Vegas-Style New Year's Eve

Lobster in Pinot Noir sauce, from a star chef with Vegas plans, is as opulent as a high-roller's suite.

"After three glasses of Champagne, the Vegas Eiffel Tower looks pretty much like the Paris one," jokes Hubert Keller, the French-born chef at San Francisco's Fleur de Lys, who will open a branch in Las Vegas this spring. Like the original, the Vegas restaurant will be as gilded as its namesake flower, and an ideal setting for a luxe New Year's Eve dinner. To celebrate, Keller takes inspiration from a dish he often serves when entertaining at home: lobster on salsify puree with Pinot Noir sauce and vanilla oil. "It's fancy but relaxed, because it can be made ahead," he says. You can prepare the oil a week before the party (store it in the fridge), the salsify a day in advance ("Just add a bit of cream and heat it before serving") and the lobsters and sauce that morning.

—Susan Choung

Published January 2004