While we are in Vegas visiting the family, we may not see The Strip, or any shows, but we do know that we want to have brunch at Echo & Rig.  The allure of Vegas has paled after all of these years and so has the glitz, but the family is what keeps us returning there.  Breakfast is that meal that always seems to be so expensive, where every one goes and if they call it brunch, the price just went up, but it means that there will be adult beverages.  We stay at the same casino complex, every year, because it is close to where the kids live and now as a bonus, we can walk over to Tivoli to get a glass of wine, or a fast bite, or even to have brunch.  We have fallen in love with the food and the service at Echo & Rig, and it is the first butcher shop/steakhouse that we have encountered.  One of the tricks is making sure that there is no room in the returning suitcases, so that we don’t buy anymore gadgets for the kitchen, but even I saw a couple of items that I thought were really cool.

We were taken upstairs to the dining area of the shop, but it was still a little too chilly to sit out on the verandah to eat, even with the overhead and the big portable heaters that they had sitting out there.  We still had a nice table looking out on the Tivoli Village, and the manager came over to greet us by name, which is impressive, but she has been with the company since they have opened up.  We had decided not to repeat what we always order, just to try something new.   My Bride ordered the Smoked Salmon Benedict with poached eggs, smoked wild salmon, crème fraiche, red onion, sautéed greens and Hollandaise sauce all on a potato pancake. It was a tough decision for me as I really wanted the Short Ribs Hash, but I went with the Steakhouse Scramble with house-made sausage, filet mignon, onions, bell peppers, new potatoes, sweet tomatoes, white Vermont cheese and scrambled eggs.  Just as our waitress was about to leave with our order, my Bride had a request to see if she could get a half order of Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes with whipped butter and house-made blueberry syrup, as she claims that they are the lightest and fluffiest pancakes she has ever had.   We really did not need any other dishes after that meal, it was so filling.

As I said earlier brunch is just a fancy breakfast with adult beverages and we ordered the “bottomless Mimosas.”  They actually bring an ice bucket next to the table and place a bottle of bubbles right there, and as you may notice in the one photo, there are two sizable wine glasses and one very small carafe of orange juice for the two of us and the potential bottle of wine.  Now as for the “bottomless Mimosas” they were true to their word, as the wine goblet was filled as often as the water glass. The fresh orange juice must be dearer than the sparkling wine, because the juice was brought out in a small carafe for us to pour, while the sparkling wine was almost filling the goblet. The first time that we were there we had this wine, I had never heard of the wine that was being poured, but since then I have noticed other restaurants back home touting the same wine for their Mimosas. Wycliff Brut California Champagne is by the William Wycliff Winery which is under the umbrella of the Gallo Winery group. This screwcap bottle of sparkling wine is geared strictly to restaurants and catering companies, so that the consumer cannot check the retail price of the wine or buy it on their own. Since it is part of Gallo, I am sure that they have made sure that they were grandfathered in with the term “California Champagne.” This wine is made by the Charmat Method, which is a more economical way of producing a sparkling wine and since it was being mixed with orange juice, it was more than adequate. Traditionally the wine would be made with Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier and I will presume that all or part of those grapes are being used. All I can say is that it was a great way to start the day off.  The only thing lacking was the pop of the cork.