Uplifted Fine Prevalence: Vegas Uncork'd 2011 - Feature

Culinary wrangling springs from the necessity of finding the best chefs in any given place. With Las Vegas, mirrored  by the surge in the past ten years of celebrity chef restaurants, the desert has become the go-to mecca outside of New York & Europe for culinary excellence and diversity.With Vegas Uncork'd, Bon Appetit, known for its interesting arts outreach culminating as far as Sundance and Cannes, brings the progression together in one weekend to celebrate through a bevy of events the necessity on what is possible ranging from private dinners at outlays such as Mandalay Bay to the Grand Tasting at the Olympic Pools.Beginning with the Saber-Off bringing all the chefs together in front of the Fountains of Bellagio, the balance of old school in Bradley Ogden to the new vision of Jose Andres wrangles through the white uniforms as Julian Serrano, knife in play, slices the champagne as the waters burst behind him.Directly after, overlooking the waters within the Bellagio reception area, the distinctiveness of the culinary ideas begin anew starting with a wrapped salmon bite topped with a crisp and caviar followed by tangy pork belly skewer served with mango.Not to be undone, a sliced grape filled with cream cheese and sprinkled with feta gave way to an inspired shandy mixing the cocktail with the undeniable Stella Artois. A wrapped cucumber roll with crab and caviar beautified as the closer of either a mocha or cheesecake lollipop wet the appetite for later travails.The Centerpiece for the entire weekend rested within the wonder of the Grand Tasting held at the Olympic Pools of Caesars Palace. This grand visage transformed into a startling journey of food testing the different palettes and uplifting them in tandem.Chef Lenger of Stripsteak [Mandalay Bay] began by initiating with seared octopus, hearty but smooth, while Chef Canteenwalla of Society Cafe [Encore] melted with a whitefish morsel surrounded with light greens.Emoting in tandem, Chef Guia from Country Club [Wynn] offered zest with a tangy scallop topped in spice with a pork finish while Chef Walzof of Lake Side [Wynn] offered a scrumpious dollop of swordfish on a bed of tomatoes.Broadening with a notion of desert and French styling, Chef Sohn of Eiffel Tower [Paris] offered up a smooth creme with a crisp sauteed with onions while Chef Maury of Jean Philippe Patisserie [Aria] indulged with similarity to the opening reception with a smooth mocha and cheesecake vision that skips the heart.Hesitating momentarily at the Patron Bar near the pool card tables, the El Pepino mixing Silver with an intention of citrus and cilantro necessitates bite leads in the delicacy of Chef Michael Mina of American Fish [Aria] mixing greens and tart sauce with a vision of tuna and rice that allows for altered perception.Providing the first part of a one/two punch for the evening, Chef Fujita of Marssa [Loews Lake Las Vegas] initiated with a brisk and vivid tuna taco, quick and vivacious, while Zach Allen of Carnevino [Palazzo] allowed for bountiful with a braised brisket slider.Opting for a more spicy tendency, Chef Linquist of Dos Caminos [Palazzo] offered sauteed chicken bathed in onions while Chef Lagasse of Stadium [Palazzo] countered with a Creole Shrimp Po'Boy covered in jalepenos, bacon and tangy cole slaw.Not to be undone, Social House [Crystals] continued the festivities with a duel-structured flavor optimizing salmon sashimi mixed with crispy shallots, tiny cilantro and curry vinaigrette countering with the tendencies of a pork belly in a pea-miso puree and pickled spring onion providing a subtle yang.Within the middle of the melee with the pool circling around, Chef Pierre Gagnaire, known for his undeniable touch with Mandarin Oriental, stunned and delighted the crowd with a DJ set that drew both young and old with a sense of style, elegance and sheer mastery.With Steve from Martorano's [Rio] continuing to show his skillful mastery of Italian cuisine while embracing the heartier aspects of taste with his incomparable homemade meatballs served by his tantalizing servers as well as a bountiful eggplant mozzarella, Chef Pellegrini of Valentino [Venetian], who had his work cut out for him, balanced with a smooth and delectable ravioli bathed in pesto.Chef Fujita of Marssa [Loews Lake Las Vegas] continued his mastery with what he deemed a "sushi cupcake" built with tuna, eel and caviar that was simply magnificent while Chef Takeshita of Sushi Roku [Caesars] countered with a hand roll tuna crisp that, while tangy, could not hold a candle to the cupcake.Rounding out the celebration with a triple threat, Chef Meyer of Comme Ca [Cosmopolitan] envisioned a 18A Pencillin sip countered with a quail's egg confit over bone marrow shavings completed with an apricot sponge creme, together providing a wonderful permutation to the evening's festivities.Discussing the finer points of "Eating Las Vegas" consummating its thoughts within a panel in the lofty perception of Jasmine, the evolution of desert cuisine becomes more defined. With the economy impacting the simple notion of this kind of life on a basic level, the celebrity chef culture (which once seemed the cornerstone of Vegas cuisine) is now evolving into a more simple food based culture. While "Twist" invariably is mentioned as a go-to spot, the absence of truly molecular gastronomy or a tapas-fueled Spanish fine dining establishment continues to fuel the fires of what could be. While the French revolution that sparked nearly ten years ago has settled into the notion of a diversified palette, Vegas does still rank among the best in the world.Vegas Uncork'd shows that Las Vegas continues to bring together the best of culinary in the world buoyed by a culture reverent of both the ideas of established chefs and simply by the notion of good food transformed.