Q: negative

A: Yucky! I'm confused why most of the reviews are so good. $20 bucks for an xl pizza and I think that the frozen pizza at the grocery store tastes better. Your average fast food place is nicer inside. We tried pepperoni and one with chicken it's probably cafeteria quality. Salad bar was also cafeteria quality at best. I tried Rosati's next door and it was far better for the price.

Q: positive

A: I am often skeptical about "high tech" cooking but I have to say I am beginning to see the light. The food was complex but not complicated. Walu was amazing; buttery and soft. Textures and flavors were consistently delightful; almost playful. Use of nitrogen processes, foams, etc... sophistication and dazzle nicely balanced with good judgment and restraint. RM's chef de cuisine Gerald Chin, gave us a tour of the kitchen following an exquisite meal. Note that I'm reviewing the UPSTAIRS portion of the restaurant. I have eaten downstairs and I would rate that lower. It's not bad, just not the caliber of the upstairs menu. And, its not much cheaper downstairs.

Q: positive

A: A true 5 star meal at last! With the exception of my brother's cooking, it feels like months since the last time I had a meal this delicious. Not wanting to set myself up for disappointment, my expectations were fairly low. No one really seemed excited about this place, and Emeril's appeal has sort of worn off. But our entire experience here was outstanding. We came at 10:00pm, and frankly, I'm glad we were here late, although it was still quite busy when we first arrived. I liked the inside of the restaurant. Due to the high ceiling and the way the tables were set up, it created an illusion of intimacy and spaciousness, even though there were quite a few people there. (Chihuly is everywhere, I can't escape him!) Our server was such a kick. We didn't get any Emeril schtick from her, just genuine New Orleans service (she was from there). She was so attentive and kind, she even took us by the arm to escort us to the restrooms. She did a fantastic job of explaining the menu and pointing out the notable dishes. Vince and I went with the tasting menu, while the others weren't quite so hungry. I have to say that this was right up there with the best tasting menus I've ever had, but what really blew me out of the water was the perfection of the wine pairings. Every single last one of them was brilliant. For your drooling pleasure, our meal consisted of: - Achiote marinated & grilled jumbo gulf shrimp w/mixed baby green & orange segments tossed in a cumin vinaigrette, toasted pine nuts and queso tetilla; paired with a Spanish white. - Seared Maine sea scallop with caramelized onion & sweet potato bread pudding w/ bacon braised southern greens and apple brandy reduction; paired with a New Zealand chard. - Sweet BBQ Atlantic salmon on a homemade andouille sausage and Brabant potato hash w/ spicy onion crust and Emeril's homemade Worcestershire sauce; paired with an Oregon pinot. - Pecan crusted mahi mahi with grilled vegetables, stone ground grits and creole meuniere butter sauce; paired with a California sangiovese. - Grilled filet of beef on lobster & sweet corn risotto with sauteed haricot vert and charred tomato reduction; paired with a Washington merlot. - Tiramusu, paired with a vintage port, which we subbed out for another dessert wine that I don't remember. All of this deliciousness was only $70, plus $50 for the wine pairing. I think that's pretty reasonable for what we got, plus it's about the same as what we paid for similar tasting menus in Sonoma County. The tasting menus at the other restaurants at the MGM were all much, much more than that (but also of a much higher caliber, I suppose). Like Vince mentioned in his review, it's pretty incredible that they were able to come up with wine pairings for a lot of these dishes, since there is such a crazy mix of flavors (the salmon in particular), but not only did they pull it off, they did it very well. I slowed down toward the end and took most of my steak to go. I was thrilled when I ate it the next day for lunch and it was so tender and bloody, just the kind of perfect steak I've been craving, and that lobster risotto with it was delicious. I would definitely come here again, plus I want to check out some of these other tasty looking restaurants at the MGM. Summing up: Awesome. --11/15/06 update-- Today in the mail I got a handwritten note from our server thanking us for our visit and inviting us back again. A simple gesture, but much appreciated!

Q: negative

A:
the food was very bland. I'm asian and I typically like blander food, but this was even more bland for me. we ordered the #1 chicken (tasteless and dry white meat). this was served with rice and some sauces which weren't that good. the chicken was chopped up with no seasoning. the #15 beef ramen (this was okay but nothing special) and fried wonton (the tastiest) the best part about the restaurant was their clean restrooms and triple ply toilet paper.