May 2019 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional

FO

RM

W

W

OR

E

W. PHOT O LV FN S & S BP T RO ORIES .C V OM ISIT

Issue 5 Volume 19

US $3.95

Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri Launch Santo Puro Mezquila

May 2019

CONTENTS AND COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLISHER MIKE FRYER

7 Cover

6

15

WELCOME BACK TO THE LAS VEGAS FOOD & BEVERAGE PROFESSIONAL FOR MAY, 2019 where with the coming of spring comes more F&B conventions, expos, shows and events throughout the Las Vegas Valley. To check out what’s coming up in Las Vegas, go to our calendar of events on page 30 and Brett’s Vegas View by Jackie Brett on page 8 with info on the shows and the local Food & Beverage scene.

PAGE 16-17 This May Issue Cover Feature is dedicated to an exciting new beverage, Mezquila, a blend of mescal and tequila! Named Santo Puro Mezquila, this new innovation is a collaboration by two titans in their respective industries: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame legend Sammy Hagar and Emmy Award-winning television celebrity and American restaurateur Guy Fieri. Our journalist, Sk Delph, delves into this fascinating new drink and how it combines the best aspects of mescal and tequila to create a delicious combination sure to be a perfect way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, or actually any occasion.

PAGE 6 Our own in-house beer specialist and Editorial Director, Bob Barnes, brings us “What’s Brewing” and the beer news of Southern Nevada with popular and current news and information on local pubs and what’s happening. In this month’s rendition he tells us about Able Baker’s new brewery opening in the coming months and gives details on beer events worth attending including the 13th Annual Lee’s Beer & Tequila Experience, Aces & Ales 10th Annual Stone Domination and MonteLago Beerfest at The Village at Lake Las Vegas.

Last month the 45th Annual UNLVino completed in its grand tradition, and we were there in full force to cover it. In this issue we have post-event recaps of The Grand Tasting: in her Best of the Best column on page 22 Shelley Stepanek describes the variety of wine, beer and spirits offered; in her Front and Back of the House column on page 11 Gael Hees lists some of the wines that most impressed her; Erin Cooper and Christine Vanover in their Twinkle Toast column on page 14 fill us in on the Stop and Smell the Rosé booth they hosted; and on page 24 Blake Myers writes a special report on the vast culinary offerings and how UNLVino continues to spotlight stellar cuisine.

Page 4 Hot off the Grill!

Page 5 Wine Talk with Alice Swift My Wine Society Mobile App Page 6 What’s Brewing Page 7 Spirits Confidential with Max Solano A Look Into San Francisco World Spirits Competition Part 2 Page 8 Brett’s Vegas View Page 10 Book Review Page 11 Front & Back of the House Professional Development for the Hospitality Professional!

Page 12 What’s Cooking

Page 15 Chef Spotlight John Courtney Chef Block 16

Page 23 The Bottom Line 5 ways to Improve Your Restaurant’s Website

Page 16 COVER FEATURE Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri Launch Santo Puro Mezquila

Page 24 2019 Unlvino Grand Tasting Continues to Spotlight Stellar Cuisine

Page 18 Dishing It with Sk Delph UNLVino Specialty Course with Hannah Bellemare

Page 25 Human Resources Insights Building a Better TEAM Through Trust, Engagement, Action and Management

Page 19 Chef Talk Milk

Page 26 The Restaurant Expert Stop the Bleeding Now

Page 20 Asian Dining on the Vegas Strip Part II

Page 28 Product Review

Page 21 May I Recommend...

Il Mulino

Page 29 Nevada Restaurant Association Great Full Gardens of Reno Wins National Restaurant Award

Page 22 Best of the Best

Page 30 Events Ad Index

Page 14 Twinkle Toast

In the April issue in the article titled Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada Introduces Two Premium Wineries Masut was misspelled. In the feature on the 24th Annual Educational Taste of Excellence the sponsors were incorrectly identified. The sponsors for the event were Breakthru Beverages, Lee's Discount Liquor, Johnson Brothers and Tito’s.

24 www.lvfnbpro.com

The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional corrects mistakes. Bring errors to our attention by emailing bob@lvfnb.com.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 3

The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 7442 Grizzly Giant Street Las Vegas, NV 89139 www.lvfnbpro.com

HOT OFF THE GRILL!

Mike Fryer

Sr. Editor/Publisher

The 9th Annual Universal Whiskey Experience at Wynn Las Vegas on April 27 proved once again why it is the world’s most ultimate whiskey tasting event with table after table of high end and rare selections representing distillers of Scotch, Bourbon and Whiskies, some of which were valued at more than $300 per glass.

Here LVFNBPro Editorial Director Bob Barnes congratulates Universal Whiskey Experience Founder Mahesh Patel on yet another extremely successful event.

Thank you for joining us in this issue of The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional.

For any questions or comments please email mike@lvfnb.com

Bob Barnes

Editorial Director bob@lvfnb.com

Juanita Fryer

Adam Rains

Assistant To Sr. Editor ACF Chefs Liasion/Journalist juanita.fryer@lvfnb.com

Beverage Editor Adam Rains, journalist LeAnne Notabartolo and Creative Director Juanita Aiello stopped by the Golden Tiki to witness the unvieling of Al Mancini's shrunken head, which will be permanently on display at the famed bar.

Beverage Editor adam.rains@lvfnb.com

Juanita Aiello Creative Director juanita@lvfnb.com

Advertising sales@lvfnb.com

Article Submissions/Suggestions articles@lvfnb.com

Calendar Submissions calendar@lvfnb.com

Website webmaster@lvfnb.com

Press Relase Submissions news@lvfnb.com

General Information info@lvfnb.com

@lvfnb

The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional

CONTRIBUTING STAFF

Journalist Wine Talk Alice Swift

Journalist The Bottom Line Ben Brown

Accounting Manager Michelle San Juan

Journalist Brett’s Vegas View Jackie Brett

Journalist Best of the Best Shelley Stepanek

Journalist UNLV Epicurean Society Savannah Reeves

Journalist May I Recommend...

Blake Myers

Journalist The Restaurant Expert David Scott Peters

Journalist Good for Spooning LeAnne Notabartolo

Journalist Front & Back of the House Gael Hees

Photographer Audrey Dempsey

Journalist Chef Talk Allen Asch

Journalist Don Chareunsy

Journalist Dishing It Sk Delph

Journalist Spirits Confidential Max Solano

Photographer Bill Bokelmann

Journalist Pat Evans

Photographer Joe Urcioli

Journalists Twinkle Toast Erin Cooper & Christine Vanover

Journalist The Catering Coach Sandy Korem

Journalist HR Insights Linda Bernstein

4 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

www.lvfnbpro.com

Wine Talk

By Alice Swift Alice Swift has been writing Wine Talk since 2011, and has a passion for education and hospitality/ F&B. In 2016, she obtained her Ph.D. in Hospitality Administration from UNLV and moved from the “ninth island” to the island of Oʻahu. She now works for Kamehameha Schools as an instructional designer/project manager, and teaches part-time for UNLV’s William F. Harrah College of Hospitality.

See more at www.aliceswift.com.

with Alice Swift

My Wine Society Mobile App As you may or may not know, I have a personal love for technology and innovation. I enjoy being the first to try a new technology or gadget, and get especially excited when two of my passions are combined—technology and beverage!

It’s pretty clear that social media has been fully embedded into our mainstream world today.

With a 70% penetration rate (active usage)1, North America has the third highest social network user-base globally (China and India being 1st and 2nd, respectively).

With many F&B related businesses relying on social media as their primary form of business, it’s no wonder that someone saw the potential value in starting a wine app that centers are social media.

1

In enters the My Wine Society (MWS) Mobile App, which claims to be the “most robust and engaging wine platform in the world.” 2 Their goal is to bridge the digital world and the wine community together through the mobile app.

The app connects vineyard/winery owners, vendors, businesses, sommeliers, wine drinkers, etc., all into this robust social engagement platform that caters to the latest generation of wine drinkers.

There are quite a few features and tools within this app, but here are a few that I think are of value to the average wine consumer:

Channels

The Channels page has various “channels” dedicated to common themes. Wine education, recommended wines, events, recipes, etc., there really is something for everyone!

Wineries

The Wineries feature is great, as it helps to bring awareness of partnering wineries to users of this app. You can search for wineries in your area, but since they are still a new company, they are working on increasing the regions and number

https://www.statista.com/topics/3196/social-media-usage-in-the-united-states

Channels

www.lvfnbpro.com

Wineries

2

of wineries available. Although I am located in Hawaiʻi and the app had not listed any wineries in my local area, I was able to search other regions in the US and globally, such as California, Oregon, Washington, France, Barcelona, and most recently, Mexico!

Leaderboard & Badges

This is probably one of the most intriguing features for those who are heavy users of social media and are motivated by competition. You can obtain points and earn badges by completing various missions and staying active within the app. Your score is ranked against others who use the app, and a leaderboard displays the top three scorers for the day, week, month, all time, etc.

You can also see Top 50 users at any time.

If you’re an avid user of social media, love all things wine, then check out this app! My Wine Society is available on both iOS and Google Play stores.

Website: https://www.mywinesociety.com Until next month, Cheers~!

Alice

https://www.mywinesociety.com

Leaderboard

Badges

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 5

By Bob Barnes

what’s

BREWING

Able Baker Opening Its Own Brewery

photo courtesy Motley Brews-Hopped Taco 2018 by Fred Morledge

Since entering the Southern Nevada market in late 2016, Able Baker’s beers have been popping up just about everywhere. The name is reflective of the partners being longtime Nevadans, and refers to the state’s atomic history, as the very first two atomic bombs detonated at the Nevada Test Site were named

“Able” and “Baker.” Their now iconic Atomic Duck logo with a duck head inside an atomic star symbol, is representative of the rumor that a duck was the only animal to survive the blasts and the use of this symbol represents perseverance and good fortune.

Most know Able Baker as a local brewery, but what many don’t realize is the beers are contract brewed at Joseph James Brewing by Able Baker co-owner Randy Rohde and the Joseph James team, but now that’s about to change. Co-owner James Manus informs that construction is now underway for a 15-barrel brewing system with capacity to brew 6,500 barrels a year. Located in the Arts District, which is quickly becoming a “beer district,” there will be a 7,500 square foot taproom with capacity for about 150 guests and 33 tap handles to serve them with. Unlike most of the other taprooms in the District, there will be a food concept contained within the brewery, and

Southern Nevada Beer Events

As the temps increase, so does our thirst for beer, and fortunately there are several beer events on tap in the coming weeks.

On May 11 the 13th Annual Lee’s Beer & Tequila Experience will take place at the Thomas & Mack Center at UNLV from 4-8 p.m. featuring more than 300 handcrafted beers and 70 tequilas. There will also be a DJ and silent auction. Tickets are being sold at all 20 Lee’s Discount Liquor Southern Nevada locations with a two-for-one deal being offered through May 10. leesliquorlv.com /13th-a n nu al-lees-beertequila-experience

While not specifically a beer event, on May 11 A Smokin’ Good Time with Susan Feniger at Border Grill/Mandalay Bay, part of the Uncork’d events, will be a BBQ party with a Mexican twist, but the beers will all be from local brewery CraftHaus. Blood Orange Pale Ale was brewed specifically for the event and also being served are CraftHaus Silver State Green Chile Michelada, BlackStar Black IPA, Amigo Mexican Imperial Stout and frozen beer Slushy-Zitrone Gose with Prickly Pear. To my knowledge this is the first time a local brewery has been featured at an Uncork’d event. vegasuncorked.com/a-smokin-good-time

6 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

Bob Barnes is a native Las Vegan, editorial director of The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional, regional correspondent for Celebrator Beer News and covers the LV restaurant scene for Gayot.com.

He welcomes your inquiries.

Email: bob@lvfnb.com

it will definitely be high quality, for it will be operated by Van-Alan Nguyen and his group behind 595 Craft & Kitchen. In addition, there will be a small stage in the venue to be used for special events, live music, DJ's and private events & seminars. Manus relates, “This new facility will allow us to expand our barrelaging program and to offer some brewery-only exclusives. We're keeping the ‘Atomic theme’ for the brewery so expect an ambiance that reflects our core theme of the Atomic Era in Las Vegas from the early 40s to late 50s. Also, we gotta keep the duck imagery going. Good times are coming.”

The targeted opening date is mid-summer 2019.

In the meantime, look for Able Baker Atomic Duck IPA, Kris Kael Impale’d Ale, Test Site Saison and Honey Dip Stout around town; and this month debuting is PRESS IPA, produced exclusively for the Four Seasons property.

The 10th Annual Stone Domination at Aces & Ales Tenaya location on May 18 beginning at 3 p.m. will devote all 50 of its taps to rare and unique Stone beers, including an Aces & Ales/ Stone collaboration brew and the opportunity to meet Stone Brewing’s Executive Chairman/ Co-Founder Greg Koch, President/Co-Founder Steve Wagner, Senior Innovation Brewing Manager Jeremy Moynier, Senior Manager of Brewing and Innovation Steve Gonzalez and Stone Liberty Station Brewing Manager Kris Ketcham. There will also be a Stoned Brunch pre-party from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. with all-you-candrink Stone beers and a brunch food menu. acesandales.com/events.

