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NASCAR BGN: Tim Fedewa Anxious To Get Taste Of Vegas

22 February 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

CONCORD, N.C. - If driver Tim Fedewa wasn't behind the wheel of the No. 36 Stanley car racing in the Busch Series, Grand National Division, week in and week out, he knows just what he would be doing.

He'd be cooking.

Instead of trying to put together the perfect combination to capture that checkered flag, Fedewa would be in the kitchen stirring together spices and various ingredients attempting to concoct the perfect taste. Instead of the racing uniform and helmet, Fedewa would proudly wear an apron and a chef's hat.

"Cooking has always been one of my favorite hobbies," Fedewa said. "I love mixing up the different spices and testing all the different flavors you can have.

"I'm a perfectionist in the kitchen when it comes to my cooking. It's just an incredible feeling when you taste the sauce or the main dish and know that you have found that perfect flavor that you've been striving for." The seven year Busch Series veteran is still looking for his first win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He has three starts at the track and will make his fourth on March 4th in the Sam's Town 300. Without a doubt, Vegas remains one of Fedewa's favorite places to travel along the Busch circuit. Why?

Fedewa likes the taste of Vegas. It's a variety of flavor that draws Fedewa to the "City of Lights." Las Vegas has become one of the hottest restaurant cities in the world. If it's variety you're looking for, then Viva Las Vegas.

Eating and sampling the cuisine in Vegas is truly one of the city's top treats. There's American, French, Italian, Asian, Mexican, gourmet restaurants, specialty eateries. You can get anything from a cheap deli sandwich to a $50 plus Southwestern Cajun entre all in the same strip of restaurants.

"Watching me in Las Vegas can be like watching a kid in a candy store," Fedewa said. "There's so much variety and so many choices. I like to savor each bite and try to detect all of the different spices and seasonings on my fork. I could spend weeks going from restaurant to restaurant there." Fedewa hasn't had the chance to sample all the restaurants along the brightly lit strip, but he already has a favorite eatery - Emeril's New Orleans Fish House at the MGM Grand. The high end restaurant offers a slice of Cajun and Creole cooking with an added twist by world-renowned chef Emeril Lagasse. Every chance he gets, Fedewa watches Lagasse's cooking show and scours magazines and books for his latest recipes.

"What he does with recipes is 'Bam!'" said Fedewa, mocking Lagasse's trademark shout. "His food is remarkable. The restaurant has to take reservations months in advance."

Fedewa suggests some other hot spots, too:

* Rosewood Grille. A high end restaurant across from The Mirage that has "phenomenal, melt in your mouth sea food," Fedewa says.

* Drai's on the Strip. Get a variety of gourmet food, Italian to southern French, at this high end restaurant in the Barbary Coast Hotel.

* In & Out Burger. There may only be three things on the menu - a hamburger, a cheeseburger and a "double double" (two hamburgers, two cheeses), but Fedewa says the food is amazing. "It's the best burger in the world," he said.

* Village Seafood Buffet at the Rio. It's Fedewa's favorite buffet because of the seafood selection. "But you can't go wrong with just about any of the buffets in town," he said. "It's great food and it's cheap." Fedewa is looking forward to returning to Las Vegas the first weekend of March. He'll be tasting the array of food along the strip, and he may even find a new recipe. This year, Fedewa hopes to sample another new flavor in Vegas - the taste of victory.

"We tested real well in Vegas this time around," Fedewa said. "In fact, I left that track feeling the best I have in my past three years of driving there. Everything felt real good - the car, the way it was driving, the track. I'm really looking forward to going back there."

Text provided by Wendy Goodman

Editors Note: To view hundreds of hot racing photos and art, visit The Racing Photo Museum and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.