The celebrity chef lineups for the Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore has been revealed and they are taking no chances at the $5 billion resort, bringing out some of the world's culinary big guns. The resort will feature restaurants by famous chefs from around the world. The six chefs announced include Mario Batali (New York), Daniel Boulud (New York), Wolfgang Puck (Los Angeles), Santi Santamaria (Barcelona), Guy Savoy (Paris) and Tetsuya Wakuda (Sydney). Chefs Santi Santamaria, Guy Savoy and Tetsuya Wakuda will have their restaurants on the mezzanine layer of the casino while Mario Batali, Daniel Boulud and Wolfgang Puck will have signature restaurants situated near Marina Bay Sands Theatres. Each of the six chefs is personally involved in the concepts, menus, and interior design of the six different restaurants.

When completed, Marina Bay Sands will feature have approximately 2,500 luxury hotel rooms, the rooftop Sands SkyPark, a museum, Las Vegas- style gaming, the Paiza Club for premium players, theatres, entertainment, an outdoor event plaza, and shopping and dining venues. In a press release, Batali calls the resort "the most exciting project I have ever been involved with" but the most philosophical quotes come from the European chefs. Santi Santamaria ponders the possibilities of "culinary poetry" saying he wants his cuisine to "delight the senses and awaken emotional memories with a cuisine of wisdom." Guy Savoy expresses a similar view saying that" cuisine is the art of instantaneously turning produce suffused with history into happiness." They sound like perfect fits for a city that prides itself on the quality and infinite variety of its food.

[via NY Daily News]

Volkswagen is not a marque one usually associates with luxury, and so we admit to being somewhat skeptical about the new 2010 Touareg V6 TDI and not all that enthusiastic at first when the chance came to test it out. MotorTrend changed our mind with its recent comparison of diesel and hybrid luxury SUVs - amazingly, their pros all concurred that it outclassed more expensive models like the Mercedes ML320 BlueTEC, BMW X5 and Lexus RX 450h. Plus it's one of the most fuel efficient and cleanest SUVs in the world.

We had a chance to experience it firsthand on a recent jaunt to Washington, DC and Annapolis, Maryland. The Touareg handled all situations with poise and equanimity, from navigating the city streets to an amazing dinner at Wolfgang Puck's The Source, to finding the right marina in Eastport through the bay's backroads for some sailing (the touchscreen GPS was a big help there). We could easily have kept on going, as the comfy interior with its wood and leather resembles in MotorTrend's words "a den in a ritzy Alaska fishing lodge" - or for our purposes make that the upstairs bar at the Annapolis Yacht Club.

Don't think that "diesel" means noisy and slow like those old Mercedes wagons of your youth. The Touareg TDI is powered by a hushed 3.0L, turbocharged six cylinder engine that produces 225 horsepower and an impressive 407 lbs-ft. of torque. Tourque, we learned en route, is more important than horsepower in diesel engines. The TDI's torque gives it performance equal to the gas-powered Touareg V8 that's rated at 350 hp and 324 lb-ft of torque, to give you an idea. And whereas the latter has an EPA mileage rating of 13/18 mpg city/hwy, the TDI gets 17 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway.

Restaurants everywhere are struggling, Las Vegas tourism is down and still somehow Tao Restaurant and Nightclub in Las Vegas owns the top spot on the list of the 100 highest grossing independent restaurants in the U.S.according to the latest data from Restaurants and Institutions. This was Tao's third time at number one in a year where sales in the top 100 pretty much stayed the same as last year's numbers ($1.52 billion in 2008, compared to $1.53 billion in 2007).

Tao Las Vegas brought in $68.4 million in food and beverage revenue in 2008 which is a three percent gain over 2007. The rest of the top five, Tavern on the Green in New York City, Joe's Stone Crab in Miami Beach, Smith & Wollensky in New York City and Tao Asian Bistro in New York City were all also in the top five last year.

