TOP NEW VEGAS HOT SPOT FOR 2011

American Fish by Michael Mina

Aria Hotel and Casino in CityCenter 

Inspired by the regional bounty of America's great lakes, rivers and coasts, AMERICAN FISH by Michael Mina serves refined seafood cuisine inside of a traditional lodge environment that feels both refreshingly familiar and exquisitely forward-thinking. Five signature cooking methods will be used, including salt-baking, charcoal grilling, cast iron griddling, cedar plank smoking and poaching in ocean water.  Mina's newest restaurant, his fifth in Las Vegas, focuses on four preparations of fish sourced from American rivers and streams, the Great Lakes, and the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Spaced behind a glass window looking into the kitchen sits the equipment necessary for each cooking method - water circulators for poaching fish in ocean water imported from Hawaii or Fiji; a wood-burning campfire-inspired pit with cast-iron pans for searing cornmeal-crusted trout; a grill and rotisserie also set on wood pits; and finally, the one that Mina claims as his favorite: the salt bake and salt grill. 

AquaKnox

The Venetian – Resort, Hotel, Casino
3355 Las Vegas Blvd., South 

When your restaurant sits 250 miles from the nearest ocean, and a high percentage of potential customers come from states with at least one border awash with seawater, you don't typically try to blow them away with a seafood menu. Not so with the newest resident on the Venetian's restaurant row. Celebrated chef Tom Moloney's AquaKnox serves fish, oysters, stone crab and lobsters so fresh they're still carrying their airline boarding passes. The California-inspired menu includes a killer raw bar, selection of caviar and fixings, and a 2-pound lobster entrée. The walk-in wine cellar is actually encased in a waterfall. Ask about the Chef's Table for a very personal meal, or bring everyone you know for a group immersion.