Las Vegas Mixtape v19: Dead Forever, Culinary Delights, and More

1. Track #1: Dead & Company @Sphere

The music sparkled, the crowd swayed, and the trippy LED visuals inside the wondrous Sphere unfolded in mesmerizing, kaleidoscopic ways.  

It was a spectacular spaceship ride, lasting around three hours, with 20,000 people enraptured by Dead & Company as part of their “Dead Forever–Live at Sphere” residency. Notably, the historic run has been expanded from 24 to 30 shows through August 10.

Like the Grateful Dead mothership, this spinoff band featuring two original Dead members (vocalist/guitarist Bob Weir and percussionist Mickey Hart) play songs that are in no hurry to reach their destination but eventually get there.

It was pure joy to hear singer, songwriter, and guitarist John Mayer confidently sprinkle his luminous guitar lines and contribute warm vocals to the mix; he gave these legendary musicians a youthful edge. Mayer commendably evokes the Dead’s original visionary, Jerry Garcia, without overstepping his role, which he’s had since Dead & Company formed in 2015.

The band achieved total lift-off at the beginning of the evening’s second set, with “China Cat Sunflower” flowing into “I Know You Rider.” These sister tunes especially light up the Dead’s classic live album “Europe ’72,” and tonight, Mayer’s vocals blended beautifully with Weir’s now-grandfatherly-sounding voice.

Later in the set, Hart’s percussive jam odyssey, “Drums/Space,” was matched with hallucinatory visuals—an utterly breathtaking combination that made the Sphere seem like the only place to be in the world on this night.

2. Track #2: Lemongrass @Aria Resort & Casino

My favorite Thai restaurants in Vegas are Lamaii, Weera Thai, Lotus of Siam, and Lemongrass at the Aria Resort & Casino where I’ve now dined four or five times.

With its soaring ceiling, massive wooden fixtures, and woven-rope features inspired by silk factories, Lemongrass was the very first Thai restaurant on the Strip when it opened in 2010.

Lemongrass’ eggplant clay pot is one offering that never gets old for me. In this beautiful creation, the wok-fried eggplant dances with the snow peas, carrots, baby corn, and shiitake mushrooms. Another menu standout is the yellow curry, the mildest of Thai curries. It’s a deeply flavorful bowl of coconut milk, onions, and potatoes, to which I added chicken, with turmeric giving this dish its signature hue.

Lemongrass also delivers strongly with the traditional pad Thai (kind of the equivalent of spaghetti and meatballs at Italian restaurants). The one here is addictive—a sweet, salty, and sour blend including rice noodles, tamarind sauce, fried tofu, egg, and chives (choose your protein).

Lemongrass offers a winning blend of food, a dreamy ambiance, and attractively moderate prices for a restaurant inside a Strip hotel. Add it to your must-try list if you’ve not been here.

3. Track #3: Daryl Hall/Elvis Costello @Fontainebleau Las Vegas

Taking the stage at the state-of-the-art 3,800-seat BleauLive Theater at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, Daryl Hall launched into an exhilarating version of “Maneater,” one of Hall and Oates’ signature smashes.

He was clearly staking his claim on the legacy of Hall and Oates, who are currently engaged in a serious public rift that has likely torpedoed any chance for them to reunite. Elsewhere in the set, the soulful rock star performed the duo’s mega-hit “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do),” noting that “sometimes you have to draw the line,” seemingly a reference to the duo’s spat.

Drama aside, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and his muscular six-piece band came fully loaded with the duo’s big hits and his solo gems like “Dreamtime” and “I’m In A Philly Mood,” the latter from the Philadelphia artist’s underrated 1993 neo-soul album “Soul Alone.” New song “Can’t Say No To You,” from his latest solo album “D,” was deeply soulful and irresistibly melodic, proving that Hall hasn’t lost his songwriting and vocal magic.

Co-headliner Elvis Costello and the Imposters with featured guitarist Charlie Sexton, is also a master songwriter and performer, making the Hall/Costello pairing one of the summer’s essential tours.

Tearing into “Pump It Up,” the British artist and his skillful band played his most well-known songs, deep cuts, and, fittingly for this occasion, a cover of Gram Parsons’ rollicking “Ooh Las Vegas.

Costello keeps his show fresh with reworked arrangements that are loose but tight, giving him a reason to go onstage every night and not simply go through the motions. His playful and self-effacing stage patter is also part of the show’s charm. It mattered little that Costello’s vocals intermittently sounded road-stressed—this is an artist who compellingly inhabits the obsessions of his songs onstage and draws you inside of them.

4. Track #4: Piero’s Italian Cuisine @Convention Center Dr

One of the pleasures of dining at Piero’s Italian Cuisine, which was featured in the 1995 movie “Casino,” is driving up to this standalone building in your car. In seconds flat, multiple valet attendants are all over you, making you feel like an old-school Vegas mobster.

To keep that glamorous feeling going, slide into a dark leather circular booth in one of the six dining rooms in this sprawling, elegantly old-school space where the food is supreme.

Piero’s has been known for its sophisticated take on authentic Italian cuisine and seafood since 1982.  For my second visit here, we followed an incomparable Caesar salad with a majestic, thick slice of Chilean sea bass over a bed of baby spinach and a spiced-just-right puttanesca sauce.

We paired it with the linguini pomodoro with basil—a simple dish, but an expert chef, like the one in Piero’s kitchen, can make it taste like a million bucks.  An exquisite crème brûlée—sweet, tangy, and creamy, with a crunchy caramel topping and raspberries—sent us off happily into the hot Vegas night.

When you enter Piero’s, don’t forget to look for the original restaurant sign from when it opened in 1982 on Karen Ave (now called Liberace Ave). Five years later, the restaurant outgrew its 88-seat configuration and moved to its current location, right off The Strip, with room for 345 guests. Book your holiday parties now.

5. Track #5: Around Town Medley Gilby Clarke @Backstage Bar & Billiards

“Rock and roll for the big kids”—that’s the reigning aesthetic of downtown’s Fremont Country Club and its adjoining smaller venue Backstage Bar & Billiards. At the latter spot on a recent Friday night, owners Ava Berman and Carlos (“Big Daddy”) Adley double-downed on their vision by presenting gritty-but-suave rocker Gilby Clarke (think a young Keith Richards) and Grammy winner Micki Free with his psychedelicized bluesy soul.

Headliner Clarke dug his guitar-and-vocal heels into songs from “The Gospel Truth,” his recent solo album, and songs by Guns N’ Roses. From 1991-93, Clarke held the second guitar slot with GNR including playing on their “The Spaghetti Incident” album of punk/hard rock covers.

A set highlight came when Clarke brought out new Vegas resident Cheetah Chrome (the Dead Boys’ guitarist) to join him on a blazing version of Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers’ tough-and-proud NYC anthem “Born To Lose.”

Carson Kitchen @Downtown

Just down the street from Backstage Bar & Billiards is the long-running and bustling Carson Kitchen, where in-crowders go for dynamic American cuisine. Happy to say their “Devil’s Eggs” with crispy pancetta and caviar remains a show-stopping appetizer, both down-home and luxe all at once.  We also ordered the barramundi (Asian sea bass) served with red pepper romesco sauce and chive oil, a perfect light entrée for a hot summer night.

Miami Slice @Fontainebleu

Miami Slice at the Fontainebleau’s Promenade food hall can be added to the ever-growing list of Vegas’ best pizzerias. This casual spin-off of the downtown Miami original—known for “perfecting Miami’s best NY-slice”—earns high marks for its “Pepperoni Proper” pizza. It comes with a hot honey drizzle that effectively merges sweet with spicy.