The next big prizefight in Las Vegas will pit eight top chefs against each other for the position of head chef at a brand new, state-of-the-art $10 million steakhouse.
The Competition Plays Out on the Food Network
Debuting on the Food Network, “Vegas Chef Prizefight” the first test the eight chefs must tackle cooking Bally’s at BLT Steak. Celebrity chef Anne Burrell serves as both the host of the show and as a coach. Scott Conant, the note-worthy chef of Red Rock Resort and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, will be a recurring judge, as well as Eileen Moore, the Las Vegas regional president for Caesars Entertainment. Every one of the six shows will have two guest judges, with three for the grand finale.
As the series advances through its six-week run, the eight chefs will explore Caesars restaurants, including Guy Savoy and Mr. Chow at Caesars Palace, El Burro Borracho at the Rio, and Giada at The Cromwell.
The winner will be chosen in a 90-minute episode premiering on April 9. The lucky winner will preside over the kitchen at Bugsy & Meyer’s, a new steakhouse scheduled to open May 1 at the Flamingo.
Caesar’s Legacy of Culinary Excellence
Eileen Moore pointed to the variety of restaurants included in Caesars’ Las Vegas portfolio making this competition unique; the competing chefs will be put to the test in the very casual El Burro Borracho, the deluxe Guy Savoy and every type of restaurant in between.
“For us, it’s about testing the versatility of the chefs to really discover their level of creativity and the types of cuisine they can come up with,” she said. “Unlike other shows, where chefs are just in a test kitchen, this is about having a complete meal service prepped and ready to go out on the floor. The pressure these contestants experienced was real, and it was very exciting.”
How the Competition Plays Out
The contestants begin each segment of the series in the test kitchen with Burrell, after which they takeover presiding over the kitchen at one of Caesar’s restaurants.
“Burrell really coaches them in the kitchen,” Moore said. “As judges, we were able to see how they interacted with the staff. There’s a lot going on in a kitchen. It really does, metaphorically, get hot in the kitchen, both in intrigue and the competitive spirit. That really comes out in one of the episodes; you’ll see how they’re seen by their peers and how they can step up as a leader.”
Likewise, the variety of guest judges brought a variety of perspectives to the competition. Moore, who has run dozens of restaurants, also got a fresh perspective. “I had the best time,” she said. “It was very inspiring and I learned a lot.”
The Bugsy & Meyer’s Experience
The restaurant at the heart of the prize was still under the construction during a recent media tour, but it’s taking reservations through OpenTable.com for opening night on May 1 and after. Moore said the new restaurant is “an amazing place. It goes back to the glitz and glamour of the 1940s, our Las Vegas heritage.”
The restaurant is named for Meyer Lansky and his business partner Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel. The gangsters opened the Flamingo in 1946, the first casino/hotel of its kind on the newly minted Las Vegas Strip. The restaurant’s décor reflects an era when diners were likely to be wearing fur coats and high heels, rather than shorts and flip-flops.
It’s a wink and a nod to Vegas’ history and the mob era. For instance, dinner guests will enter the restaurant through what looks like a bakery, complete with baked goods in the windows on either side of the door. They’ll then go through a “secret” entrance to the restaurant’s dining room.
“Back then, if you were in the cool crowd, you never entered through the front door,” noted Jonathan Pacheco, Bugsy and Meyer’s general manager.
Immediately after entering, diners will come as close to walking through the kitchen as Clark County health codes permit. They walk along a wall of windows for a glimpse of the kitchen action, then they’ll pass by a refrigerator where the restaurant’s dry-aged meat is showcased. Pacheco said they want to allow guests to choose their cut of meat from the showcase, if they want to.
William Becker, vice president of food and beverage for the Linq, the Flamingo, and the Cromwell, said Bugsy and Meyer’s will have six separate “experiences.” That includes the Patio, an indoor dining space that gives diners a view of the hotel’s wildlife habitat. Another one is the Lounge, featuring an immense oval bar as its centerpiece. The oval bar is surrounded by booths and features live entertainment evocative of the 1920s to the 1950s on Fridays and Saturday nights.
The speakeasy-style Count Room, will only seat 10 at the bar and will remain open later than the restaurant. While overall, the restaurant’s décor will in pale pastel colors, the Count Room will feature the dark wood finishes of an old-fashioned steakhouse. Finally, the raw bar will entertain diners, with the staff preparing seafood live, against a backdrop of the kitchen.
Pacheco also revealed that the restaurant will be “rum-centric,” Cuban accents will feature on both the food and cocktail menus. That’s a nod to Meyer Lansky’s stint in Miami and pre-Castro Cuba.
It’s been made clear that entertainment at the venue will be an important component. Becker noted that the restaurant was conceptualized with the intent to open near the Caesars Forum conference center.
“We more or less built this place with the convention guest in mind,” he said. “They’ll get the whole story behind the restaurant before they even sit down. When the experience becomes even better than the food, that’s great, too.”
