Wayne's Sushi

For my friend Audrey's birthday we tried a new place I had heard about called Wayne's Sushi. The restaurant consists of a funky single room that is located in Shilla BBQ on Sahara next to the Palace Station, and is run full time by a sociable Hawaiian man named Wayne. I'm sure the place has a regular following, as it is impossible not to make friends with Wayne while you're there, as well as any other customers that come through the door. He is truly hospitable, and you can tell that he loves what he does. His website is worth going to for laughs ("the friends" page is my favorite) and you'll learn there that the restaurant doubles as a karaoke bar, whenever a customer feels like singing. We were offered the option but respectfully refused, as we were not having sake at one in the afternoon. Wayne also takes requests, if you feel like watching a singing chef.

As soon as we sat down he brought us a little dish that had his own version of sunomono (pickled cucumber salad) as well as pickled bean sprouts. Both had great flavor and a touch of heat, but I just fell in love with the interesting sprouts. Though we were sitting at a table, we shouted our order to him over the bar, starting with the Cajun Ahi Salad (it's a one man show and the place is tiny). This addictive dish ($14) consists of Cajun rubbed ahi slices beneath a bed of mixed field greens and onion slices, and is dressed in Wayne's Ninth Island Asian Caucasian dressing. Though it was slightly overdressed and a bit pricey, the flavor was terrific and I loved the addition of crunchy cashews. We had a hard time choosing which rolls to get, but after much deliberation and instruction from Wayne (he told Audrey not to get the one she wanted - weird since they're all his creations) we settled on the Da Buggah Ono ($8, eel, jalapeno, crab, cream cheese and asparagus prepared tempura style with no rice) and the Mikey Mikey ($14, soft shell crab, shrimp tempura, and spicy tuna topped with spicy crab, avocado, and ahi). The former had great flavor but the tempura got too soggy from the muddy colored sauce and the latter was tasty, but very filling and similar to what you can get at other sushi places. Mikey, after whom the roll was named, was sitting at the sushi bar so I suppose we were sort of forced into getting that one. I have to say that I prefer the rolls at Sushi Fever, but I'd like to give some others on the menu here a shot.

We also had the black cod, or miso butter fish, appetizer ($8) and a side of chilled asparagus with Sum Young Gai sauce ($4). The fish was really flavorful (true to his slogan, "it's all about the flavor") but was previously frozen so the texture wasn't ideal (I much prefer the Black Cod Soy at Sen of Japan on Durango and Desert Inn). The asparagus was light, refreshing, and perfectly cooked, and went well with the creamy sauce. Then, as if we needed more food, he brought us complimentary baked oysters, which was generous (I should mention there were three of us so you don't think I'm a total pig). These were really unhealthy as they were baked with creamed spinach and topped with spicy mayo, but looked beautiful and were delicious (pictured above).

Unfortunately, I didn't get to try any sashimi, which is the best indicator of quality at a sushi place. I don't feel I can give a complete evaluation on account of this, but I was intrigued and entertained enough to go back so I will keep you posted as to what else I try and how it stacks up.

Today's Food Rating: 7.5
Ambiance: 5.5
Would I go back?: SURE. THE FOOD WAS GOOD, IT'S CLOSE TO HOME, AND I LIKE CHEFS WHO COOK FROM THE HEART.

Ahi Salad

Mikey Mikey

Black Cod

Da Buggah Ono

Chilled Asparagus

Dinner at Home: Budin de Tortillas

Since Brian was out of town over the weekend and is the resident chef of his household, I made dinner for Maggie, her mom, and Ian on Sunday. I made a recipe called Budin de Tortillas (similar to chilaquiles or Mexican lasagna) from Rick Bayless' cookbook, Authentic Mexican. Rick Bayless won the Top Chef Masters competition last year (an incredible feat) and I have eaten at his delicious restaurant Frontera in Chicago, so his recipes are pretty fail-safe. This dish is made by layering lightly fried crispy corn tortillas with jack cheese, crema (Mexican sour cream), roasted pasilla peppers, and a tangy and spicy tomatillo salsa. The salsa is fairly time consuming but absolutely worth it. You have to blanch the tomatillos (tart green Mexican tomatoes), take them for a ride in the food processor with onions, serrano chiles, garlic and cilantro, and then reduce the mixture with chicken stock over the stove. You bake it in the oven until it gets nice and crusty and top with sliced radishes and scallions. Mmmm.

I decided to improvise a bit and added in some chipotle and jalapeno sausage from Branded Meats butcher on Horizon Ridge that was phenomenal. It takes awhile to get out there but they have great selections of unique items that are hard to find elsewhere, such as quail and glace de viand (Veal cooking base), as well as seafood and home-made soups that change daily. Not all their meats are all-natural (meaning they have been fed antibiotics or hormones at some point in the steers lives), which was somewhat disheartening, but the quality is certainly much better than your average market.

