I gotta start this one off with a place I did eat at and was very impressed because it's small and un-pretensive and kind of reminds me of the way dining places used to be in old Las Vegas.

Plus the food is good and the martinis were excellent. (Actually I never met a martini I didn't like unless it arrived in plastic cup).

Thanks, JMT, for sending me there. It's a small place off the Strip called "The Coachman's Inn" and definitely worth a visit. You'll have to ask JMT for further details.

OK, back tot he subject at hand .... I never ate at Pamplemousse! I visited Panplemousse! But I never ate there! But I want to eat there and I intend to eat there one day soon. It's been the "in-place" since the days of Sinatra and the Boyz and just about every famous Las Vegan's favorite dining spot.

It's on East Sahara right across the street from the monorail as it turns towards the Sahara Hotel and its return trip down the Strip.

When you first see it, your might feel that you should turn around and go elsewhere, but in this case "first impressions" do not hold true, so park your car and enter and enjoy yourself.

It's actually an old Las Vegas residence that appears to have seen its better days but once inside, you may find that it's still in it's "better days".

I'm not an interior designer kind of guy so I guess I can call it "early French" and get away with it. Actually, it's "quaint".

And since I haven't dined there yet, I'll leave it here and trip on over to the newest babe on the Strip, the Encore, and take a look at Sinatra's.

Sinatra's is located in one of the "smaller cornors" of Wynn's new hotel/casino and from the outside you can look into the inside and not see too very much except for a small bar and a doorway leading into the restaurant.

I understand that Frank actually did cook a decent plate of spaghetti and meatballs, so I will assume that this place bearing his name offers that same old recipe. Good or bad, I'm sure no one complained when Sinatra did the cook'en unless they wanted a bloody nose. And for authenticity sake, I hope this place follows the same procedure.

Actually, I was born in the heart of North Beach (Italian-Town) and can honestly state that I've never had an Italian meal that was ever any better than what was served at our home-based table, so I just might be that guy leaving Sinatra's with the handkerchief held up to his nose.

But before heading off to clean up, I'd take notice of the pictures on the wall of Frank and Steve and some comments about Frank ordering Steve to take his baggage to his room.

I'k like to dine at Sinatra's just to see if he cooked any better than my mom used to place before us on the table every single night for so many years.

I just hope that they don't serve pizza, because she never did serve a pizza pie and don't ask me why.

And then I'd like to walk on over to the SW Steak House and see if those expensive cuts of beef are actually any better than those I grill each week in my back yard.

Enough said there.

Someday, when I'm really stupid, I'll take a group of good friends to Buchon in the MGM Grand where the least expensive meal start at $350.00 a person. I'd like to try this place to see just why it's so darn expensive and that's probably the only reason because I've never seen anything on that menu that I really wanted to order. In fact, it seemed to include every food I never did want to order since I started ordering on my own.

And back to the Wynn once again to check out Alex and see if I possess the proper etiguettness an act my age in such a beautiful fine dining spot.

And do I really understand how to "place an" order when presented with the following or will I have to ask the ultra skilled waiter who never completed high school to explain the menu? ......

Crispy Guinea Hen ‘a la Financière’ with Artichoke, Black Truffle Quenelles and Madeira
Kurobuta Pork Belly with Cranberry-Apricot Fregola, Pork Cracklings and Natural Jus
Wild Turbot with Stuffed Razor Clams, Shellfish Fricassée and Château Chalon Sauce
Daurade Royale with Vadouvan Curry, Crispy Coconut Rice and Gingered Vegetables

Actually this one's pretty easy, but still a bit over my head and initially not too appealing.

There are many other restaurants I plan to try but right now I'm getting hungry and have to take a Wheaties break.

Will,
I find restaurants in Vegas sometimes come and go so fast, that I never have the time to try them. I was on a kick for awhile where every trip I had to try a couple of the nicer steak houses. But that seems to have passed. I get very tired of paying premium prices for so-so food.
There seems to be a trend to see how much they can extract from my wallet on a single meal in vegas and still not have a great meal. Same goes for the price of a single hamburger at some of the trendy joints. Hey if a hamburger is all you got, your in trouble in this town as a food outlet. Fatburger and kilroys are pretty high on my list, and anything more pricey is really pushing it! IMHO
So, getting back to the original topic here, I no longer carry a list of places I'd always wanted to try. The cat fish place sounds very interesting, and I plan of giving it a whirl, but untill JMT's recent topic on the hush puppy, I would have never heard of the place, or known where it is. So it really doesn't qualify here.
A place called STACKED, I beleive is at the Mirage, and a friend has talked this place up several times to me, so, I guess this one qualifies for you list. But I must say, the most prominent reason he likes this place is the waitresses! So even this, might not fit your list! LOL

Stacked!!! WOW!! I walked past it more than once and let it slide because I thought is was some kind of pan-cake house!

Next visit, I'll take a minute or two to look inside. Thanks, Lee!

I'd never eat at a hamburger place unless it was In-n-Out. That hamburger place in the Mirage is a major rip-off as far as I am concerned, but it always seems crowded so there must be something to it. I think that most people who eat in those expensive Strip casino fast food joints are merely there for the convenience.

Yea, I hate it when I eat at a high priced place and get a so-so meal.

I had an absolutely terrible and expensive dinner at Craft-Steak in the Mandalay Bay and a great and very inexpensive prime rib dinner at Jerry's Nugget. Actually I do my best to have that PR meal at Jerry's every time I visit LV and have taken many a guest who find it just as good as I do. Not a fancy place at all, but well worth the price.

I still want to try Michael's (now located in the South Point?).

AND... my favorite place for a decent sandwich is still in the Golden Gate on Fremont. Been going there more than once each year since it originally opened.

AND ... I've never had a bad meal at Ellis Island! And the home made beer is among the best I've ever had.