Whet your appetite with new restaurant column

By Max Jacobson

Thursday, Jan. 22, 2009 | midnight

Friends, Vegans and countrymen, lend me your ears.

My name is Max Jacobson, and I come, if you'll allow me to paraphrase the Bard, to praise local dining, not to bury it.

Every week in this space I'll write about the best or hottest spots on and off-Strip. We'll visit new restaurants, track important chefs, and occasionally include a little wine talk. I hope you'll visit this space every week, and give me your feedback or any newsy bits you deem relevant. My e-mail address and phone number are listed below, and will be weekly.

Here we go.

First, I want to wish everyone a happy, healthy 2009.

Here are a few trends to expect this year in the world of restaurants and dining.

Breakfast

Vegas has never been a great breakfast town, but look for hot new spots to open this year. One local chain, The Cracked Egg, has just opened a new Green Valley location at 1000 N. Green Valley Pkwy. 868-5505. The homemade coffee cake is tops.

New Ethnic Dining

Every year, the list of cuisines available here grows. The terrific new Ibo, 9755 W. Flamingo Rd. in the Flamingo Grand Centre, is our first true Turkish restaurant, and Ibo Olmeztoprak (forget about pronouncing it) is a most amiable host. I love the manti, tiny dumplings in a dill yoghurt sauce, and the tender lamb shank. Call 365-6111 for a reservation.

China Mama, a Szechuan Chinese restaurant at 3420 Jones Blvd., 873-1977, makes the best xiao loong bao, or juicy pork dumplings in town. And the adobato de pollo, chicken soup Peruvian style, is sensational at Mi Peru in Henderson at 1450 W. Horizon Ridge Pkwy. 220-4652. Peruvian Cuisine is red hot in New York, so Vegas can't be far behind. Lima — that's Peru, not Ohio — has been chosen destination of the year by Bon Appetit.

Bargain Wines

With everyone squeezed, look for good wines in the ten-dollar range at stores like Valley Cheese and Wine, Trader Joe's, and the ever-present Lee's Discount. I just drank a $12 Old Vines Chilean Merlot by Concha y Toro at Trader Joe's that I would put up against wines at four times the price.

Finally, a bit of gossip. Rick Moonen, celebrity chef, sustainable fish guru, and author of Fish Without A Doubt, will revamp the lunch menu at RM Seafood with the help of his new Chef de Cuisine, Adam Sobel, formerly of Company and Bradley Ogden. You heard it here, first.

Send me your suggestions at [email protected], or call 702-990-2454. See you next week.

Max Jacobson is the restaurant editor for the Las Vegas Weekly.