chives and a bit of mozzarella cheese, leaving yummy strings of cheese trailing when you took a bite.  The pieces of bacon were big enough to pick out but small enough to keep you from having to cut them up.  I wanted seconds.  

Eggs Benedict - Served in its own little silver pot, it was a very pretty presentation, but not a good item on this day.  Eggs Benedict is one of my very favorite breakfast items, so I try to enjoy them whenever I can.  These, however, were not good.  The egg whites were underdone, to the point of the egg being jelly-like and quite raw,  and the English muffin was too tough to cut with a fork, a knife, or both, so I ended up putting that aside.

California rolls - Fresh and bite-sized, these were really good and I sampled a couple of them because I'm too cheap to order sushi at a restaurant.  They had a nice selection of sushi available, but I don't get too adventurous when it comes to sushi, so I just admired most of it for its pretty presentation.

Moroccan rice salad - I put it down after one bite.  It was way too sweet for my taste.  Yes, it had raisins in it, but it was too sugary and not flavorful at all.  It was a very overpowering sweetness for a rice dish that was NOT a pudding.  

Mac-and-cheese - Also served in small, silver pots, these were good but very dense and almost overly cheesy, so it was hard to eat more than a couple of bites without feeling too full.  Definitely a comfort food, but I would've needed a nap after eating the whole serving.

Chicken Adobo taco - A nice, light, bite-sized treat in a tiny corn tortilla.  They added too many onions to the taco so it overpowered the chicken, but I ended up taking the onions off so that I could enjoy the flavor of the chicken, instead.

Chocolate-covered strawberries - Hayley was disappointed in these because they added nuts to their topping, and she hates nuts.  Who puts nuts on chocolate-covered strawberries?  

Pizza - We were both disappointed by their limited pizza selection to even try a single slice; they only had plain pepperoni and sausage pizza slices available on this particular day.  I was expecting more varieties of pizza, I guess, especially for a big, nice buffet.  No white pizza selections were available, either (the "sauceless" pizzas, with extra cheeses instead of marinara).

Asparagus - These were served crisp and slightly blanched, but they put lemon on them before serving them.  I prefer my asparagus with just a bit of salt, no lemon, so that's probably just a personal choice.

Mint and chocolate chip gelatos - Hayley said they had several different flavors available, but chocolate or chocolate chip is usually a safe bet in any case.  Theirs was nice and creamy, but the mint was especially delicious.  Maybe it's just a favorite of mine and I'm biased - who knows?

Chocolate-covered marshmallows on a stick - Not much to mess up here.  The marshmallows are covered in dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate, so they aren't as super-sweet as you'd expect.  A bite-sized treat that's a great end to a buffet.

Chocolate-orange mousse - A surprising little layered treat in a clear cup, this tiny mousse was surprisingly light and not overpowering with orange flavor.  Hayley debated getting a second one, but decided FULL was a good stopping point.

Overall, we were just not happy or impressed with most of the lunch selections we sampled, which is a shame.  The breakfast items and dessert selections were fine, but we just weren't WOW'ed by the whole experience, so I'd give the whole buffet a 6 out of 10 rating.  There are so many other great buffets in Las Vegas that I don't think I'll be going back to this one anytime soon.  I still think that Wynn and Bellagio have the best buffets on the Strip.

The Wicked Spoon Buffet is $22 per person and includes coffee, tea, and soft drinks.  Alcoholic drinks are available at an additional cost.

Link to buffet review: Wynn Country Club's Jazz Brunch by Diana

If you're looking for a great place to have Sunday brunch in Vegas, you might want to check out the Wynn Country Club's Jazz Brunch.  My friend Diana recently did a buffet review for this one, complete with lots of photos and details!  (She's a great trip report writer, and a neat lady to boot.)


As a comparison, she has dined at the Jasmine Brunch Buffet at Bellagio (once with me, on several other occasions with various friends and family), and she says this one is "on par" with the Jasmine Brunch.  Be still my beating heart, because I LOVE the Jasmine Brunch Buffet!


