still eating Vosges

As I mentioned before, I bought 4-piece boxes of Vosges chocolate truffles to serve as wedding favors, for a wedding I attended a few weeks ago in Las Vegas. There is a "longer story".

Several weeks before the wedding, I called the Vosges headquarters to ask if I could pre-order the favors and have them shipped to the Las Vegas store. I was told that if I placed the order that way, I would still have to pay the shipping fees, and that it would be more cost-effective if I went directly to the Vegas store and purchased the chocolates on the spot. Additionally, that would allow me to choose specific flavors, assuming they were in stock at the store.

The wedding was on Saturday, so on Friday morning, I walked from the Bellagio to the Forum Shops to buy the chocolates. (It was nearly 100 degrees that day, so even though the two hotels are adjacent, it felt like a long walk.) I arrived shortly after the scheduled opening time of 10am, but the store was still closed. No problem, I figured they were running late.

By 10:45am I was getting annoyed. Finally, I called the Vosges headquarters in Chicago and asked them if their Las Vegas store was supposed to be open yet. They confirmed that it was and said they'd look into it. I left my name and number and asked them to call me when they figured it out.

Around 11:10am, I noticed someone opening the store, and hurried over. The salesperson (her name was Julie) apologized for the delay and said that the person who was supposed to open the store had never showed up, so the office in Chicago had called her to come instead. I felt kind of bad for her having to work on her day off, and apologized back. As a result we got along great, despite the rough start. (Chicago actually called her after the store opened to confirm that it was open and to make sure we had connected.

Throughout the time that she was assisting me, Julie was consistently friendly and helpful, even giving me samples of the truffles to help in my selection process. She was patient with my complicated order (she had to tie bows on 15 boxes, and number the boxes so I could keep track of which chocolates were in which box), and even gave me a complimentary box of truffles at the end, as an added apology.

I think that episode was a classic example of how exemplary customer service can really turn things around. I went from having a horrible impression of Vosges service to having a great one, due to Julie's handling of the situation, and as a result I will continue to buy Vosges chocolates, and to recommend them to friends and family. Everyone wins!

Anyway, that aside, between the samples, the favors themselves, the free box, and the couple of additional bars that I bought, I got to try lots of new flavors, and I've recorded my impressions here, in rough order of goodness.

First, the truffles:

Black Pearl: ginger + wasabi + dark chocolate + black sesame seeds

I've actually had this one many times before. It was excellent, just as I remembered.

Siam Citron: jasmine tea + lemongrass + fresh coconut + white chocolate + organic marigold petal

I think this is my favorite white chocolate truffle from Vosges. The tea flavor was quite strong, which balanced the sweetness of the white chocolate. The lemongrass was more of an aftertaste but was noticeable (and pleasant).

Summertime Love: dark chocolate + coconut, cafe au lait + white chocolate + cocoa powder

This pair of two truffles was available only for the summer, so of course I had to try it. The dark truffle had lots of coconut, which is unusual for Vosges. It was not bad but not that memorable. The light one was delicious, with a strong coffee flavor. It barely tasted like white chocolate at all, which is a plus in my book.

Rose Vert: tarragon + rose water + 65% dark chocolate + organic red rose petal

The initial taste was very flowery, with the tarragon coming in later. I liked it quite a bit; the flower taste would have been too much with a milk chocolate but the dark chocolate was bitter enough to offset it.

Jazz: cafe du monde & chicory coffee

Surprisingly, in comparison to the white Summertime Love truffle, this one did not have as much coffee flavor; it was much more subtle. Good, but not great.

Tian Nacu: Mexican vanilla bean + Venezuelan dark chocolate

I thought the vanilla flavor didn't stand out enough, or maybe the vanilla and dark chocolate didn't mix well and the flavors were too distinct? Overall it was a bit nondescript and was not a favorite.

Ambrosia: macadamia nuts + Cointreau + white chocolate

I thought there was not enough mac nut in this one. Not bad, but not that creative, either.

Rap: horseradish + lemon zest + praline + cocoa nibs

I expected to like this one a lot, but unfortunately I didn't. For once, the flavors did not blend well. The first taste was lemon, the last one was the praline, and there was not much horseradish at all.

Hip-Hop: Krug champagne + edible gold leaf + white chocolate truffle (33% cocoa butter)

This one sounded good (champagne + chocolate!) but it was way too sweet for me. It was very creamy and buttery, with a definite champagne taste.

