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Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/198558
TASTE VEGGIE NEWS We've found the latest and greatest in herbivore hot spots. From buffet lines to room-service menus, vegetarian and vegan options are now available up and down the Strip. Need warming? Cosmopolitan's buffet restaurant Wicked Spoon (702-6938484; cosmopolitanlasvegas.com) recently rolled out a handful of enticing seasonal items to heat you up, such as parsnip soup, delicately fragranced with vanilla and topped with roasted chestnuts, and poached pears in spiced wine with a bleu cheese panna cotta and candied pecans (making the dessert station a must-stop). And don't miss the earthy pumpkin hummus, sweetened slightly with marinated cranberries. In mixed company? Bellagio's Prime Steakhouse (702-693-8484; bellagio.com) offers both vegetarian and vegan menus. Be sure to ask about the seasonal special entrées. Fall-friendly dishes include the roasted baby beet salad, with pickled strawberries, soft tofu, and hazelnuts; a shaved-squash salad, with avocado, arugula, and a drizzle of lemon; and a hearty risotto, with squash, corn, fresh basil, and tomatoes. Staying in? Guests who check into MGM Grand's Stay Well rooms (702-8911111; mgmgrand.com)—accommodations designed to promote wellness (currently being expanded from 42 to 171 rooms)— can order from an exclusive room-service menu featuring an array of healthful items. Don't miss the signature tofu sandwich on sourdough bread, with grilled portobello mushrooms, roasted peppers, marinated roasted zucchini, heirloom tomatoes, and—if you're not averse to a little fromage—a creamy goat-cheese spread to tie it all together perfectly. —David Landsel • Don't Pass the Turkey LAS VEGAS HAS PLENTY OF VEGETARIAN AND VEGAN HOLIDAY DINNER OPTIONS TO GOBBLE UP. BY DAVID LANDSEL I t may not be exactly on-brand for excess-obsessed Las Vegas, but the city's got a secret: A growing number of restaurants are catering to vegetarians and vegans. If your turkey days are behind you, not to worry: There are great places to celebrate an animal-product-free Thanksgiving this year. Nobu Perhaps surprisingly for someone famous for his world-class seafood, Nobu Matsuhisa released a vegetarian cookbook last year, and his chefs are trained to accommodate vegetarian and vegan guests. Follow the delicate vegetable rolls (seasonal vegetables, including asparagus, avocado, cucumber, burdock root, and okra, wrapped in a thin layer of Japanese radish) with roasted baby vegetables and tofu tobanyaki, a dish served in a hot clay skillet, flamed with sake, and finished with a yuzu soy sauce, accompanied by shitake and enoki mushrooms, asparagus, and caramelized onions. Nobu Hotel at Caesars, 702-785-6628; nobucaesarspalace.com miX Forty-two floors above the Strip, this extravagant dining and nightlife destination from Alain Ducasse wows with its striking attention 72 to detail. Start with an inventive salad of raw and cooked seasonal vegetables with a light herbal dressing, then tuck into a Ducasse classic: the rustic but elegant Farmer's Vegetable Cookpot (an aromatic stew of mushrooms, leeks, potatoes, chestnuts, butternut squash, parsnips, and onions) or a tender potato gnocchi with pumpkin and wild mushrooms. THEhotel, 702-632-9500; mandalaybay.com Border Grill It makes sense that this Southern California favorite would be a port in a storm for hungry herbivores. On Thanksgiving Day—or any day—many dishes on the menu can be customized to accommodate diners' needs. Popular vegetarian picks include tortilla soup, mushroom mulitas, and green corn tamales. Mandalay Bay, 702-632-7403; bordergrill.com V • • PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BORDER GRILL (TAMALES); MIX (COOKPOT); NOBU (ROASTED VEGETABLES) CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: The Farmer's Vegetable Cookpot at miX; green corn tamales at Border Grill; Nobu's roasted baby vegetables. VEGASMAGAZINE.COM 072_V_Taste_Tgiving_Nov13.indd 72 10/22/13 11:29 AM