On June 1 the MonteLago Beerfest will be held on the cobblestone pathways of The Village at Lake Las Vegas from 3-8 p.m. There will be more than 100 craft beers from 40 breweries, beer-centric specialty vendors, festival menus by the Village restaurants and live music. The festival is open to the public to visit the vendor tents and restaurants, but to sample the beers you’ll need the ID wristband and souvenir glass. mlvbf.com On June 8 the 3rd annual Hopped Taco Throwdown, a Motley Brews event featuring all-you-can-eat tacos from 12 restaurants and all-you-can-drink craft beer with a selection of more than 40 beers, including brews from several local breweries, will be held from 8-11 p.m. (7 p.m. for VIP) at a venue not often enjoyed by the public: the mystical Backyard at Zappos at 400 Stewart Ave. in Downtown Las Vegas. hoppedtaco.com/tickets As always, great beer happens in Vegas! www.lvfnbpro.com

SPIRITS CONFIDENTIAL with Max Solano A Look Into San Francisco World Spirits Competition Part 2

As we continue where we left off last month, I hope that a good image was portrayed as far as the overall process, amount of work, collaboration and countless details that go into making this competition a success! In retrospect, it’s certainly a very humbling experience. Now I would like to focus on some of the winners and standouts from this year’s competition.

Sweepstakes, which always takes place on the very last day of the competition, is the day that the judges, as a cohesive group, get to taste the best of the best of the spirits (all double-gold medal recipients) from every category that was sent through by the individual panels from the previous days. I think I can speak on behalf of every judge when I say that everyone really looks forward to this day as it not only gives the opportunity to taste (typically) one stellar spirit after another, but there are always a handful of unique standouts.

As we wait for the room to undergo its final preparation for us, we wait outside chatting with our fellow judges about the cool San Francisco weekend experiences, or in some cases, the shenanigans. As we finally get called in, there are no seat assignments, so one of my best buds, Fred Minnick, and I sit next to each other. To my left is another longtime friend and Corporate Mixologist for the Wynn properties (and first year spirits judge), Andrew Pollard. This year we had 83 total double-gold selections that made it to “Super Sunday.”

Because there are too many spirits to put in front of us at one seating, we are usually given a lunch break to give them time to reset for the next round. The whole purpose of this day is to further narrow down the selections and pick out the best not only from each spirits category, but also the best unaged and aged spirits. The Chairman of SFWSC, Anthony “Andy” Dias Blue, kicks us off, and along with the Director of the Competition, Maddee McDowell, help narrate and guide us through the order of the spirits we are blindly tasting.

One of the bourbons that was a complete standout not only because of its quality, but also its uniqueness, was the winner of the special barrel-finished bourbon category: Belle Meade Honey barrel. Yes! I did say honey barrel! Please! Do not confuse this with honey flavored whiskeys, which are actual liqueurs made with a whiskey base that will have flavorings and sugar added. By law, this is Belle Meade straight bourbon that goes from its original virgin charred oak barrels and dumped into oak barrels that once stored honey and aged additionally for just a handful www.lvfnbpro.com

By Max Solano Max Solano is a principal mixologist at Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada and is considered one of the most respected and premier authorities in the West Coast on all matters whisky.

He also serves as a Spirits Judge at the coveted New York World Wine & Spirits Competition, International Whisky Competition and world-renowned San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

of months. Remember, by law, nothing but water may be added to bourbon. This no age statement bourbon, bottled at a whopping 112 proof beautifully displays the integration of the honey and floral notes working seamlessly with the light spice, caramel and vanilla and a gorgeous extended finish.

Another standout, and winner of world’s best rye whiskey this year, was Baltimore, MDbased Sagamore Rye Port cask finish edition.

Historically, Maryland was one of the two (Pennsylvania) largest rye whiskey-producing states up until the start of Prohibition at the beginning of 1920. Once the Volstead Act was repealed in December 1933, bourbon became the frontrunner of American whiskey. Many previous rye producers from Maryland either never revived, or entually went out of business or were gobbled up by a bigger company.

Sagamore is aiming to change that and making Maryland rye “Great Again!” This young distillery is using rye whiskey approximately 4-5 years of age for this expression, in standardsized 53-gallon American oak barrels and finishing in a combination of used port casks that are slightly larger for up to six additional months before bottling. This whiskey, for being 101 proof and less than five years old, is beautifully well-rounded, full bodied and elegantly complexed.

With so many more amazing gold medal winning recipients deserving mention, alas, we only have room to spare for one more. So, why not include the whiskey that stole the show, right? Drum roll, please……………… Ladies and gentlemen, the winner of the 2019 world’s best whisk(e)y, Henry McKenna 10 year Bottled-In-Bond Single barrel. But, wait, barrel number 4976 (pictured below), to be precise.

Just to be clear, this is HUGE for the bourbon industry. It wasn’t only the best bourbon, McKenna beat out the best of all other whisky categories! Sure, there is a lot of controversy and arguments to whether or not single barrel entries are truly fair entries, or if they should be eligible to win “Best In Show.” However, in defense of Henry McKenna, this brand also won “Best Bourbon” at last year’s competition.

And, this has been one of my top value bang for the buck bourbons for the last four years, so I know that this has been consistently good quality bourbon.

However, based on its recent successes and accolades, please do not be upset when you have trouble getting your hands on some of this amazing bourbon. Until next time! ~ Cheers!

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 7

Brett’s

By Jackie Brett Jackie is a freelance public relations specialist and writer specializing in the Las Vegas entertainment and travel scene. Her writings have appeared in magazines and newspapers nationwide and on numerous websites.

Email: jackiebrett@cox.net

ENTERTAINMENT

Donny and Marie Osmond end their Flamingo residency Nov. 16. Donny, the peacock on The Masked Singer, plans to release his 62nd album when he turns 62 in December.

Anita Baker will headline at The Venetian for a five-night limited engagement May 31, June 1, 5, 7 and 8 as part of her farewell concert series.

“Magic Mike Live” celebrated two years and 1,000 performances at the Hard Rock with a custom unicorn cake created by Freed’s Bakery.

“Absinthe” celebrated its 8th anniversary with The Gazillionaire lighting the new, courtyard 35-foot tall Absinthe Electric Oak tree with 120,000 LED leaves of changing colors.

The Joint at Hard Rock, which opened in 1995 and underwent a makeover in April 2009 doubling the showroom size, celebrated its 10th anniversary.

With Celine Dion departing The Colosseum at Caesars Palace this year, the 4,300-seat showroom will get an ambitious overhaul with an automated lift-seating system this summer.

The star of TLC’s hit show, Long Island Medium, Theresa Caputo, will bring her show “Theresa Caputo Live! The Experience” to Orleans Arena Saturday, June 15.

The Palms newly-debuted KAOS will host an exclusive residency by DJ and production duo Gorgon City with upcoming dates July 14 and Aug. 16.

DINING

Morton Group’s new Craft + Community inside Hard Rock took over Culinary Dropout’s space and has garage-style doors opening directly onto the pool patio.

Chef David Chang will be opening Majordōmo Meat & Fish, a new eatery being built on the DNA of its sister establishment in Los Angeles, later this year in the former Carnevino restaurant space in The Palazzo tower next to Mott 32.

Sammy Hagar and chef Guy Fieri created a new tequila, Santo Fino Blanco, launching in May and handcrafted with 100 percent Blue Weber Agave.

Chef and owner Dan Krohmer with the offStrip Asian seafood restaurant Other Mama will open two new restaurants: Hatsumi in midMay, followed by La Monjá before summer in Downtown Las Vegas.

Uno Más is a new fast casual dining experience at SLS featuring Mexican dishes and sharable bites.

Don’t Tell Mama is open at Neonopolis downtown with singing servers and live piano accompaniment for open-mike opportunities.

Zippy’s Restaurants will build its first location outside of Hawaii with a restaurant, take-out and retail bakery opening late 2020.

The Nevada Restaurant Association’s annual fundraising Epicurean Affair is Thursday, May 16 at Red Rock Resort.

Brand-new Maxie’s at The LINQ Promenade expanded its operation to offer breakfast, lunch and dinner daily 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Smoked Burgers & BBQ at The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace opened its new outdoor Stripside patio with 16 tables wrapping around the Trevi Fountain.

New daily Happy Hours have started at David and Michael Morton’s steakhouse MB Steak inside Hard Rock 5–6 p.m. with $5 selections, and at the Silverton’s Mermaid Lounge 5–7 p.m. with buy one, get one free drink options and menu items from $3.

Therapy honors military and vets with a 10 percent food and drink discount and 20 percent in May during Military Appreciation Month.

ABOUT TOWN

Pop Vegas at The LINQ Promenade opened with its first interactive experience Tattoo’d America celebrating tattoo and body art and featuring 12 interactive installations called “rooms” and onsite tattoo and body painting services.

The El Cortez introduced an all-new table game, Great 8, played by wagering on either the Yin (red) or Yang (yellow) sides and getting closest to eight.

The Downtown Las Vegas Events Center will serve as the official host for the Las Vegas PRIDE Night Parade Oct. 11 and Las Vegas PRIDE Family Festival Oct. 12.

8 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

FLY LINQ is now the world’s only zipline offering four ride styles, which can launch simultaneously on 10 side-by-side lines at The LINQ Promenade.

“The Hunger Games: The Exhibition” featuring a fully-immersive archery training experience, props and set decorations, 30 original costumes and more opens at MGM Grand in May. The Palms, acquired by Station Casinos in 2016, launched a new “Unstatus Quo” celebrityladen marketing ad campaign celebrating the $690 million property-wide renovation.

The current Bellagio Conservatory display highlights the beauty of spring in Japan through June 15 with cherry blossoms and a replica of the Osaka Castle.

Christie Brinkley, in town starring in “Chicago The Musical” at The Venetian, christened the all-new soon-to-open Smith & Wollensky inside Grand Canal Shoppes with her Bellissima Prosecco.

The new Las Vegas Ballpark opened last month and introduced new mascots Spruce and Aviator for the new baseball team, the Las Vegas Aviators.

The new Galaxy Theatres Luxury+ Boulevard near the Strip is home to Las Vegas’ largest screen and first all-Laser projection theatre in addition to the first Sony Digital Cinema in the world.

A new William Hill Sports Book, the leading bookmaker in America, opened at The STRAT Hotel, Casino & SkyPod featuring a 110-foot wraparound high-resolution LED screen.

Distill, a locals’ neighborhood bar chain, opened five new locations in the valley.

The newly-built Home2 Suites by Hilton is the first in Nevada and close to the Strip’s south end focusing on extended stay with multiple lifestyle amenities.

Wet’n’Wild opened its seventh season running through Sept. 29 and debuts the Wet’n’Wild Wallet, a waterproof money-loaded wristband.

Maverick Helicopters will expand with a third location in the Las Vegas valley opening at Railroad Pass on Boulder Highway in the summer. www.lvfnbpro.com

•Wholesale distributor of exceptional quality dried spices and specialty foods to the finest hotels and restaurants •Owned and operated by a former chef with over 20 years of experience •Custom packed Herbs and Spices •Custom Spice Blends •Private labeling •Now Certified Kosher

Book Review

Beer has been brewed in Nevada since before it was a state and now the beverage’s history in the Silver State has been consolidated into one book, Nevada Beer by The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional’s own Pat Evans. It’s the second book released by Evans, who released a book about the history of beer in his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2015. Nevada Beer is available on Amazon and at local retailers. Evans will host a signing on February 9 from 1-3 p.m. at Barnes & Noble in Summerlin, 8915 W. Charleston Blvd.

Why write this book?

I took it as a little bit of a challenge, but also a way to jump into the Nevada beer industry.

Back in Michigan, I was deeply involved as a reporter in a city known nationally for

beer. When I found out I was moving to Las Vegas in September 2017, I decided to let my publisher know and they wanted a Nevada beer book. Prior to my move, I had heard and read a lot about how lousy the Nevada beer scene is, and I didn’t feel like it was possible if it was true. So it was sort of a challenge to prove people outside of Nevada wrong and show there is good beer in the state. Plus, what better way to jump into the industry and get to know people. It’s full of a lot of great people.

Was there history to dig deep into?

Surprisingly more than I thought there would be. Knowing from previous research that beer was widely made across the country pre-Prohibition, I expected a good amount.

It was all concentrated north of Las Vegas

10 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

of course. Even aside from Carson City and Reno, which had significant operations, there were dozens of breweries in the mining towns. I loved how in-depth some of the newspapers used to go detailing the brewing process, and I got more out of those than I did with old West Michigan papers.

It’s fun getting a look into the similarities and differences of how beer was made then versus now. I do wish I was able to find more information before I sent off to the publisher, but so it goes with writing about history, especially on a short and tight timeline.

What was surprising about the history?

Coming from the Midwest, I’ve long been enthralled with the old west, but who isn’t? You romanticize it, and as with most historical things, people generally take pop culture as gospel. Diving into the old west, you discover it wasn’t that rowdy and there were a lot of cosmopolitan aspects about life.

These were great urban centers and exciting places to be, not because of train robberies, but because they brought in things from all over the world. In many ways, I felt early 1800s West Michigan was more old west than late 1800s Nevada.

What stands out to you in the modern Nevada beer industry?

Coming here and tasting some of the great beer made by longtime industry players like Big Dog’s and Great Basin made me smile. It was like, there’s great beer here.

Sure, they’re not necessarily the flashiest breweries, but they’ve been around a long time and for me, I love consistency and don’t jump on trends quickly. If you’re making a good solid beer, you’re good with me. And I’d say a larger percentage of breweries in Nevada are just brewing good beer than some more well-known brewing states. It’s a lot like the state in general; people don’t seem to think much of Nevada outside the state, at least besides a crazy place to come for vacation. But you get here and you explore, it’s a beautiful state full of great aspects.