It's now on my "to do" list for the next trip - I don't know if I can pass up that much Cajun food in one location!


A link to her blog and the review, plus hours and pricing:


http://www.lasvegasdaze.com/2011/12/wynns-country-club-jazz-brunch.html

Restaurant Review: Breakfast Buffet @ Grand Lux at The Venetian

It was a nice, quiet walk to the Venetian on the second morning of my July 2011 trip for the breakfast buffet I’d heard such good things about from other members of the LasVegas4Ever board.  I decided I wasn't impressed AT ALL after seeing the selection and size of the buffet, and I won't be wasting my money on a second buffet there.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the Grand Lux as a restaurant, but they shouldn't bother offering a buffet within the restaurant because it's just not worth the price, I think.  They have fantastic food and lots of choices on their regular menu, and I can share lots of different items with my friends if I so choose, but I was extremely disappointed in the choices - or lack thereof - when it comes to a breakfast buffet.

They had waffles, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, cereal, bagels and toppings, hash browns, yogurt and fruit available.  But no Eggs Benedict?  How can you have a Vegas breakfast buffet with no Eggs Benedict?!?  No pancakes?  No casseroles?  Nothing out of the ordinary at all?  I should’ve ordered off the menu, instead.  

The price of the breakfast buffet includes coffee (which was too strong) and OJ (which was very good).  But $16.50+tax for their limited selection is not a good deal, in my opinion.  I won’t be doing that again.

I didn't even bother taking any photos because it was just not photo-worthy at all.  How disappointing is that?  I live for taking photos of EVERYTHING in Vegas, and to be so disappointed by a meal that I didn't even want to take a single photo says a lot.

I will be back for breakfast at Grand Lux someday...but I will get something really delicious and unusual to make up for lackluster and boring.  I give this whole breakfast buffet experience a 3 out of 10.

Breakfast Buffet Review: Cravings at The Mirage

The Cravings Buffet was not very good this time.  I’d had breakfast at the buffet a couple of years ago – right after they remodeled it, I think – and it had been really good then.  We found the food to be very hit-or-miss this time, and we arrived around 9:00 a.m., when all the food should be fresh.  

Some of the hot foods weren’t heated well enough, and the Eggs Benedict had been sitting out for a LONG time because I couldn’t even cut a corner off of the English muffin.  After two attempts, I gave up trying.  Eggs Benedict is my favorite breakfast food in Vegas, and I was disappointed to say the least.

There was no line, and we were seated at a 4-top (square) table near the middle of the room, where we were equi-distance from any part of the buffet, which is only open on the sides during breakfast.

Here's a listing of the foods we tried, and our opinions:

Chilaquiles - Yum!  This Texas girl liked them and had them twice.

French toast - Good and thick, with deep holes for syrup.

Ham and cheese quizza (quiche pizza, in case you’re wondering) - Good, but it could've been hotter.  It was only lukewarm, which led to me not finishing my slice.

Scrambled eggs - I found them delicious, but I also like mine slightly underdone (but not runny), and these were.  

Sausage links - Our hands-down favorite food on the buffet.  Slightly spicy, and easy to cut with a fork.  We had several helpings  apiece.  Don't judge.

Eggs Benedict - Too hard to even cut.  The egg was  hard, too, so they'd been out for awhile.  I don't even want to think about it...but it's pictured above, in the bottom right-hand corner of my first buffet plate, if you're interested.  It obviously looked better than it really was.

Bacon - Too "bendy", and not at all crisp.  We are a crispy bacon family, and it should break when it hits the plate (in our opinions).

Pancakes - A little on the tough side, according to my cousin (she was only one who tried them).  Pancakes shouldn't be tough.  Ever.  They should be fluffy, even on a buffet.

Watermelon - Good and sweet, and served cold, as it should be.

Croissant bread pudding - It was sweet and filled with raisins.  No sauce needed to top this bread pudding.  My cousin didn't find it sweet enough, but she also likes chocolate donuts (bleh!), so use that as your guide.

