One of the most famous restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip is the Eiffel Tower Restaurant at The Paris hotel. Siting eleven stories above the Las Vegas Strip and directly across the street from the Fountains at the Bellagio hotel, a window seat is a tough reservation to get…unless you pay for it.
Check in is at the base of the tower, on the casino floor. They then put you in an elevator and send you up to the restaurant. The host stand upstairs is a bit more complicated to find. It is about halfway past the bar into the restaurant and no one will come out to get you if they are busy.
In the last six months, I have been lucky enough to eat there on two trips, neither time did I pay for window seating and neither time did I get it anyway. Both times I was in the next row back from the window, which if you are more than 5 feet tall, might still be an okay seat. Alas I am not more than 5 feet tall so my view was of the people that had the view. Based on their reactions when the fountains would go off, it was a pretty good seat to have.
My first visit was back in August and it was an early dinner, 5:00pm. My service was attentive and professional, the waiter was personable and food and drinks came out perfectly timed. My second trip was the week between Christmas and New Years and was a bit later at 7:30. As you might imagine, they were busier and the service showed it. Items took a bit longer, especially drinks, and the kitchen seemed a bit out of sync. In addition, my waiter this time was no where near as personable. In fact, aside from taking my order and bringing my check, I don’t think he said two words to me. Please don’t get me wrong, I don’t need my servers to be my besties…in fact, as a solo diner, more often than not the waiters over stay thinking I need someone to talk to since I am dining alone. FYI – I do not.
For cocktails, I ordered The Eiffel Affair in August and the Maple Old Fashioned in December. Both were tasty, although the maple syrup was all at the bottom of the glass so that one was pretty much a regular Old Fashioned with a shot of maple at the end.
Both trips I ordered the Brioche Crown with black sea salt butter. The bread is soft and delicious, and it is always a good idea to save some for my next dish…also ordered on both trips: Lobster Bisque.
On the left is the Bisque from August which was perfectly seasoned and delicious. On the right is the December Bisque which was good, but not as good as August. It was a little salty. I will say that both times, there was plenty of lobster and I really like the crispy artichoke as a contrasting texture.
In August, I also ordered the Escargot appetizer. I love escargot and I figured since it was a French restaurant, they should be pretty good.
And while it was a completely unexpected presentation, it was indeed delicious. Also ample sauce for using up that brioche. In December, I did not order an appetizer, but the chef sent out an amuse.
I tried these in order from left to right starting with the Blue Cheese Fondue. I thought that one would be my favorite, I love blue cheese. But it was actually my least favorite. Maybe the beets or maybe just that the other two were better. Either way, that one was disappointing. Next, the Salmon mousse with Caviar. You need to know, I REALLY don’t like salmon so I had low expectations for this one. However, it was surprisingly tasty. The mousse was not too fishy and the caviar gave it a nice salty flavor that was tempered by the cucumber. The last one, prosciutto and goat cheese on toast was absolutely delicious. I believe it also had a touch of fig jam and balsamic. It was by far my favorite on the plate.
For my entrée, both times I ordered the Rossini Style Filet Mignon, with Foie Gras and Truffle Sauce, prepared Medium Rare. Sure, there are other delicious sounding options on the menu but there is no place other than Las Vegas where I get Foie Gras so I order it at every chance.
The filet in August was perfectly cooked, while the filet in December was just a touch closer to medium than I prefer, not enough to send back but not as amazing as the first time. The Foie was perfectly seared both times and I really like that little toast that the filet sits on for texture. I had a glass of Chateau Maurac Red Blend both trips as it was a perfect pairing.
In December, I ordered the Gratinée Of Creamed Spinach And Mushrooms as a side dish. I could only eat a bite of it, but it was really good.
There is one dessert that they serve that must be ordered in advance, the souffle. I like souffles just fine, but I am not a big dessert fan anyway and in August, I ordered the White Chocolate Banana Elysée having no idea what it actually was but I love bananas so I figured it would try it. I certainly did not expect what came to the table!
Like, how do you even eat this? I really was expecting like a small tart sort of thing, but I dove in and gave it a go.
It was delicious, but again, I could only take one bite before I was done, really done. Then of course there is the complimentary truffles that I didn’t know about the first time, but I did the second and therefore did not order a dessert at all in December.
In August, the waiter was kind enough to put them in a box for me to take back to my room, but in December my waiter didn’t ask. I’m positive that I could have asked for one and gotten it no problems but again, it was the late dinner and I was tired.
Comparing the two meals? I would probably make a reservation earlier rather than later in the evening. The kitchen isn’t stressed yet and the waiters are better able to time things in a way that I prefer. Still, I love this restaurant and I am certain I will be back again in the future.
Sibling Revelry 