Andre’s Restaurant & Lounge
Welcome Champagne
Veal Consomee with Black Truffles
Brioche and Baguette with Butter
Marti Foie – Foie Gras and Vodka, Honey Tahitian Vanilla, Candied Walnuts, Pear Sorbet, Apples, Fruit Salad
Pork Rillette – Pepper Relish, Toasted Baguette
Caponata – Eggplant, Roasted Peppers, Toasted Baguette
Boudin Blanc Sausage – Apple and Pork Sauce, Puff Pastry
2011 Chateau Lamothe Guignard Sauternes
Pan Seared Foie Gras – Rhubarb Streusel, Vanilla and Honey Marshmallow, Aged Balsamic Reduction
French Onion Soup – Gruyere, Toasted Baguette, Au Gratin
Foie Gras Terrine – Huckleberry Compote, Toasted Petite Brioche
2013 Sancere
Fried Frog Legs – Rosemary and Parsley Persillade
2012 Domaine Laroche Chablis, 2012 Joseph Drouhin Chorey-Les-Beaune
Classic Dover Sole Amandine – Pommes Puree, Vegetable Roulade
Pan Seared Duck Breast – Duck Jus, Spiced Duck and Foie Gras Sausage, Forbidden Rice, Salsify Puree and Chips, Orange Chutney
Sweet Potato Spaetzle
Sandeman 20 Year Tawny Port
Cheese Plate – Four Fat Fouls St. Stephen, Rivers Edge Beltane, Camembert au Calvados du Graindorge, Pickled Pluots, Olives, Fig Preserves, Pepper Gastrique, Toasted Baguette, Crackers
Double Espresso with Ice
Carrot Cake Souffle – Cream Cheese Anglaise
Salted Caramel Chocolate Fondant – Brown Butter Pecan Ice Cream and Warm Bourbon Sauce
Meyer Lemon and Raspberry Profitteroles – Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Vanilla Poached Pear – Chocolate Mousse with Coffee Chicory Ice Cream
Amaretti Crusted Cheesecake – Black Currant and Pomegranate
Drunken Cherries, Mint Chocolate Truffle
Having recently returned to Alize for a meal that was good, but again marred by service errors and a clientele that often lacks the class befitting such cuisine, it was with high hopes that I sat down to dinner in Andre Rochat’s eponymous Monte Carlo dining room where a more serene space saw Chef Christopher Bulen send forth a feast worth feting, all four courses as refined as the environs with several classics still capable of eliciting wows.
Bearing Andre’s name, but assuredly Bulen’s kitchen as the young Chef reinvigorates the menu seasonally with new concepts joining Rochat’s classic French plates, it was with pleasant smiles that myself and a friend were greeted at the hostess stand and led through the bar to a table dressed in linen an a la carte experience was almost entirely self-selected, the welcoming glasses of bubbly soon followed by an amuse of Veal Broth perfumed in Black Truffles plus fresh baked Bread with Butter, my companion easily encouraged to indulge in the signature “Marti Foie” that was every bit as lovely as I’d remembered.
Far less ridiculously priced than the imported French giants at Caesars’ or MGM, several items from the $10 “Small Plates” section actually a bargain when taking into account both quality and amount, those looking for something vegetarian are highly encouraged to consider peppery Caponata while omnivores may wish to experience garlic laced frog legs that slip straight from bone to palate, Christopher’s passion for housemade meats showing in supple white sausage or creamy pork spread, the former served along with ethereal puff pastry and one of three sausages made in house daily.
Again offering a complimentary education in wine pairings, the prior visit actually leaving me a bit overwhelmed given a low tolerance, slow sips were taken of small pours including an outstanding 2011 Sauternes that arrived to announce two highly anticipated plates, the Classic French Onion Soup more classic and meaty than Mark Purdy’s at Alize but a bit lost in the mix when set next to seared Foie Gras plus a Terrine, the latter ‘au naturale’ with jam and toast for spreading while the warm steak saw the caramelized exterior give way to silken luxury, the combination of Rhubarb Streusel, melted Marshmallow and Balsamic faintly reminiscent of Peanut Butter and Jelly.
Taking one classic, one favorite and a generous $9 side of Sweet Potato Spaetzle for the final round of savories it was admittedly a bit disappointing that the Dover Sole was presented under a silver dome rather than being fileted table-side, but with that quibble noted it certainly did not detract from the moist flesh and light sauce Amandine, the rosy Duck undoubtedly a more hearty plate with dark rice sopping up all the pan jus as encased liver and force meat used delicate spicing to impart levity in a truly rich sausage.
Personally well sated as my dining partner questioned just how many bites he had left it was at the Chef’s suggestion that three ‘new-to-me’ cheeses were presented along with 20 Year Tawny Port, the Beltane offering creamy complexity well matched to the accoutrements while Camembert washed in Calvados was quite pungent unless appreciated bite for bite with pickled fruit or fig jam.
Offering desserts from Tammy Alana, easily one of the most under-appreciated names working in pastry nationwide, there was little doubt after the Cadbury masterpiece of Easter 2014 that a Souffle had to be ordered, the cloudy ‘carrot cake’ cleverly complimented with cream cheese Anglaise while four more sweets also joined the party, a poached pear not exactly my favorite when paired to chocolate while the Cheesecake bathed in fruit syrup ate several times lighter than any “New York” version, the Bourbon tinged Fondant expectedly rich as a trio of Raspberry Profitteroles crackled to the tooth atop Meyer Lemon Cream.
FOUR AND A HALF STARS: Enlivened by Louis Armstrong and Frank Sinatra in a room that looks upscale without feeling ‘old’ or out of touch, Andre’s remains every bit as good as the rest of Las Vegas’ formal French restaurants at less than one-half the tariff, Bulen and Alana both adding considerably to a classic white tablecloth space that never feels ‘stuffy’ or pretentious at all.
RECOMMEDED: Caponata, Boudin Blanc, Pan Seared Foie Gras, Duck Breast, Carrot Cake Souffle, Meyer Lemon and Raspberry Profitteroles.
AVOID: My take on the Vanilla Poached Pear was marred by a distaste for fruit and chocolate desserts while the French Onion Soup is good but ordinary, capacity better saved for other things.
TIP: Currently offering several specials, Small Plates and several Happy Hour bargains plus an interesting $60 Prix-Fixe for Mlife Members, those looking for great meal in a hurry or on a budget are encouraged to stop by the bar.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor.
http://andrelv.com/
