A Trip Through the Chunnel

Our close friend decided to celebrate his birthday in Las Vegas and selected Gordon Ramsay's Steak in the Paris Hotel and Casino as the location for his birthday dinner.  I was skeptical having eaten at Chef Ramsay's restaurant at the London Hotel in West Hollywood as the portions were freakishly small and after having spent $200 on dinner, I still needed to take my husband through the drive-thru in order for him to have a complete meal.  But, this was not our birthday dinner so we stayed quiet about our concerns.

We walked through the casino to find the unusual entrance to the restaurant.  It reminded us of a tunnel, but no one said anything to us as we entered.  We checked in and were asked to spend a few minutes in the bar while our table was set up.  When we were called we were brought back to the inside entrance of the restaurant and at the point our hostess explained that when we entered the restaurant that we left Paris via the chunnel and were now in England.  That's actually kind neat, but maybe that should have been explained when we first arrived in England and not minutes later as an after thought.

We were escorted through the main dining room heading towards the upstairs seating when our hostess stopped us and pointed to the ceiling fixture in the center of the room.  She then explained to us that the fixture represents Chef Ramsay's hand movements.  No explanation of what movement his hand is making, just his hand movements.  Took everything inside me to not giggle as the hostess was explaining this to me with a straight face.  This was only the beginning of Chef Ramsay's displays of arrogance.

Chef Ramsay's hand movements as a ceiling fixture

We were seated upstairs and were directed to a bi-fold on the table containing the Hell's Kitchen Limited Edition Tasting Menu.  If everyone at your table orders the tasting menu for $145 per person (and its an all or nothing order) then you get to take home the accompanying autographed photo of Chef Ramsay.  Arrogance display number 2.

We were then given our menus that were engraved with the same representation of Chef Ramsay's hand movements, along with a logo of Chef Ramsay holding two knives.  Arrogance display number 3.  God forbid you forget for even a moment whose restaurant you are in.

The Wheel of Meat (my name for it, not theirs) is then brought to the table and each cut is introduced and explained.  We are also told that the meat is hand selected by Pat LaFrieda of New York and dry aged for 28 days minimum in his Himalayan salt room.

Wheel of Meat

The bread plate is then brought to the table and it was difficult to not eat each kind of tasty bread, but alas, I had to share.

I chose the English Chowder as my starter.  It was very yummy and not terribly creamy, and I loved finding the citrus pearls that popped in my mouth.

English Chowder (smoked haddock, scallops, fingerling medallions, citrus pearls)

Everyone else at the table ordered the onion soup.  I was able to have a taste of it and while it was very flavorful, I actually found it to be too sweet.  And for those who don't know, Welsh rarebit is cheese sauce on toast and has nothing to do with rabbit.

British Ale Onion Soup (Boddington's Pub Ale, caramelized onion broth, Welsh rarebit)

I have been a fan of Beef Wellington ever since I was a teenager when it was served as the main course at a wedding.  I have since even made it twice for Christmas dinner, once using a filet loin and once as individual wellingtons using filet mignons.  It is not often on restaurant menus due to its complexity, and as this menu states, the length of time required for cooking.  But I felt tonight that my dinner dates could wait the 45 minutes it would take for my Wellington to be prepared.  I actually think in the long run that the extended wait was a blessing as it gave us time to digest our soups and the bread.  While the Wellington was prettier than any version I've prepared, I was actually disappointed in the taste as I found it to be bland.  I'm not certain if any pate was coated on the meat as is traditional.  It simply tasted like meat inside puff pastry and I like my recipe better.

Roasted Beef Wellington, glazed root vegetables, potato puree, red wine demi-glace

My dish came with its sides so I allowed everyone else at the table to decide the sides and I simply had a taste of each.  Both the potatoes and the mac & cheese were yummy, but I felt bad as everyone else was so focused on their steaks that we left most of the side dishes behind.

Fingerling Potatoes (parmesan, truffle) and Mac & Cheese (blue, cheddar, parmesan, truffle)

Admittedly I never had a taste of the asparagus, which is a shame as I love asparagus.

Grilled Asparagus (chanterelle relish, asparagus spears, aged sherry)

When we were shown the Wheel of Meat the server focused a great deal of time on the American Wagyu Rib Cap as the rib cap is rarely on restaurant menus.  The rib cap is also referred to as the tastiest part of the cow.  That was all the men needed to hear as both of them ordered it as their main course.  And while I was only allocated one bite, I must agree that it was yummy.

American Wagyu Rib Cap (beef marbling score of 9 or higher)

We did not order dessert that night as there was birthday cake waiting for us back at the hotel.  That said, we all left with our tummies filled to the brim - the complete opposite of my last Chef Ramsay experience.  I would strongly recommend Gordon Ramsay's Steak not only to any Celebrity Chef Foodie, but also to anyone who wants to enjoy a good steak while in Vegas.  It was a great experience and I'm proud to say that I was again able to withhold my giggling at the ceiling fixture when we were leaving the restaurant.