Taste

[Chef Talk]

Stripsteak chef Doug Bell digs chicken thighs and crab feeds

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Doug Bell is executive chef at Stripsteak at Mandalay Bay.
Photo: Christopher DeVargas

Chef Doug Bell arrived at Stripsteak seven months after it opened inside Mandalay Bay. After six months as sous chef, he was promoted to executive sous. Today, he’s been running the show as executive chef for almost two years, anchoring the popular Michael Mina steakhouse.

Go-to dish for cooking at home: chicken thighs “I used to be constantly trying new things, but now I don’t cook at home a lot unless we have friends over for a barbecue. I’ve got a killer recipe for boneless, skinless chicken thighs: Marinate them in miso and some beer and ginger, let it go for a couple hours, throw it on the grill, and it’s the most amazing thing ever. And impossible to screw up. You can overcook it, and it’ll still be okay to eat.”

Other favorite place in Mandalay Bay: The Hotel at Mandalay Bay lobby “You can go hang out and have a couple beers, shoot pool for an hour, and there’s usually nobody there.”

Best back-home meal: crab feast “I grew up in Baltimore. Once a summer, we’d have a crab feast. We’d get the permit to shut the street down, put a big barricade up, and everyone brings their picnic tables from their backyard—all different heights and sizes—and we make one big row down the middle. Steamed blue crabs, corn on the cob, potato salad and beer. The last one I attended was more like, let’s dump 10 dozen crabs on the table, but back in the day when things were more stable, people would fly in from all over. The whole family was there.”

Tags: Dining
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Brock Radke

Brock Radke is an award-winning writer and columnist who currently occupies the role of managing editor at Las Vegas Weekly ...

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