Circulation: 175,439 November 19, 2010 'THE 50 ESSENTIAL RESTAURANTS' IN LAS VEGAS Alex (Wynn); American Fish (Aria); Aureole (Mandalay Bay); Bar Masa (Aria); Bartolotta (Wynn); B&B Ristorante (The Venetian); Beijing Noodle No. 9 (Caesars Palace); Border Grill (Mandalay Bay); Bouchon (The Venetian); Burger Bar (Mandalay Place) Carnevino (The Palazzo); China MaMa (Chinatown); CUT (Palazzo); Eiffel Tower Restaurant (Paris); Julian Serrano (Aria); Joel Robuchon (MGM Grand); L'Atelier (MGM Grand); Le Cirque (Bellagio); Los Antojos (South Eastern Avenue); Lotus of Siam (East Sahara Avenue) M&M Soulfood Cafe (two valley locations); Marche Bacchus (Desert Shores); Monta (on Spring Mountain Road); Mozen Bistro (Mandarin Oriental); Nove Italiano (Palms); Osteria del Circo (Bellagio); Payard Patisserie & Bistro (Caesars Palace); Picasso (Bellagio); Ping Pang Pong (Gold Coast); Prime Steakhouse (Bellagio) Raku (Chinatown); Rao's (Caesars Palace); Restaurant Guy Savoy (Caesars Palace); RM Upstairs (Mandalay Bay); Rosemary's Restaurant (on West Sahara Avenue); Sage (Aria); Sen of Japan (West Desert Inn Road); Sensi (Bellagio); Settebello (Green Valley Ranch); Simon (Palms Place); Society Cafe (Encore); Spago (Caesars Palace); The Steak House (Circus Circus) Todd's Unique Dining (East Sunset Road in Henderson); Tom Colicchio's Craftsteak (MGM Grand); Top of the World (Stratosphere); (Twist (Mandarin Oriental); Valentino (The Venetian); Vintner Grill (Summerlin); and Yellowtail (Bellagio) The first course of action if John Curtas, Max Jacobson and Al Mancini arrived at your restaurant in 2010 should have been to hide the cutlery. Fortunately, no one got stabbed during heated debates between the local restaurant critics while they carved out their new book, "Eating Las Vegas: The 50 Essential Restaurants." They disagreed often and passionately, according to Mancini. Most of the time it was about who should make the final cut. Tempers flared one night over a tipping issue, with bills being testily tossed across the table, said Mancini. The top 50 had to be unanimous. Seven restaurants were killed by veto, and they are named in the "Vetoes" section. What the trio eventually came up with, said Mancini, was "a broad spectrum that everyone could enjoy, not just French fine dining and expensive steakhouses." The 50 were unveiled Wednesday night at a media event at Joel Robuchon's L'Atelier at the MGM Grand. The book can be purchased locally at Borders in Town Square or ShopLVA.com. Marche Bacchus http://www.lvrj.com/news/new-book-reveals-50-prime-eateries-109158984.html?ref=984 .