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Sister Act:Maria Perry & Angie Ruvo Two Matriarchs of the Restaurant Industry of Las Vegas

February 2018 I The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional 3www.lvfnbpro.com

February 2018

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Welcome back to our February, 2018 issue of The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional and a very warm Las Vegas compared to much of the US chills! The Las Vegas food & beverage scene is heating up with new restaurant openings and upcoming major food & beverage shows, expos and events worth attending.

Not to be forgotten this Valentine’s, we have dedicated our February Cover Feature to two of Las Vegas’ sweethearts and matriarchs of the Las Vegas restaurant industry: Maria Perry, turning 101 in March, and Angie Ruvo, who turned 94 on February 1. Both have been here since the middle of the 20th century and founded two of Las Vegas’ most cherished and beloved restaurants: Venetian Ristorante and The Bootlegger. Our Editorial Director Bob Barnes had the chance to interview these two amazing ladies, so read on in the feature article.

Page 12-13 Made from Scratch by John Rockwell shows you how to win your sweetheart’s heart thru the taste buds and stomach in making St. Marcellin, the natural fondue of the cheese world. John’s step by step makes what seems a complicated process quite simple including photos all the way through.

Page 21 takes us to another way to your sweetheart’s love, thru Asian Cooking in the West and Cook Eat: Asia by Dr. Mike Matsuyama, who takes us into the procurement, cleaning, prepping and cooking methods of Asian foods and even on how to eat them. Good reading for those who want to know more!

Page 23 has our SoCal Restaurant Editor, Ben Brown, showing us how to WOW guests with beverages, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic and when and what to produce for your individual restaurant and food service outlet. Good lessons for business development in restaurants and other foodservice outlets.

Page 26 shows you another way to impress your sweetheart and Chef’s Talk by Chef Allen Asch shows us the “Spices and Other Foods You Should Incorporate for Your Health.” From common spices we use every day to the more extravagant spices and foods that are good for us. Check out what Chef Allen has researched and come up with to help us EAT a healthier life style!

CHEERS! MIKE FRYER SR. EDITOR/PUBLISHER

CONTENTS AND COMMENTSFROM THE PUBLISHER

MIKE FRYER

Cover

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Page 4Hot off the Grill!

Page 5Wine Talk“Smart” Displays: Technology Sure to Impact the Beverage Industry in the Future

Page 6 What’s Brewing

Page 7 Broads of Bourbon Scotch Isn’t the Bad Guy!

Page 8Brett’s Vegas View

Page 9Product Review

Page 10 Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen Opens at Caesars Palace

Page 11 JR Starkus Earns USBG Certified Master Mixologist Title

.Page 12Made from ScratchSt. Marcellin the Natural Fondue of the Cheese World

Page 14Twinkle ToastSomm Spotlight on Norman Acosta

Page 15Chef SpotlightChef Ronnie Rainwater

Page 16COVER FEATURE Sister Act: Angie Ruvo and Maria Perry - Two Matriarchs of the Restaurant Industry of Las Vegas

Page 18What’s Cooking

Page 20Best of the Best

Page 21 COOK•EAT: Asia Asian Cooking in the West

Page 22Human Resources Insights Employees Need Guidance, Direction and Good Examples

Page 23The Bottom Line How to Wow Your Guests with Beverages

Page 25Dining out with the Harrises Tivoli Village in Las Vegas Gears up for 2018

Page 26 Chef TalkSpices and Other Foods You Should Incorporate for Your Health

Page 27UNLV Epicurean Society

Page 28Nevada Restaurant Association What’s Hot In 2018!

Page 29USBG Las Vegas

0Events

Ad Index

4 The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional I February 2018 www.lvfnbpro.com

Juanita AielloCreative [email protected]

Bob BarnesEditorial [email protected]

Adam RainsBeverage [email protected]

February 2018

Mike Fryer Sr. Editor/Publisher

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

For any questions or comments please email [email protected]

Juanita FryerAssistant To Sr. EditorACF Chefs Liasion/[email protected]

Elaine & Scott Harris Editors at [email protected]

The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional

@lvfnb

The Las Vegas Food & Beverage Professional7442 Grizzly Giant Street

Las Vegas, NV 89139www.lvfnbpro.com

Journalist Wine Talk

Alice Swift

JournalistThe Bottom Line

Ben Brown

Accounting ManagerMichelle San Juan

Journalist Brett’s Vegas View

Jackie Brett

Journalist Best of the Best

Shelley Stepanek

Journalist UNLV Epicurean Society

Justin Leung

Journalist Made from Scratch

John Rockwell

JournalistChef SpotlightLeah Schmidt

Journalist Good for SpooningLeAnne Notabartolo

Journalist COOK•EAT: Asia

K. Mike Masuyama Ph.D.

PhotographerAudrey Dempsey

Journalist Chef Talk

Allen Asch

Journalist Al Mancini

Journalist Samuel’s Beer Picks

Samuel Merritt

JournalistsBroads of Bourbon

Mary Powers & Delilah Tennyson

JournalistUNLV Spoon University

Vincent Kwan

JournalistPat Evans

PhotographerJoe Urcioli

Journalists Twinkle Toast

Erin Cooper & Christine Vanover

Journalist Lisa Matney

Journalist HR Insights

Linda Bernstein

CONTRIBUTING STAFF

Advertising [email protected] [email protected]

Article Submissions/Suggestions [email protected] Relase Submissions [email protected]

Calendar Submissions [email protected] Information [email protected]

HOT OFF THE GRILL! SoCal Food & Beverage Professional staff Drew and Lisa Matney, pictured on the left side in the photo, recently visited Las Vegas and covered the Lip Smacking Foodie Tours “Boozy Brunch Tour” and report a great time was had by all! Look for the March issue for a full report.

On a recent tour of Caesars Forum Shops, LVF&B Pro Sr. Editor Mike Fryer caught up with Sushi Roku’s GM Johnny Seo, who had much news to share with us. For locals visiting Sushi Roku, park at the Forum Parking just off Las Vegas Blvd. and get free validation. Thanks, Johnny!

Pictured here are three members of our LVFNB Pro team: Editorial Director Bob Barnes, Creative Director Juanita Aiello and Journalist Pat Evans with the fiery Chef Gordon Ramsay at the media preview of his new Hell’s Kitchen at Caesars Palace. For a full reporting on Chef Ramsay’s fifth Vegas eatery and the first restaurant named for and inspired by the hit TV show he is most known for, see Bob’s article on page 10.


“Smart” Displays: Technology Sure to Impact the Beverage Industry in the Future

Wine Talk w i t h A l i c e S w i f t

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.

By Alice Swift

When you think of going shopping for groceries, you likely think of going to some type of market. There are many different concepts out there, from your Safeway/Vons, to Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods, or even Costco and Sam’s Club. One thing is shared from one store to the next: the product display and labeling capabilities. Most, if not all the product displays in stores are printed on paper, with key information like price, quantity, weight, price per ounce, etc. Occasionally, you might even see a brief description or even a review of some sort to supplement the bare minimum information. In some stores, I’ve even seen QR codes displayed so that shoppers can learn more about a particular product. In stores that have larger alcohol sections—stores like Total Wine & More, Lee’s Liquor, or BevMo—which are focused on alcoholic beverages, you might find some special setups on display, with the occasional LCD screen or animated display.

Enter the untapped world of “smart displays” for retail stores. And I don’t mean a single LED display that highlights a particular item that’s on special. Kroger EDGE is a new technology innovation that is rolling out in stores this year by Kroger (https://www.thekrogerco.com). You may not know them by the name Kroger, but they operate Smith’s and Quik Stop, with 50 combined stores in Nevada. In California, there are over 400 food/convenience stores through the state, with recognizable brands such as Ralphs, Food 4 Less, and Quik Stop. Kroger’s EDGE Shelving stands for “Enhanced Display for Grocery Environments,” where its digital display presents a variety of information that can change in real time. The system allows for personalized, user-centric shopper experiences. Initially, the system has been a program to aid shoppers in locating items on their pre-selected shopping lists by having shelf zones light up so they know where they are going. From the staff perspective, store employees can re-stock products on shelves more efficiently with the EDGE displays indicating locations of items.Currently it is piloting in just a few stores, and customers must use Kroger’s proprietary devices in order to use Kroger EDGE. Eventually, the system will be operable through iOS and Android devices. By the end of 2018, Kroger plans to say farewell to those traditional printed labels and price tags and roll out Kroger EDGE to 200 stores! Soon enough, those paper labels and price tags will be replaced with state

of the art digital displays whose price tags, labels, nutritional info, advertisements, etc. can be changed quickly and efficiently. So, why have I chosen to write about this technology when it does not service the beverage industry specifically? After reading through the information on Kroger EDGE, when I think of the possibilities, there is so much potential for this technology to be an integral part of beverage sales and marketing. In the future, this technology could be taken to the next level by highlighting special products based on user’s preferences, making recommendations based on purchases. But how about for the wine lover? What about personalizing a shopper experience by suggesting a wine or other beverage that would pair well with a particular brand of pasta sauce? Beyond being a marketing tool that displays advertisements, the display could essentially provide recommendations like “digital” sommelier. Of course, it would never replace a sommelier role in a restaurant, but in a grocery store, giving a shopper a personalized experience full of recommendations based on former purchases has a great deal of potential. The possibilities are endless! To take a look at a video introducing Kroger EDGE, go to: https://vimeo.com/206137289.I look forward to seeing the rollout of these “smart” displays and what the future brings.Until next time, Cheers~!

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By Bob Barnes

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: [email protected]

what’s BREWING

Las Vegas isn’t known for beer. In fact, the city holds a downright rotten reputation when it comes to beer. The lack of respect much of the rest of the country holds for Las Vegas, and Nevada beer is a shame, really, because in reality the beer industry here is beautiful, albeit smaller and on the backburner than in many other communities. I’ve spent the last five months discovering the Nevada beer scene and have been pleasantly surprised at the revelation of an innovative, creative and superb group of brewers. In August, I was preparing to move across the country from Grand Rapids, Michigan. I had put in my four week notice as a reporter at the region’s business journal and was saying goodbye to my many sources. As a reporter, I spent quite a bit of time on West Michigan’s sizeable beer industry and even wrote a book on the subject, Grand Rapids Beer. Those two facts made many of my goodbye meetings take place over a beer or several. Multiple times people apologized to me, sorry I was moving from a place known worldwide for its beer—Grand Rapids twice had won a poll as Beer City, USA and been named Best Beer Town by USA Today, not to mention it’s home to Founders Brewing Co., one of the largest breweries in the nation and fastest growing—to a city they all had deemed void of a beer scene.I knew of a few breweries, namely I had seen Joseph James Brewing Co. at a Great American Beer Festival in the past. But the only previous time I’d been to Las Vegas, in 2013, we were relegated mostly to the Strip and the lack of tasty beer was noticeable. The Strip is a major curse when it comes to the beer reputation of Las Vegas, though it’s getting better. When any one of those number of people who warned me of a beer desert as I prepared to leave Grand Rapids, the only real experience they had in the city was the Strip. The same goes for a legion of beer friends and media I spoke with at the Great American Beer Fest in October, a month after I had moved here. The Strip has historically not been known for its beer, instead offering free light beers with restaurants focused on the high-end world of wine and spirits. Thankfully, the trend of beer is putting pressure on the city’s main

