Joël Robuchon Talks About His New Vegetarian Menu

Chef of the Century Joël Robuchon talks about his new vegetarian menu at his namesake restaurant at the MGM Grand and his thoughts on a vegan version. The vegetarian menu, dubbed Food & Life, features no eggs. "We are removing all gluten from the [Food & Life] menu. … It’s still very difficult, and we have to be cautious before we actually fully unveil the menu [as vegan]." As for the price, $445, Robuchon says making vegetarian dishes is very difficult. "…it’s the man-hours that go into preparing all of these dishes. If you think about the tomato dish, just that one dish itself and the garnish, it really does take a lot of work. It’s the work that justifies the price." [Forbes Travel Guide]

Former MTO Cafe chef Johnny Church teamed up with Artisanal Foods to bring a new restaurant to the food purveyor. The eight-seat café plans to open in the beginning of September with dishes using Artisanal Foods products. The lunch-only restaurant will have a prix fixe menu. [LVW]

Barry Dakake over at N9NE Steakhouse talks about some of his most popular dishes at his Palms’ restaurant. One choice? Barry’s Steak with a 10-ounce prime rib cap "marinated in extra-virgin olive oil, sliced shallots and garlic, then grilled with a slight char to enhance the flavor and topped with roasted shishito peppers and cipollini onions. If a steak is named after me, you know it’s gotta be really delicious!" [LVS]