Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/884376
october 2017 / the tasting panel / 85 strous braised lamb shank surrounded by pomegranates, toasted walnuts, and mashed celery roots. Over at Delmonico Steakhouse in The Venetian, Chef de Cuisine Ronnie Rainwater has been cooking for Emeril Lagasse since 1999 and became Delmonico's head chef in 2011. He is an artist when preparing Delmonico's duo of beef, which consists of a house dry-aged ribeye paired with an Angus filet and served with Lagasse's signature Worchester sauce. At John Kunkel's Yardbird restaurant, also at The Venetian, customers rave about this famous Southern-style eatery's fried chicken and waffles. But for meat eaters, there's no finer sight than their thick and sweetly-spicy St. Louis–style pork ribs, stacked on the plate like railroad ties and covered with housemade barbeque sauce. Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto has outdone himself at the MGM Grand's Morimoto restaurant by turning A5 Wagyu (the highest grade) into beef carpaccio. The dish is lightly seared with hot sesame oil and topped with yuzu soy sauce, ginger, sweet garlic, chives, and mitsuba (Japanese parsley), then laced with micro cilantro. Meanwhile, in the quiet, club- house atmosphere of the recently- remodeled Charlie Palmer Steak at the non-gaming Four Seasons Hotel, you'll find everything from an A5 New York Wagyu to a massive porterhouse for two. Also, ask about their "cut of the week": It's not on the menu and comes with a bottom- less glass of wine. Delmonico's in-house dry aged bone-in ribeye is Creole-seasoned, charbroiled, and served with maître d' butter. Yardbird's thick and sweetly- spicy St. Louis-style pork ribs come stacked on the plate like railroad ties and are coated with housemade barbecue sauce. PHOTO COURTESY OF YARDBIRD PHOTO: RICHARD CARLETON HACKER Venturing off the Strip Those who tire of Vegas's main thorough- fare can head for Del Frisco's. Known for its prime beef, the restaurant's menu includes a spectacular 32-ounce Wagyu ribeye tomahawk with a nine-inch bone. Executive Chef Fernando Guerrero sears his steaks instantly in a top-firing 1,100-degree broiler, sealing in the juices and letting them slowly seep into the meat before being turned so that the steaks are still sizzling on super-hot plates when served. Also off the Strip, Edge Steakhouse at Westgate Resort is an undiscovered haven for carnivores. Executive Chef Steve Young creates everything from a bone marrow lemon and rosemary flatbread to Wagyu tartar, a strip loin seasoned with capers, shallots, herbs, and truffled aioli, then topped with Kaluga caviar and served with beef fat toast. With an aging room just outside the restaurant, Young has access to every- thing from a 40-day dry aged bone-in strip to A5 Wagyu ribeyes from Japan. When you put your money down at any of these top Vegas steakhouses, you'll always come away a winner.