attraction. You see places like Beerhaus and Robert Irvine’s Public House supplying lengthy lists of notable beers from around the country and right here in Las Vegas.The idea of a socioeconomic ladder of beverages is slowly diminishing. I’ve chatted with chefs across the country about the barriers of pairing food coming down and wanting to conceptualize meals where each course can be paired with a beer, wine or cocktail—or even coffee. Straight wine and beer dinners are great of course, but a true beverage lover can easily glide from one to the next over the course of a two-hour dinner.Those effects are now showing their face on the Strip, so far as I can tell, so I’m not sure what those people were speaking of when they warned me of a lack of beer. Now that I’m in Las Vegas, I see not only a glut of great California beers—seriously with Nevada’s proximity to the best beer state in the country, really not sure what those people were thinking—and a high concentration of great breweries here, I’ve not been disappointed. I was recently chatting with Clyde Burney, VP of Beer and Trade Development at Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits, about the local breweries in Las Vegas. Clyde related that the ratio of award-winning breweries in Las Vegas compared to other cities has to be out of whack. He pointed out that whether it’s Big Dog’s Brewing Co., Joseph James Brewing Co. or PT’s Brewing Co. you’re drinking beer from brewers who have won multiple Great American Beer Festival medals. That’s not to mention Tenaya Creek Brewing Co. or Lovelady Brewing Co., or Hop Nuts Brewing Co., Bad Beat or CraftHaus.Other than Founders and a few other large breweries, most are declining in sales. Beer continues to go more local and cities across the country are onboard and Las Vegas, despite perceptions from the outside, is making beer with the best of them. It’s too bad the beer trend of local will negate the likelihood Las Vegas breweries will go much further than Nevada’s borders, because they’re lovely beers.Most of Las Vegas’ breweries are making beer I would gladly serve those friends from back home in Grand Rapids and say, “See what you’re missing out on.”

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As always, great beer happens in Vegas!

Editor’s Note: This month we invited established beer journalist and book author Pat Evans, who recently joined our LVFNBPro writing staff, to guest host our monthly beer column with his take on his relocation to Las Vegas from Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Pat Evans

Charlie Papazian, Sam McKinney, Kurt Wiesner, Beau McDonald, Amanda Koeller, Tylere Pascual, and Dave Pascual accepting GABF medal.


By Mary Powers & Delilah Tennyson

Mary Powers and Delilah Tennyson are a couple of whiskey enthusiasts from Las Vegas, NV known for their

humoristic and unconventional whiskey reviews on YouTube. They are

the ladies of Broads of [email protected]

Instagram: @broadsofbourbonYoutube: @broadsofbourbonFacebook: @bourbonbroads

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We’ve all been there. That predictable moment at the bar when someone from the group orders a shot that like it or not, you’re expected to take. Maybe it was a Kamikaze, a Fireball or maybe your pretentious lawyer friend decided to ruin everyone’s night and ordered a shot of that run-of-the-mill well Scotch. Yeah, pretty sure that didn’t end well, and even if it did, we’re confident that you decided right then and there that Scotch was disgusting and that you’d leave it to the old men and your horribly inconsiderate lawyer friend (probably more of an acquaintance at this point) to enjoy on their den recliners in solitude. Frankly, we can’t really blame you; we were amongst those that swore off the Scotch stuff forever. If Scotch ever came knocking on our door asking for another chance holding a bouquet of flowers and a couple of Redbox movie rentals, we’d say no!Scotch whisky has gained a bad reputation over the years with the younger generations. Partly because many of which are used to different whisk(e)y varieties such as: Jack Daniels (Tennessee), Jim Beam (Bourbon), Crown Royal (Canadian) and Fireball (Sweet Fire Piss). These are all related on the whisk(e)y spectrum, but it all comes down to specific rules that govern the ingredients and aging that make each variety unique. Scotch is made in five different regions of Scotland: the Highlands, Lowlands, Islay, Cambeltown and Speyside. There are: single malt, single grain, blended malt, blended grain and blended scotch whisky. Flavor profiles can range from grassy and floral to nutty and spicy

all the way to peaty and briny. There is a lot going on with each Scotch depending on where it hails from. Walk in to any old bar and the Scotch selection will usually be comprised of a blended Dewar’s White Label or a blended Johnny Walker Red. There never really is much variety, and of the few that are showcased most whisk(e)y drinkers will turn the other cheek when someone suggests drinking Scotch because of that one short balding lawyer acquaintance that decided to order straight shots of Scotch for everyone. Super peaty scotches just don’t mesh well with a lot of palates, but what people need to realize is that not all Scotch whiskies are created equal. Yes, there are actually Scotches out there that you’d enjoy sipping neat without gagging; it’s just about finding a region that resonates with a flavor profile you agree with. We’ve decided to nudge a few of you into a particular direction in hopes that perhaps you will be open to giving Scotch another chance.When considering what Scotches to try, we’re going to point you in the direction of the Speyside region. This specific region is known to have Scotches that aren’t peated or particularly salted. This leaves you with a lighter, delicate and sweeter dram aged with balance. These also won’t break the bank if you decide to make a full bottle purchase.1. Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Year Old–Single

Malt-more of a bourbon character, the taste pulls vanilla, dried fruit, nuts, spice and a

very slight hint of peat (we know we said no peat, but it blends well). First aged in refill American oak casks then finished in first fill European oak Sherry casks, hence, the DoubleWood namesake.

2. SIA-Blended Scotch Whisky–Comprised of 50% Speyside, 40% Highlands and 10% Islay (40% malt/60% grain). The idea behind this Scotch was to appeal to a lighter palate and the flavor definitely delivers. Vanilla is a lovely lingering flavor note, complemented by citrus, honey and caramel with just a hint of smoke (we know we said no smoke, but it works, trust us).

3. The MacCallan 12 Year–Single Malt–this is a smooth one. The fruit and sherry come forward while balancing with spice and a tad of smoke (non-peated). The finish is long and complements of cinnamon. Known as the “gateway drug” for beginning Scotch drinkers.

These three will steer hesitant whisk(e)y enthusiasts in the right direction. All offering slightly different flavor profiles for Speyside, and you can get a taste of what the lighter Scotches have to offer and gradually move up the hierarchy of the region with more expensive offerings. This is a great segway to experimenting with some of the surrounding regions such as the Highlands, which will give you four new sub regions to experience before diving into more of the intense offerings. Here’s to discovering something new to drink.

Broads of BOURBONScotch Isn’t the Bad Guy!


ENTERTAINMENT SPOTLIGHT

Lady Gaga will launch a two-year, multi-date residency at the Park Theater at Park MGM in December 2018. Aerosmith will have a residency late in 2018. Earth, Wind & Fire will debut a limited-residency at The Venetian in May.Charlie Puth will bring his The Voicenotes Tour celebrating his new album to the Pearl at the Palms Sunday, Aug. 12. Matt Goss is headlining an extended engagement at The Mirage inside 1 OAK Nightclub. Starting Feb. 9, he is performing every Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Renegades is a new interactive show inside Cleopatra’s Barge at Caesars Palace hosted by comedian Martin Montana with three sports stars rotating every three months.Veteran magician Seth Grabel, an America’s Got Talent finalist, has a 4 p.m. hour-long, sleight-of-hand show at Tahiti Village every Sunday. Jarrett and Raja’s magic show and the World’s Greatest Rock Show tribute concert both closed at the Stratosphere. CIRCUS 1903–The Golden Age of Circus ended its run at Paris.Britney Spears closed her outstanding residency at Axis at Planet Hollywood. Jennifer Lopez will close her run there in September.Famed illusionist Criss Angel’s final date at the Luxor will be Oct. 28, which finishes his 10-year contract. Hakkasan Group renewed partnership with Grammy Award-winning artist Zedd extending his residency through 2020. Hip-hop artist Ty Dolla $ign has an exclusive live residency at Drai’s atop The Cromwell several times in 2018 including Feb. 2 and March 2. Incubus rescheduled show dates at The Joint at Hard Rock will be Feb. 2-3 and March 30-31. Frontman Brandon Boyd has a large-scale display of fine art prints on view through 2018.Shakira’s El Dorado World Tour Feb. 10 date at the MGM Grand Garden Arena has been moved to Sept. 1 while she rests her vocal chords.

“One Night for One Drop,” a philanthropic production created to benefit global safe water programs, will be held Friday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m. at Mandalay Bay.

DINING NEWSLate this fall, Los Angeles culinary legend Roy Choi will debut a Koreatown-inspired concept restaurant within the transformation of Monte Carlo into Park MGM. Located off the casino floor, the Tropicana will debut an all-new restaurant concept, Red Lotus Asian Kitchen, early this year.The newest dinner experience at the Suncoast is Peng Zu showcasing Asian favorites in a contemporary atmosphere.Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer has opened its newest location and first U.S. expansion beyond New York at The Venetian adjacent to the poker room.

Chef-owner James Trees has opened his hometown neighborhood restaurant Esther’s Kitchen in the Las Vegas Arts District downtown grounded in the ingredient-driven cuisine of Italy. Alexxa’s opened inside Paris. The upscale modern bar connects to HEXX kitchen + bar and introduces a sangria-focused element, small dishes and live music. Rosina is a new luxurious refined 65-seat cocktail retreat with an Art Deco-flair at The Palazzo. The most innovative feature is a “Champagne Call Button.” Two restaurants closed after New Year’s Eve: Emeril Lagasse’s Table 10 at the Grand Canal Shoppes due to The Palazzo’s casino floor remodel, and Alizé at the Palms because of the resort retooling its restaurant lineup under new ownership.Claim Jumper, formerly McCormick’s & Schmick’s located in Howard Hughes Center, closed without notice after being open about three months. The Halo Bar at Miracle Mile Shops at the entrance of Planet Hollywood is closed.Carson Kitchen downtown has a new executive chef, Scott Simon, brother of the late Kerry Simon who created the restaurant.

ABOUT TOWN CLIPSA new VOID Experience Center will open at the Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian/Palazzo featuring the hyper-reality experience Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire. Jason Egan, who founded Fright Dome at Circus Circus, in partnership with Lionsgate opened the first immersive horror experience themed for the Saw film franchise in a 30,000-square-foot building just off the Strip.Major renovations at The Westin transformed the property into the newest nongaming, non-smoking option with the casino floor removed to make way for Jake & Eli restaurant and lobby bar as well as new and upgraded meeting spaces.

The Rolling Stones’ “Exhibitionism” has been extended at The Palazzo through Feb. 25.Lucky Dragon Hotel and Casino just one-year old temporarily closed all gaming and most restaurants leaving the 203 rooms, gift shop and Cha Garden restaurant and bar open and is heading for foreclosure.Tuscany on East Flamingo Ave. has completed a $5 million renovation of 716 suites.Boyd Gaming properties each have a jumbo kylin lantern on display to promote the first time China Lights festival being held at Craig Ranch through Feb. 25 nightly except Mondays from 5:30-10 p.m.The 2018 Jay Cutler Desert Classic competition will be held inside The Pearl at the Palms Saturday, March 31 with 10:30 a.m. prejudging and 6:30 p.m. finals. Four-time Mr. Olympia Jay Cutler will attend both. Home to the only bingo room downtown, the Plaza will host six Super Bingo tournaments in 2018, each offering higher jackpots beginning Feb. 11-13. CAI Investments is building a new multi-million dollar development project scheduled to open mid-2018 next door to the Palms with retail and restaurant space. MGM Resorts International is bringing live competitive gaming and eSports tournaments to Level Up on Fridays and Saturdays from 4-10 p.m.