The bars:

Habana: organic deep milk chocolate + crunchy plantains, 45% cacao

I usually love savory chocolate, so I was intrigued by the description, "Ecuadorian plantain chips", but this one was too salty; even more so than Mo's Bacon Bar.

Creole: New Orleans style chicory coffee + cocoa nibs + Sao Thome bittersweet chocolate, 70% cacao

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I found this bar too bitter. I liked the cocoa nib bar that I'd bought from Fleur de Cocoa a few weeks ago much better.

Organic Peanut Butter bonbon: organic deep milk chocolate + a soft, peanut butter center, 45% cacao

I was not a fan at all. The bar that I'd bought looked a bit oxidized, which probably didn't help, but I also disliked the soft (and too gooey) peanut butter layer.

So, my favorite truffle remains the Kaffir Lime (with the Sale del Mare and Black Pearl close behind), and my favorite bar, the Goji berry bar. I look forward to trying the Matcha bar, though.

Vegas wedding

I've been to over 40 weddings in my life, but until last weekend, I had yet to attend a Vegas wedding.

The phrase "Vegas wedding" tends to conjure up images of Elvis impersonators and drive-thru wedding chapels, but this one was actually very classy; no surprise really, since it was at the Bellagio.

Most of the guests arrived on Friday, but D and I flew in on Thursday, and took the bride and groom (D's cousin) to Nobu for dinner:


My favorite dishes were the tuna on fried lotus root (the tuna was well-marinated), the lobster tacos (lots of lobster meat), and the rock shrimp tempura (chopped into smaller pieces, for high batter-to-shrimp ratio).

On Friday, there was a rehearsal of sorts, followed by a group dinner at the Bellagio buffet. I had been disappointed by the Wynn buffet when we went in April (for lunch), because they hadn't any cocktail shrimp, crab, lobster, or interesting meats. Luckily, I was able to eat seafood and meat to my heart's content at the Bellagio; they had both snow crab and king crab, plus ostrich and elk, as well as the usual prime rib, etc. The desserts were so-so, but I managed to find a pretty good chocolate ganache cake, so I was happy.

After dinner, the guys and girls went their separate ways for some pre-wedding fun. There was much drinking and other merriment, but (unfortunately?) all of the good photos have been censored. We did manage to get the bride home around 4 in the morning. Luckily the wedding was scheduled for 6pm, so she didn't have to get up for hair and makeup until after noon.

The ceremony itself was on the "Terraza", in front of the famous Bellagio fountains:


After the ceremony, the house photographer (came with the wedding package) spent about an hour photographing the bride and groom, as well as the guests, all over the Bellagio. We even took some photos at the (empty) craps tables, which turned out nicely.

Here's one that I took in front of the Conservatory:


The reception was at the Prime Steakhouse, conveniently located inside the Bellagio. The decor was subtle and opulent, and the food was delicious. I enjoyed the truffled mashed potatoes and rack of lamb very much. I think the ribeye at Michael Mina's StripSteak might have been slightly better, though. (We also went there in April.)

I was in charge of wedding favors, so of course I bought chocolate from Vosges. I had some trouble with the pickup on Friday morning (will explain later) but in the end I had lots of fun picking all the flavors. I even came in under budget, with 4 truffles per box:


After dinner, we retired to the gorgeous Bellagio suite that the bride and groom were staying in, to have some wedding cake. D had ordered the cake from a local bakery and they had delivered it earlier in the evening. The top tier was chocolate and the bottom tier was white. That was slightly unfortunate because it turned out we liked the chocolate flavor much better, but it ended up not mattering much because there were tons of leftovers anyway:


We sat around for awhile working off the food coma, and then the bride and groom decided it was gambling time. They headed downstairs, along with part of the group, while those of us who remained repurposed the ceremony flowers, using them to decorate the bedroom:


I thought this was particularly inspired:


I'm not sure what time everyone ended up going to bed, but the bride and groom did get up in time for their 11am appointment with the photographer. The studio was amazingly fast; they provided the prints (as well as a DVD) on the spot. I guess a photo studio in Vegas must be used to clients who need to fly out the next day.

Vosges tasting

Last month when I was in Las Vegas, I discovered a Vosges store inside of the Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace. I was pretty psyched about it since I thought they only had stores in Chicago and New York.

Anyway, the night before we left, I swung by and bought a ton of chocolate: two boxes of truffles (Italiana, Green), three bars (bacon, mushroom, goji), and one box of exotic caramels. The truffles and caramels are long gone, but I just started on the last bar today. I've written down my thoughts about all the different chocolates below.