What do you view as the future of beer in Nevada?

I think there are a lot of positives. As I mentioned just having some major stalwarts like Great Basin, whose Tom Young (wrote the Nevada Beer foreword) is one of the industry’s great pioneers. His true passion and dedication to the beer industry is fantastic. But then you have new entries into the state making more trendy beers, like Revision and IMBIB and you have players standing out and making a name for Nevada’s beer industry. So as long as they’re starting to say, “Hey look at us,” and Great Basin and brewers like Dave Pascual at Big Dog’s keep showing well at national awards, people might take notice. I’ll also try to do my part writing nationally about the beer industry and continuing to tell the modern history through NevadaBrew.com. www.lvfnbpro.com

Front & Back of the House

photos by Gael Hees

Professional Development for the Hospitality Professional!

By Gael Hees Gael Hees is a Las Vegas freelancer, specializing in written, graphic and audiovisual communications. She has written for national publications and has won numerous awards for tourism-related printed materials and videos, is accredited in public relations by the Public Relations Society of America and is a certified hospitality educator. gael.hees@icloud.com

Thousands of people visit Vegas each year just to attend the many hospitality-related conferences and trade shows scheduled there. Here are my takes on just a few of these industry shows.

ExhibitorLive is a conference and trade show for those who, in fact, do trade shows. It features hundreds of exhibitor-related classes, and many attendees are pursuing their CTSM or Certified Trade Show Marketer designation. The trade show features everything from exhibit designers to magicians who can help attract people to your booth. I was really intrigued with the new offerings at AFR Furniture Rentals and Event Furnishings. This company’s designs are filled with color and style—couches, floor lamps, rugs, and ottomans, oh my. It would make any event space look like you meant to do that. Also consider Step 1 Dezigns’ LED Single Color Mini Flex Neon Lights, the thinnest flexible neon light available. It is very affordable ($3.82 a foot), and is good for displays, back- or edge-lighting, and stage surrounds, among other uses.

The Nightclub and Bar Show is a huge party with a few classes and lectures thrown in (actually really good classes). I was lucky enough to be right on time and close to the front for the ribbon cutting and was literally swept onto the trade show floor by thousands of attendees eager to see what’s new and trending in the bar and nightclub world.

This show had an incredible range of offerings including twinkly trees, foam cannons, single-use breathalyzer devices and washable/reusable straws. Highlighted were canabis-infused sodas, waters, candy, beer, coffee and ice cream. One of the things that was of interest was the number of games and activities available. I guess people don’t go to bars just to drink anymore.

Axe throwing is reaching its heyday and people aren’t just throwing axes: you can find spears, ninja stars, tomahawks, shovels and metal throwing cards for your guests to heft at will. Axe Throwing Builders considers itself to be “on the cutting edge” of this growing sport, creating full-venue axe throwing experiences. Axe Pros has fullyand partially-enclosed lane designs, a mobile system and even a small home system. However, my favorite was EZ Inflatables that had an inflatable, bouncy-house-like “throwing lane” with a Velcro target and inflatable axes with Velcro “blades.” The line was just as long for this axe experience as the others and the yells for the man I watched hit the bullseye were just as loud. www.lvfnbpro.com

In addition to axe throwing, there was a digital beer pong table with automated tracking and LED lights. It was by Pong Connect, and I have to admit it was pretty cool, but only available for rent, not to purchase.

There was the usual lineup of bar top video games, and even a fancy new ski ball machine.

The item that most intrigued me was found at the Ripples booth where they had machines that can put messages on the foam atop a cup of coffee–and now–foam on a cocktail or beer. The secret is not so much the foam art machine itself, but the backup software. A bar or restaurant can use templates to add its logo, special dates or other art to the standard designs provided. Plus, a guest can send a photo or special message to the bartender or barista and the photo will appear on your coffee or drink order. Imagine a foam photo of your significant other delivered to your table as a surprise!

UNLVino, though not an event specific to the industry, is of great interest to us all. This year, the three offerings were again scheduled on different nights including Bubble-licious on Thursday, Sake Fever on Friday and The Grand Tasting, a celebration of food and beverage on Saturday. This year’s Saturday event featured a broad selection of wines, beers, cocktails and spirits (mostly white with a few craft whiskies thrown in). One of the longest lines was at the Far Niente table where we thoroughly enjoyed the Nickle & Nickle Cabernet Sauvignon. We were excited about having it again, only to discover it is in the $90-plus range. We also enjoyed the claret offered by Francis Coppola Winery. Both were rich hearty reds.

Up next? The Hospitality Design Show. We’ll see what is discovered there.

Contact Information AFR Furniture Rentals – www.afrevents.com Step 1 Dezigns – www.step1dezigns.com Axe Throwing Builders – www.axethrowingbuilders.com Axe Pros – www.axepros.com EZ Inflatibles – www.easy.inflatibles.com Pong Connect – www.pongconnectnyc.com Ripples – www.drinkripples.com May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 11

By Bob Barnes

What’s Cooking

Bob Barnes is a native Las Vegan, editorial director of The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional, regional correspondent for Celebrator Beer News and covers the LV restaurant scene for Gayot.com.

He welcomes your inquiries.

Email: bob@lvfnb.com

Café Hollywood—A Draw to Both Locals and Tourists photographic montages are displayed on 35 monitors and nearly every inch of the walls.

Also available is a private room, which is used by both locals and tourists, suitable for parties, group events and weddings.

During my recent visit I had the pleasure to meet and talk with Senior Manager Kalani Cabral, who has been with the company for 11 years and worked his way up from a server to his current position. Originally from Hawaii, Kalani refers to Vegas as the 9th island and appreciates the lower cost of living in the city he now calls home. He truly appreciates his Café Hollywood team, and says, “Both the front of the house and back of the house work well as a team. Each one knows what is going on and are inspired to do well.” Factors he points to the Café doing well and attracting plenty of repeat customers are the expansive menu, 24/7 hours, great wine list, reasonable price point (especially for breakfast), generous portion sizes, wonderful decor and that Planet Hollywood is one of the few remaining resorts on the Strip that still offers free parking.

Another remarkable team member is Executive Sous Chef Edgar Huerta, who assists Executive Chef Miguel Ochoa in running the kitchen operations. Edgar grew up in L.A. and moved with his family to Las Vegas when he was 17.

He grew up in the industry, as his dad was a server and would bring him to work with him, but he always found himself drawn to the back of the house and liked to talk to the cooks. He started as a dishwasher at the age of 15, but knew he wanted to cook and loved the chaos when things got busy. His stint as a dishwasher also has helped him realize the importance of the position and how a kitchen can come to a standstill without the unheralded workers.

Edgar opened Café Hollywood after cooking at Bally’s Tequila Taqueria since 2011. Of his current home he says, “This is the first Café Hollywood concept and we have a unique menu from others in the group, so have a lot of leeway to create and tweak menu items.”

Whether you’re a tourist or a local, you’ll do yourself a favor if you make your way to Café Hollywood. For with the aforementioned free self-parking and entrée prices that run mostly below $20, you’ll leave with plenty of cash (unless you get sidetracked gambling while exiting the casino).

Senior Manager Kalani Cabral and Editorial Director Bob Barnes

Executive Sous Chef Edgar Huerta and Editorial Director Bob Barnes

photos by Bryan Kuhl and courtesy Café Hollywood

Locals take note: Planet Hollywood remains one of the few establishments on the Strip where one can obtain free self-parking (there’s a fee for valet). And if while there you happen to stop in at Café Hollywood, you’ll find another reason to make repeat visits. Opened in Nov. 2017, this eatery located in the Planet Hollywood casino is not your average casino café, far from it, as the menu spans Italian, Asian, American, breakfast (part of it is available all day), salads, burgers, steaks, seafood and an array of appetizers, with something for everyone or whatever mood you happen to be in.

Standouts include the High Roller Sampler with World Famous Chicken Crunch (Demi Moore’s recipe), Texas Tostados (topped with BBQ chicken and cheese), Buffalo Wings, Five Cheese Dip and Tempura Jumbo Shrimp arranged on a wheel representative of the Vegas landmark it’s named for. While I was determined to order something I had not had before, I could not resist again enjoying The Hollywood Burger topped with pork belly and fried egg, which weighs in at ½ pound and is so large I could only eat a fourth of it. Another winner worth repeating again and again is the Honey Walnut Shrimp tossed with honey-glazed sauce and candied walnuts. A new experience for us was the Citrus Kale Salad, the restaurant’s top seller, loaded with Brussels sprouts, cabbage, citrus, carrots and feta (you can choose a protein to add to the mix). On the beverage side, the It’s Showtime Mojito made with Bacardi Rum, lime juice, real blueberry syrup and fresh blueberries could prove to be highly addictive. Grand finales worth saving your appetite for are the Supernova Milkshakes, a show in themselves, topped with treats such as cotton candy, chocolate brownie or piece of birthday cake. Many who enjoy the Chriss Angel MINDFREAK show (performed just steps away in the Chriss Angel Theater) stop in to dine afterwards, as does the magician star himself. The Café has a shake made and named just for him: Chriss Angel’s Sweet Addiction with chocolate ice cream, chocolate brownie, chocolate chip cookie and Chriss Angel chocolates. I’m going out on a limb and guessing that Chriss likes chocolate.

Besides the expansive menu, the décor features tributes to all things Hollywood, which are in part a celebration of the 25+ years Planet Hollywood has been open. Videos and

www.thecafehollywood.com

12 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

www.lvfnbpro.com

Blume—Entertainment Dining and Culinary Art Any restaurant should do well if it offers outstanding food. But what about one that also will make you feel you’ve entered an art museum, with the plated menu items the actual canvas.

Such is the case with the newly-opened Blume located in the Seven Hills Plaza at 3145 St. Rose Parkway in Henderson. Each plate is a veritable work of art, with a mélange of stimulating color and textures that you will want to send to Instagram after capturing the images with your camera.

While the quality will make you want to call this fine dining, Operator Daniel Hackett Jr. asserts that his restaurant is entertainment dining, in an environment where anyone can feel comfortable. The relaxed, yet elegant, beautiful surroundings are stunning, and include flowered wallpaper, Armani blue tufted booths and chairs, sleek white acrylic tabletops, black marble flooring, two accent walls decorated with over 17,000 handmade gold silk roses and hydrangeas, purple mood lighting and crystal chandeliers. Also to help entertain, there is a unique 8 ft. by 5 ft. high-definition screen that depicts an aquarium with lifelike tropical fish swimming with the Vegas Strip in the background.

Operator Daniel Hackett Jr.

Such flowery décor might make one think the restaurant’s name is a misspelling of the word bloom, but the restaurant’s moniker is actually the name of the band of one of the investor’s daughter. The way I see it, the name has a dual meaning, as the sound conjures up images of color and beauty, which is exemplified by the restaurant’s design.

Daniel had a large part in the design and also the menu, which is a collaboration with his chefs: Executive Chef Joseph “JoJo” Saady and Sous Chefs Allesandra Madeira and Jesse Garza. All of his chefs are proficient in the culinary skills, but their 28-year-old leader has an accomplished resume as well. After starting out as a food runner when he was 15, Daniel became an executive chef at the young age of 21 in Phoenix and also worked in Las Vegas at the White Chocolate Grill, where Twin Peaks now sits, just down the road from his current home at Blume.

Each dish is made from scratch using seasonal fruits and vegetables and garnished with colorful microgreens and edible flowers. Everything is made to order and with pride, so if you are looking for a restaurant that spits your food out in 10 minutes, you will need to look elsewhere, and Daniel shared that his typical guest spends 2.5 hours being entertained at Blume. If you really want a front row seat to view the culinary artistry, opt for a seat at the chef’s table (with seating for 12), where chefs make finishing touches on the creations before they are sent out to guests.

Standout masterpieces we enjoyed were crispy tri-color tempura cauliflower served with honey/soy glaze and truffle hot sauce; Vegas grilled cheese (served with tomato bisque) with gruyere and American cheese, topped with gold flake and made with Vegas toast—Daniel’s own invention using squid ink and food coloring—bread that is half gold and half black, sure to make any Vegas Golden Knights fan happy; scallops served with lobster claw and bisque; smoked rib eye—12-oz bone-in filet that is delivered amidst smoke under glass; blue velvet whoop pies (which are actually blue), with a middle of vanilla bean batter and cream cheese; and frozen Chambord custard which is dramatically lit afire when served.

Entertainment also comes in liquid form, with creations such as the Grandmaster, made with Ketel One Oranje vodka, housemade ginger/mandarin syrup, Giffard Peach and diluted squid ink topped with coconut rum foam; and a Manhattan served with caramelized apples and a lit cinnamon stick.

Some exceptional deals are the Board and Wine for $25, which gets you your choice of cheese, pretzel or meat board paired with a bottle of the rotating selection of house wine, which during our visit was Vista Point Cabernet and Tuscany Groppetti Chardonnay; and the daily happy hour from 4-6, offered throughout the restaurant, with half off appetizers and wine glasses and discounts on draft beer.