Brett’s By Jackie BrettJackie 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: [email protected]

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Pata Negra Cava Brut RoséSparkling wine sales continue to climb, and according to a study conducted by IRi Worldwide in 2017, sparkling beverages comprise 10% of the total wine market, with yearly sales increasing at an average of $100 million. Newly arrived in the United States, Pata Negra cavas (cava is Spain’s sparkling wine offering) are produced in Barcelona at a winery dating back to 1647 located atop a hill that slopes gently toward the Mediterranean Sea. The super-premium cavas are produced using the traditional champagne method and fermented in the bottle, which yields a higher quality wine that sparkles with its own natural and finer bubbles. The Brut Rosé I sampled is a blend of 80% Trepat and 20% Pinot Noir and pours a beautiful strawberry color with aromas of red berries and pomegranate. Elegant bubbles tickle the palate, enhancing fruity flavors, while further developing a long and sophisticated finish. Suggested pairings are almonds, cheese, light salads, and Asian cuisines.Pata Negra Cava is part of the J. Garcia Carrion portfolio, a fifth-generation enterprise that began in Spain more than 125 years ago. www.garciacarrion.com

Don Ciccio & Figli Donna Rosa Rabarbaro I’ve always loved the flavor of rhubarb but never imagined having it infused into a liqueur. Until now, that is. The Washington D.C.-based distillery Don Ciccio & Figli has relaunched its Donna Rosa Rabarbaro, a rhubarb liqueur in an aperitivo style. Made from a recipe dating to 1896, it’s a nod to the original Don Ciccio & Figli Distillery, which produced liqueurs on Italy’s Amalfi Coast for nearly a century. This version is barrel aged for 12 months in 250-liter French oak barrels provided by Marisa Cuomo Winery on the Amalfi Coast. The 20% ABV aperitivo is based on an infusion of three types of rhubarb roots from around the world, honeysuckle, rose petals from California and 17 selected botanicals including rose, rhubarb, chamomile, bitter orange and quassia. My take on this cordial is the mélange of flavors nicely balances sweetness with a gentle bitterness.donciccioefigli.com/amaro-donna-rosa

Stone/Lost Abbey Sticks n’ StonesStone Brewing should be known as the collaborator-in-chief, for it has participated in more partnerships with other breweries than any other I can think of. In the case of this beer, three key Stone brewers gathered together with a longtime friend, the legendary Lost Abbey Brewmaster Tomme Arthur, at the new Stone brewery in Berlin and came up with a beer to be representative of Stone’s presence in Germany. No one who knows anything about Stone should be too surprised that they also decided to depart from tradition by brewing an imperial dark pilsner finished on wood chips (“sticks”) and aged in granite barrels, using a German lager yeast strain. Brewed on November 14, the 8.3% ABV brew comes out of the glass soft and mellow and fairly easy-drinking with dark caramel notes derived from the darker malts used. As they say in Germany, Prost!www.stonebrewing.com/beer/stone-berlin-groundbreaking-collaborations/lost-abbey-stone-sticks-n-stones

Product ReviewBy Bob Barnes


By Bob Barnes

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.


Gordon Ramsay continues to spread his restaurant empire and local footprint, as his Hell’s Kitchen, the first restaurant named for and inspired by the hit TV show he is most known for, debuted last month at Caesars Palace. This marks his fifth Vegas restaurant and is perhaps his most over-the-top yet. It seems no expense was spared for the 8,000-square-foot themed concept and the HK initials and signature pitchfork located pretty much everywhere in the décor and even engraved in the glassware and seafood tower dishes, is brilliant. Located on the Strip-side outside of the resort atop the former space of Serendipity 3, large flames greet you as you walk up and as you enter you can’t miss a gallery of Hell’s Kitchen winners from the past 16 seasons. Once you get into the restaurant the branding of the famed TV show continues, with an open plan kitchen under bright lights illuminating two teams of chefs wearing the exact uniforms from the show: red and blue jackets with coordinating bandanas. But unlike on the TV show, the chefs are not competing, but faithfully tending to their own stations. Ramsay claims the restaurant is an exact replica of the TV show set with “great food, drama and a real restaurant functioning under pressure.” A bonus is the stunning view of the Vegas Strip compliments of floor-to-ceiling windows. During a media preview on January 25 Chef Ramsay visited with each table chatting about his new digs. He commented on the extremely visible kitchen and the rationale for literally putting his chefs in the spotlight: “When you are

cooking live in front of an audience you raise your game.” Heading up the opening team are two chefs who are not new to town: executive chef Jennifer Murphy, who has cooked at the Eiffel Tower Restaurant at Paris, Michael Mina and Prime at Bellagio and L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon at MGM Grand; and Hell’s Kitchen season 10 winner Christina Wilson, who helmed the kitchens at Gordon Ramsay Steak at Paris and Gordon Ramsay Burger in Planet Hollywood before being named top executive of Ramsay’s US restaurant empire. Once the winner of season 17 of Hell’s Kitchen is crowned, the winning chef will assume the head chef role of the new restaurant.It should come as no surprise that gracing the menu are two dishes Ramsay is best known for: Beef Wellington and Sticky Toffee Pudding; and the dish he most commonly chastises chefs on the show for not making properly and dumping their hard work into the trash: Risotto. The version here is enhanced with butter-poached lobster, butternut squash and fried sage leaves. We got to try these three pleasures, but also a delightful Golden Beet Salad with Greek yogurt, kumquats, pistachio granola and white balsamic vinaigrette. This dish was so outstanding it prompted a discussion at the table about how we all hated beets as children, as our mothers would just plop the unadorned root vegetable onto our plates straight out of a can. One of the featured cocktails we enjoyed was the

Notes from Gordon with infused green tea, gin and lemon juice, but the highlight was the rolled up note it was garnished with, actual words Ramsay has said on the famed TV show. (Mine said, “This chicken is so raw, it can still lay an egg.”) Judging from the excellence we experienced at the media preview and a testament to the popularity of the multi-Michelin star chef and television personality that nearly 25,000 guests had logged reservations for the new eatery by opening night, it would appear that Hell’s Kitchen is off to a rocking good start.For more info and to view the complete menu, visit www.caesars.com/caesars-palace/restaurants/hells-kitchen.

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Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen Opens at Caesars Palace

“Notes from Gordon” - the tasty cocktail

complete with a snarky comment from

Gordon Ramsay


JR Starkus, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada Director of Mixology Trade Development, has earned the USBG Certified Master Mixologist title, the highest level of certification by the United States Bartenders’ Guild. JR, along with Armando Rosario, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits Director of Mixology Florida & National Accounts, are the first to be granted this title under this prestigious program. The certification required submitting a thesis graded by the MA committee. In JR’s thesis titled “The Great Lime Juice Debate: Same Day Juice Isn’t Always Necessary” he reported on using the palates of 200 random consumers from 15 states and 3 countries who resoundingly preferred cocktails made with 3-day old lime juice vs same-day. Background on the USBG Master Accreditation ProgramIn July of 2009 The United States Bartenders’ Guild (USBG), a non-profit organization founded in 1948, launched the USBG Master Accreditation Program, a 3-tiered bartender certification program for bartenders. The curriculum was designed by some of the most important visionaries from the bartending world, most notably Tony Abou Ganim, Livio Lauro, Dale Degroff and Francesco Lafranconi, among others, to teach beverage history, industry techniques and standards.

JR Starkus Earns USBG Certified Master Mixologist Title

photo by Audrey Dempsey • Infinity Photo

USBG Examination Levels and Requirements:

USBG SPIRITS PROFESSIONAL (SP)A 100-question written exam regarding history, production and styles of all alcoholic beverages.

USBG ADVANCED BARTENDER (AB)A 150-question written exam regarding in-depth knowledge on history, production and styles of all alcoholic beverages.A practical exam made of 5 rigorous modules including: Blind Tasting, Craft Bartending, Speed Bartending, Bar Management and Competition-Style Bartending.

USBG MASTER MIXOLOGIST™ (MM) Submitting a thesis that has been positively graded by the MA committee.

Armando Rosario

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By John Rockwell

John Rockwell is a native Southern Californian and career English teacher working in the Riverside area.

In his spare time, he rides his bicycle to breweries, restaurants, and cheese shops, and is always looking for

culinary delights within riding distance of the vast network of SoCal bicycle trails.

He is an ardent fan of the waiver theater culture in Los Angeles. He is new to cheesemaking, but has

been a homebrewer for over twenty years.

Made from SCRATCHSt. Marcellin the Natural Fondue of the Cheese World

In my cheese journey over the past year, I have encountered many new flavors and textures, and have learned to appreciate them. I discovered a few of them as accidents that occurred in my home cheese laboratory. That first Camembert I made with the “wrong” mold, it turns out, was a variation of a Brevibacterium linens “stinky” cheese—something I now actively seek when selecting fine cheeses. It smelled so odd that I didn’t imagine it was edible, but it clearly was.

I used that “failed” batch in Italian sauces, but today I’d just saw off a chunk and eat it.I have become such a fan of Brie, Camembert, and Reblochon (washed-rind stinky cheese) that I believe I have Penicillium candidum and B. Linens floating around freely in my cheese refrigerators. I think this because a few rounds of Blue cheese I made started to grow this white mold once I scraped away the blue mold. When

white mold metabolizes and grows, it leaves chemicals in the curd that softens it—this is why Bries become softer over time, and other soft-ripened cheeses become so creamy. P. Candidum will do the same thing to Blue cheese if you let it, and inadvertently I did—another “mistake.” But this time, I decided to embrace this error—I put it in a porcelain Brie container, removed the mold cap, and served it like a Blue cheese dip. It was a delightful, though unconventional way to consume it.In the cheese world, there are highly-sought-after washed-rind cheeses that are great in their solid state, but eventually get so runny that they can be used as dip. Seasonal cheeses like Jasper Hill’s Willoughby and Harbison, Upland Cheese’s Rush Creek Reserve and the Swiss Vacherin Mont D’Or are prime examples, and if you can acquire some at your local cheesemonger’s store, you are in for a treat. These cheeses are wrapped in spruce bark because once they are ripe enough, all one needs to do is remove the mold cap and a ready-made “bowl” of sublime cheese dip is ready for your artisan bread.Recently Vermont Creamery, famous for its award-winning mixed-milk Cremont and its ash-rind, goat-based Bonne Bouche (an homage to a Bucheron log) released a cheese called St. Albans in a little stone crock. Murray’s Cheese has a similar version (found in select Ralph’s or Smith’s supermarkets) called St. Mark’s. Andante Dairy in Petaluma makes one called pianoforte. These cheeses are so delicate they will eventually reach a creamy, runny state at room temperature. Slip them in the oven for a few minutes, and you’ll have a warm fondue. I

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Because of the fragile nature of St. Marcellin curds, St. Marcellin molds are enclosed at the bottom, unlike Brie molds. Because the smaller size is so convenient, I have begun making Brie in this size as well.

Vermont Creamery is well-known for its mixed-milk cheeses, but their lovely St. Albans uses cow milk and is sold in a stone crock.

Mistake or discovery? After suppressing the blue mold on this blue cheese, the white mold took over and turned this round into a creamy cheese at room temperature. It was delicious!