Changes I would have made: more salsa, more cheese, more sausage, more roasted chiles, and maybe some shredded roasted chicken as well. The casserole was a little heavy on the tortillas so adding more of each ingredient would have made the dish shine.

Tonight's food rating: 7.5
Would I make it again? DEFINITELY

Tip: Go to a Mexican supermarket like Mariana's on Sahara and Valley View to buy produce and special ingredients for Mexican cooking. The prices are are much more reasonable than your regular supermarket and the quality and selection are generally better, too.

Sunset and Vines

On Saturday Ian and I spent a beautiful afternoon sitting on the outdoor patio of Sunset and Vines at Lake Las Vegas. It's quite a haul to get out there, but Ian had never been before so we decided to combine the trip with a Henderson delivery. We didn't have a restaurant destination in mind but settled on Sunset and Vines after reading the menus of the various eateries scattered around Montelago Village, the commercial and social hub of Lake Las Vegas. The restaurant is one of the few original tenants of the village and sits right on the water, so we knew we would at least have a pleasant view and to pretend we weren't in Vegas for a minute (minus the desert in the distance).

To start we shared a Caesar salad ($7.95) made very un-Caesar like with the addition of bleu cheese. I personally don't think you need to mess with a Caesar salad and thought the cheese was a distraction from the great dressing, but it was good salad nonetheless made with fresh, crisp hearts of romaine and baby garlic croutons. We then tried two of the sandwiches that make up the bulk of the lunch menu. The one pictured above, and definitely the better of the two, was the Bacon Apple Stack ($7.95). It consisted of sliced crunchy apples, meaty applewood-smoked bacon, Cheddar cheese, and a spicy red pepper aoli spread on a chewy ciabatta roll. All the ingredients came together beautifully and it was the kind of sandwich that grew more delicious with every bite. Unfortunately, the Smoked Salmon BLT ($10.95) was a bit disappointing. The smoked salmon itself was of decent quality, but a little bland and had a texture too similar to the adjacent layer of avocado slices. The turkey bacon wasn't nearly as good as the real bacon on the Bacon Apple Stack and, unfortunately, the bottom layer of bread came out soggy. It was just kind of a sad sandwich. Both of us ordered the fries as a side, which was upsetting because they weren't very good. When I ate the first one I swore that whoever prepared the fries mistook the salt for sugar because they came out sweet and not salty. We told the waiter we thought someone messed up and he casually said "No, that's the chef's new thing. It takes some getting used to." So needless to say, the fries weren't a highlight, even when you added salt.

It was great to get some fresh air and sit by a body of water, enjoying the sunshine while eating our lunch, so the experience was memorable. Even though it's far away I think I'll go out to Lake Las Vegas more often and explore the charming village more. There are lots of different shops and cafes, and they hold some popular community events. There happened to be a little "Beer Fest" going on while we were there where different Vegas breweries were peddling their libations. Ian saw a shirt he really wanted that said, "#*&% Milk, Drink Beer" but unfortunately they weren't selling it, so we headed back to the car for the somewhat long drive home.

Today's Food Rating: 7
Ambiance: 8
Would we go back? I KEEP THINKING ABOUT THAT BACON APPLE STACK, BUT NEXT TIME WE GO OUT WE'LL TRY MARSSA, A SUSHI RESTAURANT IN THE LOWES HOTEL.

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Naked City Sandwiches

Can somebody please tell me what all the hype going around Naked City Sandwiches is about? This tiny sandwich shop on Las Vegas Blvd. was recently opened by two chefs, one of whom is the chef at Diego restaurant in the MGM. Ian and I read a very positive review in the Weekly awhile back and decided to try it out. They were applauded for their house-cured and smoked meats, and the fact that everything ranging from pasta salad to pickles is made in house, except the bread. Ian is a big sandwich lover so was excited that there might be a unique new sandwich shop in town, and close to our house at that. The first time we ordered the Naked Chopped salad ($7.99) and the Naked Veggie sandwich ($8.99), which were both disappointing. The salad wasn't chopped at all but came with massive slices of so-so meat and a few boring vegetables. The Naked Veggie was served on semi-fresh pumpernickle bread that was so thick you hardly tasted anything but. The filling wasn't good either, with unseasoned veggies and a terrible eggplant "stuffing" (as if the sandwich needed more bread). We were disheartened to say the least but today decided to give it another try. They were still new when we first tried it so perhaps they needed some time to adjust. This time Ian got the Royal sandwich on a kaiser roll, that was still way too thick. The hot cappicola inside was good but basically it was an average sandwich that was too heavy on the bread. It came with a side of pasta salad that could have been great if it wasn't under-done and under-seasoned, a side of homemade giardinera (not bad), and a habanero pickle (spicy and tasty). I'm currently feeling under the weather so I ordered the tortilla soup ($3.99) which was hands down the worst tortilla soup I've ever had. It was completely one dimensional and tasted like tomato paste mixed with hot water. It is prepared with tons of avocado chunks (who likes hot avocado?) and the toppings consisted of cheddar cheese cubes, sour cream with chilies, and stale tortilla chips. You would think that a chef of a Mexican restaurant could make a decent tortilla soup but this was inedible. I had two bites and threw the rest away. I called to let the girl at the counter know how disappointed I was but all she could say was, "Did you add all the toppings?" "Yes, but it probably would have been better if I hadn't" I thought. Nothing could make that soup better. What Ian and I don't understand is why this sandwich place that is mediocre at best is getting all these rave reviews on Yelp! and other sites. If anyone has had a good experience there I'd love to hear it, along with a detailed explanation as to why. It seems to me that they need to stop spending so much time curing all their meats and start spending time making the food taste good.

