Ever since I started hanging around with foodies I've dreamed of eating at a Thomas Keller restaurant. Like many, I dialed in to the French Laundry reservation line precisely 90 days to the day before I wanted to eat, only to be told at 10:05 am that they were already sold out. I get it, it's a cult and you need connections.
I had done the same dialing game for Gary Danko and been hugely disappointed by the actual dinner, so I should have known better, but too many of my respected peers had eaten there for me to pass Thomas Keller off as a fad.
After doing some research on Las Vegas restaurants, Xav asked me to try to get us in to Bouchon, Keller's Vegas "French Bistro." They were able to get us in at 8:30 which surprised us both, but then we thought, hey it's Wednesday, mid-week is always easier.
We woke up early and pushed ourselves to get out early and make the eight hour drive in time. We didn't loiter at gas stops and ate lunch in the car. We arrived in time to dress up like young ladies (except for Xav, of course). I lectured the girls sternly about being on their best behavior and how little monkeys don't get to go to Cirque du Soleil the next day. We arrived at the restaurant a few minutes early. It was full, but not packed. They were able to give us a booth. And crayons.
Okay, modern brasseries in the US often give kids crayons to write on the paper table cloths, so I guess that's okay. It seems a bit strange for a french upscale restaurant in Vegas but no worries. I can be flexible.
The menu looked wonderful and we had a hard time making a selection. I ordered a martini to get more time. Okay and also to drink a martini because it's Vegas after all, baby.
After some negotiation we agreed on the melon salad with white anchovies and salmon tartare to start. Yes, I know that most of you are thinking "Melon WITH White Anchovies"? What are white anchovies? Are you pregnant?
Yes, I don't know and no. Good lord no. But I like little fish and I have declared this summer the summer of small fish. Smelt, anchovies, fried or fresh, with lemon or without. I love them. So was melon an unusual pairing choice? Yes, but it's Thomas Keller, remember. I trust him implicitly to figure it out.
Except no.
It was awful. For one thing there were no anchovies. They had been chopped up into bits and made into sauce. Which might make it technically qualify as a Caesar expect for the very odd choice of lettuce that arrived as a kind of loaf with hard bitter centers that were impossible to eat. The waiter assured us that "some people love it!" implying of course that we were just idiots. Then there was the Melon. Six small balls of melon the size of chick peas. Some other kind of fruit, unrecognizable and red (not cherries). All covered in the famous white anchovy SAUCE. Net net: it was bland and strange and pretty in it's own way. The waiter tried to make it up to us. He gave me anchovies on the side and then finally took the charge off our bill. He brought us an endive & fuji apple salad which was nice and safe.
For the main course the girls split a chicken rotis with fries, I had the mussels and Xav had a steak. All of which was totally edible if unremarkable and certainly not worth the (get ready) $300 bill. The $111 bottle of wine was tasty enough, and one of our only choices as the least expensive.
We were disappointed. And we had to ask ourselves, when was the last time Thomas Keller actually ate here?
Never before tonight did I think Mr. Keller was the kind of guy who would sell out. Put his incredible name and reputation on a restaurant and then walk away. And to be fair, maybe it was just a bad night. Maybe the chef called in sick and the rest of the staff had to make do. But as far as I know this is how they like it in Vegas.
On the way back to the hotel, the cabbie earned the last word on the whole evening: Xav said "I can go round trip around Manhattan for $20, why does it cost so much to take a cab down the strip in Las Vegas?" And the cabbie said, with a straight face, "Because we want your money."
Well you got it from us tonight, Mr. Keller, but quite possibly for the last time.
(Update is here.)
You want a fighting chance at getting in at FL? Tell him/them. I'm reading this story and I'm embarrassed for the chef, and absolutely abhorred by your experience. Driving 8 hours to eat at a sub-par restaurant with his name on it? You drove 8 HOURS at the promise that his name would deliver and were disappointed! That is every chef's worst nightmare (and not a picnic for you either!) They need to rectify the situation if for nothing else than to keep the association of quality with the TK brand. Again I say - tell them. You already have this drafted. You're out nothing by sending it along!
Posted by: Debbie | 08/07/2008 at 04:10 AM
That salad sounds completely silly and unbalanced in every way. And if the description was that misleading, then shame on Keller, for something, probably for a bad hiring manager if nothing else.
You didn't happen to take phone pix, did you?
Posted by: sylph | 08/07/2008 at 07:06 AM
Ouch. Last time we were in LV, we thought about eating there, but didn't at the last minute b/c we read an article about how they were priding themselves on being "the most expensive restaurant in America" -- somehow, that's the wrong strategy to work for me. Sorry it wasn't a better dining experience for you.