Fresh pineapple - Very sweet and fresh, but they sliced it too close to the core, so we had to cut the pieces up to avoid the hard center.

Carpaccio - Cold and fresh, like it should be.  You could tell it'd just been put out, and I'm glad they didn't leave large portions out to harden.  I hate that.

Cheese Blintz - My mom said these had no taste (she was the only one who saw them, I think).  They originally put them in the space that was marked for Apple Turnovers, but there were no turnovers and these were clearly blintzes.

In addition to these items, there was a crepe station, breakfast pizzas, tons of muffins and donuts, biscuits and gravy, smoked salmon, bagels and lox, corned beef hash, hash browns and some assorted breakfast casseroles that none of us apparently found appealing enough to try.   In their defense, I don't usually eat Mexican food outside of Texas (except for the chilaquiles - they looked too good to pass up), so I didn't even bother trying any of the casseroles with Mexican names because I can find really good Mexican food in Texas.  Who knows?  They might have been really good.

Our waitress was not the best.  We had to get a hostess to hunt her down and get a coffee refill, and she forgot my juice twice before I was finally able to successfully reminded her again.  At least the bussers were quick to clean off dirty plates and replace silverware, and they were everywhere, all the time.  


I have a serious question about the Cravings buffet:  What’s with the giant, unwieldy tongs for every dish on this buffet?  The basic, 10-pound hinged salad tongs - where one side is a spoon and the other side is a fork - do NOT work for every dish, yet they were the only things available.  I felt like I was playing one of those crazy crane games where you attempt, in vain, to pick up a stuffed animal in a giant claw when I was trying to grab a sausage link, and I stabbed my French toast and couldn’t get it released from the fork end when I finally got it maneuvered just right to even pick a piece up.   Really?  You don’t just have regular tongs anywhere in your kitchen?  Invest in some basic tongs and let your customers enjoy their food while it's still hot instead of making everyone wait it out in a game of chance.  


This was the only meal I paid for on the trip: $44 + tax for three   buffets ($15.99 per person).  We only left the waitress a tip because she finally got her head unstuck from her nether regions and paid some attention to us.  We were seriously considering stiffing her the tip if she didn't get a clue.


Overall, I'd rate this buffet as a 6.  If the Eggs Benedict had been fresh and the service a little better, I might even say a 6.5, but we were disappointed by the meal and service as a whole.  With just a few bright spots in the whole experience, it's not likely we will return again.  Harrah's offers a much better breakfast buffet across the street for $2 more, and that one is definitely worth the price.


If you are interested in checking out the Cravings buffet for lunch or dinner, here is the website with their hours of operation and a phone number: http://www.mirage.com/restaurants/cravings.aspx.  They do have special menus for occasions such as Easter, Mother's Day and Christmas, so be sure to check out the website before you go if you're looking for something in particular. 

Jasmine Brunch @ Bellagio - April 25, 2010: A Review

Our group - Standing: Terri, Bonnie, Michelle and Tania
Sitting: Lynn, Diana, Robbie and Deann (me!)

Bonnie's pretty birthday present from the restaurant

While planning my April 2010 Vegas trip, I read a message board post by one of my friends at LasVegas4Ever which mentioned a new Sunday brunch in Las Vegas. The Jasmine Brunch Buffet at Bellagio sounded really good, but at $55 per person it also sounded really expensive for my usual Vegas budget. After much discussion on the topic between several members of the board - and after seeing the DELICIOUS photos posted by our friend, Diana, who attended the brunch with her husband a couple of months before - it was decided that it would be a good idea to try the brunch as a group while we were all in town for another LasVegas4Ever meet, as we'd be unlikely to try it individually or with some of our own, less adventurous dining companions.

