GastropodTravels: Aureole Wine Lounge; Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas

Isn't Every Hour at a Wine Lounge Happy Hour?

On this particular evening in Las Vegas we had reservations at Red Square - Jay and I were taking my parents to dinner there and then we planned to drop hard earned money on a ridiculously over-priced bottle of vodka so we could toss back shots in their vodka vault ... but that's a story for another post. We arrived at Mandalay Bay at least an hour before our reservation so that we could find a good lounge for some snack-n-sip. We tried Stripsteak on a previous visit and the horror that's been visited on the former Fleur dy Lys doesn't bear mentioning here.

While wondering what we were going to do, we stumbled across Aureole's wine lounge. And I do mean stumble because it's not located inside the establishment but actually juts out into the hotel's interior walkway along restaurant row. If you're not paying attention, and some Bendys among us are almost never paying attention because they are daydreaming, you will trip over a potted plant or walk right into a cozy white couch-chair, or both.

Thank goodness there was a big chalkboard with happy hour specials written in big, bright, bold chalk letters. Everything was 50% off until 7PM! We parked ourselves at a table and got down to the business of ordering before a more practical inner voice had a chance to say, "Are you sure this is such a good idea? After all, you're going to be having dinner in just under an hour."

Of course it was a good idea! How often does anyone have a chance to sip wine and snack on small plates at one of Charlie Palmer's joints for a 50% discount?

I ordered an Alta Maria Pinot Noir and Jason ordered a Tempranillo - both were just lovely and paired nicely with our appetizer selections. Said appetizers included Roasted Heirloom Tomato Soup with a Country Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Sirloin Sliders with Guacamole Chipotle Sauce. Both appetizers were fabulous but I must admit to having a soft spot in my heart for tomato soup and grilled cheese and this was the stuff of cheesy dreams - warm, rich tomato soup with ooey-gooey, wee grilled cheese sandwedges ... I really do wish I was eating it right now!

Aside from the great happy hour deals, one of the wine lounge's primary draws is the large windows that face the restaurant's four story wine tower. At any given time one of those lovely, brave "wine angels" may appear in mid-air to retrieve a bottle of wine for a patron. It was cool to see but definitely not a job that I would want (not that they would ever hire a four-eyed klutz like me for a job like that ... haha!). But I digress ... suffice to say that Aureole's wine lounge is a terrific addition to the Mandalay Bay snack-n-sip scene and it offers a fabulous happy hour deal through 7PM; stop in the next time you're in Vegas and relax with a lovely glass of wine and some tasty, upscale finger- food. You won't regret it!

Wines and Snacks