Giada, Gordon and Guy … oh my! Celebrity chefs take over The Strip for Vegas Uncork'd by Bon Appétit

Let’s be honest. The food festival scene these days is oversaturated. Miami Beach, New York, Los Angeles, and even us, Orange County, all tout incredible food and wine-driven experiences. But, for diners in-the-know Las Vegas reigns supreme. It’s an adult playground for those crazed with everything culinary.

Vegas Uncork’d gathers the faces from the pages of Bon Appétit and the celebrity chefs from Food Network all in one place – The Strip. It’s as over-blown and amazing as you might imagine. And, it’s totally worth the calories.

On May 10-13, a dizzying array of food-focused events commenced. We began our journey with a Master Series celebration hosted by chef Nobu Matsuhisa. The intimate dinner honored the chef and his five successful years inside Nobu-san’s namesake hotel at Caesars Palace.

Nobu’s food remains an ode to his many journeys. The chef is still so vigorous and witty. He also keeps a mind-bogglingly busy schedule. Each month, another opening or a sold-out event. If he’s tired, Nobu-san did not show it. Not one of us noticed an ounce of jet-lag or an inkling of fatigue that evening.

The man knows how to work a crowd. He smiled frequently like a film star, taking pictures with fans (née fanatics) visiting from as far away as Taiwan, Hong Kong and Brazil. For someone who has opened restaurants around the world and continues to tout a celebrity following, its pleasant to see how how grounded and approachable Nobu remains.

The chef also shared with our resident food editor Jenn Tanaka that there will be a swanky celebration in June at his Newport Beach location. Stay tuned for more details …

Other highlights from the Uncork’d weekend included the gut-busting Grand Tasting event where Susan Feniger, chef and co-owner of Border Grill and Blue Window LA, stole the show.

As onlookers watched, Feniger harnessed some pedal power to prepare batches of tasty eco-friendly margaritas! A blender fastened to a stationary bicycle was part show, part conversation piece, and one hundred percent genius! Feniger’s hard work also made a mean margarita.

Gordon Ramsey had a huge presence at this year’s festival. At the Grand Tasting alone the UK transplant had six booths that we counted. Dishes featured British cooking that ranged from mini burgers to pint-sized Shepherd’s pie. The best of Ramseyworld was his fish and chips booth. We devoured perfectly crispy slabs of white fish served with a smattering of homemade spreads such as a creamy tarter sauce with bits of fresh dill.

Posted below are a few highlights from Vegas Uncork’d. Unfortunately, we missed out photographing the best dish from the Grand Tasting, which was LAVO‘s pillowy soft gnocchi coated in a decadent Parmesan cream sauce topped with freshly shaved black truffles. You can, however, check out a video, here.

We’ll make sure we save room for next year’s Vegas Uncork’d.

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