Posted by: Steve Betz | 08/07/2008 at 08:10 AM
Hi, Karen. I just started following your blog, I linked here from Byrne's (I'm his mother-in-law) and I completely love it. Just read about your bad experience in Vegas. We just went there and found every place we ate to be over priced and they all seemed to be very full of themselves and shouldn't have been. However, if you ever venture to New York and want to try a restaurant where the chef does care about a place with his name on it, try Crave on 42nd. Dave Martin (from Top Chef) owns it and he was there on the night Byrne, Arin, Harper, my husband and I went there. The food was great, the wine (a winery we recongized from a tasting room in Oakland called Dash) was yummy and NOT $111, and we did not have to take out a loan to pay the bill. I'm not trying to compare it to a FL experience, but it definately was one of the highlights of our trip.
Posted by: Debi | 08/07/2008 at 08:46 AM
Sadly, I've heard that French Laundry isn't what it used to be either. The theory I've heard is that Thomas Keller is just stretched too thin these days and is more serving as a figurehead than a culinary leader. That said, I have not eaten at French Laundry, so can't vouch for that assertion myself. Anyhow, so sorry the Bouchon experience was a let-down. I hope the rest of the trip more than makes up for it!
Posted by: electric firefly | 08/07/2008 at 09:20 AM
Thanks for the link! I used it to send them this post. We'll what happens - I would love to change my mind about them.
Posted by: karen | 08/07/2008 at 09:30 AM
sorry, no pix from that meal. xav is getting a little annoyed with my need to photograph our meals so if i can't sneak it in, it doesn't happen... ;-)
Posted by: karen | 08/07/2008 at 09:42 AM
"the most expensive restaurant in America"
If I had read this anywhere, we never would have gone. That's just silly.
Posted by: karen | 08/07/2008 at 09:44 AM
hi deb, nice to meet you. crave sounds wonderful and i will add it to the wish list for the next time we visit manhattan. thanks for the tip!
Posted by: karen | 08/07/2008 at 09:47 AM
Sadly, I've heard that French Laundry isn't what it used to be either.
That makes me sad. I have always held it up as the quintessential dining experience. I would really hate to cross it off the list of places to eat before I die. :-(
Posted by: karen | 08/07/2008 at 09:51 AM
Tell him your public demands it!
No, but I understand. My family thinks I am a little odd for doing the same thing.
Posted by: sylph | 08/07/2008 at 09:51 AM
Last time I was in Vegas, we ate at Bouchon and L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon -- neither of them quite lived up to my expectations but we still had enjoyable and delicious meals (and I had no problem getting reservations at either restaurant). My theory is that despite all the fancy pants chefs and restaurants that are in Vegas now, most people aren't going to Vegas for the food and I think these restaurants reflect that by not quite delivering in full on the promise of their "brands." In the same way that the Venetian looks and feels like Italy and maybe for a second you can forget you're actually in the middle of the Nevada desert, these restaurants look and feel like the real thing but they really aren't.
Posted by: Alaina | 08/07/2008 at 11:26 AM
I think you've nailed it and I'm going to change my approach: I'm going to treat Vegas like Disneyland (albeit with cocktails, showgirls and vice). The food at Disneyland is also not good and very expensive, and if I lower my expectations I will be less likely to be disappointed.
Posted by: karen | 08/07/2008 at 11:37 AM
Surprised. I like the one in Yountsville, and itscompanion bakery next door too.
Posted by: Mark | 08/08/2008 at 07:15 PM
So sad...."we want your money"yup, that's Vegas
Posted by: Deborah | 08/09/2008 at 10:03 PM
MY FATHER is the CHEF, I LEARNED a lot from him when it comes to cooking savory viand and meal. However, he did not know my specialty; and that is "Roasted Stingray Cooked in Coconut Milk". Added with black pepper, ginger, hot pepper and sliced onions.
I am happy whenever there parents persevering enough to transfer their cooking skills to the kids.
Cheers and GbU!
Posted by: danny escabarte | 08/12/2008 at 08:21 PM
We've had good luck eating in Vegas, but are ones who like to find the "hidden" gems. By the time a place reachs mythical status, I think they've often lost their original appeal and specialness. The sushi place at the Wynn was delightful...for next time.
Posted by: Patty | 08/24/2008 at 01:23 PM
[this is good] Okay, now I get it.And it's confirmed, we were separated at birth. I lurve lurve LURVE anchovies.
Posted by: Barry | 08/24/2008 at 06:26 PM