Claudia Lewis

One of our largest shows is Supply Side West which is hosted in Las Vegas at Mandalay Bay. The hotel is well maintained and has all the bells and whistles you expect in Vegas. It is almost time for a refresh of the rooms even though they are spacious and nicely maintained. Please bring your own water. I recommend buying it completely outside of the hotel. The convenience store in the hotel is only slightly less expensive than the amenities in the room. The expense of the coffee and water provided in the room is outrageous. The same for room service. Other than the expense, the hotel is nice and great for business.

We had date night here. Beautiful location and excellent service. I learned that this hotel was once someone’s summer home. It’s grand in every sense of the word. It’s also a place to be seen, by who, I’m not exactly sure! We had a nice meal. My husband recalled having oysters here long ago but they were not on the menu. Our waiter surprised him a huge tray of them. They were so fresh they smelled of the sea! From beginning to end the service and attention to detail were immaculate. It’s very romantic but also family friendly. I note that this place has a lot of tourists. So the food while spectacular, is not as authentic as others places you might find! Definitely worth a visit.

We visited with a tour guide. Thank goodness we did. In school, we get a very high level education on Rome and it’s glory. The tour guide had so many stories about each spot. Apparently, materials in those days were in short supply and extremely expensive. So it was not unusual for materials to be repurposed (stolen) and taken to a new location. The doors below are bronze and were set in a cement to prevent theft. They are one of the few original doors still in place. They even found the key to the door and it still works!!! This place is full of stories like that. Our tour was two hours. It could have been four. It was truly fascinating.

Since we moved I do not visit Pollo Campero as much as I once did. The chicken is outstanding. I made the trip for our Easter Brunch. We served chicken and waffles. While I made waffles from scratch, the chicken here is perfection. It made everyone smile and even the vegetarians in the crowd were envious. It’s back in our rotation.