Diana made an 11:00 a.m. reservation for us and secured a wonderful table by the front windows overlooking the Bellagio Fountains for our group of eight ladies. We arrived almost at the same time and were waiting by the doors before they opened at 11:00 a.m. on the nose. Diana was right at the front of the line, and we were all led to the far end of the restaurant, gawking as we walked. As we made our way down to our table, the Bellagio Fountains came alive, playing the Star-Spangled Banner. What a setting! We were entertained by fountain shows every 5 minutes after that for the entire meal.

For those who don't know, Jasmine is a Chinese restaurant by night (they open at 5:30 p.m. for dinner customers), but the decor is decidedly upscale and English formal. It was a beautiful setting for our little party, and we took turns taking photos of everything from the dishes on the table and the designs on the walls to the food, the flowers and the ice sculpture that made up the buffet displays.

We were attended by two waiters (wait staff? wait persons?), and we were presented with drink menus for their selection of unlimited champagne by the glass...if we wanted it. Before you decide this buffet is not that expensive after all, the champagne you choose is added to the $55 price; same goes for any coffee, tea, or juice you decide to drink while dining. It certainly adds up on the bill, but it was worth every penny. Two of the ladies opted for champagne, while a couple stuck with water or juice and a couple others (myself included) ordered both juice AND coffee. I like to enjoy my buffets with plenty to drink.

The waiters also brought a three-tiered cake stand with a selection of fresh fruit, mini muffins and jams to start off our meal. I didn't try any of them, because I was looking forward to sampling the buffet choices, but I heard from those who did that everything presented was absolutely as delicious as it looked.

We took our cameras to photograph everything in sight before we headed off to get our first plates of food, and our beautiful, butterfly-covered China plates were replaced by white plates with simple gold borders. It's probably better they did this, as I believe one or two of the ladies at my table were thinking of putting a butterfly plate in their handbags!

The buffet selections included traditional American fare, such as omelets and eggs, and more exotic Asian dishes, including Kobe Beef Roulade and Wu-Xu short ribs. They had some of the best cold salads I've ever tried, including the very popular Kalbi-glazed Jidori Chicken Salad (we all want this recipe!). It was all very beautiful, very delicious, and too much for me to try. Another waiter prepared Peking Duck table side for each guest, and although my friend Lynn said that the pastry was a bit too puffy, the taste was still spot-on in her opinion. I had never tried it before and have nothing to judge it against, but it was very good.

Included in the buffet price is the best thing any buffet could ever have, but only a few do: a dessert room! Several tables topped with scrumptious, bite-sized morsels and tiny dessert cups were waiting for us, along with a chocolate fountain and many different dipping options. I could only manage four small desserts myself - yet another reason I will have to go back and try it again!

We were stuffed, but we enjoyed the food, the conversation and the company so much that we stayed for almost 2 1/2 hours. It was a truly enjoyable way to spend my last day in Vegas before I headed back home to reality.

At the end of our meal, one of the waiters brought the checks, and I was surprised to find that they remembered that it was Bonnie's birthday (we mentioned it when we sat down) and included a beautiful Jasmine ornament with her check - so cute!

In the end, the cost for my brunch was $88. That included my coffee and my juice, and the automatic tip for a large party of eight. The cost was the same as one of the ladies who'd ordered champagne, so it was not a bad deal for the total experience.

Before we left, we had one of the waiters take a group photo of us in front of the windows, and we decided that we'd DEFINITELY like to go back and try it again. Plans have been made for another Jasmine Brunch Meet in October, and I'm already looking forward to it with my mouth watering.

On a scale of 1 to 10, this brunch buffet rates a decidedly delicious 10! I would give it more points if I could, because the whole experience was just that wonderful.

To make reservations by phone, call 702-693-7223. The brunch buffet is open from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Sundays. There are rumors that the buffet may be extended to Saturdays, too, because it is very popular. I think it would be a welcome addition for the Bellagio, as it is was a very welcome treat for my vacation.

If you'd like to view their complete brunch menu, you can check it out here:
http://www.bellagio.com/restaurants/fountain-brunch-seasonal.aspx