Exotic Caramels
Crema: Argentinean dulce de leche + Costa Rican cashews + milk chocolate
Sunshine: tupelo honey + milk chocolate + bee pollen
Maple: Canadian maple sugar + maple syrup + walnuts + dark chocolate
Tarte: blood orange + Campari® + dark chocolate + hibiscus powder

I surprisingly did not like the blood orange, as it was too-caramel-y and definitely not orange-y enough. The maple syrup was pretty good, and the dulce de leche was not as sweet as I'd feared (having been to Argentina recently), but nothing stood out about them. Even the bee pollen was fairly bland. As you can tell, I was not a big fan of the caramels.

Collezione Italiana
Rooster: Taleggio cheese + organic walnuts + Tahitian vanilla bean + bittersweet dark chocolate
Sale del Mare: Sicilian sea salt caramel + milk chocolate + pine nut
Polline di Finocchio: Wild Tuscan fennel pollen + dark chocolate
Olio d'Oliva: First press extra virgin olive oil + white chocolate + dried kalamata olives
Balsamico: 12-year aged balsamic vinegar + dark chocolate + Sicilian hazelnuts

My favorite of this collection was the Sale del Mare. I'm not sure if it was the pine nut or what, but there was definitely something in addition to salt that I really liked. The Rooster was quite good as well; the cheese taste was subtle, although it got stronger towards the base. The Olio d'Oliva was fine, although I'm not so much a fan of white chocolate, but the Balsamico was too sour (the vinegar overwhelmed the chocolate) and the Polline di Finnochio was also too strong for my taste. Maybe I'm not a fan of fennel, either. Overall I thought the collection was more creative than the Aztec, and about on par with the Exotic, although that one has the edge of greater variety.

Green Collection
Ellateria: Indian green cardamom + dark chocolate + white poppy seeds
Kaffir: Thai kaffir lime + fresh coconut + dark chocolate
Kayoko: Japanese macha green tea + white chocolate + cherry blossom petals
Buddha's Leaf: Malaysian pandan leaves + dark chocolate + cocoa powder

For me, the standout in this group was the Kaffir, which also trumped all of the Italiana truffles. The dark chocolate was delicious, there was a refreshing lime aftertaste, and the coconut was not too sweet (as it sometimes is). The Ellateria and Kayoko were both yummy and well executed, but I'm a bit tired of cardamom in desserts, and again am not as fond of white chocolate. Also, the cherry blossom taste in the Kayoko was strong and fragrant, but there wasn't enough tea flavor for my taste. The Buddha's Leaf tasted fine too, but the pandan leaf flavor was pretty weak, so it mostly tasted like dark chocolate with cocoa powder. I liked this collection quite a lot; definitely more than the Italiana and the Aztec, about as much as Exotic. It's a shame it's a limited (spring-only) edition.

Mo's Bacon Bar: applewood smoked bacon + Alder wood smoked salt + deep milk chocolate, 41% cacao
Organic Enchanted Mushroom Bar: organic dark chocolate + reishi mushrooms + organic walnuts, 66% cacao
Goji Bar: goji berries + pink Himalayan salt + deep milk chocolate, 41% cacao

My favorite of the bars was the Goji Bar. The sea salt was delicious (I love salty chocolate) and the dried goji berries added wholesome sweetness and texture but weren't too chunky. The Bacon bar was also well done; the bacon bits made the bar slightly salty and crunchy but the overall taste remained surprisingly cohesive. The Enchanted Mushroom was so-so; I felt there wasn't enough mushroom flavor, and I couldn't find any walnut taste at all.

a different kind of Vegas trip

I went to Vegas a couple weeks ago with some people who hadn't been to Vegas almost ten years. I think I go there so often that sometimes I forget to look around when I'm there. To them, The Venetian, the Bellagio, the Wynn, THEhotel at Mandalay Bay; all were new and interesting and photo-worthy.

We wandered the shops inside the Venetian, stopping for gelato, ate lunch at a cute bistro inside of Paris called Mon Ami Gabi, and checked out the famous Bellagio lobby and fall/Halloween-themed display. We also stopped by THEhotel's lobby, just because I love their decor, and caught the Bellagio fountains by night. Other highlights of the trip included yet another visit to Samba Brazilian Steakhouse at the Mirage (I always forget how good they are), a morning workout at the Wynn Spa (available only to hotel guests), and brunch at the Pinot Brasserie, inside the Venetian (delicious but I was not fond of our waiter).

