f is for foodie: Rao's: It's about frickin time!

Day three in Vegas was our "free day" and after breakfast at Caesar's Augustus Cafe (where a three egg omelet is really a 24 dollar six egg omelet) we decided to relax by the pool. Like everything in Vegas the Caesar's pool is a bit of a sight with its Roman columns and Jacuzzi spas but certainly worth the trip. Despite the gale force winds that blew a few lounge chairs into the pool, we decided to hang for a bit.

The omelet eventually wore off and J-Bends and I decided to get a bite at Snackus Maximus to keep us going until tonight's dinner at Rao's. (Side note: Is that not the best name ever for a poolside snack bar?) We split an order of the spicy chicken nachos and an order of eggrolls. The nachos were quite tasty with the zesty seasoning of the chicken and fresh tomatoes and guacamole. The eggrolls fared equally as well and the dipping sauces (including a nice mustard) were lightly fried without being greasy. Of course the main goal of the afternoon was how many times one could work Snackus Maximus into the conversation! Awesome!

Dinner tonight was the long-awaited trip to Rao's. When I had called to move our reservation from Sunday to Wednesday night, the reservationist informed me that our 9:30pm reservation could be easily moved. A trip to the hostess stand en route to the pool moved us up to 8:15pm - no problem. No problem? Well... after being told that our table was being cleared and we will be seated shortly we watched as a few groups of goombahs were escorted into the dining room. When I asked the hostess what happened to our immediate seating, she explained that OOPS! someone was seated at our table and now we had one party in front of us. When I put up a bit of a stink, she agreed to buy us a drink at the bar to let us cool our heels. I must say, I certainly didn't feel like I was a valued customer.

J-Bends and I took this opportunity to enjoy an expensive glass of Brunello di Montalcino. When the bartender started to pour, I realized this wine was from none other than everyone's favorite Mafioso psychiatrist, Lorraine Bracco. Suprisingly, the wine was dry, tannic, full-bodied and quite impressive. Not too shabby, Lorraine, not too shabby... I just might forgive the shoddy treatment at the front of the house.

We eventually began our meal with orders of cold antipasto and meatballs. The prosciutto was a bit thicker than I am accustomed to but lean, salty and delicious.

Unfortunately, Niko and J-Bends did not partake in Meatball Madness so they couldn't compare to mine, but to be honest, the Rao's meatballs were darn pretty good. Beefy and dense in a sweet marinara sauce; not the best I've had in a restaurant but certainly up there on the meatball leader board.

J-Bends had veal marsala for her main and while she did enjoy her meal, I don't think Rao's veal stood a chance against the previous night's veal-a-palooza at David Burke. Niko had Rao's signature lemon chicken and I went with my perennial Italian favorite, frutti di mare.

Rao's version was a nice departure from the norm. The generous portion of fresh seafood was the bulk of the dish with just enough fresh squid ink pasta not to throw the carb-pasta ratio out of whack. The spicy tomato sauce was thick and chunky but in perfect proportion to the seafood.

While I wasn't completely knocked out by my meal here; I was certainly pleased and impressed on quite a few fronts. Enough to overlook the diss at the front of the house and I sealed the deal with an obligatory handshake from the owner's son, Frank Pellegrino, Jr.