#1 in vegas

#1 anniversary, that is. well so far. topically.
[way long.]

.see.
checked out the "new" planet hollywood. still looks like aladdin.

pretty flowers. someone needs to give me a weekly floral budget the size the of the wynn's. or even THEhotel's.

the mainland. too bad neither of us is really chinese even if our names sound it.

fobulous.
actually, V is for vodka tonic.

in my new favorite place. i think i'm going to print some stickers and start doing this at home. kidding. or am i?

.eat.
village seafood buffet. rio. would have been better were we not sitting in subarctic temperatures. the mini creme brulee was surprisingly very good. the gelato was quite refreshing, too. oh, tip for the dimsum bar: fill up only on the shumai. the rest ain't worth it. get some aiite sushi or really good crab claws instead. full at the end, but full on our terms.

my buffet plating skillz are beeeyooooteeeful, non?
rice in the cocktail sauce is the finishing touch.

mesa grill. caesar's palace. brunch. alright bobby flay, i guess you do southwestern alright even if you're from new york. REALLY full at the end. already full after our shared appetizer. somehow ate most of our entrees, minus some bread, anyway. piggies 'r' us. probably my favorite meal of the trip.

bread to start. carbs are my BFFs.

wood fire-grilled quesadilla app.
hash browns, BACON, and cheese within.
spicy tomato salsa, cheese, and egg over easy on top.
hungover piggies dug in too fast.

NO MORE SPICY BEEF TENDERLOIN TARTARE LEFT FOR POTATO?
hmph. pork tenderloin sandwich it is.
flavorful. tender. seasoned well. YUMMAY.
red onion, arugula, and ancho-chile mayo so good.
fries good. seasoning good. too salty, though.

mesa burger for carnivore bear.
[sorry, really didn't mean to take a pic of you while chewing.]
LOTS of meat. double cheddar cheese (i loved, bear deemed it overpowered the hunk o' meat).
really good. even for a $16 burger.

battista's hole in the wall. the bear's kinda place. what places like buca di beppo are contriving to be. SO much food for not that much money. the bear likes places that give you lots of food for not a lot of dough. you get soup or salad (the bear loves places that include soup or salad with your entree instead of having to order/pay for it separately), super buttery garlic bread, unlimited house wine, bigass entree usually with a side or two included, and their signature "cappuccino." ya know, solid, filling, comfort fare like spaghetti and meatballs that's "italian." cute old guy that comes by to play his accordion. dark, no frills, lots of fun kitschy shtuff all over. so full. i was in pain for the rest of the night. like, i couldn't do anything but fall into a restless sleep and occasionally wake up to moan in pain only to fall back into a fitful sleep again.

the bearfather.
bottomless free house vino included.

the minestrone soup was hearty and homey. yum.
boo. no photo.

my linguine with clams.
the bowl is so deceptive and so deep.
i ate maybe half the pasta and most of the clams.

bear's steak. i forget which, but it was smothered in a fresh tomato sauce.
accompanied by mystery spinach that tasted great when mixed with the steak's sauce.
also accompanied by a side of penne with marinara.
my mom had those plates back in the day.
i had those plates until i got married. so homey. so 70s.

"cappuccino" AKA hot chocolate with a tiny hint of mocha.
and LOTS of sweetened whipped cream. bleh.
i like my caffeine more bitterer.
bear loved.
bear also loves white chocolate mochas at the 'bucks. bleh.

our complimentary anniversary dessert.
friendly guy the next booth over asked us, "how many?"
"one," the bear sheepishly replied.
"and they said it wouldn't last!" said random dude.
everyone's a comedian.
we giggled at how sad "one" sounded.

'wichcraft. didn't cast a complete spell over us. really good panini. really packed with flavor. good combos. but a bit overpriced. i can (and often do) get great panini that comes in bigger portions on the westside for less. at least i was just satisfied rather than dying from fullness for one meal. finally.

breakfast for lunch (strip steak + eggs) on the left.
turkey breast with balsamic marinated onions and i forget what else on the right.
strip steak marinaded well. tender. could have used some spread on the bread.
turkey sandwich SO packed with flavor. meat so moist for white meat.
see? kinda mini. :(.
well, the right portion for someone of my size, i guess.

bouchon. hee hee hee honh honh honh. our fancy meal. i know, it's just a bistro, but we're not that baller, unforch. so hard to find. go past the guard at the venetian's guest elevators (i forget which tower). take it to the 10th floor. get off. walk across a bridge. ta da. we JUST made our reservation time after madly running through the palazzo and the venetian. in heels. i mean, dress shoes, in the bear's case. ugh to stressful beginnings. hence no camera at the beginning. i was too irritated.

wish we had ordered some more of the adventurous stuff like the pressed summer melon salad with a bajillion fancy things on its plate. or the cold fennel soup. too bad the bear doesn't like melon. or fennel. bah. all good, solid food with the "right" balance of flavors, but nothing that completely blew us away. good bistro food. that is all.

so full thanks to the unintentional dessert parade at the end. otherwise, portions were a good size. minus the overflowing fries. that was a bit excessive, but one can never had too many fries. i think i actually walked instead of rolled "home" after this meal at least.

the bear had delicious vodka tonics.
i had a nice glass of pinot noir from...um...yeah.

