House of Blues Review & $100 Gift Certificate #Giveaway #CrossroadsHOB

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Last month my hubby and I took our first ever vacation without our 3 precious kiddos.  The first couple of days in Vegas were glorious and even though we missed them, we were enjoying being adults together.  By day 5 we were wondering why we booked such a long trip and couldn’t wait to get home and snuggle them!   We had a great time over all though.  One of our highlights was our official date night. The first night we arrived we went to see the Michael Jackson One show at Mandalay Bay.  I’d never seen a Cirque du Soleil show and it was awesome.  We followed it up with dinner at House of Blues which is also located inside Mandalay Bay.  We had heard that they had a new menu created by celebrity chef Aaron Sanchez of Food Network and we were excited to try it!

It was a late dinner, around 9 pm, but this was Vegas after all.  We were seated near the middle front of the restaurant with a clear view of the stage.  There were other diners but it wasn’t super busy.  The music was pretty good with songs we recognized and created a nice ambiance. Our waiter, who was really friendly and nice joked that the singer was their “Hawaiian Bruno Mars”.  I recorded a short clip: 

 My five year old loves this song and we really enjoyed this version of it too!

We started off by ordering appetizers.  We each choose one to share.  I chose the Spinach and Artichoke dip.  It was a very generous portion and covered in cheesy goodness. Made with a blend of cream cheese, Mozzarella, Asiago, chopped spinach and artichokes, this dip is  freshly baked and served with pita chips.  This alone would have been more than enough to hold us over until the main course but I’m glad we ordered a second entree because the hubster’s  appetizer choice was even better than my own.

My husband chose the Crossroads Quesadilla with steak. Flour tortillas were stuffed with a blend of cheeses, poblano chiles, fire roasted red peppers and onions and served with a roasted tomatillo salsa.  I could have been perfectly content eating these as a meal.  They were delicious!  I loved the way the sour cream with artfully drizzled on the top.  I wanted to eat more but had to save room for the entree and dessert too — we wanted to try it all!

I had never had lobster before but I’m a sucker for Mac & Cheese so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try House of Blue Lobster Mac & Cheese. This savory dish is made with tender poached lobster meat in a cheese sauce made from scratch and topped with crunchy panko bread crumbs.  The lobster had a mild slightly buttery flavor and paired well with the rich, creamy cheese sauce.  Decadent!

Hubby is a steak guy so he ordered the New York Strip steak.  He made the mistake of giving me a bite.  He’s lucky I didn’t eat the whole thing.  It was seriously the best steak I’ve ever had.  It was cooked to perfection and incredibly tender.  The garlic mashed potatoes complemented it well and were equally delicious.  Even the fresh mixed vegetables were perfectly seasoned and cooked.  I’m not a fan of onions myself but this meal came with a side of sautéed bourbon onions which I did not try but imagine were great if you like that sort of thing.

We were stuffed beyond belief yet still had a ton of food on the table (we did polish off the steak meal in it’s entirety though!  Hubby was a good sharer!) but still, we couldn’t resist dessert.  Again, we each choose one to share.  I picked the Bourbon Bread Pudding because I knew my husband would pick cheesecake. This dessert is cooked with bananas and white chocolate, finished with a bourbon caramel sauce and topped with fresh whipped cream.  I’d never had bread pudding before and wasn’t sure what to expect.  It’s sort of like a super moist cake and it melted in my mouth!

We asked the waiter what his dessert recommendations were and he said that since he was a chocolate lover it would have to be the Triple Chocolate Cheesecake or the Chocolate Mousse. He gave the Bread Pudding a close 3rd.  Just as I suspected, the Hubs went for the cheesecake.  It was served with fresh raspberries and set atop a drizzle of raspberry sauce and adorned with a bit of whipped cream. We were so disappointed…..because we could only manage a few bites of each dessert.  They were both decadent and delicious but we were stuffed to the brim!  What I wouldn’t give for my leftovers right now!

I almost forgot to mention, House of Blues has some great drink options too from wine and beer to some excellent mixed drinks.  I ordered a drink called Pineapple Updside Down.  It was the best beverage I had in Vegas and perfectly mixed.  It wasn’t TOO strong and tasted sweet and yummy.

If you’re ever in Vegas, we highly recommend House of Blues for a delicious meal with live entertainment.

Here’s a little more info about the new menu items and a message from Chef Sanchez:

Chef Aaron Sanchez puts an imaginative spin on classic American dishes and the menu offers something for everyone with over 10 choices for seafood lovers, 4 signature burgers, and vegetarian options including Portobello sliders and interesting salads.  The menu also offers a great selection of classic southern favorites and more! For more information, check out www.houseofblues.com.

A complimentary product/service was provided for this review, however, all opinions expressed are my own.  I was not compensated in any other way.  See Mommies With Cents disclosure policy for more details.

Feeling lucky?  One winner will receive $100 “Karma Cash” promotional voucher for a Crossroad’s restaurant of their choice (House of Blues venues, excluding Boston).  For this giveaway, you’ll need to include your telephone number and your choice of Crossroads location in addition to the normal contact info on the form.
 Also, be sure to check out all of our other giveaways. NOTE: If you don’t leave your address, I won’t have a way to get your prize to you. If you need more guidance filling out this form, you can watch this video on how to enter Rafflecopter giveaways.

This giveaway is open until March 12, 2014 at 12:01 am EST to U.S residents.

Your information is confidential and used for contacting the winner and prize fulfillment purposes only.

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