On the last day of our #RunawayToVegas trip, AJ, Xenia, Marla, Julia, and I cabbed it over to Border Grill inside Mandalay Bay. (There is a second one opening in the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace.) Border Grill for brunch, you ask? Yes, friend. Take the money you won at the casino and your friends and sit out on the patio, overlooking Mandalay Bay’s awesome pool area, and drink $8 bottomless mimosas and have an all-you-can-eat brunch for $35.  (Was that a run-on sentence? I digress.) This brunch is no joke. Do not wear your skinny jeans, yo.
We got seated in the patio area. Being cold weather wuss that I am, Border Grill turned the outdoor heaters on for us. (Remember I had begun suffering from Super Cold 2013 that weekend.) I noticed that they served Nespresso espresso so I ordered me a Vanilla Latte. Holla at ya girl. Yup, I broke my no-coffee-cold-turkey rule that day. And unlike you drunks, I did not have any alcohol on this trip.
I’ve been to the Border Grill in Santa Monica for happy hour; I loved Ciudad when it was in downtown LA. When Street opened, I practically drooled for the kaya toast. (I even got to meet Susan Feniger when she was doing her rounds at Street! So nice!) Now I’m back to the original – Border Grill – and trying out their brunch.
I can’t even describe how delicious brunch was. We ordered about half of the menu. No lie. The other gals ordered different mojitos as we chowed down. You’ll have to ask them what they drank but it all looked tasty. We ordered:
- Green corn tamales – Hands down- always my favorite.
- Breakfast fries – Everyone should serve breakfast fries.
- Bacon jalapeno PBJ – raise that Mariah hand because sistah’s gotta pray!
- Waffle and pork belly with maple syrup – Dude. Waffle. Pork belly. Hello.
- Lobster pancakes – You mean I don’t have to pick out the flesh from its shell? I’m in!
- Fig and blue cheese quesadilla – I did pass on this as blue cheese gives me the toots. TMI? Too bad.
- Yucatan eggs benedict – any benedict is always ordered in my presence, y’all
- Bread pudding french toast – again – two of my favorite things!
- Churro [freaking] tots!! – Really? Do I really have to say more?
The food just… kept.. coming. And we had ordered 1-2 of each plate to share. Some we split just the one plate. It was like Border Grill team wanted to kill us with kindness, generosity, and food.
The food is moderately heavy, so be sure you share these dishes with your tablemates. I told you, stretchy pants. I also found the service to be great. I never had to flag anyone down to refill my water glass. (That’s a big deal to me.) Yo – some people (me) drink a lot of water during meals. It’s a small thing but I appreciated their attentiveness.
Dessert was terrific. I loved the bread pudding the most. I would order it and not share it next time. And luckily I don’t have to fly or drive to Las Vegas for Border Brunch….
Border Grill Santa Monica now serves brunch!! #runawaytovegas blogger reunion? I think yes! It’s $29.99 – so you can stuff your face and then bike down PCH for exercise!
If you are considering a trip to Vegas, add Border Grill to your list of to-eats. I think it would be a very nice break from the buffets, the giant steaks for $1.99, deep fried twinkies, and the trashy yardstick margaritas. Enjoy your meal without feeling like you ate crap.
Thank you to the Border Grill team in Las Vegas for kicking us out of their city in style and filled with gastro-goodness! I wish they had wheelchairs to roll you out of the restaurant to rest and digest.Â
Disclosure: This meal was graciously hosted by Border Grill Las Vegas – Mandalay Bay. The above is my honest opinion – duh. Who lies about food? Weirdos.
That’s looks amazing!