TAO paves a path to nightlife. page 1

Who’s the “boss”capo’s italian restaurant. page 3

MGM Grand’s Mane event.page 5

Valley of fire –no Match.

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the Mouththat roaredan interVieW WithcraiG ferGuson.page 7

There are a loT of “sTories” in The neon Jungle, as las Vegas is ofTen called. BuT Tao’s four-leVel presence aT The VeneTian is Truly mulTi-faceTed, Bringing To life, an “asian ciTy” ThaT shines wiTh a resTauranT, lounge and nighTcluB, and BanqueT faciliTies in 44,000 square feeT.

since its celebrity-filled opening in september 2005, tao has become one of las Vegas’ hottest spots, as its sister venue has long been in new york city. Meaning “the path” or “the Way,” tao leads guests into an illuminating experience, from the stars that come out to play to the nightclub

TAOpaVes a paTh To nighTlife

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with hundreds of hand-carved monks and candles and the plates filled with luminous culinary delights from china, Japan and thailand in the 400-seat restaurant. lush velvets and silks, waterfalls and century-old woods and stones transport guests to the pacific rim where an extensive collection of buddha statues watches over every corner of the $20-million, design-driven venue. included in the collection is tao’s signature 20-foot buddha that “floats” peacefully over an infinity pool containing Japanese koi. there is also a unique reclin-ing buddha, while upstairs, the nightclub is highlighted by a moat bar adorned with red chandeliers and a Monk bar decorated with a wall of almost 300 hand-carved monks and candles.

executive chef Mark andelbradt is re-sponsible for tao’s pacific rim menu items. signature dishes include offerings from sea, sky and land, including chilean sea bass satay with Wok roasted asparagus, a preparation of peking Duck that consistently receives accolades and Kobe beef shabu shabu along with a full sushi bar. tao also offers an extensive menu of delicious specialty cocktails including the tao-tini, tao love potion #9, the fiji apple Martini and the tiger lily, as well as sake flights, specifically designed to complement tao’s menu or to be enjoyed on their own. Managing partners of the tao nightclub, Jason strauss and noah tepperberg of new york city’s Marquee fame, ensure that night-life and celebrity-filled events reign supreme

at tao. Downstairs, a chic lounge serves as a gathering spot for cocktails and conversa-tion, with DJs spinning eclectic beats nightly. for those craving a high energy, DJ-driven atmosphere, the 10,000-square-foot tao nightclub is the place to see and be seen, with three full-service bars, two main rooms playing a variety of hip hop, house and rock ‘n’ roll music, and state-of-the-art audio and lighting systems. the ultra-Vip treatment is also available at the nightclub, which offers eight private skyboxes, each featuring european bottle service, a mini-bar, an espresso machine and banquettes with secured purse drawers. the nightclub also boasts a 40-foot outside terrace with awe-inspiring views of the famed las Vegas strip.

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Who’s the “Boss?” by bobbie Katz

Granted, with its famed history, there may be no more appropriate place than las Vegas to experience some true “family”style dining. still it has taken the creativity of restaurateur nico santucci to turn his two locations of the mob-themed capo’s restaurant into bona fide culinary “hits.”

Mobster-chic décor meets “to die for” italian cuisine in venues that collectively speak to the fact that santucci has gone to the wall with the bullet points, or details, that make for re-creating an era. at the tropicana avenue capo’s (which means “mob boss”) are the “family” pictures of “uncle al” (as in capone), “uncle John” (Gotti), and other G-Men and rat pack figures that peer down at you. also featured are private booths with curtains that close, an upstairs “gaming” and smoking/cigar lounge and a real tommy gun hanging over the bar. there are also pictures of some of santucci’s rela-tives, who, according to urban legend, were descendants of the Genovese family from chicago, where santucci was raised. the second capo’s, located on sahara avenue and which opened in January 2009, continues the theme with plush red, leather banquettes, chandeliers, a bar, a private “roulette room” that seats 10 hidden behind a huge picture of al capone as well as a private theater/dining room that seats 20 and an outdoor smoking/cigar lounge it is softly lit and very intimate and sexy. larger than capo’s on tropicana, which seats 75, it seats 110. at both locations, guests enter by ringing a buzzer

and are “checked out” by the maitre d’, who slides open a speakeasy-style window in the disguised door. “the menu is all authentic old World recipes from my family,” santucci says. “My father’s family, all of whom cooked, was from abruzzi, italy, and settled in new york and chicago and my father’s brother owned a restaurant called santucci’s in chicago. it’s central italian cooking, which combines a little of the northern and southern italian

