Wild boar a welcome surprise during visit to Table 34

Beef, lamb, pork, poultry and seafood -- as well as vegetarian dishes -- usually are enough to satisfy omnivores like us, but give us a little more variety and we're even happier.

That's where game comes in --when we can get it, which isn't very often in these parts. Maybe because we don't have as many hunters as, say, Wisconsin or upstate New York, it seems there isn't enough collective appetite for game.

And so we were, of course, pretty jazzed when our waiter said one of the specials on the evening of our visit to Table 34 was wild boar. He didn't mention the price ($38), so points off for that. He did mention that there were only two portions left, so the points even out because we were able to ask him to snag one.

And it was fantastic, medium-rare as ordered, with not so much flavor as the wild hog we used to get in the redneckier parts of Florida but more than your average pork chops, which was a nice compromise. Pink peppercorns seemed to put the point on the idea that this was pig, not hog, and a Parmesan-laced risotto cake worked well as a counterpoint, strong enough to hold up to the meat without overwhelming it, and a creamy contrast to its lean austerity.

We've had a lot of artichoke-heart appetizers over the years, but none where the chokes were shaped like these ($10.50), and that's because they were, we'd wager big, prepared by hand in the kitchen. Actually, we may have misread the menu's "heads" for "hearts," which matters only insofar as it clarifies that these are quartered chokes, stem (that's one of the best parts) and all, so that you end up with a sort of club shape. Breaded and fried, they had a crispy surface that yielded to the soft, oh-so-subtly (but unmistakably) flavored interior. The lemon aioli -- well, somebody wrote to say "gilded the lily" made me sound like I was ancient, but if there's ever been a case where it fits, this is it. And the big pile of field greens on the side, dressed in an extremely light vinaigrette, balanced it all out.

Sauteed Idaho golden trout ($24) was notable for numerous reasons, among them that the two large fillets presented quite a generous portion, that the brown butter actually tasted like it, that there were lots and lots of almonds, and, well, that all of the above, plus careful sauteing, created one really, really tasty dish. A lightly seasoned rice pilaf was served with this one.

Oh, and I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the breads, one of which was black olive, freshly made. How do I know that? Because my slice of bread actually contained a pit. So here we go with the points-on-points-off thing; I could've choked, maybe, but didn't, and the bread was awfully good.

And the even-Steven (if you remember your "Seinfeld") thing applies to the service, too. When our waiter was there, he was great. He wasn't always handy, though, owing in large part to a big and especially needy party near us. Still, we felt we'd been treated better than OK.

Which is how I expect you'll feel if you dine at any of the tables at Table 34.

Las Vegas Review-Journal restaurant reviews are done anonymously at Review-Journal expense. Contact Heidi Knapp Rinella at 383-0474 or email her at Hrinella@ reviewjournal.com.