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Eating / Celebs in Vegas / Dining / Restaurants / Fine Dining / Steakhouses / Gordon Ramsay / Gordon Ramsay Steak / Paris Las Vegas / → All Tags

Gordon Ramsay Came, Saw and Conquered Vegas (And Us)

Moments before Chef Gordon Ramsay arrived to meet a press pack in his new Paris casino restaurant, there was a palpable wave of excited anticipation. For a known phenomena in the culinary and showbiz world, this was an unknown situation.

How bold, brash or forceful would Gordon Ramsay crash into this very crowded and very competitive dining arena? He choose to arrive as himself, talk with passion and won us over. It was masterpiece of publicity theater. But, also a genuine insight into the combination of pure charisma and calculated persona that creates a brand. And, a brand that sells.

He's a double digit Michelin Star chef, but with a familiarity that reaches to the flip-flop crowd steps away from his kitchen. His tutelage under Vegas neighbors Guy Savoy and Joël Robuchon could have prompted a push to a restaurant of light subtlety and finesse, but we arrived into an immersive environment of steel, reds and branded Gordon all around us. And there, in front of us, the real brash, free talking and highly opinionated Ramsay. But, with a frequent humbleness in his vocal admiration for his past mentors and peers. He had something to prove to the culinary profession. And, to prove something to himself. It was evident that Las Vegas needed to be conquered by Gordon. And, he has come in strong.

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Eating / Dining / Restaurants / Pizza / MGM Grand / Project Pie / Drink And Drag / Neonopolis / Carlos n Charlie's / Flamingo / Senor Frog's / Treasure Island / Gordon Ramsay / Steak / Gordon Ramsay Steak / Paris Las Vegas / → All Tags

Resto Roundup: MGM To Serve Kustom Pizza, Carlos'n Charlie's Now Open, and More

When we were predicting the ins and outs of dining in Las Vegas for the year ahead, we didn't see anywhere near this many pizzas in our wood-fired ovens. Just as with candy shops and steakhouses, it seems like there can never be enough pizza joints in Vegas now, either.

On a stroll through the basement lower-level of MGM Grand (the place that used to be called Star Lane but is now evolving to something more.. we'll explore that next week), we discovered a construction wall for Project Pie -- A Kustom Pizzeria. The "k" is theirs. We fear a Kardashian konnection. First pizza, next the world mayorship? Ok, there's probably not a Kardashian angle. (We hope.) A Google found a Foursquare location for another Project Pie in Jersey with the recommendation, "Try the pie yo its bangin' holmes." There's a connection we can dig.

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Openings / Gordon Ramsay / Gordon Ramsay Steak / Steakhouses / Eating / Restaurants / Dining / Fine Dining / Paris Las Vegas / Brits / Brits In Vegas / → All Tags

Gordon Ramsay Steak To Open This May (Tweetedly)

After wicked whispers kept us confused for quite some time, Gordon Ramsay Steak aims to finally slice up the Vegas steakhouse competition next month:

@JoeyHambidge: Which hotel is the new Vegas restaurant in? Will it be open by September when I'm back there? PARIS opens this MAY

— Gordon Ramsay (@GordonRamsay01) March 29, 2012

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Openings / Jersey Boys / Venetian / Paris Las Vegas / Theater / Music / Broadway in Vegas / → All Tags

Oh, What A Night, Now At Paris

Les garçons du Jersey have arrived in Paris. Since 2008, they've been packing them in at the Palazzo, but now the powerhouse musical Jersey Boys has moved up the block and resides in Paris Las Vegas. It'll be there a very long time.

The musical plots the trajectory of four working-class men who desperately want to break out of New Jersey via a musical escape plan. The timeline stretches from the late 1950s's through a 1990 reunion. These four unknowns became Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.

If you’ve heard those names, you're already sold and might have been on your feet applauding with the rest of the audience on the night this writer caught the show. If you've heard it's a good show, you are right. It never ebbs. It's brilliantly choreographed. The set changes are balletic. The sound, pitch perfect.

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Dining / Mon Ami Gabi / Breakfast / Restaurants / Paris Las Vegas / Bellagio Fountains / Coffee / → All Tags

Where We Found The Best Coffee On The Strip

Mon Ami Gabi at Paris Las Vegas for a long time. The views are great as you're opposite the Bellagio Fountains and the people watching is even better since you're seated right on The Strip.

People rave about the food there, too, but we were skeptical since chain restaurants don't often offer culinary greatness. We met a friend for breakfast there one morning, though, and our concerns have now been put to rest.

Typically, we're fairly simple when it comes to breakfast. Give us bacon, eggs and coffee and we're good to go. Sugar at breakfast is definitely not our thing. However, when looking at the extensive breakfast menu at Mon Ami Gabi, we couldn't bring ourselves to get something plain like eggs. We saw Nutella waffles and decided that this was what we had to eat. And, we're glad we did.

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VegasChatter Questions / The View From Here / The Cosmopolitan / Venetian / Treasure Island / Foundation Room / Mandalay Bay / Paris Las Vegas / → All Tags

Which Strip View Is The Best?

