Mix showcases magnificent menus
By Brock Radke
Photos by Big French
Filet mignon Rossini
One of the most unique views of the Las Vegas Strip from high atop a gleaming gold hotel tower. A stunningly white main dining room surrounding a whimsical, champagne bubble glass chandelier installation. A 15-foot-tall glass wine cellar containing 7,000 bottles from all over the world. Classic, artful French cuisine from one of the true masters, Alain Ducasse. These are the things that make Mix much more than a memorable meal. In fact, the experience epitomizes the grandeur and glamour of what Las Vegas fine dining can be.
The experience begins with a short yet breathtaking glass elevator ride to the top of TheHotel at Mandalay Bay, providing a panoramic view of the desert valley. Once you’ve arrived, stop off for a glass of Ducasse’s very own brand of champagne, a crisp, dry brut, in Mix’s lounge, and revel in the spectacular sights. You’ve never seen the iconic casinos of the Strip from this perspective.
Continue your Vegas viewing at dinner from an outdoor table, if you like, on the city’s fanciest “patio.” This Michelin-starred menu is a study in classic and contemporary French cuisine, including a selection of Ducasse signature dishes. Those include seared duck foie gras with sweet date purée and candied lemon zest, rich and creamy Maine lobster “au curry” with coconut basmati rice, and a decadent filet mignon Rossini with more foie gras and black truffle. Two distinct tasting menus, each available with wine pairings, use these signature dishes and other modern fare to fashion a once-in-a-lifetime meal.
Lobster au curry
The full menu is as versatile as it is delicious. Potato gnocchi, tender as they come, are complemented with fresh morel mushrooms and asparagus prepared several ways all in one plating. Impossibly light chicken and coconut Thai soup is soothing and ethereal. Crab salad is a spiced-up version of an old favorite, augmented by guacamole and cilantro. Moving on to entrée dishes, black pepper-crusted bison tenderloin and sumptuous Colorado lamb loin with potato, piquillo pepper and herb salad offer intriguing alternatives to beef. But Mix does that just as well, dry aging New York strip or ribeye steaks. Overloaded with flavor, a slab of glazed pork belly is paired with a delicate mango-avocado salad. Seafood options are anchored by a classic cod brandade, coated in lemon-brown butter sauce, and another Ducasse favorite, John Dory meunière with heirloom tomato.
Dessert is its own meal at Mix, a cavalcade of temptation from which there is no escape. Surrender yourself to the beloved Mix candy bar, a chocolatey, crisp masterpiece with a tangy coconut-lime sorbet on the side. Tender cubes of braised rhubarb are topped with strawberry granite, yogurt cream and almond crumble, creating a sweet-and-sour delight. And the classic vacherin is a standard-bearer, a delightful verbena sherbet hiding beneath dried meringue and red currant sauce. By all means, spend as much time on as many desserts as you can … all the longer to enjoy the view, and make that many more memories at Mix.
TheHotel at Mandalay Bay
6-10 p.m. Sun.-Thurs., 6-10:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. 702.632.7200
