Special Event at Stripsteak, Las Vegas

Michael Mina is chef who I learned about early on in my time exploring San Francisco's dining scene, when I went to his flagship Michelin starred restaurant (back when it was on Union Square), and loved it. Sadly, the newer location let me down in 2012, as did the Farewell to Foie Gras dinner we attended there later that year.  But I still followed his restaurants, and really enjoyed the cocktails and desserts at his smokehouse collab with Ayesha Curry, International Smoke, some of the sushi and bites I had from his Japanese Izakaya, Pabu, some of the bites and desserts from (now closed) RN74, and the (now-closed) Hawaiian inspired Trailblazer Tavern.  These were all in San Francisco.

I was excited to see that he had a restraurant in Las Vegas, where I recently was for a business trip.

"Located inside Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, STRIPSTEAK Las Vegas offers a reimagined dining experience where the elegance of a modern steakhouse meets the vibrant energy of the Las Vegas Strip. 

Designed to evoke the natural beauty of the Mojave desert, STRIPSTEAK provides an upscale yet inviting atmosphere, perfect for both intimate dinners and lively private events. Indulge in premium cuts of beef, fresh seafood, and an array of signature dishes crafted by renowned Chef Michael Mina."

The restaurant is a classic steakhouse, open only for dinner.  I visited two nights in a row, both times for hosted happy hours.  I would gladly return for a proper dinner though, as the main menu has some items I was really, really interested in (I'm looking at you caviar jelly donut (!!!), seared foie gras, lump crab cakes, and basically, ALL of the desserts).

Setting

The location is ideal for those attending conventions at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, as it is in the area between the convention center and the main hotel complex.  Every single person walking through must go right past it.

Entrance.

The area has a decently large bar with lounge seating around it, and a dining room.  The whole establishment is quasi-open to the hallway, as is common for many of the restaurants in this area.

Drinks

The first event I attended had a full open bar, with no special menu set out for us, and seemingly no limits on what we could order.

Special Cocktail Menu

The second night had a special cocktail menu, with 9 cocktails named after the happy hour theme (the Killers, since it was right before a concert for them).

Cabernet Sauvignon.

The first night, I had wine.  When I asked for "red wine", I was given a choice of pinot noir or cabernet.  I gleefully selected the cab.  The server told me the maker, but I didn't quite catch it.  In retrospect, I wish I did!  It was actually really quite good.  I think it may have been Pillar & Post Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, as that was offered the subsequent night, and is the cheapest cab on their wines by the glass menu.

Very little acid, very little tanin, yet still really well structured and robust.  I enjoyed it more than any other cab in recent memory.  ****.

Speciality Cocktail.

The second night, I opted for a cocktail, but ... I don't remember which I actually got.  This was my third stop that night, after the tasty margaritas and blue drinks at Border Grill, so my memory is a bit fuzzy.  I think it was probably the Neon Tiger (mezcal, aperol, lime, pineapple, vanilla, orange peel) or the Mr. Brightside (bourbon, sugar, orange bitters), as those are the ones that still jump out at me now, but I can't be certain.  I also don't recall much about it, besides that I vaguely liked it?

Food - Canapes

Since I attended Happy Hour special events, the hosts had pre-selected food both nights from the event menu, which included passed canapes and a few stationed platters.

For passed canapes, Stripsteak has 7 items available (1 vegetarian, 1 vegan, 3 seafood, 2 beef).  I skipped the tuna tostada since I had one just a few minutes before at Border Grill, and the falafel as I'm not generally into it, but I tried everything else.

This is not a cheap place to host an event, where every piece is priced at $8-11 each, with 24 pieces per item minimum.

Stripsteak Cheeseburger Sliders. ($11).

"American cheese, secret sauce."

The first item to show up was a slider.  For a moment I thought, "ho-hum", everywhere has sliders right?  Classic happy hour grub.  Usually mediocre bread, thin fully cooked well done patty, congealed cheese, maybe some attempt at a special sauce.  I nearly skipped it, but, I thought, "Hey, this is a steak place after all ...".

