Mesa Grill by Bobby Flay @ Caesars Palace

At first I was not really sure about wanting to eat in this Restaurant...I never liked Bobby Flay (I find him very arrogant) and thought he was over rated. Well, my perspective has changed. His food just awesome - not over the top - just plain Southwestern cooking at it's finest.

It starts out with a bread basket...served with 3 kinds of bread: Jalapeno Bread, Raisin Walnut Bread, and Blue/Yellow cornbread muffins. I enjoyed the Jalapeno Bread and the Muffins...so tasty, sweet and savory at the same time...

First, I had the Steak Tartare. I know what people are going to say - "Tartare again?? etc...." but I just could not resist. It as not a regular Tartare, in fact probably the best I had during the whole Vegas trip...it was Tartare with Horseradish Mayonnaise and Chili Oil. The mayo give sit the creaminess and once mixed with the Chili oil, the flavors just explode in your mouth. You can't have too much of the chili Oil since it would probably numb your taste buds (it was quite spicy) but the contrast was great.

For main course, I had the Pan Roasted Florida Black Grouper - Red Chile Tomato Sauce, Crushed Avocado and Barbequed Red Onion. Another great dish...as I noticed from the menu, He uses a lot of avocado in his dishes and this was no exception. The tangyness of the Red Chile tomato complemented very well the thick, oiliness of the avocado. The fish was perfectly done, very moist on the inside and a little burnt on the outside..

I definitely enjoyed this meal and was quite a pleasant surprise for me. Now I know why Anthony Bourdain had a feature on this restaurant in his Vegas episode of No Reservations. For me definitely I place I would recommend.