Las Vegas is Nirvana for gamblers and those who love the glitz and glamour of civilization. For me, this city of lights is a sensory experience filled with extravagant illuminations, entertainment delights and scads of culinary options. But, the biggest surprise in Vegas were the hedges along roadways, sidewalks and in the front of the mega-hotels. Instead of Japanese Yews, boxwoods and flowering shrubs, I found rosemary, tons of it, growing along the byways of the town that gambling built.

While rosemary has a very evergreen confirmation and look to it, the distinctive aroma of this common herb is apparent by just rubbing your hands against the tender needles. And, walking in Vegas offered the constant opportunity of rubbing the magic olfactory enhancements just about anywhere you walked.

For the most part, rosemary is on the low end of herbal popularity. Most people know about it but are at a loss for uses in the kitchen. Lamb is rosemary’s best friend. The fragrant needles seem to pare perfectly with the unique flavors of lamb racks, roasts, legs and chops. But, don't stop there. Rosemary with pork, chicken, potatoes and even duck is a step into the magic and flavorful union of a fresh herb and it's host.

Rosemary is also a great potted plant. Standards of rosemary are perfect on a mantle, near a sunny kitchen sink or at a doorstep. And, when rosemary planted in a garden offers long stems of them for kitchen use, cut them and use them as skewers of chunks of pork or lamb tenderloin. Fresh sprigs of rosemary also add an unusual leaf shape to petite bouquets at a dinner table.