It also just looked dry and bland.  They didn't try to add lettuce, tomato, onion, caramelized onion, pickles, or anything to jazz it up.  Which at first glance, definitely made this look like a below average slider.

It was definitely the best slider I've had in ages.  As in, it was actually good.  But not without flaws.

The bun was incredible.  I know it doesn't look special, but it was shockingly delicious.  Definitely buttered, rich and fluffy, lightly sweet.  Just, wow, such a good bun.  I'm not normally one to fill up on bread, but this was totally worth it.  **** bun.

The online event menu said the cheese was just American cheese, but the cheese on this was shockingly good too, and didn't seem like American.  It was a white cheese, not too sharp or anything, but had a depth and nuttiness to it.  I really liked the cheese, although it wasn't particularly soft and gooey.  ***+.

The menu also said it would have secret sauce, and mine did not have any sauce.  I luckily had a packet of ketchup in my bag (always prepared!), and that was good to add.  I think it really must have just been an error that it was missing any sauce.

So, fantastic bread and cheese, would be happy enough with it just as a cheese toastie!

Slider: Close Up.

But of course, this is a steakhouse.  The patty was also a highlight.  Very thick, much thicker than your average cocktail slider.  Nice char/sear to it.  Flavorful beef.  Very moist.  And ... mid-rare!  The bite you see here is actually the most cooked, it was really nicely rare in the center.  Such a surprise for an event.  ***+.

Interestingly, the next night when I was also at a happy hour there, others had the sliders (after I raved about them) and they were medium-well, a totally different experience.  I would have had one that second night, but after seeing theirs, I skipped.

Lobster Fritter ($10).

"Pink peppercorn tartar."

Next came lobster!  

I thought the lobster fritter would be an easy favorite of mine, but I found it only ok.  It was nicely crispy, but I didn't taste any lobster at all, and seemed to mostly be like risotto?  The aioli was too easily lost.  Fine for an arancini, but boo for a lobster fritter.  **.

I realize in retrospect that possibly the server misspoke when presenting this, and it was actually the vegetarian mushroom arancini?  That would make considerably more sense.

Beef Kebab Skewer. ($10).

"Chimichurri, cilantro."

After the great slider, I had high hopes for the beef skewers, and again, I was at a steak place after all.  

The skewer beef itself let me down - it was slightly chewy, although quite tender, and cooked medium-well.  I really wanted more pink.  **+.

The chimichurri however was absolutely fantastic.  Fresh, vibrant, and extremely flavorful.  It opened my eyes to how good chimi could be, and definitely went well with the steak.  ****.

Tempura Shrimp Skewer. ($9).

"Spicy aioli, sesame, nori."

Another fairly common cocktail hour item, shrimp tempura.

This was a decent tempura shrimp.  Not quite as crisp as I'd like, probably because it wasn't super fresh (I got the last one from the tray), but the shrimp inside was succulent, and I appreciated the spicy aioli drizzle.  ***+.

Market Vegetable Crudite. $25/pp.

"Housemade buttermilk ranch." 

I was really craving veggies and not just standard happy hour appetizers after several days of this kind of reception, so I was really happy the hosts the second night selected the crudite platter.  

Everything was fresh and crisp, although some was a bit random, like, the slices of tomato?  Fairly average ranch dip. ***+.

Cheese and Charcuterie. $35/pp.

"Assorted artisanal cured meats & cheeses."

We also had a basic charcuterie and cheese board to graze on that second night.  I had the triple cream, it was fine.  I prefer more funk, and riper.  ***.

The mortadella though was fantastic.  I appreciated how huge the slices were.  Tender, flavorful, mmmm.  I love good mortadella.  ****.  Second favorite bite from the event.

The $35 per person price seemed quite high, as most people had at most 1-2 bites from here.