DLV dining?

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This posting is from: Susan Bane
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>>Sahara Buffet (1998)

>It's OK, but knid of boring.

Ladies, I have been to LV more times than I want to remember. My SO
says we need to contribute to keep the lights on! OK?!

As for the food and restaurants, I do not like any of the buffets. They
are all the same and as many of my sisters would say "BBBBOOOOORRRING!

Now for a change of pace as well as a really fun place, think about
"AquaKnox " in Venetian. The Aquaknox's fresh colors reflect the
vibrancy of the cool ocean waters. Experience an environment designed to
entertain your every sense, highlighted by a water-encased walk-in wine
cellar and a state-of-the-art open kitchen.

Besides being FUN the food is FANTASTIC!

JUST FYI

HUGS

SUSAN


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This posting is from: Joan
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>I have eaten at both the Lucky Cheng's in NYC and in Las Vegas. both
>are quite different. The food in NYC served traditional Chinese food
>and was a bit high. The quality was adequate at best.

I was not happy with Lucky Chengs in 2006. I would not go back.

>In Las Vegas the cuisine is quite good but way to expensive for what
>you get.

I would disagree. You can get some really great Asian food at fair
prices in the various restaurants in Commercial Center (953 East
Sahara). Average $10 to $20 a person. you won't walk out hungry.
Be prepared to take home some leftovers.

Sincerely Joan eating hamburgers cooked on the cast iron grill.


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This posting is from: Gini
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>Though the food and dining is part of the event, it seems some
>forget a reason for the large group gatherings, the socializing
>part. These are the only events that try to bring everyone in
>the same location.

I totally agree with Kumiko's assessment! The large group meals
are the primary time to meet others and socialize with them,
especially for those of us who come with partners who have their
own agenda. This makes them important and something we need to
maintain and promote.

Casino buffets are great for lunch, but dinner needs to be better
and it seems to me there are few places that can accommodate a
group as large and as of uncertain size as ours.

Elvis' did a excellent job considering and I'm looking forward to
going back. The staff was totally accepting and accommodating,
including Elvis, which I found pleasantly surprising in view of
Elvis' politically conservative credentials which were prominently
displayed on restaurant's wall!

The food was good especially considering the price. My food was
served late, but they accommodated my special requests and
expressed concern about the delay. Lost orders can and do happen
in all restaurants especially with a large crowd placing orders
simultaneously and was not unexpected. I don't fault the servers
for it and can excuse the overwhelmed kitchen staff.

The last year at Carrluccio's was a very bad experience for me.
I ask for a salad with a non-fat dressing on the side and without
cheese or croutons, and pasta marinara without cheese. The
waitress basically told me I had to order from the limited menu
for our group and take what they had without any special
accommodation. Regardless I asked for the above and explained
it was for health reasons. Instead, I received a salad slathered
in a rich salad dressing, pasta with a cream sauce, and added
cheese on everything.

Moreover, the waitress served it with an here's all you are
getting and you are lucky to have it attitude. I try to limit
my saturated fats for serious cardiac reasons and what I was
served could accurately be described as "heart attack on a
platter."

As a rule Italian restaurants are among the safer places to avoid
saturated fats and are typically accommodative. I don't know what
was going on at Carrluccio's that night, but the waitress definitely
had an attitude that I found very offensive and one that I had not
encountered before or since. In addition to the limited menu, as I
recall they also had a segregation policy restricting us to the back
bar, dining room, and restroom that was aggressively enforced.

I'd like to thank Nora for whatever she did to help the situation at
Bahama Breeze which this year was a pleasant experience unlike last
year when they seemed to be totally unprepared for us or willing to
make adjustments. Bahama Breeze is a chain and I have avoided going
to any another location based on the 2005 experience, but I'm very
positive about them now and will be a future customer!

Ginger


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This posting is from: annie
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>Has anyone noticed we have used a lot of 'italian-american'
>resturants - Milano, Elivs' Steven Davids, Trevi...?

Uh-huh, yes, we seem to do that, don't we? :)

It's good old Sicilian soul food. Comfort food, like, uh, the other
kids' grandmothers used to make. :)

It just kinda happened that way, actually.