Some photos:








I always like to plan one special meal when visiting Las Vegas. This time, for dinner on Saturday night, we went to Daniel Boulud's DB Brasserie. Obligatory food photos follow...

Steak tartare appetizer (my favorite):


Mussels & fries (very generous portion, delicious fries):


Beef tenderloin (very tender, I preferred it to the ribeye):


Ribeye for two:


Profiteroles:

Vegas highlights

I got back yesterday from yet another sleep-deprived, smoke-filled Vegas trip.

This time, I did head back to the Fashion Outlets in Primm this time, and had a productive shopping day.

On the food side of things, I finally got to try Bouchon Las Vegas, where I had a yummy bucket of mussels, accompanied by French fries. I topped that off with a plate of cheese; I've forgotten the other two (one was sheep's milk, one was cow's milk) but my favorite was the Garotin, which is a fairly mild, soft cheese made of goat's milk.

The next night, we ate at Rosemary's Restaurant, which is a good 15 minutes off the Strip, but is well worth the drive. I had a $49 prix fixe, with a parmesan souffle and wild mushroom ragout appetizer, roasted rack of lamb entree (+$10 surcharge), and a chocolate bread pudding, espresso ice cream, and vanilla creme anglaise dessert. All three of the dishes were extremely good; I felt the souffle was the most creative, and the lamb had no aftertaste at all (like New Zealand lamb), but I enjoyed the dessert the most. We were also treated to a savory bread pudding amuse, and homemade sweets after dessert.

I was finally able to eat again the next day at around 1:30pm, and at that time we headed to the Paris Sunday brunch. It was $25 per person, and well worth it. My favorite dishes were the puff pastry with the chicken stew inside, the king crab (of course), and the chocolate tart dessert.

The non-food activities mostly involved drinking and gambling. On the first night, we went to Caramel, a lounge inside of the Bellagio, and had lots of expensive drinks. I think I spent over $100 buying a round of Lemondrops for six people. Afterwards, we were fairly tipsy, and managed to entertain ourselves playing nickel slots for a couple of hours before heading off to bed.

The next night, I actually meant to get a decent amount of sleep, but three of my friends entered a poker tournament starting at 11pm, and after three hours, two were still in it, so of course I had to stay and watch. On the bright side, one of them finished third in the tournament, making a couple hundred dollars. On the other hand, the tournament finished at a quarter past 4am, so I didn't get to sleep until sometime after 5am.

Right before we left for the airport, one person (who had lost a lot of money over the last few days) decided on a whim to put some money on roulette. He walked up to the nearest table, and put $20 on 24, and $20 on 28. He wasn't watching the wheel, but several of us were, and we were completely stunned when the ball hopped in and out of 0 and landed on 28, netting him $720. It was a great way to leave.

yearly Vegas pilgrimage

Just got back from Vegas after three days of gambling, shopping, eating, and other random fun things.

This time around I finally saw "O" by Cirque du Soleil, which I had been resisting because of the ridiculous price tag ($125 for rear orchestra). I grudgingly admit it's worth the price of admission, if only because of the coolness of the special effects.

I'm mostly awake today, but I'm feeling a kind of tiredness that is unrelated to sleep deprivation (I slept for 10+ hours when I got back) or physical activity (unless walking around outlet malls counts as exercise). I plan on much television-watching and book-reading this week.

weekend in Vegas

When I was booking my plane tickets, it seemed like a good idea to fly to Vegas on a Friday night, stay three nights, and fly back at 5am on Monday morning in time to attend an 11am meeting with an Engineering VP. No, I wasn't smoking anything at the time. I think I still subconsciously have the delusion that if I try hard enough, I can sleep 5 hours a night and function properly, like I did in college. Then again, I don't remember certain college years all that clearly.

This post was written after a weekend of:

- 20+ hours of gambling (up at most $165, down at most $80, net profit $145...take that, Vegas!)
- 1 food coma inducing all-you-can-eat Brazilian BBQ dinner
- 1 Bellagio champagne brunch
- 6-7 hours of being glued to the sports betting section watching opening weekend football
- 6 hours, 6 hours, and 5 hours of sleep, consecutively, plus a 1 hour nap this morning

I still have a 9pm ice hockey game to play tonight. I guess we'll see how far pure adrenaline can go.