I’m taking a little time off my OITNB marathon so I’ll write up a quick review of Rivea, French-Italian restaurant by Alain Ducasse that replaced the old Mix. I figured I’ll take my significant other to a nice dinner on Christmas night before I propose to her the next day and the food didn’t disappoint!
For this meal, we opted to go a la carte rather than the tasting menu.
Note: The white balance of the pictures are way off since I was using someone else’s camera and I couldn’t figure out how to custom set it. I did the best I could in salvaging them in Lightroom but they still came out with a noticeable orange cast.
I would’ve loved to sit outdoor on the balcony but Rivea closed it off due to the cold weather. We ended up settling for a table by the windows.
Not a bad view at all from the 64th floor of the hotel!
Assorted bread basket consisting of bread sticks, country bread, olive focaccia, and wheat crisps. They were all well made with great textures and flavors. The bread basket also came with a delicious olive anchovy dip.
Grilled Octopus & Butterbean salad - green onion, confit sweet bell pepper
Delicious! Light and refreshing overall. The octopus was super tender and had great charred flavors while the butterbean added creaminess. The sweetness of the bell pepper, brightness of the pesto, and a lightly aerated hummus lifted the dish and ensured that you’ll get a different combination of flavor profile on every bite.
Marinated Sea Bass - orange, lemon, grapefruit
Another winner! Rivea struck good balance between acidity and sweetness while not overwhelming the fish in anyway.
Lobster Risotto
Great dish. Risotto was cooked perfectly and taste of pleasant lobster and oceany goodness. Delicately cooked sweet tasting lobster was chopped up and spread throughout the risotto which ensures your bite to have texture contrast between the risotto’s creaminess, that slight chew of the rice, and the snappy texture of a well cooked lobster.
Paccheri Pasta - braised short ribs, red wine reduction
Good dish but a touch too salty. Pasta was cooked al dente which gives off a nice chewiness. Also, the pasta and fork-tender short ribs were coated in a nice red wine reduction. To finish off the dish, roasted tomatoes had just enough acidity to cut through the richness.
Liberty Duck Breast - apple & pear, parsnip, dolce forte - Half portion since the restaurant split plated for us
Delish! The duck was nicely rendered and it was cooked to perfect medium-rare temperature as requested. A classic bigarade sauce was pleasantly tangy with a touch of bitterness to lighten up the dish in addition to flavoring the hearty and velvety parsnip puree. Finally, fine brunoise of apple and pear were used to counter the tang. Well thought out!
“Rossini” Angus Filet Mignon - duck foie gras, & black truffle, black truffle sauce
I had high expectations for this classic dish and ordered it off their tasting menu but this was the only disappointment of the night. Filet was cooked to perfection but lacked proper seasoning. Even the richness of the foie and the immense earthiness of the black truffle and black truffle sauce couldn’t compensate for this error. Potato puree consisted of mostly butter with some potato the way I like em! However, all that richness combined highlighted another flaw in the dish: lack of acidity to cut through the richness. The amount of dressed baby romaine lettuce just wasn’t enough…
It might not have seemed like there was a lot of food, but nothing was further from the truth. We struggled to finish the last course and truth be told, we were already full after the duck so we skipped out on desserts. Overall, with the exception of the filet, we had a great meal filled with light, clean, and unmuddled flavors that highlighted the main ingredients.
Recommended!
Rivea
Delano Las Vegas
3940 Las Vegas Blvd S
Fl 64
Las Vegas, NV 89119