>Seems that there are always some complaints no matter what venue
>we use as a group dinner. Bahama Breeze was one. BUT as they
>learned from their mistakes, at this last DLV, Bahama Breeze gave
>excellent food and service.

I do know a number of people who skipped BB this year.

Why did they skip it?

Because of past experiences. This year they missed a very good
time and a very good meal, and they were missed as well, and
missed out on what was the largest single gathering of DLV
people for 2007.

>I think it could be the same for Elvis'. We have to give them
>some slack and some benefit with dealing with us for the first
>time.

I don't have any complaints about Elvis' personally. I like the
place, and it's somewhere I would go voluntarily even if the
group did not go there.

Yes, there are a few reports which have given me a bad taste
regarding the place, but until those happen to me ...

Yes, the place has an overall earthy air to it, and it is
dominated by a strong personality. It's intended to be that way.

>Considering the size of our group, and who we are, finding venues
>to have us for large group dinner isn't very easy to find.

Very true. I don't think those who call for the summary dismissal
of a dinner venue really think of this. To restate this, how many
who call for such summary dismissal are willing to put their
effort where their mouth is and seek out a new appropriate venue
to replace the ash-canned one?

>AND thank you Nora for the good work working with that venue!!

Nora is indeed our Local Resident Energizer Bunny! For those who
aren't aware of this, for DLV 2007, Nora coordinated not one, not
two, but THREE (3 - count 'em - 3) large group meals for the DLV
gang!

Nora is to be commended for these efforts!

>Can we give Suede some feedback from the problems we encountered
>in a constructive way to hear their side of the story, or work with
>them to see if its still possible to use them and not repeat the
>problems that were encountered this past dlv?

Not to pass the buck, but that's Nora's department, and I don't
know what her plans are in this area.

I'm really not sure if the Suede situation is recoverable, as in
a come-back like we had with Bahama Breeze this year. I'm willing
to give them a shot for a meal, maybe if I get out to LV sometime
in the near future, but I have a feeling that it would take some
serious concessions on their part to get quite a few of the
dissatisfied DLVers back there. :(

>Annie has addressed another problem. The percentage that signs up,
>but never shows or doesn't dine at that event - for whatever reasons
>they go off on their own to do their own thing.

Let's clarify this.

We have two separate issues:

1. Those who sign up but don't show up, for whatever reason.

2. Those who actively choose to skip it, don't sign up at all, and
of course don't show up.

As for number 1, we now have a good handle of what our show-up
rate will be, and over the past couple of years we've been able
to give a reasonably accurate headcount to our coordinators and
to our venues.

Number 2 is the one I would like to see us do better on. It seems
like 70% or so (of those in town on a given evening) is the limit
of the turnout we can expect at our maximum-attendance things.

(LOL, not to get geeky -- the turnout approaches a limit of 70%
as our effort to get them out approaches infinity.) :)

>Their solution is NOT to go. DLV organizers cannot stop or
>prevent this from happening.

This is very true, and is unique to DLV. We don't have the captive
audience of other events. To have a good turnout, something has to
attract them to the function.

>it seems some forget a reason for the large group gatherings,
>the socializing part. These are the only events that try to
>bring everyone in the same location.

This is one of the most important points in this thread. One of
DLV's strongest assets is our people, and these allow all to
get to know the others.

>Hello! - these are the 'events' to do so.

(Knock-knock! McFly?!!! Now make like a tree and gedoutahere!)

>This also has been commented - no time to see and socialize with
>others.

I do think we need to encourage all not only to attend, but to
actively mingle and socialize. At our larger gathering this year
we had too many cases where people just camped out at tables
with those they already knew and did not circulate.


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This posting is from: annie
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>>it seems some forget a reason for the large group gatherings,
>>the socializing part. These are the only events that try to
>>bring everyone in the same location.

>This makes them important and something we need to maintain and
>promote.

Agreed, and I think we need to make this a priority this year!

>including Elvis, which I found pleasantly surprising in view of
>Elvis' politically conservative credentials which were prominently
>displayed on restaurant's wall!

I was wondering if others would pick up on that. :) It's kinda out
of character, as I kind of assume that Italian Jersey Boys tend to
be Dems.

