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STRIPSTEAK
Mandalay Bay Resort Hotel & Casino
3950 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV 89119
(702) 632-7414
website

Ordered:
Trio of Duck Fat Fries
American Kobe Burger
Grilled Half Organic Chicken
10 oz. Filet Mignon
Spinach Soufflé

Review:
We were a little hesitant about trying another Michael Mina restaurant, simply because of how many he has opened under his new empire.  With the rapid accumulation of so many businesses, quality (but moreover character) inevitably become lost and sidetracked.  Still, we were given this recommendation by someone who knew restaurants inside and out.

We actually took my father here to StripSteak after the line at Burger Bar proved too long for our famished, liquor filled bellies.  For those who have never been, StripSteak is on that “cobblestone” stretch by Shanghai Lily, Fleur de Lys, and Mary Sue Milliken’s famous Border Grille.  It looks more like a club than a steakhouse.

Started off with a trio of complimentary duck fat fries.  How French, right?  Below, you see each variety with their respective descriptions.

Trio of Duck Fat Fries (Garlic with Tomato Ketchup, Plain with Mayonnaise, BBQ with BBQ Sauce):

Pretty good, but not the best fries you’ll ever eat.  The garlic fries were made with plenty of very fresh garlic, giving them a nice spicy kick.  I think those were a unanimous favorite.

Next came my dad’s Kobe burger, which as you can see, came with another helping of french fries.  The burger in itself was fine.  The meat was cooked a perfect medium.  There were no toppings other than the fennel slaw and watercress, which to me were just OK.  Not very interesting, and surprisingly the fennel and watercress couldn’t stand on their own in relation to the burger.  The end result was a bit bland.

American Kobe Burger (Duck Fat Fries, Fennel Slaw, Watercress):

I ordered the half chicken.  If you order a whole chicken (which is supposed to feed two), they deep-fry it.  Anything less, and it gets grilled.  Even so, it doesn’t taste grilled; It tastes more like it has been sprinkled with flour and pan-fried.

Grilled Half Organic Chicken (Truffled Mac & Cheese, Onion Jus):

Very standard fancy-pants chicken, similar to what you’d find at Nick & Stef’s or Daniel Boulud Brasserie.  This one was better though, and the macaroni and cheese was very good.  I also enjoyed the broccoli florets, carrots, and crispy onions.  The chicken was not bad, but my favorite parts of the dish were everything else.   Keep it mind that this was a big portion!  If I had ordered a side dish or two, this entree could have easily fed another person.

Next came the filet mignon!

10 oz. Filet Mignon:

Ordered medium rare.  Came out exactly to those specifications, which was appreciated.  Could have been the aging process – or the way they salted the meat – but it was a bit dry (though still pink in the middle!).

We also ordered a spinach soufflé to accompany all our entrees.  The cheese sauce really made it.  Without that sauce, the whole thing would have been very boring.  We don’t regret ordering this, though it would have been ideal to order a side of spinach plus a separate cheese soufflé.  But no such option existed on the menu. 

Spinach Soufflé:

Overall, the food that we had at StripSteak was OK.

Note: The place is d-bag central.  Lots of spiky-haired divorced guys in un-tucked button down dress shirts.  They constantly grab and harass waitresses in an effort to hone their charms for a night at RumJungle (which is just up the way).  The plus side?  You may get to meet Jon Gosselin, or -  if you’re super lucky – a guy who’ll sell you roofies for a fraction of the street price.

Rating:
6 out of 10 spoonfuls

Value:
$$$$

*Third image courtesy of yelp! member Marck N.