Today's Food Rating: 3 (would have been much lower if all we ordered was the soup)
Would I go back? I THINK WE GAVE THEM A FAIR SHOT SO I HAVE NO PLANS ON RETURNING UNLESS SOMEONE TELLS ME ABOUT SOMETHING GOOD THEY HAD THERE.

Dinner at Home: Mom's Roast Chicken

Ian decided he wants to start watching his cholesterol so the other night I thought I would make my mom's roast chicken breasts that we had virtually every week growing up. I put a little bit of a twist on it by using fresh rosemary instead of dried tarragon, which I stuffed under the skin with sliced garlic and a dab of butter. I used Lawry's seasoning salt on top, which my family puts on anything that moos or clucks. The chicken was juicy and the skin got nice and crispy, so I think my mom would be proud. As a side we had sauteed hericot vert and the cutest little potatoes from Trader Joe's. Ian was happy and said I didn't have to sleep in the yard that night, so dinner was a success! (Just kidding, he didn't really say that)

Tonight's Food Rating: 8

Herbs and Rye

Were you around during Prohibition and do you miss the drinks of that era? The answer is most likely no, since you'd have to be in your eighties or nineties to remember it and I don't think anyone that age reads my blog. If you never had the chance to experience the drinks popular during prohibition and would like to, however, I suggest you go to Herbs and Rye. Not for the food (definitely not for the food), but for the drinks, which are terrific. In fact, you're not limited to drinks that were popular during Prohibition, but can enjoy the whole American history of drinking from the "Gothic Age of American Drinking" (1775-1865) to it's "Revival" (1990-present). No matter what you choose I'm sure you'll be happy. I've tried three, the Frisco from the Gothic Age (I don't even like whiskey), the Scofflaw from Prohibition (I don't like bitters), and the Diablo from the Reform years (gotta love tequila). Each has been exceptional, but I don't review cocktails, I review food.

Ian and I have now been to Herbs and Rye three times. We were disappointed the first time, somewhat less disappointed the second. In fact, we walked out after drinks and calamari the first time when we were with my parents because it took forever to not get our food. You might be asking yourself, "Frugal Foodie, why would you go back a second time, let alone a third time ?" Well, there are several reasons.

1) We were sad to lose the old occupant, Caminos de Morelia, and had been anticipating the opening of a new restaurant ever since they closed and we saw a new sign go up (though, that's really just a reason to try it a first time, I suppose).
2) Ian says the name in a way that just makes it appealing. I can't explain it but it's like "herrb and a-ryyye"
3) Every new restaurant deserves a chance to work out the kinks.
4) It's close to home.
5) We hadn't yet had a chance to try their 50% off happy hour, and 50% off food is great way to get you back in the door. (5-7PM and late night, M-F)

The meal always starts out fine. The drinks, as I mentioned, are spot on, and the bread is good, made all the better by sweet honey butter. The servers are pleasant, but then you order, and you wait...and wait. I understand the time it takes to make the cocktails (browns stirred, whites shaken) but there is no excuse for the food taking so long when there are a maximum of two other tables. The calamari ($7.50 with happy hour, pictured above) this time was much better than the first, so I was glad to see the improvement. The idea was good (peperoncini, crispy pancetta, and aoli drizzle) but somehow it ended up as a fairly uninteresting salty mass. Perhaps I am being too harsh. It wasn't so bad, and the portion was large, if you like that kind of thing. I suppose the most disappointing aspect was that it was a vast improvement. A long while after it left our table we got our Vitello a la Fiorentina, a veal T-bone ($18 with happy hour), which wasn't a T-bone at all. Our waiter admitted he had forgotten to tell us that the chef had changed it to a chop, which would have been fine if it was good, but it wasn't. Although it was cooked well, I don't think we were able to get more than six decent bites out of it that weren't ultra-fatty between the two of us. The mashed potatoes underneath weren't hot and didn't have enough butter, and the asparagus was completely void of seasoning. Forget about the "caramelized lemon" and white bean ragout, if you can even call it that. If we'd been paying the full price of $36 I definitely would have complained. What am I saying? I complained anyway. The chef took it off the bill, almost making me feel bad for being so negative in this review. Alas, a critic's job isn't always an easy one.