Every cheesemaker needs a curd scoop for transferring curds to the plastic molds. I use a food-grade kitchen scoop, but I cut the handle in half so it will easily fit into my cheese vat.

As the curds lose whey, they settle into these containers. With a strongly-set Brie, this process can take 30 minutes, but with the soft St. Marcellin curds, it took about two hours.


found out that these cheeses are an homage to a cow’s milk style called St. Marcellin, named for the region in France that is officially allowed to produce it. If you make your own St. Marcellin, you will have to come up with your own name.The process for making St. Marcellin is slightly different from the one for making Brie. Based on how it looks—the “brainy” textured surface—it is apparently a cheese that makes use of the Geotrichum Candidum mold. G. Candidum is usually associated with goat milk cheese because the vegetal odors developed as the cheese ages match the sometimes meaty “barnyard” flavors found in goat cheese. However, traditional St. Marcellin is a cow’s milk cheese, and the G. Candidum contributes some savory wildness to the final product. When I researched the recipe, I found that my cheesemaking book recommends using a mixture of both types of Candidum mold.

At the curd-level, this cheese is formed almost exactly like a Brie, except in smaller, ramekin-sized plastic containers. But how does this cheese ripen to the point where its natural state is a runny thick cream? The trick is in the curdling process: instead of a 1.5 hour curd rest at 85 degrees, with St. Marcellin you add the culture, mold and rennet, and then let it rest at 72 degrees for 12-18 hours. This makes the curd extremely fragile and difficult to work with, but it is essential developing acidic whey to break down the curds, which eventually will soften the ripened cheese. This natural souring also contributes to the final flavor of the cheese. The curds look (and taste) like yogurt, and take considerably longer to set up than Brie. It took me over two hours to fill the molds despite the fact that I first drained them in a large stainless steel, cheesecloth-lined strainer. After the molds are filled, they are flipped every six hours for the next 24 hours.

When I made my own St. Marcellin (named St. Barnes), I decided to take some artistic license and use a blend of cow and goat milk. I also ash-ripened half of the rounds. Food-grade vegetable ash (which can be purchased from cheesemaking suppliers) invites in blue mold and aids in ripening the cheese a little more rapidly than mold alone. Soon the salty exterior of my St. Barnes grew mold and after a couple of weeks, I placed them into porcelain ramekins. After a few more weeks, they looked a little rough, and with that ash, they had plenty of signs of aging on the outside. Inside, St. Barnes was soft and luscious, just the way it should be. The first few rounds I shared needed some heating, but as it aged, it got softer and better. Since this cheese is becoming more popular, you should definitely pick up a round the next time you are in one of the fancier SoCal grocery stores.

When this cheese goes into the cheese storage (a wine cooler kept at about 52 degrees), it is still fairly soft. After being salted, it must be turned every day to keep the cheese dry and to keep it from growing into the bamboo mat.

About three weeks into production, the rounds are placed into ceramic ramekins. The cheese will continue its ripening there. To slow down the ripening process, just cover them with plastic and place in a normal cold refrigerator.

As St. Marcellin settles, it knits together and takes shape. These are flipped in their molds every six hours about six times—yes, that’s a whole day of flipping cheese at flavor-developing room temperature.

Fully matured St. Barnes—my name for my St. Marcellin since technically I cannot name it by its French appellation. By now it shows definite signs of aging—wrinkles, and dark “age spots” where the ash has grown some blue mold.

On the outside, my St. Barnes (my name for this cheese) looks old and wrinkly, so the mold cap is removed to reveal the luscious and soft cheese inside.

At room temperature, my St. Barnes works just fine as a cold fondue, but because it is in a porcelain ramekin, it can be heated for a few minutes in a hot oven or for a few seconds in the microwave.

About a day into cold storage, I cover about half of the rounds with food-grade vegetable ash, which aids in ripening and introduces some spicy blue flavors into the mix. Other cheesemakers have used everything from chili powder to paprika to add interesting flavors and ripening textures.

Nearly a couple of weeks in, after mold growth is well underway, the cheese is getting too soft to remain on the mats, so I store them in plastic cereal bowls. They are turned at least once every 24 hours.


By Erin Cooper & Christine VanoverErin 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.

[email protected] • www.twinkletoast.comFacebook: @TwinkleToast

Twitter: TwinkleToastLVInstagram: TwinkleToastLV

Twinkle ToastSomm Spotlight on Norman Acosta

Norman Acosta is Lead Sommelier at Bavette’s Steakhouse & Bar located in Monte Carlo Las Vegas Resort & Casino. Acosta has worked in the Las Vegas food and beverage industry for the past 13 years, and is thrilled to have been given the opportunity to help shape the wine program at such an exciting new restaurant on the Strip. Join us as we shine a spotlight on his path to success, and get better acquainted with the man behind the wine list. How did you first become interested in wine?Attending the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco was when I started to experience and appreciate wine as much more than an alcoholic beverage. I became fascinated in learning more about it.

What accreditations do you have within the industry, and which have you found to be the most difficult to attain?I have a certification from The Sake Education Council but as for now, attaining the Advanced Sommelier certification from the Court of Master Sommeliers has been the most challenging.

What was your initial reaction when you were told that you would be running your own wine program on the Las Vegas Strip?Excited! Having spent years working with some of my colleagues in town, it was a great feeling to realize that I’ll be up for a new and different set of challenges and responsibilities that come along with the position.

What most excites you about the wine program at Bavette’s Steakhouse & Bar? The size of the wine list! I initially had a perception that this wine program would require, at the least, 500 selections. Getting to learn the philosophy and culture behind Hogsalt Hospitality and what it brings to Las Vegas, managing a wine list of around 200 selections has definitely become, for me, the highlight of the program.

What is the most interesting, or your favorite, wine pairing with their menu? I think both of these pairings meet the interesting and favorite category, so I’ll give you two: - Peppered Duck & Goat Cheese Terrine

served with warm buttered sourdough

toast and apricot mostarda paired with a Pinot Noir from any region

- Double-Bone Berkshire Pork Chop served with a citrus herb butter jus, topped with seasonal mushrooms paired with a Smaragd Gruner Veltliner

If you had to choose one wine to describe your personality on the floor at work and one to describe your personality relaxing at home, what would they be?At work: A Bordeaux blend from Red Mountain AVA in WA; the wine displays great color in the glass, is bold, structured and yet balanced in all its components.At home: A Kabinett Riesling; easy drinking with lively acidity and a little residual sugar once in a while ;)

Where do you see yourself 5 years from now?In building upon the experiences and gained knowledge from the next 5 years, I see myself taking what I’ve learned and applying them to newer or more challenging opportunities within the wine industry.

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Chef SpotlightChef Ronnie Rainwater

You’ve been here 19 years; it seems like most chefs bounce around a lot…Yea, in the culinary world you don’t stick in one spot for many years, but we actually have a lot of employees that have been with the group longer than I have.

So what’s kept you here? Just always being able to move forward, opportunities within the group. I had the opportunity to move to Atlanta in 2003 to open Emeril’s Atlanta, then the opportunity to move back. There’s always been growth, even though it’s been in the same group. There’s always been that opportunity to grow.

What’s it like working under Emeril? Is he as animated as we see?It’s awesome. He’s very charismatic, very passionate about the restaurants, the business, food and taking care of people. It’s a good driving force for us and it’s easy to follow that and mimic that the best you can.

You mentioned your grandmother’s southern influence. What else have you picked up along the way? It started there and honestly when I made the move to Vegas and further back made the move to go to culinary school, is when the Food Network wave started. You’d see chefs like Emeril on television and seeing that side of it. Then going to culinary school, the momentum kept going. My passion continued, whereas a lot of people once they get to the professional side and it’s not a hobby, it’s maybe not for them. I feel like I’m still riding the wave a little bit. Seeing Vegas when I first moved here to Vegas now, it’s like wow. The change is unbelievable.

There are a lot of steakhouses on the Strip, and Delmonico is 19 years old. How do you keep relevant?Our backbone, what we opened with, was USDA Prime, in-house aged, hand-cut steaks. Going back to when we first opened, Emeril’s probably was one of the first celebrity chefs to have that steakhouse, so in a way it was pioneering the celebrity chef steakhouse. To this day we still do the same thing. As time has evolved and food has evolved, we’ve broadened our steak options, whether it’s over the top 100 percent Japanese Wagyu to adding an Italian Piedmontese beef. Seasonality, we’ve always had that philosophy. Sourcing local, which is more relevant in Vegas than it used to be. We always try to look for what’s fresh, what’s new, but sticking to what got us here.

You really like simplicity, which seems a bit understated… Especially in this town, where everything is big and grand. I just tend to…maybe because I’m not very smart, I don’t know…but I tend to think if you’re sourcing great ingredients, you don’t have to do too much. Treat them right, handle them right, cook them properly. It’s amazing what salt and pepper can do, and proper technique. I am just a simple person, simple technique; sometimes people want to do the big grand thing, and that’s OK too.

What’s your go-to item on the menu?I’m a ribeye guy. Our ribeye is one of the best in town for sure. That’s where we started. It’s something we have to manage, it’s not just throw into the fridge and here it is. We take a lot of time and care to showcase the dry-aged beef.

Where do you drink and eat?I love cooking at home. It’s relaxing to me to be able to have a glass of wine while I’m cooking. I don’t get to do that cooking here. I have children, so that time is what’s important to me. When I do go out, I try to appreciate the time. Most recently I was at Bazaar Meat, had a great meal. I like simple things, sometimes as simple as getting a burger at In-N-Out with my kids and just watching football.

Ronnie Rainwater is set to celebrate his 19th year with Emeril Lagasse’s restaurant group, most of which have been spent at Delmonico Steakhouse within The Venetian, where he started a month after the hotel and restaurant opened in 1999. Growing up with his grandmother’s southern cooking, Rainwater followed food to culinary school and is still riding the wave of passion as chef de cuisine at Delmonico.

By Pat EvansPat 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: @patevansInstagram: @patrickmevans


Early YearsMaria and Angie grew up in the early part of the 20th century in Fort William, Ontario, Canada, near Niagara Falls, just across from the US border. They both learned to cook at a very early age and Angie remembers her grandma Maria admonishing her that she better learn to cook, so she could one day get married and cook for her husband. Like many youngsters at the time, they walked to school in the snow, but unlike most others, Maria’s involvement in the restaurant industry began at the early age of nine years old. As her grandparents Luigi and Maria Zoia, ran a boarding house, on a nightly basis she helped prepare dinners but also baked pies and cakes every Saturday and sold them to the boarders for 25 cents each.Moving to Las VegasMaria headed west first, for her husband Al, who she married in 1936, had developed rheumatic fever. She relates his doctor said, “You’ve got to get this boy out to the desert, because if he stays here he’s not going to make it.” As sick as he was, Maria remembers Al driving the whole way across the country with their baby daughter, Lorraine, and Al’s teenage sister in December, 1943. When they left it was snowing and when they arrived four days later, the sun was shining and people were dressed in shorts, and they

Sister Act: Two Matriarchs of the Restaurant Industry of Las Vegas

Maria Perry andAngie Ruvo

Two sisters who have lived in Las Vegas longer than most residents have been alive present an intriguing story about both the early days of Las Vegas and the development of our food and beverage industry. The two siblings are none other than Maria Perry (turning 101 in March) and Angie Ruvo (turned 94 on February 1), who came to town in the middle of the 20th century and founded two of Las Vegas’ most cherished and beloved restaurants: the Venetian Ristorante and The Bootlegger. Here is their inspiring and fascinating story and what paths led them to become the matriarchs of our city’s culinary industry.