Described above is an entertaining night out, over-the-top Vegas-style, without having to endure the hassle of the Vegas Strip. Plan to stay a while, and most importantly, don’t forget your camera! www.blumelasvegas.com www.lvfnbpro.com

photos by Dick Palcic

Other amusements are a separate banquet room with gold velvet drapes by Chanel adjacent to the restaurant, available for special events and transformed into a lounge with entertainment three nights a week; a bar with an adjacent big screen TV; and an outdoor patio with lounge seating and heat lamps.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 13

Twinkle Toast

It has been over a year since we last explored the untraditional world of “underground” wine pairings. From junk food to fast food, which usually equates to comfort food, we are happy to present some tasty new pairing options discovered by some of our favorite winos in the industry. The goal is to keep these pairings as fun and relatable as possible. Wine truly can be enjoyed anytime, anyplace and with just about anything.

Jenna Cushman Nevada State Manager Ferrari-Carano Vineyards & Winery “Underground” Food Choice: CRUMBL COOKIES - or any Chocolate Chip Cookie Wine Pairing: Ferrari-Carano Merlot Why does this pairing work so well?

Good Merlot can have a nice caramel finish on it, and that makes it pair perfectly with a chocolate chip cookie. Oftentimes, the tannins in the wine will help cut the large amounts of butter in the dough. I think the pairing is delicious and genius!

How did you discover it?

We have been entertaining a lot in the new house, so I always like to have a dessert to offer to our guests. Usually we are still drinking in the evening, so we had the Merlot open from dinner.

Crumbl Cookies are so fantastic because they arrive WARM! We also make our own cookies, and always add sea salt. The pairing was not planned but worked out great.

Kate McGuire Southwest Regional Manager Dreyfus Ashby & Company “Underground” Food Choice: Homemade White Cheddar Popcorn with Italian seasoning

Wine Pairing: Dusted Valley Olsen Chardonnay or Joseph Drouhin St Veran (if you need a screw cap for taking it into the theatre) Why does this pairing work so well?

The popcorn is cooked in coconut oil which plays off the vanilla oak in the wine. Then it’s heavily seasoned with white cheddar salted sprinkles.

This pairs well with the buttery aspects of the malolactic in the Chardonnay.

How did you discover it?

I LOVE popcorn and have experimented with all different kinds of seasonings. I drink mostly Chardonnay and this one, I believe, pairs best with it.

Randi Sakihara Sommelier “Underground” Food Choice: Skittles Wine Pairing: Sauvignon Blanc from Marlboro, New Zealand Why does this pairing work so well?

The sweet and sour of the Skittles pairs well with the citrus, zesty flavors of Sauvignon Blanc.

The wine doesn’t overpower the candy, it just enhances the sweetness and decreases the sour flavor. It’s pretty awesome!

How did you discover it?

I love to snack on Skittles during work and I always share with my co-workers. It’s a nice pickme-up when your energy is down. One hot Las Vegas summer afternoon, after a round of golf, I opened a Sauvignon Blanc from Marlboro, New Zealand. I wanted something refreshing to cool me off. I found some Skittles on my kitchen counter and forgot I was drinking wine. After a handful of Skittles later, I started laughing and thought, “hey, this is pretty good!” To my surprise, Skittles and Sauvignon Blanc are a great pair.

photo by Erincooperphotography.com

Underground Wine Pairings

By Erin Cooper & Christine Vanover Erin Cooper and Christine Vanover have been residents of Las Vegas since 2007. Vanover is also a UNLV Alumnus.

Both women are Territory Managers for the Resort Wine Team at Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, members of Women Gone Wine and the founders of Twinkle Toast. info@twinkletoast.com • www.twinkletoast.com Facebook: @TwinkleToast Twitter: TwinkleToastLV Instagram: TwinkleToastLV

Mitch Preston Mountain States Region Manager Davis Bynum Winery – Rodney Strong Vineyards – Rowen Wine Company “Underground” Food Choice: Chicken fingers with Ranch dressing on the side Wine Pairing: Davis Bynum, River West Vineyard, Russian River Valley Chardonnay Why does this pairing work so well?

The baked apple flavors of the Chardonnay didn’t conflict with the ranch dressing and the crisp acidity on the finish cut through the deep-fried coating of the chicken fingers.

How did you discover it?

I was staying with a buddy and his family during Spring Training baseball in Scottsdale. After a long day at the ballpark and late night running around Old Town Scottsdale, we arrived back at his house to find leftovers from his children’s dinner earlier that night!

Stop & Smell the Rosé Booth at UNLVino Grand Tasting Saturday, April 13 marked UNLVino’s 45th annual Grand Tasting event. Amongst eighty-six beverage suppliers and twenty-nine restaurants at The Mirage Events Center was a social secret garden of Rosé hosted by yours truly! Our Stop & Smell the Rosé concept stemmed from a garden-themed tasting that would showcase many different styles of Rosé while providing a fun, social experience for our guests.

Thanks to our friends at Constellation Brands, we turned our rose-colored dreams into reality. The Rosés showcased that evening were: Saved, Band of Roses by Charles Smith Wines, Crafters Union canned wine, Dreaming Tree, Kim Crawford, Meiomi, Ruffino Sparkling, Simi and Woodbridge which was featured in a custom Frosé cocktail. Our secluded garden space was brought to life by Style Event Design.

Each Twinkle Toast event concept is custom-tailored to our hosting venue and guests. We always encourage themed attire as guest participation adds to the ambiance of each tasting. For more information and upcoming event notifications, check out our website: www.twinkletoast.com.

14 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

www.lvfnbpro.com

Chef Spotlight John Courtney

By Pat Evans Pat Evans is a writer based in Las Vegas and Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is a regular contributor to Grand Rapids Magazine, October and The Manual often writing about food, beer and spirits. He has written one book, Grand Rapids Beer, and has more on the way.

Twitter: @patevans Instagram: @patrickmevans

John Courtney spent more than a decade as a banker before deciding it was time to live out his dream in the kitchen.

Courtney now leads The Cosmopolitan’s new Block 16 collection, following several years as the culinary director of Simon Hospitality Group, which included time at Carson Kitchen.

He came to Las Vegas in 2009 to work with Rick Moonen at RM Seafood, before going on to become an opening specialist of sorts, helping launch Born & Raised, DB Brasserie and Yardbird.

Now at his favorite hotel on the Strip, he doesn’t see himself leaving until he and his wife can retire to a mountain town, providing him the opportunity to open a breakfast joint.

When did you start cooking?

My family always cooked. They weren’t chefs, but cooked everything from scratch. As a kid, with my parents both at work, I’d tend to get things ready for dinner and this was at a time I could call my mom at her desk and she’d answer and walk me through recipes.

How’d you go from banking to kitchen?

I was in banking for 12 years at Wells Fargo and for many years I had wanted to leave that industry, always wanted to cook. I went to a restaurant owned by a family friend and he thought I had a very large resume, was too old and had too much real world work experience. So I worked for free for six months and if I could work for free, it has to be the job I really wanted. If you don’t love what you do, you wouldn’t do that. I didn’t want to work in a French bistro my whole life, so I went to culinary school. I’d get up at 6 a.m. and work until midnight for 18 months.

Then I got an apprenticeship for a two-star Michelin restaurant in France and that changed everything in my opinion of food and the approach I take to a menu. It made me focus on who I am today. Then I went from the French Alps to the ocean in California.

What was that switch like, banking to cooking?

At the time, my son was five or six. It was something for me to show him; you can do anything. If you want to be a doctor at 45, you can do whatever you want in this world.

It might cost a lot and take a lot of time schooling, but you can do it. He could see that you can take one career path and turn it to another.

Was there anything translatable from banking?

Managing a bank isn’t anything special.

From one bank to the next, there may be different services, but it’s pretty vanilla. www.lvfnbpro.com

photo by Anthony Mair

Chef Block 16

What I learned was that the finance piece (of overseeing a restaurant) is huge. Food costs you can get better hitting the mark you want to be at, the percentage ownership is looking for. That translated really well and makes it a lot more beneficial.

You were doing a lot of openings, was Block 16 just the next evolution?

I’d never done six. Openings are already crazy, why not get crazier? It’s a property I’ve always liked. I always found myself coming to Cosmo on my days off, so why not work here?

Is managing six restaurants at one time difficult?

It’s six pared down versions of existing restaurants. Thankfully the Cosmo is great with resources and the team around us or the management, front of house, media support, everyone in this hotel bands together well.

It really didn’t seem as daunting of a task to open six. It really shows when my boss is on the line with me. But opening six at once was

a great way to learn six styles of food and how six operators put lightning in a bottle in different ways.

Is it tough to switch between the six?

I wouldn’t say difficult to switch but the expectations set forth by that brand, so when something goes awry it can be a little difficult, but there’s nothing we can’t seem to overcome. The cuisine is the easiest part of it. Logistics of moving supplies from one part of the building in 10 minutes is challenging, but it’s an arrow for the quiver in the future.

Going from a 9-to-5 to restaurant hours, how do you balance life?

I don’t stop to look at crazy to not crazy. My son now, he’s never had food off the shelf.

He’s in the kitchen with me. He’s not even two and can identify foods and get stuff I need to help make it. But I’d hate for him to be a chef, I’d rather he be an architect and build restaurants, whatever makes him happy.

But my motto is cook good food and go home.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 15

Cover and feature photo by Ethan Miller

Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri Partner with Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits of Nevada to Launch Santo Puro Mezquila

By Sk Delph On April 4th, 2019, Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits of Nevada announced they had teamed up with Rock & Roll Hall of Fame legend Sammy Hagar and Emmy Award-winning television celebrity and American restaurateur Guy Fieri, to launch Santo Puro Mezquila.

If ‘mezquila’ is a new name for you, you're not alone. It's a name coined by Sammy Hagar to describe the blending of the two spirits: tequila and mezcal. The end-product is called mezquila, a new and uniquely different agave spirit. “ … the diversity and versatility of tequila is vast and appealing. So, if you’re more of a traditionalist whom enjoys tequila or mezcal in its purest form with little to no wood age to a whisky drinker that enjoys deep, lush oak aging, there’s always something out there for you.” ~ Max Solano, Mixologist & Spirits Educator, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada We checked in with Max Solano and learned some very interesting facts about agave spirits.

Maybe the most interesting is that agave spirits are one of the best regulated spirits in the world today due to the Mexican government creating very stringent and specific production laws to help maintain the quality of both tequila and mezcal, and going forward, this will include mezquila. There was a time in the not too distant past when all agave spirits were not made equally. And did you know that while most of the tequila distilleries are located in Jalisco (located in the West-Central region of Mexico), the agave tequilena plant (Blue Weber, specifically), that can only be used in making Tequila, grows throughout Mexico?

However, tequila can legally be produced in five states (Tamaulipas, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Michoacan and Nayarit). This spicy Mexican agave spirit evolved strictly from Mexico and continues to gain in popularity. It could be said: Mexico, America and tequila share a synergistic evolution.

16 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

The increase in the use of oak barrels to impart smoothness and richer flavors have even piqued the interest of the connoisseur. These añejos have helped to elevate this spirit to a whole new level. In fact, tequila, currently the most acclaimed of the agave spirits, has ballooned to ‘double-digit’ increases in sales every year for the past ten years. Millennials and Generation Xers, the same two generations who catapulted both Sammy Hagar to Rock & Roll fame and Guy Fieri into a culinary mogul, also played an important role in tequila's recent triumphs.

How This Mezquila Partnership Came About The inspiration to mix mezcal with tequila happened late one night on a beach in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The flavor of the homemade blend was so remarkable and good that Sammy Hagar took the idea to Juan Eduardo Nuñez, a third generation, master distiller from the El www.lvfnbpro.com

Viejito distillery and the skill behind the success of Cabo Wabo, which has already sold for so much cash that Guy Fieri openly exclaimed, “... that's the kind of guy that builds his own empire of tequila, lets someone else take it and rides the money boat out of town!” He was talking about Sammy Hagar and it's here where the heart of the legend begins. More than friends, they are fans of each other. Guy met Sammy for the first time when he was on tour for his OU812 album and from there, formed a deeper connection that to this day demonstrates something unique and special: their friendship and Santo Puro Mezquila.

The truth is, there are no two business partners better suited to head up this new enterprise starring the 2018 Silver Medalist of the San Francisco World Spirits Competition: Santo Puro Mezquila.

It’s an epic tale of two icons from very different eras and backgrounds—Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri, and two historic Mexican spirits, mezcal and tequila, and how the joining of these legends created a sensation called Santo Puro Mezquila.

As smooth as Sammy Hagar's guitar and vocals and as flavorful as Guy Fieri's culinary creations, this is a spirit that could easily become a passion.

“We were pouring Santo like we were putting out a fire with it!” ~ Guy Fieri

Let’s Meet Sammy and Guy Guy Fieri opens the press conference announcing, “... we were pouring Santo like we were putting out a fire with it!" And we all realize we are in for one wild ride. Sammy Hagar follows that up with, “It's a spiritual drink.” And we fall into rapt attention.

There's something about Mezquila…

Guy describes the flavor: “It's a blend of the two and it has such a nice finish. It sweetens it up a little, then it gives it more body. I think it gives it more life. Tequila's a hot market,” he continued, “and we want to create an even hotter market.”

What he's talking about is introducing this incredible new spirit, mezquila, to the world.

“Sammy knows how to cook,” Guy tells us. “He's passionate about food. He's a businessman, he's a chef, he's a connoisseur of fine wines. Sammy has one of the finest (wine) collections in North America.”

