Vegas: Night 2 - Odds & Ends (Part 2)

Cosmopolitan: The Vesper, The Ski Lodge, The Chandelier 

After my wonderful dinner at Blue Ribbon, I was scheduled to meet another friend of mine for drinks.  Andrea is a fashion designer from New York, and she just happened to be in Vegas at the same time as I.  We met at the Casino level entrance to the Chandelier, the insanely glam, three level cocktail bar at the Cosmo.  She was waiting for her friend Shah, but we decided to grab a drink while waiting.  There was a line to get into the Chandelier, so I told her I had another fabulous bar to show her.  We walked through the Cosmo to Superfrico, which has a cute little speakeasy space called The Ski Lodge.  The hostess, whom I had met the previous night with my friend Rhiannon, remembered me and greeted me warmly.  She informed me, however, that the Ski Lodge was at capacity, but that we should check back in an hour or so.  Andrea and I then went downstairs to the Vesper, another cocktail lounge and settled there.

Having enjoyed the Casa Paloma at Blue Ribbon as much as I did, I stayed in that same vein at Vesper.  I chose a similar cocktail called La Paloma, made with my choice of tequila or mezcal (tequila for me), lavender infused Creme de Peche, lime, bitters and grapefruit soda, all topped off with a cayenne pepper rim!  Just fabulous!  Now, to the best of my recollection, Andrea had the Vesper Vesper, a twist on the classic James Bond martini.  Made with both gin and vodka, a touch of Lillet and a drop or two of grapefruit oil, I remember her enjoying this quite a bit!  And while neither of us are real martini drinkers, I tried a sip and found it truly lovely.  As you’ll see from some of my pictures, we did end up getting a bit silly - a trend that continued through the evening!

We were eventually joined by Shah and proceeded back upstairs to the Ski Lodge.  This time, there was no wait, so we went right in.  The Ski Lodge is a somewhat private bar; in that it’s behind a closed door inside Superfrico, with no actual signage to indicate what it is.  A cozy room, done in lots of wood accents, the place features a snowy scene projected behind the bar, a video fireplace, skis and various ski jackets decorating a corner, a mini ski tram hanging above and various signs and bumper stickers from well known mountain resorts and ski trails posted on the walls.  As I had been there the night before and discovered one of their signature cocktails, Shah and Andrea put their trust in me and ordered the same: the Slava’s Snowstorm - a yummy mix of vodka, aquavit, Mr Black liqueur, cold brew coffee, cane sugar syrup and a hot cardamom foam!  Truly a unique and delicious quaff!

As we were drinking and laughing and having a blast with the friendly bartender, Andrea spotted a group behind us doing a “Shot-Ski!”  If you’ve never heard of this, it’s literally a wooden ski with holes in it, just the right size for shot glasses.  Two or more guests can order shots and everyone tilts the ski back and downs the shots together.  I know I ordered a tequila shot, but I honestly can’t remember what they chose.  Still, we did that shot-ski like true pros!

At any rate, once we’d had a great time at Ski Lodge and finished our cocktails, we headed back out into the Cosmo.  Andrea and Shah still wanted to try the Chandelier, so I led them in that direction.  At this point, there was no line, so we walked in directly and headed down to Level 1.5; the center level, which is the one I find most fabulous!  In that center level, you really feel like you’re inside a chandelier - you’re literally surrounded by hundreds of strings of Swarovski crystals.  Oh, and the drinks are amazing, too!

As we were checking out the menu, Shah noticed a beautiful and unusual piece of glassware, which was shaped like a bird.  We asked the bartender if there was actually a cocktail server in that glass.  Yep!  It was called the South for the Winter - a take on a traditional piña colada made with two different kinds of rum and a house made piña colada mix, garnished with an edible orchid - so I made up my mind that I’d order it!  Shah went with the Papa Loves Mango, made with peach & orange blossom vodka, Rhum Blanc, triple sec and mango!  Andrea had heard of a special drink that is the bar’s bestseller, even though it’s not on the menu.  She mentioned that there was some sort of edible flower served with it.  I knew exactly what she was talking about - I have had it myself a number of times.  It’s called the Verbena - a somewhat Asian take on a Margarita.  It’s garnished with a Sichuan button - a tiny, very bitter  dried flower, that, when chewed, makes your mouth go numb, increases salivation and plays with your taste buds.  The result is that if you taste the drink itself, then eat the flower, and drink again, the flavor profile of the cocktail will change as you savor it!  In my experience, it goes from tart to sweet, then back to its usual tartness.  Again, it’s not listed on the menu, yet because of its notoriety, it’s the Chandelier’s most popular drink!

Now, me being me, it was just inevitable that I’d make a stupid pose with my South for the Winter!

We all really loved the drinks and ambience of the Chandelier, and were thinking about a second round, but Andrea suggested we try something else - maybe somewhere quieter and a little more out of the way.  We decided to return to Vesper, where we indulged in more cocktails and met up with more friendly Vegas visitors!  A few drinks and a lot of good conversation later, I was ready to head back to my hotel.  Andrea and Shah wanted to go for burgers, but I was ready for bed!  Hey!  I’m old!  

I’ve had some memorable nights in Vegas over the years, but this was one of the most fun!  And hey!  No hangover the next day!  That’s a win-win in my book!