By Bob Barnes | Cover and feature photo by Audrey Dempsey • Infinity Photo

Maria Perry and Angie Ruvo

Al & Maria Perry and Angie & Lou Ruvo


thought they had died and gone to heaven! She also recalls that at that time the population was only 8,000 and there were only a few casinos and other than a few populated neighborhoods there was desert everywhere. Soon after arriving Maria found work at the old Sal Sagev on Fremont Street, working with a chef named Domenic Piscatelli, who grew to appreciate her epicurean abilities and later brought her along to his new job at the Fiesta Villa Ristorante on the Strip, where they served the likes of Bugsy Siegel, Howard Hughes, Clark Gable, Jane Russell, Clara Bow and other Hollywood legends. Maria would soon take over Piscatelli’s job, as she relates he liked to gamble a bit too much and he delegated more and more of his duties to her. She adjusted the recipes, making dishes her way, and it turned out the customers liked her food better.A Love Story and a Coincidence that Can Only Be FateAngie Ruvo first met her husband Lou at a dance in Niagara Falls in the early 1940s. After he left and went off to defend our country in World War II they lost touch and she figured he must have gotten married. Two years later Angie recalls receiving a call from her sister saying, “I’m so lonesome, you need to come visit me here in Las Vegas.” Low and behold, during her visit they went to a dance and there was Lou, who coincidentally was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base. He asked her to dance and they reconnected. They got married and after he got out of the service in 1955 they decided to make the move to Vegas. Opening Their First RestaurantBoth sisters and their respective husbands were great friends so opening a restaurant together was an easy decision to make and shortly after the Ruvos arrived, in 1955 the two couples opened the Venetian Pizzeria at Fremont and Eastern as the first pizza restaurant in Las Vegas. Named for their parents’ birthplace of Venice, Italy, it had its humble beginnings as a small nine-table, 30-seat eatery. Angie was a great people person and everyone loved her, so she mainly ran the front-of-the-house, and Maria loved to cook and was so good at it she was a natural fit for the kitchen, making everything from scratch, including homemade meatballs, sauces, sausages, gnocchi and pasta. Al and Lou did everything else and also held other jobs. The restaurant was so successful that on many days there were customers lined up down the street waiting to get in to order their pizza. Maria and Angie remember nearly every maître d’ from the casinos coming by constantly with big pots to fill them with her spaghetti and meatballs and they worked 12-15 hours a day to keep up. Casino owner Jackie Gaughan came in almost every day and Marlene Dietrich, who in the 1950s was performing at the Sahara, took home pizza every week. Moving to a Larger Space on W. SaharaIn early 1966, after the lease was up, they moved the restaurant to the famed location at Sahara and Valley View (where Herbs and Rye now sits) and built the building from the ground up. Known for its brick façade and Old World Venice inspiration, they renamed it The Venetian Ristorante and the new space quickly became known as THE Italian restaurant. Business was good right from the start, in large part due to the

use of quality ingredients, and treating guests like family. Angie said, “We made everything from scratch and made 90 pounds of meatballs and 150 pounds of sausage a week.” Many celebrities took notice, including Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and Frank Sinatra, who frequented the restaurant and enjoyed Maria’s neck bones recipe even more than his own family’s. The BootleggerBoth sisters’ health problems led them to retire in 1971, but about six months later Maria’s health improved and she missed cooking so much the decision was made to forge ahead with a new restaurant where her beloved recipes would live on. The Bootlegger was born at Tropicana and Eastern on land Maria’s daughter Lorraine owned and its name alluded to the fact that their grandfather Luigi was a bootlegger during Prohibition. He made wine, beer and grappa in his cellar and even the police would come over to buy his illegal products. In 2001 the restaurant relocated to 7700 South Las Vegas Blvd. near Robindale, and it continues to function as a round-the-clock hangout, where nightly entertainment is a mainstay, and is still family-owned by Maria and her daughter Lorraine. While Maria is retired, she still comes into the restaurant a few times a week. When she enters the kitchen, a chorus of “Mama’s here,” can be heard, as she spot checks the chefs to make sure they don’t dare change any of her recipes. Successful ChildrenMaria and Al’s daughter Lorraine Hunt-Bono, began as a professional singer and later entered politics, serving as a county commissioner, as the first woman chairperson of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor’s Authority and later becoming the 32nd Lt. Governor of the state of Nevada, where she served for eight years. Angie and Lou’s son Larry Ruvo has directed Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Nevada since 1969, during which time the company has become Nevada’s largest wholesale liquor, wine and beer importer and distributor. While he has been bestowed many honors, including the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America

Lifetime Leadership Award, and spearheaded the establishment of the now legendary UNLVino wine tasting, recognized as America’s largest wine tasting charitable event, one of Larry’s greatest accomplishments has been his tribute to his father Lou, who passed away from the ravaging disease of Alzheimer’s in 1994. In honor of his father, Larry was instrumental in founding The Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health and the Keep Memory Alive Center, which is now recognized as one of the premiere facilities in the world committed to improving the lives of patients and family caregivers as they navigate the extraordinary challenges of brain disorders. The Legacy Lives OnMaria and Angie have established a legacy as Las Vegas’ first restaurant dynasty and became restaurateurs at a time when few women were expected to or allowed to succeed. Our city and its food and beverage industry owes them much gratitude for setting such a high standard for the epitome of quality and service which restaurants can only hope to aspire to equal.

Lou Ruvo


By Bob Barnes

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.


What’s Cooking

Still Time to Experience Grimaldi’s Winter Menu Grimaldi’s Pizzeria has established itself as a highly respected and award-winning representative of New York style pizza, with authenticity in the form of coal-fired, brick ovens and décor saluting and depicting the Big Apple. During my recent visit to the Henderson location at Eastern and Richmar I learned an interesting aspect of the eatery’s attention to detail. Manager Jason Gardner and server Chelsea Alafro informed that a specialized water filter is used in making the dough to create the same mineral content as the water coming out of the taps in New York. Chelsea, who has been at the location for two years, added, “We take our food seriously and I love the family atmosphere here.” The restaurant certainly does specialize in pizza, offering fresh ingredients, handmade mozzarella cheese and dough and the capability for you to customize your pie with several options of sauces and nearly every topping you could desire on a pizza.One of the reasons I was there was to experience the winter menu (Grimaldi’s adds special pizzas, salads, desserts and beverages each season). Available till the end of February, the special items include Rosemary Potato Pizza, a classic white with garlic pizza topped with thinly-sliced rosemary potatoes and sprinkled with diced pancetta; Spinach Pecan Salad made with fresh spinach topped with house-made candied pecans, dried cherries, red onions and crumbled goat cheese, tossed in Grimaldi’s house dressing; and two decadent cheesecake offerings: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup and Butterscotch Toffee, both of which are made from scratch and are well worth saving room for. Complementing the seasonal fare are the Cherry Pie “Three Vineyards” Pinot Noir, a 100% Pinot Noir varietal selected from three California regions: Monterrey, Sonoma and Santa Barbara; Blood Orange flavored Lemonade, Iced Tea or Italian Soda; the Italian “75” cocktail with Square One Bergamot Vodka, blood orange puree and lemon juice topped with La Marca Prosecco; and the “Mocha” Martini made with Chopin Vodka, Dorda Chocolate Liqueur, Galliano Ristretto and half & half, served in an Oreo cookie rimmed glass.Grimaldi’s has five Southern Nevada locations: one in Henderson at Eastern and Richmar, two on the Vegas Strip at The Palazzo and in the Fashion Show Mall, on South Rainbow near Warm Springs and on Rampart in the Boca Fashion Village. ph

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Chelsea Alafro


Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer—the Name Says It All—Plus Crazy Shakes Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer has opened at The Venetian in the casino adjacent to the poker room and sports book. It seems this is the designated burger spot, as it is in the same location B&B Burger and Beer and the short-lived Rattlecan was situated in before that. As you walk in you’ll instantly be drawn to the oodles of cool neon, and if you’re as old as me you’ll be reminded of your youth, with retro neon boomboxes, cassette tapes and old-style cameras. There are also subway tile walls (a nod to its NYC roots), a custom shake (more on that later) mosaic floor inlay, a brick barrel cove ceiling, a deejay booth and an outdoor patio area sporting a gorgeous panoramic 180 degree view of the Vegas Strip on one side and The Venetian’s Campanile Tower on the other.The new restaurant is in very good hands. It’s helmed by Chef Joe Isidori, who earned a Michelin star at DJT at Trump International in 2009. He teams up with Chris Barish, a nightlife veteran who has some excellent experience, having brought the New York-based club Light to Bellagio, and helped bring in Gordon Ramsay’s Pub & Grill at Caesars Palace and Gordon Ramsay Steak at Paris Las Vegas. No surprise that the menu is highlighted by craft burgers, most of which are made with Prime composed of 80% brisket and 20% chuck. Nine choices include The Mexico City with Prime burger, pepperjack cheese,

pickled jalapenos, chipotle mayo and crispy onion ring; the Greg Norman with wagyu beef, house buttermilk-dill, blue cheese and arugula; and top-selling All-American Burger with Prime burger, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles and special sauce. If you like your burger and salad in one bite, check out the Black Tap Burger Salad with Prime burger, bacon, cucumber, pickles, lettuce, tomato and cheese. Vegans aren’t left out with The Vegan Burger with black bean patty, pickled onions, vegan mayo and salsa verde; and the Vegan Burger & Quinoa Bowl with black bean patty, kale, avocado, cilantro, salsa verde and lemon dressing. Rounding out the menu are spicy Korean BBQ wings; snacks of fried mozzarella and crispy Brussels sprouts; and fries and onion rings that come with choice of nine house sauces. The restaurant lives up to its name with a quality beer selection, with 16 no-crap-on tap beers and 12 more in cans such as Dogfish Head Flesh & Blood IPA, Ballast Point Watermelon Dorado, Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin and Victory Golden Monkey. The lone local brew is Big Dog’s Las Vegas Craft Lager, but I was told it’s likely more will be brought on soon.Shakes are taken quite seriously here, so much so that the restaurant has devoted a portion of its space in the center and heart of the restaurant to the CrazyShakeBar (the company’s first) made of glass candy display cases, which contains all the fixings for creating some of the wildest shakes imaginable and where you can view the shake master in action. The dessert menu consists entirely of the aforementioned shakes. Called Crazy Shakes, eight varieties include concoctions such as the Bam Bam Fruity Pebbles featuring a Fruity Pebbles rim,

strawberry pop tart, nerds rope and a Rice Krispies treat; Sweet N’ Salty, a peanut butter shake with chocolate frosted rim with chocolate gems, chocolate covered pretzel rods topped with peanut butter cups and a Sugar Daddy; and The Cake Shake—cake batter shake with vanilla frosted rim with rainbow sprinkles topped with a funfetti cake slice. You can also design your own shake and choose from nine flavors such as oreo cookies & cream, caramel, Nutella and coffee. If you so desire, you can also have alcohol added to make your shake boozy.This new location marks the chain’s first expansion outside NYC in the US, but there is also one in Geneva, Switzerland and two in Dubai. Several more openings are planned in the Middle East and the first California location will open at Disneyland in the Downtown Disney District by the end of 2018.For more info or to view the entire menu go to www.venetian.com/restaurants/black-tap.html

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By Shelley Stepanek

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.