My hunch is that he leans toward the Libertarian end of the Pub
spectrum.

But back to the subject ... :)

>The last year at Carrluccio's was a very bad experience for me.

>The waitress basically told me I had to order from the limited
>menu for our group and take what they had without any special

"Party" menus suck!

I admit that they are better than the one-plate-fits-all fare of
the hypothetical RCB, but it seems like when the "party" menu
comes into play, those in the kitchen switch from chef-mode to
mess-hall-stewburner mode.

>Moreover, the waitress served it with an here's all you are
>getting and you are lucky to have it attitude.

When you eat at Ed Debevic's, you pay for that attitude, but not
so at a nicer place. I'm sure that Carluccio's runs into people
with dietary restrictions all the time and accommodates them
on a regular basis.

{said while popping gum} "You get a choice of vegetable with that.
The vegetable today is corn. The choice is, ya want it, or ya
don't want it!" :)

Not to go into total bitchmode here, but party menu or not, you
are the customer and they are there to serve you.

If they forget the fact, party menu or not, that they answer to
you, not the other way around, you are within your rights to
become as assertive as is necessary. If a server is rude, a
manager needs to be requested.

I don't think it's out of line to request a reasonable substitute
for a bonafide reason. Pasta marinara and salad with vinaigrette
on the side are things they do every day, every hour.

>as I recall they also had a segregation policy restricting us to
>the back bar, dining room, and restroom that was aggressively
>enforced.

This I was unaware of. I do remember a request to use a particular
restroom, but I was not aware of anybody being told to get (back)
to your side of the tracks. :(

>I'd like to thank Nora for whatever she did to help the situation
>at Bahama Breeze which this year was a pleasant experience unlike

Agreed! Thanks, Nora! :)

>Bahama Breeze is a chain and I have avoided going to any another
>location based on the 2005 experience, ...

Not to digress ... (actually, I think I intend to digress ...) but
last August I was on business in the Chicago burbs (Schaumburg
area) and the subject of where to go for dinner came up. One of
those present mentioned the Bahama Breeze down the street and I
piped up that I had recently been to one and although the food was
good, the service was lacking, so yes, we decided on another place.

Had this happened this summer, I would have piped up "yeah, let's
do it" this time.


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This posting is from: Joan
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>It's good old Sicilian soul food. Comfort food, like, uh, the other
>kids' grandmothers used to make. :)

I do like that.

>>Seems that there are always some complaints no matter what venue
>>we use as a group dinner. Bahama Breeze was one. BUT as they
>>learned from their mistakes, at this last DLV, Bahama Breeze gave
>>excellent food and service.

I was very happy with Bahama Breeze. I like it so much, I wear my high
heeled sneakers.

>>I think it could be the same for Elvis'. We have to give them
>>some slack and some benefit with dealing with us for the first
>>time.

Give slack? If someone can't do it right the first time, should we
risk a second and be let down?

>I don't have any complaints about Elvis' personally. I like the
>place, and it's somewhere I would go voluntarily even if the
>group did not go there.

I'm not so sure.

>Yes, the place has an overall earthy air to it, and it is
>dominated by a strong personality. It's intended to be that way.

Is that what we really want? That's not my thing.

>>Considering the size of our group, and who we are, finding venues
>>to have us for large group dinner isn't very easy to find.

I think I have a few leads.

>To restate this, how many
>who call for such summary dismissal are willing to put their
>effort where their mouth is and seek out a new appropriate venue
>to replace the ash-canned one?

I have ten months ahead of me. I'll see what I can do.

>I'm really not sure if the Suede situation is recoverable, as in

Suede may be OK for a small group. I thought it was OK. But i'm not sure
we should risk it on a big event again.

>>it seems some forget a reason for the large group gatherings,
>>the socializing part. These are the only events that try to
>>bring everyone in the same location.

>This is one of the most important points in this thread. One of

Such is true.

>>This also has been commented - no time to see and socialize with
>>others.

I haven't had that problem.

>I do think we need to encourage all not only to attend, but to
>actively mingle and socialize. At our larger gathering this year
>we had too many cases where people just camped out at tables
>with those they already knew and did not circulate.

