The lines are drawn as the balance of power for the year’s biggest party shifts further from ticketed concerts (represented by the first group) and more toward the nightclubs, where the latter three are billed as celebrity guest hosts.

Dining in the New Year

With so many phenomenal restaurants inside Wynn Las Vegas, you knew that some very special restaurants would be hosting some very special tasting menus to kick off the New Year. If you’re interested in making reservations or for more information on any of these tasting menus, we recommend calling Wynn Las Vegas at (702) 770-7000 and asking for the specific restaurant.

For those in search of a slightly toned down New Year’s Eve dinner, we start at The Country Club, where the idyllic view overlooking the Wynn Las Vegas golf course will set the tone for an amazing dinner. For $250 per person, diners will enjoy a special tasting menu that includes Beluga Caviar served on Potato Cake with Chopped Egg, Chives and Sour Cream; Hamachi Carpaccio with Citrus Vinaigrette; Roasted Maine Lobster; and Filet Mignon with Porcini, Foie Gras sauce. Service for the six-course tasting menu begins at 9 p.m.

At Tableau, Executive Chef Mark LoRusso has prepared a very special New Year’s Eve menu that, like the Country Club, begins service at 9 p.m. Chef LoRusso’s special six-course tasting dinner is stacked with delicacies, including his famous Golden Osetra Caviar “Club” with Smoked Salmon and Mascarpone; Black Truffle Soup with Dungeness Crab and Lemon Essence; Chilled Maine Lobster; Crispy Skin Tai Snapper; and Porcini-Crusted Strip Loin with Wild Mushroom Soufflé. The Tableau tasting menu starts at $250 per person and includes tax and tip.

Both of Wynn’s stellar Italian eateries are offering less restrictive special menus that give guests more options from which to choose while still staying on the Prix Fixe and tasting menu formats. Stephen Kalt’s phenomenal Corsa Cucina is doing a special four-course menu that allows patrons to choose both their second and third courses from a long list of 17 menu items that are guaranteed to impress. The large selection of dishes, some of which carry a slight up-charge, include some of our favorites, like the Lobster Gnocchi and Veal Sweetbreads with Lobster Jus; Pepper Crust Sirloin with Gorgonzola and Cipolini Onions; Seared Diver Scallops with Cauliflower Risotto and Fig Jam; and Fresh Trenette Pasta with Truffle Butter and Shaved White Piedmont Truffles ($20 extra). The meal ends with a selection of desserts from the chef.

Nearby at Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare, award-winning chef Paul Bartolotta is offering a somewhat similar menu format to Chef Kalt, but is instead offering multiple selections for all five courses. For example, the dinner will begin your choice of three salads before moving onto the next course, which again offers guests to choose one of three dishes. This time, it’s Seared Sea Scallops with Imported Porcini Mushrooms; Beef Tartare scented with White Truffle, Crisp Celery Heart Salad; or Red Mullet, Taggiasche Olives, Capers, Bell Peppers. Bartolotta is truly one of Las Vegas’ more special restaurants (his fish is flown in directly from the Mediterranean several times a week) and a fantastic dinner might be a great way to get the year off to a great start! Bartolotta’s “Il Menu di Capodanno” costs $125 per person.

Lastly, Wynn’s signature Japanese restaurant, Okada, also is offering a special New Year’s Eve tasting menu – an eclectic nine-course meal that offers dishes from Okada’s varying cooking techniques: sushi, robatayaki, teppan, etc. The meal will begin with the Okada Ocean and Earth Appetizer sampler, which combines some of the planet’s most luxurious delicacies from both the water and the earth: foie gras, spiny lobster, truffles, caviar, you name it. From there, guests will enjoy sushi and sashimi, king crab legs cooked over Robatayaki coals, Chilean sea bass and wild mushrooms, Japanese Kobe beef, and even the traditional New Year’s Eve good luck, Soba Noodle Soup! The cost of the tantalizing Okada tasting menu is $250 per person and seating will begin at 9 p.m.

http://www.eyeonvegas.net/
My thanks to Michael Politz for his unselfishness in allowing me to freely repost his Eye On Vegas articles.