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Let’s jump in our car and head out to Boulder City, just 30 minutes from our usual list of dining spots. After walking down Main Street and seeing numerous little antique and ice cream shops, there are a whole slew of new, unique, great dining places that have arisen over the last couple of years. I’ll start with my favorite, the Boulder Dam Brewing Company. It’s right next to the Chamber of Commerce and across from the Boulder Dam Hotel, built in 1933, and a total vintage treasure filled with hundreds of pictures of history.Back to Boulder Dam Brewing, where a continual movie about building the dam plays inside. The video never fails to amaze me. There is plenty of history here with a courtyard filled with original shovels, dumpsters and wagons, all from building the dam. They are a brewing company and at all times have 6 different brews to pick from. Boulder Dam Brewing has some of the largest sandwich wraps around, with great sweet potato or regular fries. The Greek salads are always a perfect choice. Burgers are huge and juicy. I never fail to leave without a takeout order for the next day. Great prices and good service along with music in the courtyard most nights. Located at 453 Nevada Hwy. Open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. 7 days a week.Head down the street and you will find The Dillinger. Both historic and classic, they serve a mean beef brisket. Their smoky bacon burgers are one of the hottest items, with crinkle cut sweet potato fries. There are Philly cheesesteaks and onion rings, and a huge burger, naturally called the Dillinger. Perfectly messy!!!! Try a black bean burger, or the jalapeno bacon cream cheese burger. Be sure to order one level below what you want, as they slightly cook them more than I would expect. Lots of free parking and outside seating. Located at 1224 Arizona St. Open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 7 days a week. Evan’s Old Town Grille right down the street at 1129 Arizona St. serves Greek and Italian food. House wines run in the $5 range. Lamb gyros with Greek salad and French dips are extremely good. Surprise! They also serve T-bone steak with all the trimmings, along with trout. Now that’s a varied menu. It’s a pretty local hangout as service is good, and once again free parking, something we are fast losing in Las Vegas. I tried the stuffed shells on one occasion and was very happy. I’ve heard a couple people refer to the bar as like the one in “Cheers.” Evan, the owner, loves to chat if you’re open to hearing about Boulder City. Open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 4-9 p.m. Saturday, and closed on Sunday and Monday.

Best of the BestBoulder City


COOK•EAT: Asia Asian Cooking in the West

By K. Mike Masuyama Ph.D.

Cooking is cleaning raw ingredients, cutting into appropriate sizes, combining them, heating to tenderize texture, heating to kill adverse microbes, generating attractive flavors and satisfying appetites at serving. Cooking can bring about palatability and nutrition better than eating raw as well as providing pleasure at the table. Time is needed for such a preparation or culinary process which is longer than eating raw directly into the mouth. As a matter of course, skill is required, often with patience. Cooking must be one of the key human behaviors to separate us from the rest of the creatures. No extraordinary difference in the basics likely exists between Western and Asian cooking. But let’s see some variations visible at kitchen goods stores, food trade shows or TV cooking shows. They must be logical or convenient within each food culture due to the tradition and supply. Though, a chance of intermingling use may possibly come into our blending culinary world.At kitchen goods stores, a wok sits next to frying pans or pots, appealing for easier stir frying. Actually a wok is almost only one almighty cooking pan in many Chinese kitchens. For steaming, frying in oil or boiling noodles, you can witness more by peeping through a kitchen door at a Chinese restaurant. A traditional real iron wok is hard to find these days. A thin iron sheet wok is alright to work with, though. Next is bamboo products like a bundle of bamboo skewer sticks or a bamboo spatula. Bamboo skewers are disposable and handy to make yakaitori, chicken BBQ skewers, over charcoal. Bamboo is a fast growing plant, which poses little worry about depleting this natural resource or unlikely competing with Giant Pandas, which consume bamboo as a staple. A bamboo spatula is light to hold for mashing or mixing boiled potatoes or vegetables. It may not make a squeaking sound or scratch on a metal or non-stick pan surface like a spoon or fork might. At food trade shows like the Fancy Food Show, Natural Product Expo, International Food & Restaurant Show of NY and regional-local ones, exotic Asian traditional food-ingredients, cooking gadgets and their new innovations wait you. As both an exhibitor or attendee, I enjoyed exchanges of food cultures there. Many Asian governments are eager to participate in food expos for promoting the export of their products. You may see more traditional, unique things at their booths, often requiring good interpretations. Among them, a knife is a relatively new addition, particularly from Japan. It has a tradition of making elaborate samurai swords, which is applied to making a sharp, thin kitchen knife. A sashimi knife seems to function well to cut fish or seafood by pulling inward. A western knife may function as a butcher’s cutter by chopping, in my view.Cooking shows are my favorite TV programs to watch. I do so not so much to get an idea of cooking a new meal, but rather to see traditions

Mike Masuyama is a bi-cultural science-technology-business consultant. He earned a Ph.D. in Food Science

at Cornell University, is involved in teaching, research and business in major-beer, micro-beer, soft drinks,

sake, sea salt, rice, white soy sauce and other areas both in Japan and the US., and has published several books

and dozens of articles.“West Eats East” was his last series in this journal.

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or innovations in cooking. They are all mouth-watering by forgetting calorie intake or cost. For Asian cooking, Marty Yen initiated, followed by the Iron Chef series and Ming-Tsai. Numerous culinary scenes of French, American, Italian, Mexican, BBQ, British, Scandinavian, Middle Eastern, Indian and Korean, all are joyful. Though, none is specialized for Japanese cooking on the screen yet. My noticeable difference between the West and the East is the use of chopsticks. Asians use chopsticks, usually long ones, in cooking for mixing or picking. I have seen almost none in cooking shows in Japan. Westerners, on the other hand, use a tongue for a similar function. A tongue is easier to pick up a large chunk of food. If you are skilled with chopsticks, try to use them for picking up a tiny thing in cooking - practice your chopsticks skills by picking up slippery beans one by one. Enjoy cooking in either way.


By Linda Westcott-Bernstein

HumanResourcesInsights

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


What individuals need for success are good role models. They need managers that take the time to instruct, train and communicate expectations. What they don’t need is unfair treatment, poor role models and being “thrown to the wolves” to test if they will sink or swim. It amazes me to hear what unethical and unprofessional tactics that many managers use to “manage” people. This occurs most often because these “leaders” are either ignorant of the role and responsibility of management or they choose to mis-use their position in an effort to control their staff. In reality, it actually comes down to a bit of both of these with bad management.Let’s evaluate a little bit of the philosophy around managing people. There is a tendency among poor leaders to be insecure when an employee shows ability, intelligence and effort. In reality, managers should be proud and supportive because those individuals who show promise typically do so because of proper training, instruction and ability to learn and apply that learning to the work. This is a feather in your cap when someone excels and does well. It means that they have done well due to good management and training.So why do managers get worried or insecure when someone under them does well and accomplishes goals and completes their work?

Because they fear that the person may outshine them or excel at a faster rate and overtake them. The biggest reason for this fear is because many managers do not themselves do their jobs well. They order people around instead of instruct. They rule through intimidation so that they can maintain the illusion of superiority. In essence, they turn into an insecure and fearful individual and may become angry and spiteful. Insecure managers will do the following...• Pit one person against another with the goal to

undermine team work.• Set employees up to fail by giving no or poor

instructions for the work.• Build a network of spies and give out false

information to trip up workers.However, good managers will provide guidance, instruct and train and set the right example. Here are some examples of what good managers do...• Introduce the employee to the workplace and

the team.• Provide job descriptions, procedures and job

instructions and training.• Meet with the team member immediately and

begin their training process.

• Pair the new person with a solid performer—someone who gives effective, motivational feedback.

• Pitch in and help when needed or requested without concern for appearances or loss of authority.

• Check on the individual regularly and make time to discuss the work and their progress.

None of these efforts need to take an inordinate amount of time, but they do need to be clear and structured. It is best to determine your training and development plan in advance and be prepared to make adjustments as needed. In reality, it takes less time to do the right thing the first time rather than focusing your energy on how to maintain control or power over others. No one thrives in that type of controlling environment. It is my opinion that the best managers will encourage and grow their team so that the work is done more accurately and in a cost effective manner. With sound leadership values and a solid team, you will accomplish much more, and will be seen as a competent and successful boss and role model.

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 [email protected]. 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.

Employees Need Guidance, Direction and Good Examples


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 [email protected] or follow

him @Foodie_Biz.

The Bottom LineHow to Wow Your Guests with Beverages

Beverages are by no means overlooked in the restaurant world, but at the same time may not always be utilized to their fullest potential. Simply put, a wider beverage selection has dramatic potential to increase average checks, word of mouth marketing and customer loyalty. Wine lists, craft beers and cocktail programs are among the first beverage program elements that come to mind, but don’t overlook nonalcoholic drinks, as they can play a vital role in appealing to a broader audience. More and more establishments are sourcing ‘craft sodas’ that venture outside the general Coca Cola and Pepsi labels. Ginger beer and kombucha are on the rise. Soft drinks with real sugar are in high demand…Boylan soda fountains are even popping up. These nuances make for pleasant surprises and great conversation among guests, and while they probably aren’t the reasons someone walked through your doors, they may be that extra bump that will sway them to come back. Not to mention that beverages come with significantly higher margins, longer shelf life and less-demanding storage needs.So, if you are looking to expand your beverage selection, where do you start? Of course there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but where to place your focus depends on the type of restaurant. Follow these simple guidelines to determine the best place to harness your attention. When to expand your alcoholic drink selectionA broad alcoholic drink selection will certainly add a new dimension to your restaurant, inviting guests to linger over drinks and visit for reasons beyond food. It also comes with more complications in sourcing, and in cases of expanding from beer/wine to spirits, obtaining a full liquor license. If you’re prepared for these hurdles, however, then your restaurant is ripe for alcoholic drink expansion if… • You have a foodie menu. If you serve hip items like bone marrow and truffle mac

‘n’ cheese, you should have an equally enticing drink program. Craft cocktails really come into play here, where you can show off that you put just as much attention into your drinks as you do your food.

• You’re located in a high-energy part of town. If your neighbors are trendy bars and restaurants where people come to see and be seen, they likely will want to do so with a drink in their hand. Your establishment should reflect the mood of your neighborhood, exotic drinks in tow. The only exception comes when you’re the spot everyone goes to at 2 a.m. when the bars close.

• You want your guests to linger. If your ambiance calls for guests to stay, whether it’s a beautiful view or good people-watching, you want them to give you more business compared to a higher-turnover establishment. Patrons are much more likely to order another round of drinks than extra appetizers, though you could also bolster your dessert sales in cases of longer dining times.

When to expand your nonalcoholic drink selectionCoffee, soda, juice and the like will see higher purchase volume than alcoholic drinks, and often higher margins. While nonalcoholic drinks won’t necessarily bring new identity to your restaurant like a fleshed-out cocktail program, they will bolster your menu with a sense of novelty and variety that reflects positively on your brand. Here’s some reasons why nonalcoholic drink expansion may be good for you…• You offer more than just dinner. Breakfast and lunch guests are much more prone to

skipping out on the booze, especially during the week. Giving them incentive to add a sweet or healthy beverage to their meal can boost average checks across the bulk of your operating hours.

• Your target customer includes children and/or the elderly. Both of these demographics are prone to ordering nonalcoholic drinks [children for obvious reasons], and a slew of great soft drinks may spark their desire to return.

