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Bouchon ~ Las Vegas, Nevada


The Venetian Resort

First visit: Feb 2023

Back in Lost Wages for the first time since 2012! (not counting the airport of course). That last trip was for a conference when I was at AT&T. I had been to Vegas a few times prior, always for the same thing: Industry or company conferences. This one is the latter. Only one time did Mrs. RJG and I visit Vegas on our own - for my 36th birthday - a long time ago. At some point I would like to explore the city itself, try the local restaurants, and look for records while I'm at it. The real Las Vegas. But that's not possible to fit into these events. 

Mrs. RJG and I aren't for gambling at all, and we can take or leave the shows, so Vegas isn't on our destination map. The Venetian is one of the more opulent resorts here, and I want to absorb it all. I'm fortunate to work for a company with deep pockets, and the suite I have is beautiful. And I have a rooftop view - meaning I have a view of many parking garage rooftops lol. Ah my cynical side still works I see... OK, so where do we start. Happy Hour of course! 

They have a very interesting tagline: "Whether you are looking to have a wild night of debauchery..." Vegas remains the last place in America not to have an active cancel culture. It will eventually, but wow - debauchery! OK then... So that place was Rockhouse. Not really the best place for an "ice breaker". Loud rock music and everyone screaming over that. And this is the first time for me to meet many of my teammates in person. Beer choices were really lame. Fat Tire and Sierra Nevada were the craft beer selections. Great, it's 1993.

Enough of that. My team is all about my age so we were ready for a much more quiet dinner at Bouchon. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to order from the menu, so we had to take "their picks". I settled on the roasted chicken that came with brussel sprouts. I'm here to tell you I'm not eating Alligator Balls as my old man would call them. I asked if they had rice instead, but that's not something they have. I asked the waiter to figure something out. And he did! My chicken sat on a layer of mashed potatoes. Very good, especially the buttery potatoes. I also had a couple of beers (one Belgian, one craft), and the dessert (as you might imagine) was excellent as well. It's a very nice restaurant, though we sat near the front door, so I wasn't able to take it all in. Wouldn't mind going back here and ordering something straight from the menu, but not sure I'll have that opportunity. After this is it was more "partner events" which means more screaming and drinking. I'm getting too old for this...

The original Bouchon is in Yountville which sits in Napa Valley, California.

3/5/23 (new entry)

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