New Year’s Eve 2006

Each year, thousands of revelers flock to Las Vegas to view multiple fireworks displays and party both on and off the world-famous Las Vegas Strip.

Sin City Soirée
On the Eve of Perfection.
By Justin Jimenez/Las Vegas Magazine

Plan ahead. Show up on the big night with no reservation, plan on counting down in line.
Plan to spend. You have to pay to play, but the value is worth it.
Plan to stay. The Strip is on lockdown and getting a cab between 11 p.m.-3 a.m. is close to impossible.
Eat. Almost every restaurant in town has a New Year’s Eve menu.
Watch. Cirque to Copperfield have special shows. Make sure to double-check all showtimes.
Enjoy. Nobody does Dec. 31 like us.
http://www.lvshowbiz.com/feature5.html

Vegas Values Report for 12/24/06T

Go, my friend. Sail on the evening breeze. But take comfort in knowing that if you can’t get there — or can’t get enough of the stuff — “Simply Ballroom” will be waiting for you at the Golden Nugget.

You will just have to accept in advance that — and this is a very weird thing to say — you will miss those twin Joeys, Lawrence and McIntyre.

In other words, the modest little show at the Nugget will test your ballroom mettle. Are you still hooked on the young couples and their precision moves without the C-list celebs as your lead-footed comic surrogates? It’s a painless way to find out.

More Here:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/Dec-29-Fri-2006/weekly/11594562.html

The show highlights a live four-member band, plus four male and three female lead singers, who are each powerhouse talents in their own right. One singer, Jin-Jin Reeves is truly outstanding and her credentials verify her remarkable talents.

Reeves started singing, dancing and writing songs at a young age and earned a scholarship to Julliard. As a singer, she has shared the stage with greats such as Gladys Knight, The Four Tops, The Temptations, Barry White and Luis Miguel and been featured on the Emmy Awards and in movie soundtracks.

As an actress, Reeves has been featured in plays “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “A Raisin In The Sun,” “Madam Lily,” in movies such as “Amistad,” “Beverly Hills Cop III,” and on television series such as “Seinfeld,” and “Roseanne.”

In “Hitzville,” Reeves never stops moving which explains why she has also had a solid career as a dancer and graced the stage with the “American Music Awards’ Tribute to Prince,” the “Soul Train Music Awards,” “Star Search,” etc.

International hotelier Loews Hotels has taken over operations of the Hyatt Regency at Lake Las Vegas and has changed the name to Loews Lake Las Vegas Resort. Another change includes renaming Japengo – the property’s Japanese fine-dining outlet – which will be known as Marssa. Other alterations include the addition of 42-inch plasma screen televisions in all guest rooms, renovations of the property’s 13 suites and casbahs, and a renovation of the hotel’s ballroom space. Loews will also integrate its standard first-class amenities, such as turndown service, and the Loews Loves Pets, Loews Loves Kids and Loews Breakfast service programs.

The King of Rock and Roll” and “The Material Girl” will take center stage next March 9-11 at the Neon Garage at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway during NASCAR weekend when musical impersonator acts perform from “Legends in Concert,” which can be seen nightly at the Imperial Palace. These legends of the music industry will join Blue Man Group and the Sirens of the TI among other acts. Passes for the Neon Garage and pre-race activities as well as race tickets are available by calling 1-800-644-4444.

The 100-seat enclosed private room has laminated foil glass walls, a highly reflective stretch ceiling system and iridescent mosaic tiles. Adjacent to the private room on the upper level is a new lounge area with plush couches, private tables and a custom-made RX music system that extends throughout the entire restaurant. The lounge offers full bar amenities, a partial menu and dedicated server. The space also includes a 50-inch plasma television for additional entertainment and remains open until midnight.