• You’re at a lower price point. It’s hard to justify a $12 cocktail when your burger costs $11. On the other hand, a $5 milkshake may just do the trick for a guest looking to add flair to their order. Fewer casual restaurants are expected to have alcoholic drink programs relative to their pricier peers, and granted it doesn’t hurt to have some beer and wine available in these settings, but you will go far by offering new and different soft drinks in these cases.

Whether alcoholic or nonalcoholic, your drink selection is a critical asset for your restaurant’s menu and brand perception. Be sure to leverage it for its ease and profitability.


Dining out with the Harrises

By Elaine & Scott HarrisSommeliers and Editor-In-Chief of Nationally

Recognized Cuisineist.com and Vino Las Vegas LLC. They are the Las Vegas City Editors for

TheDailyMeal in New York City.

[email protected] • www.Cuisineist.com www.VinoLasVegas.Blogspot.com

www.LasVegasDiningTours.com Facebook:ElaineScottHarris

Twitter:TheCuisineist.comTwitter: VinoLasVegas • Instagram : Cuisineist

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Tivoli Village, a unique mix of retailers and dining options, has gone through its growing pains with stores opening and closing as fast as the summer heat blazes across the barren desert. Even celebrity chefs shuttered their doors as the economy sputtered along. But times are changing…..With the reality of an NHL team whose practice facility is only a mile down the road, and an NFL team, the burbs are about to explode as players and their families call Las Vegas home. With an Italian Piazza atmosphere and the perfect mix of dining venue and boutique shops, many are now choosing to forgo the trip to the Strip and stay closer to home. One of our favorites that has made Tivoli home is Leticia’s Cocina and Cantina. Opening late in 2017 with little fanfare, Leticia Mitchell has taken her years of experience and passion at her original restaurant and has brought her Mexican cuisine magic to the Summerlin area. The spirit of Mi Casa Es Tu Casa envelops you as soon as you step into the warm and inviting entranceway filled with vibrant complementary colors, smiling calaveras, and colorful modern Mexican décor. Leticia’s warm and convivial nature translates to a carefully crafted menu on which she proudly boasts, “You can count on the freshness and authentic flavors in each dish that comes to your table. All our guacamole, salsas and tortillas are made to order with the freshest ingredients: no cans or processed ingredients.”Begin with the warm and fluffy house-made tortillas, chips and complimentary salsas where each bite will place you on an exceptional culinary journey through the flavors of Mexico. The house specialty appetizer of Cochinita Pibil, tender marinated pulled pork draped in marinated onions and crema all nestled in a fresh house-made tortilla, is the perfect soulful bite. Another deeply flavored Leticia favorite that will please any palate are the Costillitas: pork short ribs braised in a bright assertive green tomatillo sauce, complemented with soft potatoes served with poblano white rice casserole, crema, cheese, rajas & refried beans and your choice of tortillas. All these dishes will need Leticia’s signature margarita as the drink of choice to keep you hydrated in Ole style. Leticia’s authentic regional Mexican style cuisine will warm your heart and will have your taste buds dancing. With a Mexican “Botanas” Viva Happy Hour, traditional and trending breakfast, lunch and dinner cuisine, Leticia’s Cocina and Cantina is the place to eat in 2018 for the entire family. Another culinary hotspot in Tivoli Village is

the ubiquitous, Canter’s deli. Canter’s now takes 80 years of cooking up heaping mounds of pastrami and deli goodies, including their famous house-made pickles, to become a Vegas mainstay with locations both at Tivoli and The LINQ. Of course everyone must have one of the classic sandwiches served on fresh rye bread or another of their aromatic bread selections, with signature pickle, potato salad or coleslaw. Don’t forget an old school malted milkshake, a Canter cocktail or Brown’s Crème Soda to quench your thirst. Either dine in or line up and take it away at their impressive deli counter featuring freshly baked goods and a colorful array of salads, deli meats and desserts.Hamptons is another casual dining spot good for a quick bite or a refreshing cocktail. Calling itself a “new American restaurant,” it now moves into another year within the Piazza. Some interesting menu items that may pique a dining newbie’s interest are the Avocado Fries, creamy on the inside but with a tender panko crust on the outside served with a zingy green goddess dressing. The Pan Roasted Idaho Trout as a main course offers a lovely filet accented with the simple kiss of lemon butter partnered with an ample side of tomato and fennel salad with a sherry vinaigrette. Try all three of the novel Kombucha concoctions where tart, sweet and sparkling all filter into three innovative cocktails: The Mule, Guava and the Strawberry. Tivoli does have great happy hours and specials along its restaurant row. As for the beer drinker and gamer, PKWY Tavern has an incredible 120 different beers on draft. When you become a member of the BREW T.E.A.M., after purchasing $50 beers you receive a $50 gift card. Directly across the way, Brio Tuscan Grille has been holding fast as the happy hour gathering place. The Beef Carpaccio with spicy mustard aioli and parmesan flat bread and the new Crispy Shrimp Brio appetizer paired with Porta Palo Merlot will have tongues tantalized. The best happy hour deal by far in the culinary mash up is at steakhouse and butcher shop Echo and Rig, boasting their $1.99 hot dog, steak and egg or shrimp cocktail with selected beers and wine specialties between 3-6 (daily) p.m. Dining, drinking, shopping or meandering, Tivoli Village may become your next go-to place to dine and dish throughout the New Year. For more information go to Tivolivillage.com.

Tivoli Village in Las Vegas Gears up for 2018


Chef TalkSpices and Other Foods You Should Incorporate for Your Health

By Chef Allen Asch

Feel free to contact Chef Allen with ideas for comments or future articles at

[email protected]

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.

I recently read an article that talked about food and health and it intrigued me to look into this further. First I will talk about spices that you may already have, or you should think about buying and incorporating into your diet. If you are not sure how to use these spices, a good resource on how to incorporate them is a book called The Spice Companion by author Lior Lev Sercarz.The first one I will discuss is celery seed. I am a big fan of this in potato salad, but it also works well in vinaigrettes, brines and with poached white fish. Celery seed has been used as a cold remedy for thousands of years, but more recently it has been used to treat gout, arthritis, muscle spasms and high blood pressure. Celery seed also can work as a diuretic. It has some natural salt, so be cautious when seasoning the dish.

Turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties as well as anti-cancer and anti-oxidant properties. Turmeric blends well with fruit, especially in smoothies and citrus vinaigrettes. It also pairs well with cauliflower, potatoes and hearty vegetables.One of my favorite spices is cumin. Cumin is a very complex spice with many flavor profiles. It has an earthy flavor with hints of nuts and pepper. Cumin has the ability to aid in digestion, which can lead to a reduction of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Cumin is very high in iron, which helps people with anemia and helps promote growth in children. Cumin pairs well with meat as in chili, with roasted vegetables and braised or broiled poultry and is a great spice to use with lamb.Cinnamon, not one of my favorite spices, is known to be an anti-oxidant. Anti-oxidants prevent or delay certain cell damage. Other diseases it can affect include diabetes, as well as fighting viruses, which is good since antibiotics do nothing against viruses, and cinnamon may work to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. Although many people think of cinnamon for desserts, it pairs well with savory foods as well. The pairing works especially well with roasted items like lamb, tagine, squash and surprisingly it works in tomato sauce.Aleppo peppers help with vision and bone health due to the high vitamin A content. The peppers are a good source of anti-oxidants, which work against many chronic diseases. Additionally, they help with digestion and work to improve the immune system. This spice works very well on pizza, especially ones with olive. Aleppo peppers also flavor fish, guacamole and pasta, and if your tastes go towards flavorful desserts, pair it with chocolate chip cookies or other chocolate confectionaries. The Aleppo pepper is named for the city of Aleppo in Syria and they have mild to moderate heat, but great undertones of fruit.The last spice I will discuss is green cardamom. This spice is known to positively affect high blood pressure, heart disease, cancer and digestive issues. Cardamom seeds come in pods, which have to be opened to release the seeds. The seeds then should be ground before adding to dishes. Ground cardamom is available, and while not as fresh as making your own, is much more convenient. The flavor of cardamom is very complex. It contains flavor profiles including pepper, citrus, sweetness and floral. The ground cardamom is often added to iced tea as well as chicken soup. It also pairs well with rice pilaf, apple sauce and vanilla or chocolate pudding. Some other well-known spices that can make you healthier include rosemary, which can affect mental focus and fight foodborne bacteria. Saffron is known to improve people’s mood, but is very expensive. Sage is known to improve memory and can soothe sore throats.There are many spice shops in Las Vegas to make sure you are getting the freshest spices. As the spices age they lose some of their healing properties so you should purchase in small quantities if possible. They should be stored in a dry cool place, never in cold storage such as the refrigerator or freezer; should never be stored by sunlight, humidity or heat; and should be stored in airtight containers and replaced after one year.Next month in part two of this article I will discuss foods that help improve your health.

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By Justin LeungJustin Leung, a Hospitality Management student at the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas, represents the Epicurean Society, a collective of food and restaurant enthusiastic

students. As the journalist on their leadership team, Justin desires to share the club’s experiences with the public. He

is from Georgia and decided to pursue his passion for hospitality in Las Vegas.

UNLV Epicurean Society

Entering the new year, Epicurean Society began fresh. Not only are there months of events ahead of us, the leadership team has undergone major changes as well. Our former president, Kevin Ng, had to leave his position after having graduated and accepted a full-time position, but Epicurean Society will not be slowing down.I write to congratulate and thank our new co-presidents, Deanna Wong and Kimberly Verdin. Their three year-long experiences in the club have prepared them for their co-presidency. I had the pleasure of interviewing them, gaining insight on their goals for the club and being able to understand them as the leaders. “Epicurean Society has allowed me to look forward to activities throughout the semester that I can enjoy with a great group of food-loving people,” Deanna said. The organization’s uniqueness and direction provides new and current members an educative, comfortable and unrestrictive environment.When asked what Epicurean Society means to them and why, I received authentic and sincere answers. Oftentimes, individuals believe that our organization is for those who can cook. However, this is not the case. “It’s a place where opportunities to gain skills and insight into the food and beverage industry arise,” Kimberly added. The organization weaves together individuals who are interested or passionate in food and beverage, and especially hospitality. “When I first joined Epicurean Society three years ago, I thought I was just going to learn about different kinds of foods. However, this organization is more than just food. I am able

to network with many people in the hospitality field, both students and professionals, while enjoying delicious meals,” Deanna opined.Epicurean Society members truly have a proper, healthy outlet to demonstrate their passion for food and beverage: handling cutlery, tasting dishes or drinks, traveling to local eateries, networking with professionals and meeting new people.We needed to outline the steps that our organization would take in order to improve and a clear mission in mind for the new year. So, we sought a goal and its approach. By identifying the aim of the club, a uniformed message would allow for more suitable advertising and event planning.“Our main goal would definitely be to bring more exposure to the club. By doing so, we also hope to make the club more recognized not only within the Hospitality College, but also throughout UNLV,” Kimberly explained.Exposure can only be brought upon by people who are willing to talk about the organization and share program details with the community. In order to influence the parties around them, a group must be willing to market itself and its mission. “Advertising more would be one way to work towards that goal. We really need to make ourselves stand out more. I want it to get to the point where I won’t have to explain what Epicurean is anymore,” Kimberly said.In addition to Kimberly’s comment, Deanna spoke about creating a welcoming environment for food lovers which will allow them “to share their excitement and adoration for food with one another.”The focus of this semester is truly branching out to the public and providing our new

and current members with more immersive opportunities. “There will be more member-led activities to bring everyone together and show others what Epicurean Society is all about,” Deanna added. This includes giving students more food and beverage preparation practice, kitchen visits and property tours.In order to understand Kimberly and Deanna more, I went on to ask what their personal goals were as co-presidents of the club. “I hope to decrease our member turnover by the end of the semester,” Kimberly related. Oftentimes, organizations find it difficult in maintaining the interests of its people; however, Epicurean Society has the potential to exceed its current boundaries.This is because the food and beverage industry, like hospitality, is broad and ever expanding with diversity. The leadership team has decided to capture and maintain the interests of others. “My goal as co-president is to build a society that is ever willing to explore various cuisines, foods, and local restaurants,” Deanna said. Focusing on the variety in the industry will ultimately attract more students and enable them to develop as professionals.In the past year, Epicurean Society has experienced a number of changes within leadership and general member counts. However, the new focus of Epicurean Society will attract new members, offering students routes to connect with leaders in food and beverage while adding more to their plate of experiences and skills. The revamped agenda for Epicurean Society as a whole will naturally bring more members to our open doors.