Sammy, as a rock star, has been touring across the country since the seventies and everywhere he played, he would request six bottles of premium wine for the green room, and would specifically request the bottles not be opened. “Consider his touring schedule,” said Guy. “Sammy was playing almost every single night. So he's collecting fine wines from all around the country … Sammy was doing this all the way back to the seventies, making it happen. But that's the kind of guy who builds his own empire of tequila.”

Sam Berkley Describes the Tasting at the Santo Puro Mezquila Press Conference

“In order to convey the mastery that went into developing a brand new agave category, we chose to taste a highly recognizable Blanco Tequila and a very popular Mezcal. First, upon tasting those side by side, one could recognize that each was a Premium, Top Shelf spirit. Second, we had the group blend them as they saw fit.

Upon tasting, you could see the sour faces in the audience as they began to understand that the creation of a perfectly blended ‘Mezquila’ was far more challenging than placing two Premium spirits together. Finally, we moved on to tasting Santo. It was immediately apparent that this was neither a Tequila nor a Mezcal. While still showing a familiar agave taste, this combined the best parts of its agave brothers and sisters into a first-to-market brand new flavor. As more and more consumers become further educated into the Mexican Spirit category, the one-of-a-kind Santo Mezquila will attract a great deal of attention and eventually become a staple of any agave-forward back bar.” ~ Sam Berkley, Director of Trade Development for Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada

Tasting Impressions of Santo Puro Mezquila What better way to close than on a final shot of Santo Puro Mezquila which just happens to be part of the opening educational flight presented by Southern Glazer’s as described

by Sam Berkley above.

Santo Puro Mezquila, the miracle blend of tequila and mezcal introduced by Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri and specially handcrafted by third-generation master-distiller Juan Eduardo Nuñez, now sits tantalizingly in front of us as we wait for the green light to take our first sip. It has a softer bite, a bit woodsy, a tad earthy (totally delightful, by the way), and ‘smoky.’ Warm vanilla notes from the Blue Agave come through, while the citrus from the Espadin are retained; this will pair beautifully with the spicy flavors of the southwest, barbeque, and even something as delicate as a salmon fillet. Sold!

From the creative minds of Sammy Hagar and friends to the Jalisco Highlands of Mexico, a land known for having the best terroir and best altitude for growing agave: that's where Juan Eduardo Nuñez hand-selects the agave plants and blends this very new proprietary recipe at the historic El Viejito Distillery in the traditional town of Atotonilco El Alto (founded by Indalecio Nuñez Muro in 1937) where the art of tequila making has been uplifted to crafting a higher spirit, Santo Puro Mezquila. It's a true first; there is no other mezquila on the market. If you'd like to experience this treat for yourself, pick up a bottle of Santo Puro Mezquila.

It’s been fun getting us this far; however, the story isn’t quite over. There's another story from Sammy about their logo. It's the cross with the agave plant at its base representing the ‘T’ in Santo Puro Mezquila. “When someone dies, they put a cross there,” was Sammy’s explanation of the numerous crosses on the sides of the road everywhere in Mexico. “Traveling through Jalisco, I saw a cross with an agave growing next to it ... I went and got a tattoo.” Sammy is serious about Santo. www.lvfnbpro.com

Photo courtesy Santo Puro Mezquila

Significance of the Santo Puro Mezquila Logo

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 17

DISHING IT

By Sk Delph

with Sk Delph

photos courtesy Sk Delph

UNLVino Specialty Course with Hannah Bellemare

UNLVino and Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits premiered four educational courses this season, and the one I was so fortunate to attend was HOW FOOD AFFECTS WINE—A BASAL FLAVOR TASTING, held on March 27 with Hannah Bellemare, a Swedish (now local) celebrity gastro-sommelier (she’s been featured in Forbes Magazine). Fully armed with a degree in Gastronomy Culinary Science from Umeå University Sweden and an Advanced WSET Sommelier Certification from The Swedish Restaurant Academy of Stockholm, she’s even writing her own cookbook. What's even more impressive is that she worked at a Scandinavian Molecular Gastronomy restaurant, broadening her exposure to the type of food preparation that's considered top echelon today. Hannah also created Dalalva.com, a website featuring private tastings with French red wines, sparkling wines and champagnes, chocolate, sauces, cheese, and blind tastings to name just a few. And she plays with cheetahs. Yes, you read that right. Hannah is a diverse soul with deep feelings of kindness and compassion. She volunteers and fundraises for Cheetah Outreach, an operation trying to save the cheetah from extinction, located just outside Cape Town on the Western Cape of South Africa.

Hannah’s eyes sparkle as she shares her experiences teaching the art of food and wine

Sk Delph knows her way around food and wine, not necessarily in that order, having lived and traveled from Sonoma, California to Boston and back to Vegas for the last fourteen years with her chef husband, turned GM here in Vegas.

She has been published in various short story anthologies and is currently working on her first novel.

pairing. “I want to spread my passion for the ‘science’ behind correctly pairing food and wine,” she said. “Often, clients will look for advice on picking a wine to complement a certain dish. What I love to do, is to pick the wine first, and it doesn't matter if the wine is five dollars or five hundred dollars, it’s all about choosing the ingredients and building the dish around the wine. In basal flavor tastings we experience the results of combining pure flavors with one another; I love to see people's surprise at the results. It's a mind-blowing experience!”

I don't know about you, but I'm ready to make a bottom shelf wine from the grocery store taste amazing. Let's get this class started!

The course opens with a serving of potato chips and a shaker of salt. What madness is this, you might find yourself asking, but hold tight. The method is about to unfold.

The first pour is a 2018 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand. The nose is bright with strong citrus notes, the taste, acidic and a touch bitter. Next we crunch on potato chips, sprinkled liberally with more salt to get the full effect, and quickly followed it with a sip of wine. The beautiful acidity was dimmed while the bold citrus flavors shined, much like fresh squeezed grapefruit.

The lesson here is to consider the level of salt in the dish when building a plate to match your wine. In my tasting notes, I jotted down how salt helped to magnify sweetness, bringing the fruit forward while softening the tannins.

It reminded me of Japanese sushi spiced with

18 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

wasabi and soy sauce, a plate often considered a challenge for wine pairing, and thought, why not try a Riesling? Hannah, step by step, was successfully opening our eyes to how flavors can come together in a whole new way.

Meanwhile, a platter has arrived with slices of lemon, a piece of endive, a teaspoon of hot chili, a small mound of prosciutto, a pat of cream cheese and a marshmallow. We puckered up with lemon then tasted the Sauvignon Blanc, and like magic, the wine tasted like water. We continued in this manner, experiencing the transformation of flavor from one ingredient to the next. It was revelatory.

In the background, Hannah is filling us in on the history of flavors. “We are in love with the taste of sweetness from the day we are born, going back thousands of years. It helped us survive by showing us what provides energy and what’s good to eat. Bitterness relates to our innate sense of protection. Too bitter and it may be bad for us. Bitter ingredients include hops, arugula and coffee.”

The three other pours were: Dr. Loosen Riesling Spätlese Wehlener Sonnenuhr from Mosel, Germany; Jean Claude Boisset Bourgogne Les Ursulines Pinot Noir from Burgundy, France; and Rust en Vrede Estate Cabernet Sauvignon from Stellenbosch, South Africa.

I'd love to describe the entire class in detail, but then you’d be robbed of the chance to experience it on your own. If you missed it, be on the lookout for it next year.

www.lvfnbpro.com

By Chef Allen Asch

Chef Talk Milk I recently read an article about butter and started to look more closely at this staple in most kitchens, both commercial and residential. The amazing varieties of butter and variables associated with them amazed me, but logically I understand why different animals produce butter in different regions of the world, as well as different flavor profiles based on many factors, including what the animal eats. While researching this I realized that I need to first discuss where it comes from, that being milk.

Milk harvesting comes from many animals, usually the most populous in a region. They include milk from a sheep, goat, water buffalo, yak and camel, which is common in the Sahara, and horse which is cheap and popular in Western China and expensive elsewhere. The list also, of course, includes milk from cows.

Yak milk harvesting begins by a calf starting to suckle, which then creates the flow of milk. They then take the calf away and start the milking process and then at the end of the milking for use, the calf is given the rest of the milk from the mother. Then the calf follows the mother around all day and can nurse all day. The yak is an unusual animal in that the mothers will never desert their offspring, so it’s easy to domesticate the yak.

This compares to milk production in places like the United States where the cow is connected to a machine which milks it. The machine starts the flow and after about five minutes the cow will be done producing milk. This, of course, depends on the type of machine being used as well as how much milk the cow is producing. In this type of milking operation the calves are fed manmade food.

The milk comes out of the cow at around 4.5% fat. This depends upon the breed of cow as well as the climate and what the cow is fed. The fat is then separated from the milk and added at varying amounts depending on the type of milk, cream, butter or cheese that is being produced. Whole milk has 3% fat added, while 2% milk or reduced fat milk has 2% added and the same is done for 1% milk. Skim milk or nonfat milk actually contains .2% fat.

Milk has been around for 10,000 years and it is the first food that was analyzed in the modern scientific lab. Due to the length of time it has been analyzed it is the most regulated of all foods. Humans are the only mammal that consumes milk past the www.lvfnbpro.com

Feel free to contact Chef Allen with ideas for comments or future articles at allena@unlv.nevada.edu Chef Allen Asch M. Ed., CCE is a culinary arts instructor that has earned degrees from Culinary Institute of America, Johnson and Wales University and Northern Arizona University. He is currently teaching at UNLV. He earned his Certified Culinary Educator Endorsement from the American Culinary Federation in 2003.

weaning period. Many Europeans, Middle Easterners and North Africans genetically lack the ability to produce lactase. Lactase is needed to digest lactose. This is why they cannot digest many dairy products as adults.

Some level of lactose intolerance is found in all mammals, which are defined as “living things that produce milk.” Hard cheeses and yogurt do not contain lactose, which is why they are popular in the cultures that have a higher intolerance. As a general rule, dairy is not a big part of the diet. Over many years this has changed as many Europeans have built up a tolerance, which has taken many generations.

The fat content of milk varies greatly from mammal to mammal. As mentioned earlier milk comes out of the cow at about 4.5% butter fat; it also comes out of humans at that same percentage, which is the ideal percentage for infants. The fat content that comes from whales can reach up to 34.8%, and the highest animal’s milk fat content is the Northern Seal with a staggering content of 53.2%. This is due to the cold climate in which they live in.

After the fat is removed from the milk it is added back in by a process called homogenization. This is done to suspend the fat globules in the watery milk. Everyone knows that fat and water do not mix, so this process is similar to creating an emulsion.

The fat globules are pushed through a meshlike filter that breaks the fat into very tiny particles that can be suspended in the liquid.

Happily I am too young to remember times before homogenization when the milk would separate and the fat would rise to the top.

The next step is pasteurization. This is the way to kill bacteria in the milk. Thought to be discovered by Louis Pasteur, this process can be traced back 10,000 years when ancient people used to boil the milk to do the same thing. This is also why many recipes call for scalding milk. This step is not necessary for milk that has been pasteurized. More on milk and milk products in my next segment.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 19

Asian Dining on the Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is home to myriad fine-dining Chinese restaurant destinations, with a number of them new to Las Vegas Boulevard.

PART 1I

Don Chareunsy lives in Las Vegas, where he has worked as an arts and entertainment editor and reporter since 2008. Before moving to The Entertainment Capital of the World a decade ago, he worked at The San Diego Union-Tribune from 2002-2007

Hakkasan at MGM Grand

And two notable non-Chinese restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip: Andrea’s at Encore Las Vegas

photo by Aubrie Pick

photos courtesy Hakkasan - MGM International

Americans know that New Year’s Eve is Dec. 31 and New Year’s Day is Jan. 1 every year.

Not as commonly or exactly known is that Chinese New Year ranges from Jan. 21 to Feb. 20 (Chinese New Year occurred Feb. 5 this year). But did you know that Lao New Year is celebrated over three days each year from either April 13-15 or April 14-16? (It’s April 14-16 this year.)

No matter the fluctuating New Year’s dates for the Asian celebrations, one thing is clear: There is much cause for celebration for the bounty of fine-dining Chinese restaurants—both old and new—on the Las Vegas Strip, along with a few notable non-Chinese but definitely still Asian destinations on Las Vegas Boulevard.

The next time you’re craving Asian cuisine on the Strip—for this journalist, that’s each and every day—keep this list handy. (By the way, we love our Chinese and sister Asian restaurants off the Strip, as well, but this story is focusing on Las Vegas Boulevard.)

Red Plate at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas

By Don Chareunsy

Opened in 2013, Andrea’s, which specializes in Asian fusion, recently welcomed Executive Chef Devin Hashimoto, from nearby Mizumi at Wynn Las Vegas (a Japanese restaurant not to be overlooked), and a new cocktail menu from property mixologist Andrew Pollard. These are two culinary and cocktail kings, and Andrea’s is all the better for having them at the helm.

Momofuku at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas

Opened in October, Executive Chef Yip Cheung’s Cantonese fine-dining restaurant Red Plate offers Peking duck, Sichuan spicy tofu, black truffle xiao long bao and live seafood, including rock cod, geoduck, Dungeness and Alaskan king crab and Maine lobster. Dim sum, hot pot and barbecue dishes also are available.

The chef was formerly at nearby Talon Club.

Opened in 2005, Chef Ming Yu’s Wing Lei shares the veteran title with Tao on this list with his restaurant of Cantonese, Shanghai and Szechuan flavors. During the New Year in December and Chinese New Year in February, Wing Lei is home to an incredibly popular allyou-can-eat dim sum and seafood experience that is one of the annual culinary highlights in the city.

