Photo by Las Vegas Sun

Stayed at The Venetian for a conference and was thrilled by the many dining options available to me on the premises.  After some consideration, I opted to dine at CarneVino, a dining establishment by Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich.  I was excited to make this meal my ‘high-end’ meal while in Last Vegas and was pleased to see the space when I arrived.

I had reservations and was told to visit the bar until my table was available, which ended up being 45 minutes later.  Not a great start to a relaxing, memorable evening, but still acceptable since the company was good.

Initially, the service appeared above-par with our head waiter being very attentive and helpful with menu options.  My guest and I ordered starters, and I opted for a mid-range bottle of wine.  The waiter came back a few minutes later to say they were out of this wine.  I was slightly annoying, but I selected a second one and the waiter quickly went to retrieve it.  He came back minutes later, after the appetizers had already been served, to say that this second bottle was also not available.  At this point I’m aggravated and select three other bottles that hopefully the waiter can find.  We waited more than five minutes, staring at our appetizers, for the new wine to arrive – not good.

The starters, the beef Carpaccio ($18) and the steak tartare ($22), were outstanding, but before we were through, the waiter arrived with our entrees and laughed off that they came out a bit faster than he’d anticipated and proceeded to place them on the table, after pushing our appetizer plates to make room.  My guest was now annoyed and I could tell dinner was probably ruined – not good.

Our entrees were the bone-in NY strip ($61) and the mixed grill ($62) a selection of interesting-sounding meats.  Both were not up to par for a restaurant with the word “carne” – meaning meat in Italian, in its name.  We’re foodies and some of the items in the mixed grill were barely eatable.  The steak was not cooked rare as ordered and completely under-seasoned.  Hate asking for sea salt in an upscale restaurant, but I did here – not good.

Needless to say, we skipped dessert and called it a night after getting the $296 check (excluding gratuity).  In a town with an endless array of fine dining establishments, there’s really no reason to visit CarneVino.  Want a great steak?  Visit SW Steakhouse at Wynn or hidden gem BOA Steakhouse at the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace – good.

PS: I am a fan of Batali and Bastianich’s other restaurants.  Tip – turn down the hard rock, which I’m a fan of, quite a bit to allow guests to relax and enjoy the handsome space and comfortable atmosphere.

CarneVino

The Palazzo Hotel

3265 Las Vegas Blvd, South

Las Vegas, NV 89109

702-789-4141