Story and photos by Jeanette Braxton Secret

I had an East-meets-West encounter while I was in Las Vegas when I dined at the Valentino Las Vegas and P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas. I experienced best all-around fine Italian cuisine of heralded executive chef Luciano Pellegrini and the culinary team of chefs directly from Italy at Valentino Las Vegas. The Chinese and Asian cuisine at P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas offered a unique combination of traditional Chinese cuisine. The ambiance, hospitality, and service I received at Valentino Las Vegas and P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas makes them a restaurant crowned as first-class. A taste of Italian cuisine and Chinese and Asian cuisine fit for the aristocrat.

Valentino Las Vegas Dining Rooms

Valentino Las Vegas is one of the flagship restaurants for the Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino. Valentino Las Vegas opened in July 1999. Valentino Las Vegas brings find foods and culture of Italy to America. Valentino Las Vegas has casual elegant dining with six dining rooms. The Main Dining Room seats up to 120; the P. S. Italian Grill lunch & dinner casual dining seats up to 120; Chef’s table seats up to 6; Cantina Room seats up to 18; California Room seats up to 12; San Giorgio Wine Room seats up to 60; and the Barolo Room Private Wine Cellar seats up to 4.

As I tasted the terrific dishes, I judged each serving like a restaurant critic. I rated the Valentino Las Vegas as the Best Spot for a Romantic Dinner, Best Wine List, and Best Italian cuisine,among other honors. Many accolades have been bestowed upon Valentino Las Vegas. The Bon Appetit and Gourmet magazines, along with the Best of Award of Excellence in Wine Spectator and Epicurean Award two years in a row by Las Vegas Life magazine, wrote about Valentino Las Vegas’s sumptuous Italian dishes. The New York Times called the Valentino Las Vegas “the best Italian restaurant in the United States.” (See www.welovewine.com/articles.html).

The chef’s spectacular and impeccable artistry special Italian cuisine was selected for the evening. The first part of the seven-course meal Degustazione dello chef (grand-tasting menu)began with Seppie fritte con insalatina di carciofi mignon e vinaigrette al limone (deep-fried cuttlefish with baby artichoke salad and lemon vinaigrette); Semifreddo alla canella con Zuppa di mele e mandorle tostate (cinnamon iced mousse with apple soup and toasted almond); Gamberoni avvolti in melanzane arrosto con (jumbo shrimp wrapped in roasted eggplant with spicy orange vinaigrette); Piccione arrosto su letto di lenticchie di Pantelleria con salsa al vino rosso e rabarbaro (roasted squab on a bed of lentils from Pantelleria with a red wine rhubarba sauce); Tortelli di cappone con fonduta e prosciutto croccante (capon-stuffed tortelli with cheese fondue and crispy prosciutto with black truffles). The second part of the seven-course meal Piccola degustazione dello chef (small-tasting menu) ended with Tagliolini con finferli e capesante(tagliolini with chantarelles and bay scallops) and Filetto di Bufalo con salsa balsamica ai lamponi (roasted buffalo filet mignon with raspberry balsamic reduction).

Chef Luciano Pellegrini’s menu changes seasonally. Some of the usually signature dishes are risotto with fresh-water shrimp, mouth-watering Mediterranean sea bass and filetto di manzo,  a patrician, foi gras-studded filet mignon. (See www.welovewine.com/valentinolvmenu.html.)

Valentino Las Vegas Wine Cellar

Alessandro Sbrendola, sommelier, boasts that its world-renowned wine cellar has more than 130,000 bottles with more than 2,000 labels on their wine list. The Barolo Room is a private dine-in wine cellar that houses more than 4,000 bottles of wine and seats up to 4. The San Giorgio Wine Room seats up to 60 guests and houses 1,500 bottles of wine. The Cantina Room seats up to 18 guests and houses 2,000 bottles of wine. The California Room seats up to 12 guests and houses 600 bottles of wine. The Wine Cellar has 7,500 bottles of wine. (The total number of bottles on the property is 40,000). (See www.welovewine.com/valentinolvlist.html.)

A Valentino tavola non si invecchia…(At the Valentino table one never ages)

Valentino Las Vegas, LLC

At the Venetian Resort

3355 Las Vegas Blvd. South

Las Vegas, NV 89109

Located in the Venetian Resort, first Restaurant on Restaurant Row Casino Level

Tel: (702) 414-3000 Reservations

Tel: (702) 414-3033 Catering/Banquets Direct

Fax: (702) 414-3099 Catering/Reservations

Kathleen Douglas

Special Events Coordinator

Valentino Las Vegas

Tel: (702) 414-3033

Fax: (702) 414-3099

Vallvcatering@aol.com

www.welovewine.com

Hours: Open 7 days a week from 5:30 pm to 11 pm for dinner. (Available during the day for business functions.)

Retail: Valentino Cookbook, gift certificates www.welovewine.com

P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas

I am a regular P. F. Chang’s China Bistro connoisseur of traditional Chinese and Asian culinary creations, prepared from spices imported directly from China, but I was a first-time guest at the P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas. I experienced the Ming and T’ang dynasties and hand-painted murals in the dining rooms that transform a legend of a people thousands of years old. I rated P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas as the Best Chinese Cuisine, Best Seafood, Best Restaurant Interiors and Exteriors like the other P. F. Chang’s China Bistros I have dined at.

P. F. Chang’s China Bistro offers a unique combination of traditional Chinese and Asian cuisine and American hospitality with impeccable service in a contemporary Chinese bistro setting, which makes them The “Best of Both Worlds.” The P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas has received local market awards such as: “Best New Restaurant,” “Best Chinese Restaurant,” as well as nationally recognized as a Nations Restaurant news’s “Hot Concept Winner.”

P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas Menu

I ordered my usual and favorite Double Pan-Fried Noodles, semi-crisp egg noodles stir-fried with vegetables and served with a choice of beef, pork, chicken, or shrimp. I thought I was in noodle heaven.
(See www.pfchangs.com/cuisine.)

P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas Wine List

P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas offers an extensive list of over 40 wines available by the bottle and the glass. A full bar complements the wine list, micro-brews, imported, domestic and a large selection of Asian beers.

P. F. Chang’s China Bistro Las Vegas

Aladdin Resort Casino

3667 S. Las Vegas Blvd.

Las Vegas, NV 89109

Tel: (702) 836-0955

Fax: (702) 836-1963

E-mail: aladdin@pfchangs.com

Web: www.pfchangs.com

Michael M. Katzman, Operating Partner