20 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

photos by Gabriele Stabile

photos by Anthony Mair

photo courtesy Maximal Concepts

Opened in 2014, Hakkasan at MGM Grand remains one of the most opulent restaurants of any cuisine on the Las Vegas Strip and is the only Hakkasan in the world with a nightclub— and a multilevel nightclub at that! Along with top-notch cocktails, Hakkasan Las Vegas boasts an $88 menu. The number 88 symbolizes fortune and good luck in Chinese culture.

Wing Lei at Wynn Las Vegas

First opened by Chef David Chang in New York in 2004, the celebrated chef’s Las Vegas outpost debuted in 2017, and, with chefs including Michael Chen and Shaun King, Momofuku remains one of the most inventive restaurants on the Strip and defies categorization. Bonus: Momofuku Group’s Milk Bar by dessert genius Christina Tosi is next door. www.lvfnbpro.com

May I Recommend...

Il Mulino

By Blake Myers Blake Myers visited Las Vegas many times annually for over 35 years, and as his familiarity with so many restaurants grew, more and more people “back home” began asking him where to eat on their “upcoming visit.” In 1998 he began formally reviewing and recommending his best picks in a newsletter he published, and after moving here in 2008 soon established his website, Bestofvegasdining. com, through which he shares his selections with a worldwide audience.

The huge influx of Italian immigrants who landed in bustling New York City in the late 1800s and early 1900s established, over time, an abundance of restaurants there that continued the many great food and wine traditions from the “old country.”

By contrast, Las Vegas was a sleepy little town in the middle of the Mojave Desert until 1931, when work began on what was then called the Boulder Dam. As the dam’s workforce increased, a market was created for large scale entertainment for the men.

But I can assure you that outstanding Italian cuisine is, indeed, alive and well here, and can be experienced merely by visiting the third floor of the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. That’s where Il Mulino (flour mill, or grinding mill in Italian) has been providing discerning diners with food that’s as delicious and authentic as any I’ve found in Italy.

Il Mulino’s flagship restaurant was founded over 30 years ago in New York City’s Greenwich Village and featured the finest cooking from Italy’s Abruzzo region. The restaurant flourished, and now boasts multiple locations throughout the Big Apple, Florida, Atlantic City, Las Vegas and even Puerto Rico.

As more and more acclaimed chefs from around the country and the world have decided that they need to become part of our unparalleled fine dining scene, we have welcomed the arrival of many notable restaurants from other cities.

In 2004, General Manager Patrick Littlejohn and Executive Chef Miguel Rivera were sent from Il Mulino’s New York City’s restaurants to open its beautiful, new 120-seat Las Vegas location. They’re both still here, fifteen years later, and 65 percent of the staff has been with them over 10 years.

Though the restaurant’s main dining room seats 120, which is small compared to many others, it seems even more intimate due to the ambiance created by its dimmed lighting and classic, clublike atmosphere. There also is private room seating for smaller groups, and dining on their outdoor balcony offers attractive views up and down the Strip. GM Littlejohn confided that the restaurant shortly is going to expand to an www.lvfnbpro.com

photos courtesy Il Mulino

In the late 1940s, many mobsters saw the potential offered by gaming in Las Vegas, and that ushered in what would become a large Mafia-related presence here. Though the Mob influence has long since vanished, it’s still somewhat surprising that today we don’t have more restaurants embracing that ethnic heritage. available room next door, which will then allow them to increase substantially their ability to accommodate private parties.

But the attractive surroundings are only a prelude to your enjoyment of an outstanding meal. If wine will contribute to your enjoyment, you will want to peruse Il Mulino’s very extensive offerings, which thoroughly cover all the wine growing regions of Italy.

The wine list includes White Wines Italy (divided into Piedmont, Trentino, Friuli-Venezia-Giulia, Le Marche, Veneto, Alto Adige, Toscana, Campania, Sicily and Sardinia and Abruzzi); a short list of White Wines of the World; Il Mulino Private Cellar Red Wines (including Tuscany and Super Tuscans); Red Wines of Italy (Piedmont, Umbria and Tuscany); and Il Mulino Private Cellar Red Wines (Abruzzi, Sardegna, Sicily, Veneto, Piedmont, Super Piedmontese, Alto Adige, Lombardia, Le Marche, Basilicata, Puglia, Molise and Fruili-Venezia-Giulia).

If you prefer to stay “a little closer to home,” the list of Red Wines of America includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Zinfandel and Meritage. For larger parties, you may consider the selection on the Il Mulino Large Bottle Reserve List, which covers Piedmont, Alto Adige, Tuscany and Napa Valley.

oreganata, fresh baby octopus salad, escargot mushroom caps and baby eggplant rolatini.

Pasta dishes are numerous, and include cappellini with a fresh selection of seafood, and homemade ravioli stuffed with porcini mushrooms. Also, you won’t want to ignore the baked branzino, Dover sole mueniere or the huge Italian langoustines.

Beef selections include their top specialty, classic veal osso bucco, a beautifully presented bone-in “tomahawk-style” veal chop, veal Milanese and rack of lamb cooked in Barolo wine.

And if you still have room and need something to satisfy your “sweet tooth,” the many delicious selections on the dessert menu won’t disappoint. A few of the standout choices are the classic tiramisu, flourless chocolate cake, zabaglione with marsala wine and fresh berries and a delicious trio of cheesecake, tiramisu and flourless chocolate cake.

Your visit to Il Mulino will reinforce your appreciation for delicious Italian cuisine.

Mangia!

The wine list concludes with Dessert and Port Wines, Grappa, Sparkling Wine and a large number of Wines by the Glass.

Choosing what to eat also presents many difficult choices, with appetizers ranging from a beautiful carpaccio to clams or scampi

Executive Chef Miguel Rivera

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 21

By Shelley Stepanek

Best of the Best ONCE, a one-of-a-kind fantastic restaurant located in the Grand Canal Shops at The Palazzo, is the best Peruvian restaurant I have ever tried. Here you’ll find a beautiful wall of plants, a full-service bar, terrific view of the Strip and impeccable service. The room is rustic, but the interior design is totally native Peru. There is a large patio which has five large communal tables to give an outdoor feel. The menu is comprised of dishes I had never tried even though I have been in Peru. The only thing I recognized at first glance was a favorite drink of many, the Pisco Sour. Pisco is the local liquor of Peru, and most everyone drinks it daily.

After a wonderful glass of Prosecco, I told the chef to bring us whatever he wanted. And he graciously did. All the flavors are distinct, and the menu a fantastic ceviche, a braised fennel salad and a dish I had never heard of before called yuquita—stuffed yuca with smoked mozzarella cheese in a jalapeno and cilantro sauce. There was also arroz chaufa (Peruvian fried rice with snow crab, yuzu aioli and crispy calamari), ox tail bibimbap with black mint stew, pan fried scallops, grilled shrimp with charred lime, albacore sashimi and a beautiful piece of seabass with pickled salsa. For dessert they showed off their mouthwatering flan and a grand sorbet. Chef Alex Carrasco was the grand master and Leland Fischer, the general manager, was on hand for this special night, their one- year anniversary. Call 702-607-3797 for reservations.

BOTECO has a monthly wine tasting event.

April was “A Taste of Beaujolais” hosted by a wine storyteller. Guests participate in regioninspired appetizers paired with two wine varieties, for $25. Check their website for the events. botecolv.com

Shelley Stepanek is President of DSA, the oldest non-profit tourist association in the state, along with being on the board of ticket brokers. Shelley has previously owned three restaurants.

bar, lots of room for dancing. The concept has been in the making for quite a while, with Bart Mahoney and Charline Padgett and Chef Johannes Bernau bringing out 30-plus items. Open from 11-10 daily.

The other new eatery, on the 108th level on the Tower's Observation Deck is 108 EATS

by James Trees. Mainly treats, such as artisan cookies, spiked chips, root chips and chili cheddar popcorn, but also panini sandwiches, ice cream & sorbets.

PLACE ON 7TH has a wine dinner every two to three months featuring a five-course menu, which runs $65. Quite a treat. The next one is slated for June 12, paired with Italian wines. www.facebook.com/placeon7th Launching this month is brunch at TOP GOLF every Sunday at the Hideaway Pool. They feature Mimosa Summer Sundays from 10-2 with a huge brunch menu and $5 Mimosas and Bloody Marys. You'll also find a live band starting at 11.

And, coming up is the 13th annual LEE’S BEER & TEQUILA EXPERIENCE at Thomas & Mack on May 11th. Unlimited tequila and beer tastings, along with a live DJ, food for purchase and a silent auction. Tickets are being sold at all Lee’s locations with a two-forone deal being offered for $60 through May 10. leesliquorlv.com/13th-annual-lees-beertequila-experience

22 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

photos courtesy Shelley Stepanek

UNLVino was a huge success, as it is every year.

Numerous wine and liquor companies from all over the world came out for The Grand Tasting at the Mirage. Included were Duck Pond Cellars with Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir; Rascal Each second Saturday of the month, Boulder with Pinot Gris from Oregon; City Lights City Chamber of Commerce hosts the Shine with Blueberry and Cherry Lemon; BEST DAM WINE WALK from 4-8 p.m. and Alpine Distilling with Persistent Vodka, Participants stroll thru the city, visiting historic Summit Gin and Spur Whiskey. Alongside sites, with 25-plus stops to sample. Plenty of these brands were Grand Leyenda with Tequila places to shop, sit down and enjoy the many Reposado and Tequila Anejo; Atlántico antique shops. The event takes a break during Rum from the Dominican Republic; Sunora the hot summer months, but it will resume in Bacanora had Mocha Cream and Pineapple Colada Cream; and Koloa had Spiced Rum, September.

Coffee Rum and Rum Punch from Hawaii. www.bouldercitychamber.com/2019-best- The Taub Family Selections had a large booth dam-wine-walk.html with Saget La Petite Perriere Sauvignon Blanc The STRAT, as the old Stratosphere is now and La Petite Perriere Rose. Transcendent had called, has opened two new restaurants. Merryvale Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc and First up, BLVD & MAIN near the property’s Chardonnay from Napa, Coeur Clementine entrance, replaces the decade-long shuttered Rose from France, Dobbes Family Estate nightclub. For years the nightclub, which Wine by Joe Pinot Gris and Grand Assemblage looked like a giant cave, sat empty. Now Pinot Noir from Oregon and Starmont Winery it has come to life. Totally revamped and Merlot from Napa. Of course Sierra Nevada redone, this huge bright new venue is a sure Brewing Company showed off its Pale Ale, winner. Lots of highboy tables, plenty of giant their new IPA, Hazy Little Thing and Bigfoot screen TVs for game days, this taphouse and Barleywine. The Stoli Group came out, along lounge could easily hold 1,000 people. Right with Deutsch Family Wine and Spirits and off the entrance to the main valet, and with Ambros Banana Whiskey. Quite a fantastic free parking in a town that now charges at group! If you missed it, do yourself a favor and most casinos, try out the new place. Large never miss it again. www.lvfnbpro.com

The Bottom Line 5 ways to Improve Your Restaurant’s Website

By Ben Brown Benjamin Brown, MBA is Restaurant Editor of The SoCal Food & Beverage Professional. A seasoned

writer and consultant, Ben works with Fortune 500

companies and mom & pop shops alike in Marketing, Analytics, Consumer Insights, PR and Business

Development. Contact Ben at Ben@lvfnb.com or follow him @Foodie_Biz.

A great website is the crux of a restaurant’s ability to reach new customers. And just as your food needs to demonstrate clear quality and freshness, so too does your online presence.

The first step is creating a website. Sadly, a page on Facebook, Yelp and/or TripAdvisor alone isn’t enough. A website to call your own establishes a critical sense of legitimacy, and unless you’re one of the very few spots out there with a cult-like word of mouth following, it’s best to get something up as soon as possible.

Setting up a site can be very cheap and simple.

Sites like Weebly allow even the least techsavvy users to build beautiful websites, often at an out-the-door cost of less than $50. A simple drag and drop interface means that you won’t have to hire a web designer.

At the end of the day, your website will mainly serve to provide more information to potential customers who have already heard of you. The goal is to arm them with all the information they need to decide to visit you in person: your menu, hours, reservations, etc. Creating a website to simply display this information requires virtually zero technical bells and whistles, but there’s an art to it nevertheless.

Follow these five tips to create (or improve) your restaurant’s website.

Keep your menu current.

Your menu will inevitably be one of the mostvisited areas of your website. Make sure it’s up to date. If you’re listing your prices (that choice is an entirely separate discussion), make sure they’re accurate.

The last thing a customer wants is the restaurant equivalent of being catfished (look that up in Urban Dictionary if you’re not familiar).

If you’re a seasonal restaurant with frequent menu changes that make it virtually impossible to keep an updated menu, that’s ok. Note this on your site and specify that you’ve listed a sample menu.

Your website should reflect the guest experience as closely as possible, and there’s no better way to do that than with an honest menu.

Keep your theme contemporary.

Today’s websites are clean: chic layouts, minimalist appearance, and easy-on-the-eyes color schemes. We’ve come a long way from blocky fonts and in-your-face text boxes. If your website looks like the latter, it’s time for a major face lift.

A clean, contemporary look isn’t just aesthetically pleasing, it creates trust. Websites that look like they’re from the 90s take away from the product or service they’re promoting.