soup a l'oignon! very good.
not overly salty (like most are) and still very flavorful.
i ate it way too quickly.

bear had salmon.
good. interesting sauce.
really nice crust on top. someone teach me how to do that, please.
fish cooked to perfect doneness.
BABY artichokes on the side! BAAABY!

i had steak frites.
they actually cooked it medium rare.
the onion and walnut butter on top were so so good.
yay for a fatter cut than flatiron!
there were about 10 times more fries than shown.
good value if you want a decent steak not at a steakhouse.
'tony bourdain was right. REALLY good frites.

we shared the macaroni gratin.
yes, that's mac 'n' cheese.
no crazy stinky or strong cheeses, but SO good anyway.

trompe l'oeil a la magritte.
cute whimsical touch in an otherwise rather serious interior.

warm. old school vibe.
romantic until the restaurant got fuller and louder.
fancy-ish but casual.
not too pretentious.
brass. high ceilings. mahogany paneling.
navy mohair banquettes with brass nailheads.
and yes, vegas casual dress code was in full effect.
we were so overdressed in polo/khakis shoes and
swiss dot strapless black dress/heels.
oh well.
atmosphere, 'twas nice overall.

i indulged. i was in the mood for something custardy.
pot de creme? creme brulee? pot de creme?
creme brulee it is.

freakin' diabolical waiter practically made me order the creme brulee.
then came out with this complimentary annivesary gateau.
YUM. so many delicate, delicious layers.
the bear loved the raspberry orange sorbet. so not icy! so refreshing!

oh, plus all this.
ugh.

couldn't finish the sweets.

.drink.

fat tuesday. planet hollywood (also at mgm grand and caesar's palace). like klassy spring break or a frat party...in a casino.

jello shots. check.

[yummily frozen] jungle juice with a shot of everclear.
check.

we actually didn't drink much. really. i'm a lightweight.

.do.

gamble. what's that? bear didn't even hit the blackjack tables this time. my cheapass hates giving my money to casinos. if you had my luck and weren't cheap, you still wouldn't gamble either.

sleep. we did a lot of this. like we old fogies were usually back at the room with one of us knocked out by 10 PM. yeah, i'm not quite sure we're still in our twenties, either. found our new favorite un-vegas-like vegas THEhotel (had never stayed here previously). chic even five years after its beginning. contemporary. clean. just a slight touch of glam. so our taste. so us. so the best bathroom. we could live in that bathroom alone.

pose. did not take enough pictures together. this is the best one. really.
shop. of the window variety. wrong bag in wrong color at the cole haan outlet in primm. :(. everything else was too expensive for my soon-to-be-somewhat-unemployed butt.

the gun store. you think i'm kidding. print the coupon! or not. we did. for the bear, duh. can you imagine me shooting a gun? yeah, not a fun thought. i didn't even try a wimpy handgun. wuss.

apparently obama is very anti-gun.
apparently i don't like either candidate's stance (as posted inside) on gun control.

step right up!

what i decided to try to shoot. not.
i prefer bazooka bubble gum.

so cute. so ready.
for nothing.
well, to be the bear's photographer/videographer.
i don't know why he picked me to do that, either.

this is how we doooooo it. this is how we do it.

[is montell jordan stuck in your head now, too? good.]

kept rolling my ankles.
somebody needs to sweep more often.



i wasn't scurred at all.
it's not like i jumped and backed up after the first shot or anything.

super loud, chest thumping desert eagle does some damage.
bear is a good shot.
scary hostage is clean.
terrorists are dead.

and now impotent.

silly mp5 kept jamming.

faux a.c. slater is to' up.

.adventures.

itrip. i have a snazzy new itrip that actually works even in our sprawly metropolis. so, a tangent first. our crappy ford focus rental (damn you enterprise, next time we remember to go with hertz) came with power windows and locks, a stationary steering column set way too high for the bear, barely functional cupholders, an empty pacifico box in the trunk, NO insulation whatsoever, and a funky smell.

oh, and a cigarette lighter that had no power, which we found once out in the boonies and ready to put the itrip in action.

we both doubted the electrical line had been severed. everything else electrical was working fine, surprisingly. so early on, i said, "maybe it's its fuse." the bear troubleshot while driving. ever the professional. then he said, "i wonder if it's a fuse." that's what i said! but of course he hadn't heard me. hmph. anyway, the bear kept driving, and i busted out the manual and looked for a fuse of the same amperage that we could possibly switch out at some point. horn. no, we might need that. some sort of engine component. nah, that might be very useful. sunroof! we have no sunroof! maybe we can switch it! yay! IF they provide fuses in the slots for features the car doesn't have. hm.

finally, in primm, we stopped. the bear opened up the fusebox and did a little switcheroo. WHEE!!! it worked! ipod time! we are so handy, friends (i'm not your friend, guy. i'm not your guy, buddy. i'm not your buddy, friend.). we high-fived and went on our merry, sunroof-less, good tunes-filled way. for like another like 20 minutes until all the vegas stations started kicking in. we may be handy, but our timing sucks.

.summary.
ate a lot. slept a lot. enjoyed each other in our own lazy way. that's just how we roll. and roll is all you can do after eating like that. so blessed. i love you, bear.