cooking. but it’s not as heavy as either of those and it consists of a lighter and sweeter red sauce. the food is from the heart and is what i grew up with in chicago.” santucci describes his food as “straight-up authentic east coast-italian comfort cuisine” and cites the meatballs, chicken parmigiana, and shrimp scampi as three of his signature dishes. the creative menu is a four-page tribute to the mob theme with headings such as

temptations (appetizers), bathtub Gin soups, syndicate salads, Made Man pastas, house specialties you can’t refuse and “the last ride” (desserts). there are similarly named items such as chicken luchese, spilatro spiedini, nathan nails new york strip and so on. both venues also have old-style las Vegas entertainment. it’s an evening you can’t refuse.

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Mobster-chic décor meets “to die for”

Italian cuisine

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MGM GrAnd’s MAne evenTA 3-sTOry, GlAss-encAsed venue shOWcAses nATure’s MAjesTIc lIOns.

Just in case life has been too tame for you lately, you can get your lion’s share of excitement at the MGM Grand where the Lion habitat offers a rip-roaring good time—right in the middle of the casino.

located next to studio 54, the lion habitat

showcases up to six african lions daily for

public education and appreciation. the

venue is a true surround-sound-and-sight

experience. there are lions up, down and all

around as they romp throughout the three-

story glass-enclosed structure. encased with

skylights, the habitat has walls reaching

heights of 35 feet to allow guests the oppor-

tunity to watch these animals’ every move.

Visitors can literally be encircled by lions

via a see-through walkway tunnel that runs

through the lion habitat as the big cats

prowl above and below. a lion can walk over

your head in full view. not to worry—the

glass is bulletproof safety glass, an 1.5”

thick, and can take the weight of an adult

lion running at 25 mph.

the lions are owned by Keith evans, a trainer

of exotic felines for more than 30 years. all

have been raised from birth by him and his

wife, beverly. he cares for the cats at his

8-acre las Vegas home, affectionately called

“the cat house,” transporting them from his

property to the hotel, 12 miles away, two or

three times a day. comfortable in front of a

camera, the cats are very much at home with

the public. there are two or three trainers in-

side the habitat at all times, and, in general,

there is one trainer per animal.

the females are not spayed, so they are kept apart from the males. there is usually only

one male in the habitat at a time because they fight—the exception being when they are

brothers. evans’ goal is to educate the public on the needs and requirements of lions in

the wild. he says that the public still has the misconception that the animals are preda-

tors and trophy animals that it’s okay to shoot. he is trying to change that thinking. MGM

Grand has an alliance with the university of Minnesota lion research center and its

renowned director, Dr. craig packer. the hotel has formed a working partnership with the

lion research center, which committed $100,000 in grants to help fund Dr. packer’s lion

preservation programs in africa.

There are betweenone and five lions in

the habitat at angiven time; no

group is in there formore than six hours.

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if you’re looking for an experience that

is truly out of this world, you only have

to travel about 55 miles northeast of las

Vegas via i-15 to see the first signs.

follow them and you might think that you have landed on Mars in your car when you first gaze upon the jagged limestone mounds of fiery scarlet, vermilion and mauve that rise out of the Mojave Desert to comprise the Valley of fire state park. Dedicated in 1935 as nevada’s first state park, the 56,000-acre Valley of fire takes its name from its distinctive coloration. the red sandstone formations that make up this surreal scene were formed by great sand dunes during the Jurassic period. complex uplifting and faulting in the region, followed by 100 million years of erosion, have carved this 6-mile-long and 4-mile-wide crimson-hued valley in the desert. in the process, water and wind have shaped the land into arches, domes, spirals and serrated ridges. Many of the area’s rock formations have been weathered into unusual shapes resembling elephants, beehives, ducks, cobras and even people, pianos and more. Valley of fire is famous for its petro-glyphs, ancient rock art left behind by the prehistoric basketmaker people and anasazi farmers—believed to be north america’s earliest inhabitants—who lived along the Muddy river between 300 bc and aD 1150. at petroglyph canyon and atlatl rock, visi-tors can see the rock art up close. the latter is on the west end of the park—a steep metal staircase climbs up to the atlatl rock, where