Making this change can be as easy as copying your content to a word document, creating a www.lvfnbpro.com

new drag and drop website on Weebly, then pasting your old content into the new layout.

But while you’re at it, you might as well take a look at your content for any necessary revisions.

Make it mobile friendly.

An overwhelming portion of your web traffic will come from mobile devices. When building your site, you’ll likely be working from a laptop or desktop, but be sure to consistently view your work on mobile to make sure it looks good on both screen sizes.

This aspect of web creation is called responsive design, and it’s actually built into Weebly and related services. They allow you to view your site as if you were on a tablet or mobile phone with the click of a button, so you shouldn’t have to worry about any technical requirements here.

This is where you really want to go the extra mile and use a good camera, if not hire a professional photographer. With all the time you’re presumably dedicating to making great food, you want your photos to reflect the work you’ve put into your business.

Display your contact information everywhere possible.

You ultimately want to convert your web visitors into paying customers, so the next step in their process [in the marketing world we refer to it as the user journey] is to make a reservation. Make this next step as easy and convenient as possible by displaying your Opentable, Resy or Yelp link on every page, or your phone number if you’re not on these platforms. If you don’t take reservations [and Make your photos beautiful. even if you do, for that matter], display your People eat with their eyes, so beautiful phone number, address and operating hours to food photos are critical to entice potential plant the seed for that hopeful visit. customers who research your restaurant online.

Photographing your flagship menu items, chefs No restaurant website is the same, and a in action, dining room, and any patio, or views multitude of elements exist to fine tune your you may have will significantly boost your web presence, but these tips should help you online appeal. build a solid foundation.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 23

By Blake Myers

photos by Blake Myers

2019 Unlvino Grand Tasting Continues to Spotlight Stellar Cuisine

Blake Myers visited Las Vegas many times annually for over 35 years, and as his familiarity with so many restaurants grew, more and more people “back home” began asking him where to eat on their “upcoming visit.” In 1998 he began formally reviewing and recommending his best picks in a newsletter he published, and after moving here in 2008 soon established his website, Bestofvegasdining. com, through which he shares his selections with a worldwide audience.

As most are aware, UNLVino was co-founded in 1974 by the UNLV College of Hospitality and Southern Wine and Spirits of Nevada (now Southern Glazer’s) to provide scholarships and other support where needed to the students enrolled in the school’s program.

The “Vino” portion of this annual fundraising event’s name is extremely appropriate, given the abundance of excellent wine, beer, cocktails and spirits from more than 70 purveyors to which attendees are treated. Though the beverages have remained at the forefront, as UNLVino has evolved, the selection of libations has been supplemented in recent years by a growing variety of impressive food offerings.

If, as the saying goes, variety is the spice of life, then this year’s food selections from many of the area’s outstanding restaurants were certainly enough to satisfy anyone’s palate and serve as a small sample of each restaurant’s menu offerings.

UNLV Hospitality College students, as well as some two dozen restaurants, presented a selection of tasty choices that allowed you to progress from appetizers to entrees and then desserts, or in any alternative order of your choosing.

As you can well imagine, the restaurants’ food booths, populated by varying numbers of their staffs, were a virtual beehive of activity as they attempted to supply their culinary selections to the thousands of attendees. Some of the food was relatively simple to make and offer, while other preparations were much more complex to assemble and present.

Following is a rundown of some of the many restaurants whose food I tasted. Nothing Bundt Cake, whose cake selections included decadent chocolate covered chip, red velvet, white chocolate raspberry and strawberry and cream. The UNLV Student Management team featured an impressive display of supreme lobster and cold seafood and Scotch 80 Prime was carving flavorful rib cap beef. The Slanted Door prepared delicate Vietnamese egg rolls, while Libertine Social offered tender lamb spareribs.

Buddy V’s showcased colorful and sweet cannoli and rainbow cake, LVB Burgers and Bar busily prepared their tasty AAA sliders (an abbreviation for angus, applewood and arugula), a labor-intensive endeavor which contained boursin cheese, sun dried tomatoes and applewood smoked bacon. And Lotus of Siam presented an attractive tempura-battered deep fried prawn.

24 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

Another UNLV Student Management booth featured a delicious trio of strawberry shortcake, lemon tarts and tiramisu, Elephant Bar prepared a flavorful Buffalo chicken dip and BLT Steak offered a succulent tuna tartare. The Valencian Gold Restaurant, a recent arrival on the Vegas restaurant scene, showcased its colorful Spanish bruschetta, classic Spanish ham and chicken croquettas.

The playfully-named Haute Doggery constructed a nod to the past with its deep fried chili cheese dog roll, Estiatorio Milos presented essential Greek flavors with its tzatziki, feta cheese and bell pepper crackers, Hattie B’s featured the spicy chicken drumsticks for which it’s well-known and Tao offered flavorful crispy barbeque pork bao buns.

Rounding out my culinary buffet were Beauty and Essex, who prepared tempting tuna poke tacos and another UNLV Student booth which expertly presented sausage and pepperoni pizza.

The wine, spirits, cocktails and beer offered at this year’s UNLVino Grand Tasting are still outstanding, and well worth enjoying, but the quality and diversity of the food selections also are not to be missed. I’m glad I ate my way through them. www.lvfnbpro.com

By Linda Westcott-Bernstein

Human Resources Insights

Linda Westcott-Bernstein has provided sound human resources advice and guidance to Fortune 500 companies and others for over 25 years. Linda has recently re-published her self-help book entitled It All Comes Down to WE! This book offers guidelines for building a solid and enduring personal work ethic. You can find her book on Amazon or Google Books.

Phone: 702-326-4040 Email: Vegaslinda89129@yahoo.com

Building a Better TEAM Through Trust, Engagement, Action and Management

Most days, things run pretty smoothly at work don’t they? It can and does resemble a well-oiled machine when the desired output is achieved on time and on budget! That analogy applies very appropriately to the service industry.

When everyone is on the same page, service is a breeze and customers are happy! Who could ask for more, right? Our biggest challenge can be keeping the TEAM on that right track.

What does the outcome look like when your team is not trained properly, doesn’t have good leadership and the required daily communication for success is not present? It can be chaos! It can result in lost business, loyal patrons and even quality team members. No one enjoys the frustration of not being in a smoothly run operation.

So what does it take to have a well-run, service and guest-oriented restaurant operation? It takes planning, action, leadership, trust in one another, and above all, the confidence in the importance of engagement. The last I had heard, not every one of these key elements for service success can or should be left on the shoulders of just one person – it takes a T.E.A.M. to be successful.

Everyone on your team must be a part of your success. Trust, Engagement, Action and good Management equals superior guest service.

Trust is achieved with open, honest, and ongoing communication. The only way that everyone can be on the same page, and potentially use their expertise toward the success of the business, is by knowing what is going on! Management must be willing to communicate the steps, plans and procedures for their operation with all of their team. When you do, you get essential and valuable feedback and possibly good problem solving ideas from all.

Engagement is only possible after you have achieved Trust. How can you empower or engage your team if you do not have trust in them? It starts with your willingness to share the goals and objectives of your operation and then entrust them with the key components of success, engaging and serving your customers.

Engagement includes allowing your team to become closer to, converse with and thereby become more aware of guests’ needs and expectations. It also includes giving them some leeway to do damage control without always having to ask for permission.

Action refers to the necessary steps it takes to pull off your service objective. It means the process or steps you take to manage service each and every day. It also means that everyone is accountable for their part in the service process:

from the person who orders your restaurant supplies and food stuffs, to the individual who cleans up the restaurant at the end of the day and turns off the lights. Each and every action is integral to the outcome of your business, operation and successful team engagement.

Management is your leadership, of course.

But success is not achieved through poor management and bad decisions. To be successful, managers and leaders must share information, lead by example and trust their team to make good business decisions. They must set the tone by showing confident leadership, being firm but fair in their judgments and decisions and by not holding the reins so tight that they restrict their team’s success.

Whether it’s scary, uncomfortable, or strange to you, building a successful team, and thus a successful business, takes the right combination of confidence and trust as well as leadership. Only with these important tools in place can you build the right T.E.A.M. and reap the rewards that only a cohesive and focused team can achieve!

HR Question of the month:

Please send your HR questions and concerns, or share your thoughts on your human resources challenges via email to the following address. Send input to vegaslinda89129@yahoo.com. Your comments, questions or concerns will help determine the direction for my next month’s column and earn you a copy of my book. Include your mailing address when sending your responses.

www.lvfnbpro.com

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 25

The RESTAURANT EXPERT Stop the Bleeding Now

For decades restaurants have been run with one key number in mind to ensure they have a chance of making money. That key number is called prime cost.

What is prime cost?

Prime cost is the grand total of your total cost of goods sold, which includes both food cost and liquor (also known as pour cost), and total labor cost. In order to have an accurate prime cost number, you must be on an accrual accounting system (sign up for a consultation, and I’ll cover accrual accounting with you).

To calculate your actual cost of goods sold accurately, you start with your beginning inventory, add to it your total purchase for that period (in this example, let’s say one month), then subtract your ending inventory. This sum product of this calculation will give you your total cost of goods sold (the total of all product you physically used or left your shelves during that month). You can quickly see that if you don’t follow this formula and show your total purchases as your cost of goods sold that you will NEVER have an accurate number to evaluate your business… and that’s how many businesses go wrong fast.

Now, while total labor cost sounds simple, and it really is, many restaurants still calculate this number incorrectly. Total labor cost includes not only the total wages your employees have earned for that period (again for this example we will use a month), and this is where most restaurants stop, but also includes total taxes, benefits and any insurances paid (workers’ compensation and health insurance).

What is the ideal prime cost?

While I am not a trained economist, certified public accountant or statistician, I am a restaurant expert who works with more than a hundred restaurant owners in all of North America on a daily basis. What I can tell you is that if your restaurant is doing at least $850,000 or more a year that the prime cost target is 55 percent. The margins are just too tight to go any higher.

26 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

By David Scott Peters David Scott Peters is a restaurant consultant, coach, speaker and founder of TheRestaurantExpert.com, a company committed to the success of independent restaurants. Peters is a restaurant industry-recognized blogger and his writing is regularly published in restaurant industry publications, such as Restaurant Hospitality, Catersource, and QSR Magazine.

Learn more at www.TheRestaurantExpert.com.

How to get to 55 percent I know what you are thinking: "NO WAY! There is just no way I can achieve that target prime cost and still have anybody on the floor to serve the guests or in the kitchen cooking food, or without reducing the quality of the product I serve."

The reality is there is a way, and I have members achieving it over and over again.

Prime cost is something I come back to again and again because it’s the magic number. It’s a core component of my teaching. But for the purposes of this blog post, let’s look at some sample labor strategies and systems you can use to get you closer to 55 percent.

• Budget Labor: Using our labor allotment system, members have seen a minimum reduction in labor cost of at least 1 percent and many as high as 10 percent. It’s much easier to hit a target when you have one, and it’s that much easier when you’ve spelled out for your managers how much money they have to spend, how many FTEs (full-time equivalents) and how many hours they have to schedule each and every schedule in order to stay within your budgeted targets.

• Tracking: Tracking labor on a daily basis enables management to make small changes on a daily basis to stay on budget.

• Training: Implement a training system (we offer one for full-service and one for quick-service, as well as for management training) to reduce labor costs due to lower turnover and increased sales due to happy guests.

While the list goes on, these are actionable systems you can implement today and be on your way to a 55 percent prime cost. What is really incredible is they work for any restaurant, no matter what kind of service or food you serve.

No matter what path you choose… TAKE ACTION! And get your prime cost to 55 percent. www.lvfnbpro.com

By Savannah Reeves

photos by Savannah Reeves

Savannah Reeves, a Hospitality Management student at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, represents the Epicurean Society, a collection of food and restaurant enthusiasts. As the journalist on their leadership team, Savannah desires to share the club’s experiences with the public. Growing up in central California, she discovered her passion for hospitality and decided to pursue that passion in Las Vegas.

As the end of the semester rapidly approached, our members were hard at work preparing for the college’s UNLVino. The Epicurean Society is also steadily crafting plans for our second annual Hawaiian Night fundraiser, a night that will feature all-you-can-eat Hawaiian dishes and an open bar for drinking age attendees, all put on by our members. With all the work being done, our monthly outing was a welcome break from the organized chaos that is event planning.

It had recently come to our attention that a tea shop with a bubble tea bar exists. Commonly referred to as “Boba Tea,” this drink comes in a multitude of varieties. Traditionally, it is a teabased drink with added milk and delectably chewy tapioca pearls. Our members are avid fans of the drink. Yet, between all of us, we had never heard of such a concept. We knew we had to check it out for ourselves in our monthly outing. The tea shop in question is called Tea Way Plus, nestled in a corner down Spring Mountain Rd. I reached out to the owner, Sherry, and she was happy to accommodate our group and even teach us along the way.

Walking in, the shop is welcoming and cozy, a relaxed space to mingle with friends or study for that next exam. Sherry gave us a warm greeting and showed us the expansive menu, not even including the buffet of options available at the toppings bar. From the traditional milk teas to an avocado sea salt cream drink, there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Sherry and her husband make everything they can in-house, using real fruit, loose leaf teas and fresh brown sugar Boba.

No powders or unnatural dyes. They showed us their tea making procedures and how to properly make and hold the tapioca pearls. www.lvfnbpro.com

We were then shown the main attraction, the toppings bar. Here, you’ll find a wide variety of toppings; some are rotated regularly to keep it interesting. During our visit, we had options such as mango pudding, classic tapioca pearls, sweet red bean, an array of different jellies and much more.

