Living Las Vegas

Real Life in the Shadow of the Strip

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New Bridge in Town: Mandalay Place

Bridges doubling as shopping malls have a long tradition in Europe, so I guess it’s not too surprising that Las Vegas, having already acquired a chlorinated Grand Canal and a digital-age Coliseum, should get an air conditioned Ponte Vecchio. Mandalay Place, like its slightly smaller Florentine predecessor, is a bridge you shouldn’t cross without some cash in your pocket.

I watched Mandalay Place take shape, looking forward to the day I could walk between Luxor and Mandalay Bay without touching asphalt. What a great idea, I thought, to create new retail space out of thin air. But I also wondered whether another chic shopping opportunity could actually succeed. Caesars Forum Shops are just so cool, and the Fashion Show Mall is looking so fine after her cosmetic surgery and augmentation. Could there really be enough shoppers to fill up another such venue at the south end of the Strip?

You’re right. I wasn’t really worried, only eagerly curious to see what wonders lurked in the span over Mandalay Bay Road. Now that it’s open, I’m happy to report that the new bridge in town has several attractions that will keep me coming back, and they aren’t animated Greek Gods or indoor rain showers.

In addition to a nice lineup of shops selling shoes-fashions-gifts-jewelry, Mandalay Place is home to three businesses you won’t find anywhere else in town: The Art of Shaving, The Chocolate Swan, and Fifty Five Degrees. The Art of Shaving is the best-looking barbershop I’ve ever seen, and the services offered (massages and skin treatments in addition to hair removal) make me wish I could grow a beard, just so I could have it scraped off by one of those dapper barbers wielding a straight razor.

The Chocolate Swan is just as magnetic as The Art of Shaving, and you don’t need facial hair to enjoy it. Even if you don’t like chocolate, the artistry of Mary Basta’s truffles and other chocolate delicacies makes the shop worth a visit, and it’s a very nice place to have a cup of coffee and do some people watching. (And if you’d rather read than gawk, there’s a second Chocolate Swan downstairs next to a bookstore.)

The shop that really trapped me, however, was one I very nearly passed by. At first glance, it looked like a glass store, and at second, a little intimidating. Then I noticed the glowing wall at the back. Dozens of wine bottles were lined up horizontally, each in its own little lighted niche. Moving farther into the store, I saw that the sleek white bar makes a ninety-degree turn into another chamber filled with more lighted niches and scores more bottles of wine.

Fifty Five Degrees, it turns out, was founded by Andrew Bradbury, the wine director of Aureole, Mandalay Bay’s fanciest restaurant. With over 1,700 different bottles, it offers the most diverse wine selection in Las Vegas. In addition to all the more usual sources, there are wines from places like Lebanon, Slovenia, New Zealand, and even New Mexico. Prices run the gamut, from $10 for a Spanish red to $4,250 for a 1961 Chateau Latour Bordeaux. Fortunately, Bradbury made a point of hiring salespeople who are knowledgeable enough to help you weigh the merits of a South African Chardonnay or a Canadian Gewurztraminer.

Better yet, you can taste anything you want! Fifty Five Degrees is not only a wine store, it’s a wine bar. I settled onto a chic suede stool and chose a 2001 Cotes du Rhone ($10 for a glass). It was so good I decided to buy a bottle ($28). This offered another benefit—I am now the proud owner of a cool inflatable wine bag that will remind me forever that 55 degrees is the perfect temperature at which to store wine.

“Oh, you went to that cool wine store!” commented the doorman at Mandalay Bay as he hailed me a cab. “I love that place.”

So I’m not the only local who’s glad that there’s a new bridge in town.