The new design is extended into a variety of details throughout the restaurant including new Bernardaud China, Sambonet flatware and Spieglau glassware. Additionally, newly designed apparel for the staff features chocolate tones complemented by black accents. Even the restrooms are updated.

The rumjungle nightclub at Mandalay Bay has unleashed two new entertainment nights – Xotic Mondays and Rumba Wednesdays. On Mondays, world-class deejays spin 80’s rock, re-mix mash-ups, R&B and hip-hop. Rumba Wednesdays invites all to dance the night away to salsa, merengue, cumbia, bachata and a bit of Latin Rock music. Latin DJ Urbin and special guest deejays from Miami along with the famous rumjungle go-go dancers entertain.

Open seven days a week, rumjungle serves lunch from noon to 5 p.m. and dinner from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. The nightclub is open daily from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. For information, call 702-632-7408.
http://www.lasvegas-nv.com/brett/index.htm

#2 – Bellagio Conservatory
Maybe it’s the giant Banyan tree that got added recently, but something about the sunlit gardens at Bellagio has caused it grow in my estimation of late. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always enjoyed the seasonal displays and the obvious hard work that went in to creating them, but I always felt like it was something you should go see if you happen to be in the building. Lately, though, the displays have gotten more majestic and entrancing, artistic and evocative. A true destination of its own.

#3 – Fountains of Bellagio
What’s not to love about dancing water? Really, it’s continually amazing to me how much I am continually amazed by this spectacle of fountains timed to music. No matter how many times I see it I am still entertained and that is the definition of a good attraction.

#4 – The Fremont Street Experience
Turning Glitter Gulch into a pedestrian walkway with a big lit-up canopy above it was considered sacrilege back in the day, but it’s hard to imagine Fremont Street any other way now. The glittering, glorious animation is crisper, cleaner, and more entertaining than it ever has been. Go ahead: I dare you not to look up.

#5 – The Liberace Museum
Whether you go because you think Liberace was a truly gifted pianist and showman or you go to giggle at the audacious, well, everything about the guy, you really should check out this altar to everything bejeweled. And if you are moved to giggles, it’s okay – Liberace would’ve liked that.

#6 – The Mirage Dolphin Habitat
Dolphins in the middle of the desert? Why not! It’s Las Vegas. Why dolphins continue to fascinate us mere mortals is a bit of a mystery, but fascinated you will be as you step into what has become one of the premiere dolphin habitats in the world. Educational and entertaining at the same time.

#7 – The Mirage Volcano
Belching fire and water, the “volcano” in front of The Mirage has become a bit of background noise recently, overshadowed by some of the bigger and splashier free attractions in front of other hotels that came after it. That’s too bad, because it really is still a giggle-inducing bit of silliness (and I mean that in a good way) that really shouldn’t be missed.

#8 – Lake Las Vegas/MonteLago Village
Nestled in a valley around the manmade Lake Las Vegas, lies MonteLago Village, a beautiful replica of an Italian seaside town full of shops, restaurants, world-class hotels, and more and surrounded by some of the best recreation (hiking, boating, swimming, golf, etc.) in the entire city. Take a break from the intensity of Las Vegas and come here to kick back for a little while. And don’t worry, they even have a casino.

#9 – Stratosphere Tower/Thrill Rides
You have to be nuts to want to get on one of the extreme thrill rides high atop the Stratosphere Tower but that doesn’t mean those of us who prefer more earth-bound pleasures can’t appreciate the sheer mad genius of them. Whether you ride the rides or just take in the views, the Stratosphere Tower still stands tall above Las Vegas in more ways than one.

#10 – The Neon Museum/Boneyard
In a city that seems to delight in imploding its past, it’s a delight in and of itself to find an organization committed to preserving it. That they do so with the very symbol of Las Vegas, the neon sign, is a jackpot. Check out the saved and restored signs along The Fremont Street Experience or sign up for one of the private tours of the boneyard, where old Las Vegas signs await their resurrection. A classic experience.