you’ll find a rare petroglyph of an atlatl—a notched stick used to throw primitive spears. another point of interest is Mouse’s tank, named for a local native american who hid from the law there at the turn of the century. the large rock catchment, or tank, at the trail’s end, catches and preserves rainwater, providing an oasis for wildlife. interesting rock formations in that area include the bee-hives, seven sisters and White Domes. besides sightseeing, hiking, rock hunting, camping and picnicking, there are other things you can enjoy here. it’s wise to stop at the Visitor center before exploring the area. there you can pick up maps, trail guides and books to learn about the ecology, geography and history of the region. there is also a desert tortoise habitat where you can see the endangered animals at close range. the driv-ing tour through the valley takes about 15-20 minutes, longer if you get out of the car to see some of the fascinating sites along the way. you’ll definitely want to take a camera. if you can, catch this otherworldly natural site at sunrise or sunset when the light is spectacular. a word to the wise: if you can’t take the heat, stay out of the fire during sum-mer. the best times to visit are september to June. stop at the Visitor center on highway 169 in overton (open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily; 702.397.2088) to get the lowdown.

vAlley Of fIreA nATurAl sITe WITh nO MATch

the Mouththat roared an interVieW With craiG ferGuson. by bobbie Katz

faster than a speeding bullet…looser than his “loco” motive…able to leap tall stories in a single bound…it’s super stand-up, late night tV host craig ferguson, coming to the Venetian May 21-22 and June 4-5. proving that there is life after television, ferguson, host of “the late late show” on cbs, returns to las Vegas to fight crowd boredom and lethargy with his quick wit and mostly ad-lib show. for the comedian, who returned to stand-up a few years ago after 10 years of not doing it and says that he’s developed a lot, there are things about performing live that will no longer come out of the “blue.” “i took the “f” word out of my act,” he says. “i discov-ered that it was funnier without it. My routine is basi-cally the story of me coming to america from scotland

and i try to be as much in the moment as i can be. My routine, on any given night, is anywhere from 50 to 80 or 90 percent ad-lib.” to be sure, one “f” word he hasn’t taken out of his act is “fun.” that goes for ferguson himself as well—he, too, is obviously enjoying himself, waiting to see what will be coming out of his mouth next. as on his tV show, about which he says “we do what we do, we fool around,” he just talks and hopes that something funny comes out. “sometimes it’s hard to get material,” ferguson admits. “then the president of iran comes to town. sometimes i go so off on a tangent that it’s hard to get back to my written material—my punch lines are scat-tered through endless miles of talk and i’m hoping that i can find my way back. usually something happens in my head that gets me going or someone in the audience will make a noise that leads to something else. i don’t

know how to categorize myself as an entertainer—i call myself a stand-up comedian and leave it at that.” ferguson is actually a many-splendored guy. he wrote the feature films saving Grace and the big tease, as well as best-selling novels, including the most recent american on purpose, on which his standup routine is largely based. he is also featured as the voice of the Viking “Gobber” in the animated feature how to train your Dragon. since he took the helm of the “late, late show” on January 3, 2005, the show has set all-time viewer records. ferguson won a 2009 peabody award for broadcasting excellence in news and entertainment for his episode “the late late show with craig ferguson: an evening with archbishop Desmond tutu.” ferguson has been in the united states for 13 years now. he had been planning his move here ever since he was a kid and his family came to new york on vacation. having grown up watching american television, fergu-son quips that he always wanted to come to this country and go to hollywood and have his teeth fixed. “i was thrown out of scotland because i was caught flossing,” he laughs. “they came after me with torches.” ferguson was a working stand-up comedian in his na-tive country when he decided to cross the ocean on his own and seek his fortune here. his visa only allowed him to work in show business and after an initial tough 18 months, he auditioned for “the Drew carey show” and was hired for one episode. he ended up staying with the show from 1996-2004 and then got his own tV show and the rest is history. he and carey remain buddies to this day. “i had two suitcases with me when i left scotland and went to the airport,” ferguson cajoles. “and they weren’t mine—i stole them from baggage reclaim. for the first six weeks, i couldn’t get much work in america because i was dressed in a kimono.” on a serious note, ferguson arrived in 1995 and went straight to los angeles. he says that he never doubted his decision to come to america, that it is where he felt he belonged and still does. in contrast, he had previ-ously lived in london for eight years and reveals that he felt very unwelcome there but that he found it easy to adapt to life in the u.s. Guess the bottom line is that ferguson just needed a place he could really sink his teeth into.

“I was thrown out of scotland because I was caught flossing.”

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