That is a personal choice. It's up to people if they want to camp
out with their old friends. I'm probably going to skip some of
the large events in DLV 2008. I like small gatherings. But i
will do Bahama Breeze. They let me wear my high heeled
sneakers. I might however be able to do a large group dinner.

Stay tuned.

Sincerely, Joan, enjoying awesome pork chops with a fresh stick of incense
burning here in very hot LV.


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This posting is from: Joan
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>Casino buffets are great for lunch, but dinner needs to be better
>and it seems to me there are few places that can accommodate a
>group as large and as of uncertain size as ours.

I've had some great buffet dinners. Why not do it. i'm planning a buffet
dinner at Wynn along with Spamalot. (you must see it!)

>The food was good especially considering the price. My food was
>served late, but they accommodated my special requests and
>expressed concern about the delay.

That is true. Elvis himself gave me a free cranberry juice without
any alcohol. (for various reasons I must abstain)

>Lost orders can and do happen
>in all restaurants especially with a large crowd placing orders

They do, but it's not right. 100% must be the goal.

>As a rule Italian restaurants are among the safer places to avoid
>saturated fats and are typically accommodative.

I never saw Italian food as being fat free.

Sincerely, joan, eating a bowl of ceral and needing to light more incense.


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This posting is from: Gina
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Hi All!

Personally when I can come to DLV, I like to spend one evening at a
very nice restaurant, aka Smith & Wollenski, Ruth Chris, that type
of place with a small group and sit near a group of asian man or
red necks, (or other "white meat" AKA unwashed masses) and make
them deal with the ladies that we are.

The wait staff is always wonderful and the food is awe inspiring.

As for Carlucci's and other places, feeding a wild horde such as
ours is always a challenge, and if we want to get a big group
together anywhere, it always will be a challenge for the smaller
venues we usually frequent (for the cost savings).

So do one of two things, decide you are going to enjoy the company
you are lucky enough to be with, and accept that the food may not be
four star quality, the service may be a bit slow, and have a good
time. Or Second, be a party pooper and miss out on the opportunity
to be with people that come from all over the world for the albeit
misguided opportunity to hang out with YOU!

OR we could reserve a room at one of the big conference facilities,
get lousy service, bad food, and pay $40 or so a head. You figure it out.

Be good, sorry I missed all of you this year, my son chose (like it
was his choice) to be home from Army training the very two days I
had scheduled to go to DLV, and then he was off to Korea for at
least a year. Unfortunately, we sometimes have to make choices
that aren't fun. But it was good to see him.

Love you all,

Gina


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This posting is from: Cathy Bean
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I have been to Vegas now for two DLV's and one Halloween and on all
three occasions my friend Veronica and I have eaten at four and five
star restaurtants at the Paris, Mirage and Bellagio. In all cases we
have been treated very well by the wait staff as well as the other
customers. We create a little excitement when we first arrive and when
we leave, but after a couple of minutes of arrival everyone in the
restaurant goes back to doing their own thing and to the largest extent
forget about us.

We have been treated very well on these occasions. I wonder if the
higher the quality of the venue the better and more professional we are
treated. One caveat to this though goes back to the dress code. If you
are dressed well then you are treated well, if you are dressed
inappropriately then you probably won't recieve the same level of
service the other patrons recieve if you are served at all.

Just my thoughts

Love, Cathy B.


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This posting is from: Sarah Charles
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Food is one of my favorites, as anyone who saw me this year could
testify. But it turns out great service and quality food don't
necessarily figure in to my best experiences at DLV. It is, after
all, a social experience.

The great crowd that overwealmed Milano's gave us plenty of time to
visit and get a little silly. A group of 8 or 9 ate at Quarks Bar
after the Star Trek experience and that was a treat as well, but
not because the food was great. The Klingons and Vulcans and
Ferenges tended to distract the civilians and we had a corner
to ourselves. Marie Callendars has been good the last couple of
years because it is so low key. Sonic after a NSD visit was just
the right thing. I guess my take on this is if we can find a place
where the majority of the group feels comfortable and the food is
anything better than reasonable, the social side of the equation
can take over.

Sarah


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