I was hoping to have a knock-your-socks-off experience here. I did not. I love downtown Vegas, and I am a fan of any business that is going to help the area grow. So kudos for that. However, when you have alcapurrias, bacalaitos, mofongo, and paella on the menu, I'm going to judge you harshly if you can't deliver. Let me preface by saying that I knew going into this place that everything on the menu was going to be the 'fancy-pants' version of traditional Spanish and Caribbean foods, so there's some leeway for artistic interpretation. I said leeway, not 'screw tradition, I do what I want'. I've had alcapurrias, bacalaitos, and mofongo on the beaches of Puerto Rico, so ordering this was a way to have a culinary nostalgia trip for me. Nope, no such luck. The alcapurrias were bland, the bacalaitos were soggy, and the mofongo was oily. For those of you not familiar with these foods, they are *not* supposed to be that way. Now, the paella, I'm thinking will redeem the menu. It's a seafood paella, with mussels, shrimp, clams, bits of whitefish (I believe cod but don't quote me), and veggies and rice. Traditional paella takes at least a good half hour to bake, and it should only be made when it's ordered. Otherwise, if it sits too long it can get gummy and chewy. So I'm thinking ok, let the tapas settle and have some chit-chat with my friend while the paella is ready. Sidebar: The chef was out in the dining room nearly the entire time I was there and he was having a loud conversation with a patron about sources, marketing, mixology, and all sorts of other stuff which I'm sure would be interesting if you were part of the conversation, but honestly, I don't want to listen to all that while I'm trying to have a pleasant dinner with a friend. Get back into your kitchen and make sure your chefs are on point with their food and your servers are on point with their service. Surprisingly, the paella comes out in about ten minutes from the time of ordering. Uhm, what, ok. So it looks to have a fair amount of seafood in the rice and veggies and I'm thinking it looks promising. I taste it. It's salty. And not just salty because it's seafood and there's salt in seafood anyway. No, I mean, salty to the point that I'm drinking water to wash out the salt. The actual consistency of the paella was ok (no mushiness so good job there) but I couldn't get past the salt to appreciate the seasoning. I want to be a fan. I really do. But I'm not.

negative

I won't stay here again! ZERO STARS. They canceled my reservation for a non smoking room. They then tried to charge me more than $100 than the price I booked it for. But adjusted it when I complained. There were stains on the carpet, peeling pain in the shower and several light bulbs were burned out. They charged for Wifi. They put me in in mini -suite which didn't have any smokey smell though it was a smoking room. At the front desk they claimed they were upgrading me to the pool floor and my room had a lani but, I had a view of the roof the there was plastic green carpet on the "Lani" This hotel needs serious investment to bring it up to average.

negative

One great thing about Montreal is the abundance of shops, restaurants, and small businesses that add to the city's sense of place. Add this to that list. While there are no seats or ambiance to speak of, the bagels and the tradition speak for themselves. There are approximately ten-twelve main varieties such as plain, meuslix, sesame, blueberry, and chocolate. in the morning and at peak times, there is always a wait. if you can stop in for an afternoon bagel, they will have some hot, fresh options then as well, with little or no wait. The bagels are good. However, some are better than others. The chocolate chip seems like a necessary sweet option, but is not the most exciting. The blueberry and sesame are better choices.

positive

Me: WHAT? Friend: W(@#(*)Q@ Me: WHAT? I can't hear you. Friend: (leans in closer) &#$#&( Me: WHAT?!?! THIS PLACE IS SO LOUD! Friend: (screams in ear) WTF IS THAT ALARM GOING OFF! Tao Restaurant successfully made four twenty-five year olds fear hearing loss. In addition to the techno music pumping at high volume throughout the clamoring and bustling restaurant, an alarm system accompanied by flashing strobe lights continued to blare for over ten minutes during our meal. I couldn't tell if I was in the nightclub or the actual restaurant for quite some time. Talk about an identity crisis. In addition to the terrible music, alarm, and audio ambiance, the management and order of this place is really sub-par. The first problem is having the entrance to the nightclub be the same as the entrance to the restaurant causing a severe bottleneck at the door and eliminating the waiting space for a table. We had reservations for five at 9:45. At 10:15 we were seated, at a table for FOUR, next to the service entrance. It was absurd. We called the mai'tre d over to explain our situation and he told us that he was "unable to build us another table" and that the much larger and currently vacated table was already reserved. After we instruct our waiter to bring us whatever is best on the menu, and to "keep it coming," and a party of TWO was sat at the table for SIX that we had been eyeing, the mait're d came over and offered us SHOTS to compensate us. I couldn't believe this - we were here with PARENTS - who LIVE in Vegas and are locals - and we also had a table waiting for us upstairs at the club. We were shoveling them a ton of money, and I really couldn't believe how we were being treated. Finally, we were moved to a larger table and given a free bottle of champagne, but all the fuss didn't make it worth. Even if the duck was absolutely delicious. Even though our bill was under $400 for five, I would skip this place and head to d.b.'s or another Vegas restaurant with a better vibe, better service, and better core values. SAVE YOUR EARDRUMS!
negative