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As we begin the New Year, everyone is buzzing about what this year’s culinary trends are going to be. This new list has been revealed by The National Restaurant Association. They surveyed nearly 700 professional chefs—members of the American Culinary Federation—on which food, cuisine, beverages and culinary themes will be hot trends on restaurant menus in the year ahead. The results show that new cuts of meat and hyper-local in-house-made items continue to see strong customer demand.At the end of 2017 these chefs were asked to rate 161 items as a hot trend for 2018 and what trends were cooling down. According to the survey, menu trends that will be heating up in 2018 include doughnuts with non-traditional filling, ethnic-inspired kids’ dishes, farm/estate-branded items and heritage-breed meats. Trends that are cooling down include artisan cheeses, heirloom fruits and vegetables and house-made charcuterie.The annual “What’s Hot” list gives a peek into culinary concepts for this year, which includes the Top Food Trends and Top Concept Trends. Consumers will look for more healthful, sustainable and simple choices at restaurants, say the chefs surveyed for our list of Top 10 concept trends in 2018. We will see a shift towards more of a “hyper-local (e.g. restaurant gardens, onsite beer brewing, house-made items)” lifestyle, which landed in the number one spot. Chef-driven fast casual concepts (think fast, convenient and affordable from culinary masters), natural ingredients/clean menus, food

waste reduction and veggie-centric/vegetable-forward cuisine (e.g. fresh produce is star of the dish) are in the top 5 concepts we will see in restaurants this year. In line with the “hyper-local” trend, locally-sourced meat and seafood, locally sourced produce and environmental sustainability are part of the top ten trends.

Hudson Riehle, Senior Vice President of Research of the National Restaurant Association, feels that “Local, vegetable-forward, and ethnic-inspired menu items will reign supreme on menus in the upcoming year. Guests are implementing these trends in their own lifestyles and want to see them reflected in the food they eat at restaurants. In response, chefs are creating more items in-house and turning to global flavors to infuse their menus.”

The number one food trend of 2018 are new cuts of meat (e.g. shoulder tender, oyster steak, Vegas Strip Steak, Merlot cut), with 69 percent of chefs designating it a “hot trend.” Other trends to keep an eye out for are house-made condiments, street food-inspired dishes (e.g. tempura, kabobs, dumplings, pupusas), international-inspired breakfast items (e.g. chorizo scrambled eggs, coconut milk pancakes), sustainable seafood, healthful kids’ meals, vegetable carb substitutes (e.g. cauliflower rice, zucchini spaghetti), uncommon herbs (e.g. chervil, lovage, lemon balm, papalo), authentic world cuisine and international spices (e.g. harissa, curry, peri peri, ras el hanout, shichimi).

What’s Hot In 2018!

1. Hyper-local

2. Chef-driven fast casual concepts

3. Natural ingredients/ clean menus

4. Food waste reduction

5. Veggie-centric/ vegetable- forward cuisine

6. Environmental sustainability

7. Locally sourced meat and seafood

8. Locally sourced produce

9. Simplicity/back to basics

10. Farm/estate- branded items

TOP 10 CONCEPT TRENDS

2018 CULINARY FORECAST

Top 20 Food Trends1. new cuts of meat

2. house-made condiments

3. street food-inspired dishes

4. ethnic-inspired breakfast items

5. sustainable seafood

6. healthful kids’ meals

7. vegetable carb substitutes

8. uncommon herbs

9. authentic ethnic cuisine

10. ethnic spices

11. Peruvian cuisine

12. house made/artisan pickles

13. heritage breed meats

14. Thai-rolled ice cream

15. African flavors

16. ethnic-inspired kids’ dishes

17. doughnuts with nontraditional filling

18. gourmet items in kids’ meals

19. ethnic condiments

20. ancient grains


Joel is a newcomer to our town and the USBG. He relocated to Vegas because he “was hungry for knowledge in a thirsty town.” While he originally got his start in Canada, his 15 years

in the service industry has brought him around the globe. From bartending in New Zealand, Australia, Waikiki and a near death experience in Bali, he has now landed on a new perch, Flock & Fowl Downtown. Speaking of which, Joel mentioned, “I just came on board and already love it. There is some amazing bar talent from all corners of the city whom I’m excited to work beside, and we’re given the freedoms to make the magic happen.” In furthering his professional development the USBG has been a great tool for Joel: “It surpassed all of my expectations and would recommend it to anyone wanting to better themselves in the craft. Oh, and Raul makes a hell of a pineapple basil smash.” Joel is a perfect hybrid of hospitality and mixology. While he treats his guests as if they were in his home, he views bartending “as a branch of culinary, and approach it as such.” On his many travels, he has learned many things including, a “single” in New Zealand is only a half ounce and therefore, pretty much everyone orders doubles, and how to take a shot of vodka through his eyeball. Go see Andy real soon for some cocktails, stories and chicken, and be sure and ask him about his famous reverse salami: “It’s a lasagna hog!

Kung Fu Pandan by Joel Andrew1.5 oz Don Q Cristal1/3 oz of pandan tincture*2 oz fresh peach juice1/2 oz lemon2/3 oz orgeatBuild in a Collins glass over cubed ice. Top with ginger beer and crushed ice.*Pandan tincture: macerate pandan leaves in Everclear for at least 24 hours and strain out liquid.Garnish with pandan leaves and coconut pandan mochi on a lemongrass spear.

During the last three years, Joymar Herrin has become a staple of our bartending community. Originally from Puerto Rico, she’s worked at The Cosmopolitan, Buddy V’s and most recently, Chica, where she’s moved from Lead Bartender to Operations Manager. “It’s been a challenge and eye opener; I haven’t

been challenged in a while so it’s good to be.” Her approach to bartending has always been hospitality based. Whether it’s on one side of the bar, or the other, it’s always been 100% about the guest. Regarding being a third generation food & beverage disciple, she said, “It is something that I learned from my grandmother.” It’s in her blood. Speaking about the Bartenders’ Guild, Joy has nothing but amazing things to say: “The USBG gave me exposure, challenge, education, traveling, everything professionally and my very best friends.” In addition to that, they are now involved in charitable activities. The Chapters in Miami, Puerto Rico and Las Vegas have come together in support of hurricane relief. This January, Joy along with Puerto Rican bartender, Milton Soto, have helped put on the Pig & Punch. Part pig-roast part cocktail-competition, it gives all proceeds to the Island Recovery Fund. Viva Puerto Rico!

Cane Loves Coffee by Joymar Herrin2 oz Don Q Gran Q1 oz Malted Coffee Syrup1/2 oz Guava PureeCombine in a mixing glass, stir with ice and strain into a coupe.

M E E T J O E L A N D R E W

J O Y M A R H E R R I N “ S H A K I N G F O R P U E R T O R I C O ! ”

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About the USBGThe United States Bartenders’ Guild is comprised of spirit professionals dedicated to the art of the craft of Bartending. What was founded in 1948 has now spread all over the US with Las Vegas being the largest chapter in the country. Through events, charity, and education they support and enhance the great American living-art that is Bartending.

For information on how to join, please go to www.usbg.org.

USBG Las Vegas

By Adam Rains

Adam has a true passion for food, wine, beer & spirits. He is a barman at CarneVino, a brand ambassador for Brooklyn Brewery,

long-time cocktailian, and the Social Media Chair for the United States Bartenders’

Guild in Las Vegas. Adam strives to learn every day and during his career he’s studied

at SDSU, USBG, BarSmarts, International Sommeliers Guild and the Certified Cicerone

Program. His mantra with both food & cocktails is, “fresh is best.”


EVENTS AD INDEXFebruary 8 Yardbird Southern Table & Bar at The Venetian will host the Heitz Cellar Wine Dinner, a southern-inspired cuisine prix-fixe menu with curated wine options by wine expert Daniel Wu. www.runchickenrun.com/store/event/wine-dinner

February 18-21 Catersource Show will be held earlier this year at the Las Vegas Convention Center and feature everything to do with the business of catering. If you or your company is involved in catering, or even if it isn’t, you’ll want to attend this show, even if it means just to visit the show floor and the exhibitors. conference.catersource.com

March 19-22 the International Pizza Expo returns to the Las Vegas Convention Center with the world’s largest pizza, ingredients, products, and service expo, including demos and contests plus samplings all day long! www.pizzaexpo.com

March 26-28 the Nightclub & Bar Show comes to the Las Vegas Convention Center for the largest beverage and bar show in the world, with unlimited tastes and treats! Don’t miss it. www.ncbshow.com

April 4-7 the 8th Annual Universal Whisky Experience will take place at Encore Las Vegas. Founded by our friend, whisky enthusiast Mahesh Patel, it will feature exclusive tastings of the world’s finest whiskies, classes and other whisky experiences. This event is one not to be missed by any serious whisky aficionado! www.universalwhiskyexperience.com

April 15-16 the Vegas Food Expo will be held at the Westgate Las Vegas. This two day food tradeshow is designed for small innovative companies and emerging food producers that need to reach retailers, distributors and restaurants. vegasfoodexpo.com

May 1-3 the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America 75th Annual Convention and Exposition returns to Caesars Palace. The largest gathering of America’s wine and spirits distributors, as well as suppliers from around the world, this event offers opportunities to seek out new beverage products, meet with existing portfolio partners, look for services to enhance internal operations and attend educational sessions on industry hot topics. www.wswaconvention.org

Audrey Dempsey Infinity Photo page 9 www.invinity-photo.com 702-837-1128

Al Dentes’ Provisions page 31 [email protected] 702-642-1100

Big Dog’s Brewing Company page 30 www.bigdogsbrews.com 702-368-3715

Deep Eddy Vodka page 2 www.deepeddyvodka.com

Designated Drivers page 30 www.designateddriversinc.com 877-456-7433

Jay’s Sharpening Service page 26 www.jayssharpening.com 702-645-0049

Keep Memory Alive Event Center page 32 kmaeventcenterlasvegas.com 702-263-9797

Uncle Steve’s page 24 www.unclestevesny.com 718-605-0416

White Soy Sauce page 21 www.whitesoysaucefood.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 Bends

•Private labeling

•Now Certified Kosher

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