Views of The Strip, in a way, are what our Las Vegas dreams are made of. We've seen the skyline on TV. On occasion, we've caught a quick glimpse of something special while crossing over the Las Vegas Strip. And, sometimes, we have a room with exceptional views of the beautiful lights. Recently, VegasChatter fan mkgstud asked us which views we prefer:

For a view of the Strip, what have you gone with in the past, and how often - the Strat or the Eiffel tower?

There are so many great views of The Strip available that it's difficult to pick just one. During the holidays, we were walking across the bridge that links the Venetian with Treasure Island for the first time and saw a different view of the strip that was as nice as any we've seen.

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Clue / Slot Machines / Total Rewards / Players Clubs / Caesars Entertainment / Paris Las Vegas / → All Tags

What Are The Newest Slots In Vegas? Here's a Clue

One of the cooler slot machines we saw at G2E last year, Clue, is finally coming to Vegas.

The new Total Rewards players club is offering an online Clue mini-game so it's no surprise that the slot seems to be exclusive to Caesars Entertainment for the moment. We're told that a bank of the machines were installed near the Paris sportsbook yesterday.

The online game is simple, but fun. In typical Clue fashion, you have to choose who committed the crime, where and with what weapon. Getting the correct answer 10 times allows you to unlock a bonus which you can use on the casino floor. This is a pretty cool integration of online and real life slot play.

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Three Card Poker / Big Winners / Gambling / Lucky Vegas / Paris Las Vegas / Poker / → All Tags

She Had A One in 20 Million Chance, And Won

When we first reported on a new variation of Three Card Poker with a $1 million dollar bonus, we knew the odds were long. We thought the chances of winning were 14 mil to one, but VegasChatter fan TheCosmicJester said it was more like one in 20 million.

At the time, our own East Coast Gambler wasn't sure whether he'd take that bet. But, Johnita Ejercito did over the weekend at the Paris. And, beat the odds, becoming the big $1 million dollar winner early Sunday morning.

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Vegas Virgins / Paris Las Vegas / Caesars Palace / Treasure Island / Tangerine / → All Tags

This Group of Vegas Virgins Thought Sports Jackets Were Mandatory

We told you about our first time... visiting Vegas, that is. And, some of you have told us about yours. Now it's time for another VegasChatter member, Seth Gruen, to tell you about busting his Vegas cherry.

My initial reaction to this assignment was that it violated every ethical code that dealt with a trip to Vegas.

For years, hasn’t Sin City’s slogan been “What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas?”

I simultaneously wrestled with my own journalistic integrity. I didn’t go to school to write fiction. I leave that to the English majors. So, naturally, as with any sources who may not want to be mentioned by name, I went and asked a few members of my trip how they felt about my publicizing our exploits. The unilateral decision was that the names of those on my trip will remain anonymous -- except, of course, mine.

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WiFi / Internet / Caesars Entertainment / Caesars Palace / Flamingo / Paris Las Vegas / Bally's / → All Tags

A WiFi Game Changer in Vegas

OMG, you guys. Is it just us or are you seeing what we're seeing?

No, not the hellaciously high WiFi fees, but the bottom line -- inter-property roaming.

We're not sure how new this is (we're still waiting to connect with Caesars Entertainment on that), but this is definitely news to us. For $34.99, we can now ramble around Paris, Bally's, Caesars and Flamingo without aimlessly trying to find a complimentary hotspot here or there. An all-you-can-surf smorgasbord priced, ironically, quite similarly to the resorts' all-you-can-nosh Buffet of Buffet. (First priced at $29.99 for 24 hours of eats, but now a staggering $49.99. So, the writing may be on the wall there.)

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Mardi Gras / M Resort / Zowie Bowie / Rockhouse / PBR Rock Bar / Miracle Mile / Sugar Factory / Paris Las Vegas / Silverton / Golden Nugget / Harrah's / O'Sheas / Flamingo / → All Tags

Get Your Mardi Gras On In Vegas

If those college buddies haven't yet committed to trekking to Mardi Gras this year, the New Orleans trip probably isn't happening. That doesn't mean it's time to resign to Google Imaging for body paint and bead pics with one hand while sucking Doritos off the other. Which reminds us we did not miss those commercials this year.

Spending Mardi Gras in Las Vegas is more than catching Rio's Show in the Sky, streaking through The Orleans, throwing back jello shots at any of six Vegas Fat Tuesday locations, or heading downtown to Mermaids and La Bayou to start your Mr. T bead collection. That's just the first few hours of the trip, kids.

Las Vegas has more in store, letting us get more than our fill of Mardi Gras -- and rich, fatty foods -- around February 21 this year:

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Openings / Steakhouses / Gordon Ramsay / Celebrity Chefs / Gordon Ramsay Steak / Paris Las Vegas / → All Tags

Bleep, Bleep, Bleep... Gordon Ramsay Coming To Vegas, After All

Ok, we're no longer confused about wicked whispers that claimed Gordon Ramsay would open a restaurant at Paris Las Vegas last June. A deadline that came and went further racy rumors.

But, this morning, Caesars Entertainment officially announced that the foul-mouth chef really was coming to The Strip, debuting Gordon Ramsay Steak this coming spring. (fingers crossed)

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