The list includes a few celebrity restaurants. Danny DeVito's DeVito South Beach is in the 19th slot, Michael Jordan's steakhouse at the Mohegan Sun is number 62 and Mike Ditka's Chicago restaurant is in the 94th position. Celebrity chefs also appear on the list. Wolfgang Puck owns a few slots, Mario Batali and Lydia Bastianich's Del Posto in New York is at number 45. "Top Chef" host Tom Colicchio is on the list for Craftsteak in Las Vegas and Daniel Boulud hits the list twice.

Most of the restaurants are located in major cities or in vacation destinations but there are a few surprises. The Harris Ranch restaurant is located in the small cow town of Coalinga, California and Zehnder's is in the Bavarian-themed town of Frankenmuth, Michigan.

[via Bloomberg]

Last night I had the pleasure of attending the Spottswoode wine dinner held at Chinois on Main, Wolfgang Puck's restaurant in Santa Monica. With an entire food empire to tend to you wouldn't think that Wolfgang Puck would still get in the kitchen but last night he cooked beside chef Rene Mata. The restaurant has been open since 1983, making this year the 25th anniversary of this California landmark.

Spottswoode wine has an even longer history. Spottswoode is a family-owned historic vineyard and winery which was established in 1882 by George Schonewald. The estate features a Victorian home which is shown on the Spottswoode label. The Spottswoode name comes from Mrs. Albert Spotts, who owned the property from 1910 until 1972 (the "woode" part of the name was added for fancy effect). In 1972, Mary Weber Novak and her husband Dr. Jack Novak purchased the winery, moving their family from San Diego to St. Helena. The vineyards were planted with a variety of grapes but were then replanted with Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Shortly after this Dr. Novak died and Mrs. Novak continued to sell the grapes to other producers. Finally in 1982, the first Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon was produced. Today, two of Mary's daughters, Beth and Lindy, work for the family winery which currently produced around 3,000 cases a year of Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. They also produce the Spottswoode Sauvignon Blanc, which is made from grapes purchased elsewhere and the Lyndenhurst Cabernet Sauvignon, which is the estate's second label. The estate also produces a limited amount of olive oil. The winery has been certified organic since 1990 and is committed to environmentally sensitive practices.

The dinner at Chinois was definitely not for vegetarians but the rich food was well complemented by the various Spottswoode vintages served. The 2001 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon is particularly noteworthy and well worth finding if you can get your hands on it. The wines are pricey, the 2005 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon is $130 and the 2005 Lyndenhurst Cabernet Sauvignon is $60 but the wines are everything you'd expect from a Napa Cab, rich with cherry flavors that straddle the line between being fruity enough to appeal to the nose but spicy and layered enough to tempt the tongue. The 2006 Sauvignon Blanc, which sells for $32 is a great summer wine. It doesn't have the grassy and mineral flavors of some Sauvignon Blancs. Instead it has tastes of pineapple and citrus and is a crisp white that would be a great wine for drinking on its own or with light food.

The gallery below shows each course and the wines served for this very special meal.

Is Detroit set to become the new Las Vegas. The MGM Grand Detroit is a new luxury hotel with 335 guest rooms, nine rooftop VIP suites and 56 corner suites. The hotel will have a private entrance, a concierge level with full-service lounge and a Lobby "Living Room" for hotel guests only (shown above. The hotel which is set to open in the fall, has just announced that it will be home to three signature restaurants by two famed chefs. Wolfgang Puck will open the Wolfgang Puck Grill and chef Michael Mina will introduce both Saltwater, a seafood restaurant and Bourbon Steak, a steakhouse. Puck's entrees will also be part of the room-service program. The hotel will also include a piano bar, nightclub and a lavish spa. The MGM Grand Casino in Detroit is already open and is part of a growing hotel and casino complex in the Motor City.

The Newseum project on Pennsylvania Avenue in D.C.  is more than just another museum in Washington D.C. The project will have 135 apartments, retail space and, as was just announced, a new Wolfgang Puck restaurant to be named "Source by Wolfgang Puck."  The Newseum located on Pennsylvania Avenue will replace the old Newseum which was in Arlington, Virginia. The complex will open in 2007. The building includes a large facade which looks out on Pennsylvania Avenue and the National Mall while letting the public see inside to the visitors and displays. It will be Puck's first foray into high-end dining in Washington.