To order, you first must choose your base drink. Besides the traditional tea-based drinks in a multitude of flavors, there are some unique creations to choose from as well. Sherry recommended their butterfly pea tea latte coming in a variety of flavors such as mango and strawberry. After choosing your drink, you’ll receive your empty cup to fill. While you may add as many toppings as your heart desires, they will mark your cup with the recommended amount of toppings, to leave room for tea of course. Choosing your own drink additions certainly makes the process much more fun and creative. This is also the hardest part, as there are so many to choose from. After you finish selecting your toppings, you place your cup on the counter to add the tea.

The butterfly pea tea latte can only be described as Instagram-worthy. After toppings, they add a layer of fresh fruit with milk, and top it off with the bright blue tea. Sherry taught us the process of layering a drink. The trick, she explained, is ice and the back of a regular spoon. After the latte is carefully layered, it is placed in a machine to be sealed. You then have your beautiful drink! Once you are finished admiring the well-crafted beverage, you will be instructed to shake it up. This is almost another experience itself as the drink will change color. The latte itself was pleasantly sweet and refreshing, perfect for a warm day

in Las Vegas.

As we eagerly sipped our drinks, they were kind enough to provide a sample of the looseleaf butterfly pea tea. We later used this to become tea mixologists ourselves. Brewing butterfly pea tea is entrancing, leaving us in awe of how a bright blue color can exist naturally.

Our members then demonstrated their own food science skills. We layered lemonade, as taught by Sherry, over the sweetened tea. The acidity of the lemon mixed with the tea creates another natural color phenomenon, a bright violet generally only found in dyes. We later showed our work to Sherry who gave us her stamp of approval.

Overall, our students were truly delighted by this outing. Together, we discovered new concepts and learned a lot along the way. Tea Way Plus has become a new favorite of our group and we have since been back more than once. Not only is it a fun concept featuring quality drinks, it’s run by a couple full of heart and passion. It is these quality relationships that build the core of good hospitality, connections that have made Las Vegas what it is today.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 27

Product Review

By Bob Barnes

Old Trapper Beef Jerky The family-owned Old Trapper Smoked Products is experiencing excellent growth, and just in time for its 50th anniversary, completed the commissioning process for its new 80,000 square foot production facility (one of the largest of its kind in the world) located at its headquarters in Forest Grove, OR. After sampling the signature line of its authentic handmade beef jerky, what impressed me, in addition to its outstanding flavor, was the fact that the products are low in calories (60-70 per 1 oz), carbs (6 grams) and fat (0-1 grams). Several varieties are offered, including barbecue, chipotle, hot and spicy, peppered, teriyaki and old fashioned. Seasoned lean cuts of real steak are used and brown sugar is added before it is smoked to perfection using real wood in the company’s smokehouses. The result is tender, never tough jerky that in my opinion stands out from the rest. www.OldTrapper.com

Ole Smoky Salty Caramel Whiskey Ole Smoky, the first federally licensed distiller in the history of East Tennessee, founded in 2010, has been turning heads with its flavored moonshine and whiskey. While perusing the new product aisle at the 2019 Nightclub & Bar Show and seeing the words Salty Caramel Whiskey I knew I would not be able to pass it up. After tasting it I was rewarded with enjoying one of my favorite flavors, but unlike many flavored whiskeys I’ve found to be too sweet, this one has the advertised flavor without being cloying and still tastes like a whiskey. A recent accolade is the Ole Smoky Distillery received two Beverage Information Group Growth Brand Awards in the Rising Star category: one for the distillery and one for the Salty Caramel. Ole Smoky retails globally and offers more than 25 moonshine flavors and 17 whiskey flavors. olesmoky.com

Black Fig Vodka I’m tired of spirits flavored with fruit that contain only a hint of the fruit’s essence or are over sweetened to the point of no longer tasting like the fruit of origin. So, it’s refreshing to find one that tastes completely like the actual fruit. Such is the case of Black Fig, a vodka infused with real figs.

At the 2019 Nightclub & Bar Show I met Black Infusions owner Michael Davidson, who informed me only agricultural products are used, with no artificial flavoring, coloring or sugars. Distilled in Bend, OR, the vodka begins as a gluten-free spirit base made from corn, is filtered through charcoal and through lava rock, after which whole, dried California figs are added. After four to six weeks of natural infusion, the liquid is lightly filtered so it retains its natural flavor profile and amber hue. The proof is in the taste, as only the pure flavor of the fruit comes through, which gives you the impression you are drinking the pure essence of a fig. Although several cocktail recipes are provided, I am perfectly happy to sip this flavored vodka without any dilution. Another fine rendition, using the same methods, is the Gold Apricot. Both vodkas are handcrafted in small batches, are glutenfree, kosher-certified and naturally infused. The Black Fig won a 2017 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, Double Gold Medal for Best Flavored Vodka. www.blackinfusions.com

kKada Caramel Liqueur It’s believed that caramel was introduced to the Americas in the 1600s, possibly from the Arab world or by early settlers playing with white sugar over a fire. In any event, it’s about time this wonderful flavor showed up in an all-caramel, non-creamy liqueur. At the 2019 Nightclub & Bar Show I was introduced to the kKada Caramel Liqueur by entrepreneurs Zane Seely and Charlotte Gilbert, who told me the flavor originates from spices from India using a proprietary recipe. This drink is a 50 proof base of vodka distilled in Marysville, WA, is dairy- and gluten-free and can be mixed to add flavor and spice to a variety of drinks, such as cocktails, beer, whiskey, tequila, cider, desserts and hot chocolate. But I found pure pleasure in drinking it straight, and thankfully, it’s not overly sweet, most likely due to its ingredient mix that includes black cardamom, fenugreek, black pepper, clove, cinnamon, ginger, star anise and a bit of curry. kkada.com

28 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

www.lvfnbpro.com

Great Full Gardens of Reno Wins National Restaurant Award

By Tanya Suba-Tang

American Express and The National Restaurant Association recently hosted its 2019 Restaurant Industry Awards Gala in Washington, DC. Great Full Gardens, among four other Reno restaurants known for their healthy menus, received a Restaurant Neighbor Award for community service, winning in the small business category. The restaurant was recognized for its partnership with RootED, a local grassroots nonprofit that provides schools, veterans groups and other nonprofits with greenhouses. The program aims to teach individuals, especially children, the benefits of being able to grow and eat their own food. The partnership’s long-term plan is to provide at least one greenhouse or more each quarter as the program grows. By providing schools with a potential means to earn funds by selling their produce, the program encourages self-sufficiency and creativity while engaging kids in a healthy, productive pastime. To date, Great Full Gardens has donated three greenhouses, with a fourth ready to go. These greenhouses have enabled students to grow enough greens and vegetables to offer “Free Salad Fridays” at their schools and launch a student-run Seedling Sale that raises money by selling starts from the gardens. Great Full Gardens encourages customers to get involved by donating $1 to RootED with the purchase of specially designated menu items.

Since its opening in 2013, Great Full Gardens has been dedicated to supporting and nurturing their community by sharing their passion for locally sourced food and passing on the love of growing food to the new generations. They have made their name with dishes that inventively mingle healthy, organic, sustainable ingredients with flavor, eye-appeal and a concern for dietary restrictions.

Great Full Gardens is the first Nevada restaurant to win a Restaurant Neighbor Award. It was rightfully recognized for donating nearly $35,000 to its community programs and charities with cash and in-kind donations, for the past five years. They have also established numerous programs to benefit local charities and nonprofits. Events such as “Celebrity Chef” night invites a member of the community to create a special menu for a night

www.lvfnbpro.com

with proceeds donated to the charity of their choice, including Fireman’s Assistance Program, Step 2, Animal Welfare and more. In addition, they created a program that allows schools to hold their fundraising events at the restaurants, volunteer with the Rise & Dine group to feed the homeless and regularly donate food to many local nonprofits and schools.

Participants of the Restaurant Neighbor Award are awarded $10,000, which Great Full Gardens plans to donate to RootED. The first Great Full Gardens opened in Midtown Reno in 2013. The next year saw Great Full Gardens Express come to the University of Nevada, Reno. In late 2016, a third location debuted, this time in the Smith's center on South Meadows Parkway. A fourth spot, The Kitchen by Great Full Gardens, opened in August 2018. The Kitchen is a grab-and-go spot featuring a salad bar, a selection of hot soups and entrées and Gino the Soup Man line of frozen vegan soups and meals.

May 2019 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 29

EVENTS

AD INDEX

There are several major food & beverage events happening in the coming months. Here is a sampling of some of the events we highly recommend, so if planning to attend you can start booking now.

Al Dentes’ Provisions sales@aldentes.com 702-642-1100

May 9-12: Vegas Uncork’d by Bon Appetit, a celebration of wine, food and spirits with 24 events hosted by an array of celebrity chefs, with the highlight being The Grand Tasting at Caesars Palace on May 10. vegasuncorked.com May 11: The 13th Annual Lee’s Beer & Tequila Experience will take place at the Thomas & Mack Center at UNLV featuring unlimited tastes of more than 300 handcrafted beers and 70 tequilas. leesliquorlv.com/13th-annual-lees-beer-tequila-experience May 16: The Las Vegas Epicurean Affair, a fundraiser supporting the Nevada Restaurant Association's educational and scholarship programs, will be held at the Red Rock Resort pools, featuring many of the city’s most popular and well-regarded chefs and restaurants serving signature dishes, as well as Vegas’s top mixologists crafting classic and unique cocktails. www.nvrestaurants.com/las-vegas-epicurean-affair.html June 6: The 32nd Annual Chef’s Food Fest sponsored by the Laughlin Chamber of Commerce and held at the Aquarius Casino Resort, has the participation of all of Laughlin’s finest chefs, who will be on hand to prepare their best appetizers, entrees, desserts and drinks. laughlinchamber.com/cff June 8: The 3rd annual Hopped Taco Throwdown featuring all-youcan-eat tacos from top local restaurants and all-you-can-drink craft beer with a selection of more than 40 beers, will be held at Backyard at Zappos in Downtown Las Vegas. hoppedtaco.com

June 17-28: The Las Vegas Restaurant Week will return for its 13th installment. As in the past, more than 100 of the city’s finest restaurants will offer prix fixe menus, with a portion of each meal donated to Three Square, Southern Nevada’s only food bank. helpoutdineoutlv.org

30 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I May 2019

Ferrari-Carano Vinyards & Winery ferrari-carano.com

page 31

Audrey Dempsey Infinity Photo page 29 www.invinity-photo.com 702-837-1128

Keep Memory Alive Event Center 702-263-9797 kmaeventcenterlasvegas.com

Big Dog’s Brewing Company www.bigdogsbrews.com 702-368-3715

page 30

Jay’s Sharpening Service www.jayssharpening.com 702-645-0049

page 30

Designated Drivers, Inc. designateddriversinc.com 877-456-7433

page 30

World Tea Expo WorldTeaExpo.com

page 32

page 2

4310 W Tompkins Ave Las Vegas, NV 89103

702-645-0049

www.jayssharpening.com • customerservice@jayssharpening.com

Mobile Service Our mobile service vans provide sharpening services on-site to even the largest resort properties, without disrupting workflow.

Commercial Knife Exchange Program We furnish sharp knives to your kitchen on a weekly or biweekly rotation schedule.

Equipment Sales We offer top-of-the-line knives, culinary tools, kitchen supplies and replacement parts.

W Harmon Ave Jay’s Sharpening Service

Cutting Board Resurfacing & Replacements

Arville St

June 10-13: The 17th Annual World Tea Expo, the leading tradeshow focused on advancing the business of tea, will convene at the Las Vegas Convention Center, and will gather more than 3,000 international professionals from various industries, including grocers and retailers, coffee and tea houses, restaurants and foodservice, hotels, manufacturers, distributors and more.

WorldTeaExpo.com

page 9

Steak & Table Knife Re-Serration / Sharpening

W Tropicana Ave

www.lvfnbpro.com

CHARDONNAY SUMMER

“L s

Please enjoy our wines responsibly. ferrari-carano.com

i f t

Y

u n s h i n e

o u r

& G

G

L a s s

o o d

t

t o i m e s

”

June 10-13, 2019 | Las Vegas Convention Center

The Tea Industry Anticipates a 3-5% CAGR – Will You Miss It? World Tea Expo is Where Buyers Learn to Make BIG Margins on Tea Don’t miss the opportunity! Get top notch training at World Tea Expo 2019 straight from the experts: The Future of Tea: What Will the Industry Look Like?

Will Battle, Managing Director, Fine Tea Merchants Ltd. Today’s Trends: Beyond the Brew Christine Kapperman, Sr. Content Director, New Hope Network, Editor-in-Chief, Natural Foods Merchandiser Kombucha Tea - Boost Your Bottom Line with Functional Fermented Tea Hannah Crum, Founder, Kombucha Kamp So Many Teas and So Many Vendors - How to Select for Success!

Anupa Mueller, Owner, Eco-Prima Tea

REGISTER NOW FOR WORLD TEA EXPO 2019!

Secure your exclusive discount today.

Enter the code SPFLCN2 for $50 off the Full Conference pass for access to all these sessions and 60 more. worldteaexpo.com/register

* Discounted registration only valid with discount codes listed above. Offer not valid on existing registrations. Offer expires at midnight MDT, May 9, 2019.

All registrations are subject to business roof qualification.