Brunch in Vegas. Perhaps one of the lesser considered meals in Sin City, but one of my new favorites. On a recent trip, a couple colleagues and I ventured into Morels in The Palazzo. I love everything French (wine, bread, macarons, kisses …), so I was stoked about trying this place out. Not only did it have he promise of a great hangover cure (because hair of the dog is necessary in Vegas), but it ups the ante with a view of the strip.

We started with a fancy bloody mary at the stately inside bar. While they offer a traditional version of the brunch cocktail, they also offer a few remixed version including a Surf & Turf Bloody Mary, complete with bacon (obvi) and a jumbo shrimp. Their bloodies have a nice flavor and aren’t weak in the least. If ordering off the menu isn’t your style, you can have them make you one to your specs when you order the bloody mary cart!

We moved outside after our first round of drinks to enjoy the view of the Strip complete with some serious people watching along with some . I started hacking away at their offer of bottomless mimosas for $25 (damn decent sparkling along with four options of juice). Soon enough, everyone at the table joined in on the bottomless challenge offering, so they brought us our own bottle of sparkling and carafes of each juice. (Gotta love that self-serve life.)

The menu offers plenty of French-inspired items and I couldn’t pass up the Mushroom & Gruyère Crepe with cream sauce. The rest of the table opted for the Pan-Seared Scottish Salmon and the Crab Oscar Benedict–both were amazing. We all shared bites of our entrees and agreed that I made the best choice (though all were ah-mazing).

Without asking, dessert and much-needed coffee was sent out (the worst, no?) All three of us were absolutely full, but made room for the Mixed Berry Crumble and Classic Profiteroles. And damn … I’m glad we did. The crumble was perfectly warm (you can tell that I didn’t get the picture before it started melting the ice cream) and the topping was nice and crispy. The profiteroles sandwiched candied vanilla almond ice cream and came with a side of malted chocolate sauce and topped with house-made whipped cream.

Overall, the brunch was amazing. All three of us agreed that it was a delightful change of pace from the all-you-can-eat buffets and smokey casinos (not that I’d ever leave either of those behind, but sometimes it can be nice to go and enjoy some nice food, besides if I ever wanted to place some money into a betting game I could do so using a website like Casino-Korea whilst still enjoying my delicious food!). The entire staff was courteous and amenable and the restaurant was beautifully light and airy. I’d go back in a second to get my hands on one of their steaks (we saw a few go by and … ohhhh my), cheese and charcuterie platters, and seafood towers. They offer iced seafood and freshly-shucked oysters.

Morels’ weekend brunch is served Saturdays and Sundays from 8am to 4pm, giving you plenty of time to sleep off the haze from the night before.

MORELS FRENCH STEAKHOUSE & BISTRO
www.morelslv.com
3325 Las Vegas Blvd (in the Palazzo)
(702)607-6333