The chef truly isn't the only one to blame for the imminent demise of this restaurant, however, the decorator is. The dining room is supposed to make you feel like you are in old Vegas, but falls short in every way. The red felt wallpaper, fake leather booths, tiny chandeliers, cheap silverware and fake bookcases all add to the depressing ambiance. The worst, above all, is the music. It is more outdated than the drinks and is truly nauseating. I mean, I'm sure "Suwannee River" had it's day but it's 2010 now. Ian put it well. "I think I'm going to slit my throat with this butter knife if I have to listen to this anymore." "Wait!," I said, "Let me finish that honey butter first."

Overall, I'm not sure the 50% off menu even makes it worth coming here. I would truly like to see this restaurant continue to make improvements because they have a really great thing going with the bar. It would have been smarter of them to open up a much smaller place that focused on great drinks and served a few exceptional tapas, rather than investing $1.6 million in this huge, boring place (the young new owner unfortunately invested everything he had). My suggestion is to stay in the bar and order the drinks. Order lots of drinks, that way the music probably won't bother you as much. Who knows, you may even start singing along.

Tonight's Food Rating: 6.5
Tonight's Drink Rating: 9.5 (best I've had off the Strip)
Ambiance: 5 (would have been a 6.5 if they changed the music)
Would we go back?: ANYTHING'S POSSIBLE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL

Lotus of Siam

One of our favorite lunch spots is Lotus of Siam, a favorite Thai restaurant of locals and tourists alike located in the Commercial Center on East Sahara. It has actually been hailed as one of the best Thai restaurants in North America, so we are lucky to have it here. The chef, Saipin Chutima, has been cooking since she was five, and took a formal apprenticeship under her husband's grandmother at the age of seventeen, despite her earlier desire to work in a beauty shop. All her years of hard work in the kitchen have really paid off and her restaurant is one not to miss.

Usually when we go for lunch I get the lunch buffet ($8.99) because it is full of fresh vegetables, but this time, in the interest of this review, I decided to get another dish called Khao Soi (pictured above, $8.95). This dish reminds me of my quest to find the best version of it in Thailand, and it shows her talent with Northern Thai cooking more than the buffet, which is half comprised of Chinese dishes (a business decision I'm sure, since Thai food is still not amongst one of Americans' favorite cuisines). Khao soi is like a Thai version of traditional Vietnamese pho, but heavier due to the use of coconut milk. There are egg noodles at the bottom of the flavoral broth rather than rice vermicelli, and it is topped with fried egg noodles that give the dish some textural complexity. You can choose to add either chicken or beef to your spicy soup at Lotus, and it is served with a side of lime wedges, red onion, and pickled cabbage. When we were in Thailand two years ago I was introduced to khao soi while traveling to Chiang Mai, the largest city in the North. Khao soi is a popular dish in the North, and though I had read about it in my travel books and inteded on trying it, the first time we had it was accidental. We rented a scooter for the day and traveled to a Mong village outside Chiang Mai where we stopped at a little food hut and ordered what other people were having (see below). We were thoroughly satisfied with our meal and thought we should go to more villages. Then, after getting a $6 hour long massage one day, we stopped in a place called Just Khao Soi, where I imagined I'd be having it for the first time. When it came out we recognized that we had been exposed to it earlier, but were in no way disspointed by the urban version here. I loved how they served it. It came with various accoutrement to season it to your liking, and also a little pitcher of coconut milk so you could add as much as you liked (see below). Though the khao soi at Lotus is delicious and I recommend getting it, Lotus is known for serving the best Thai food in North America, not Thailand (see the puny plate of accoutrement at Lotus below).

One thing you must have at Lotus is the koong sarong ($10.95), shrimp wrapped in bacon and wonton wrapper that are deep fried. They are fantastic and earn their keep on the website's list recommended dishes. The larb ($8.95) here is also the best version you can get in Vegas, with proper acidity and toasted rice powder. There is never any fat left on the plate as well, making it much lighter than other versions. This is what Ian gets everytime we come.

Today's food rating: 9

Today's ambiance: 6.5 (a little better since the recent expansion, but still has a cafeteria like feel)

Would we go back? WE DO, ALL THE TIME


Khao Soi in Mong village


Just Khao Soi in Chiang Mai

Koong Sarong

Larb

Khao Soi sides at Lotus