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Dining in Las Vegas
Such a deal, and
it's only one of many in town.
Yes it's true.
You can get a breakfast buffet in this town for $2.49 and a steak dinner
for under $3.
Then again, you can also spend $150 per person and have your wine retrieved
by an angel.
Like just about everything else, eating is an experience in Las Vegas.
The buffets are a long-standing staple; in fact, one of the city's key
identifying marks.
The last few years have brought on an explosion of fine restaurants
and just about every hotel has at least one upscale eatery.
The competition is so intense that even the elegant Mandalay Bay has
stooped to stunts. At Aureole, wine is stacked in a see-through
glass case where girls called angles rise up to pull out the bottles
in full view of the patrons. The prices go even higher than the angels.
But this is a city of contrasts. In the very shadows of the billion-plus
dollar Bellagio, you can get a complete steak dinner for $2.99 at Ellis
Island Coffee Shop (4178 Koval St.) or steak and eggs for $2.49
at Arizona Charlie's (740 S. Decatur Blvd.), 24 hours a day.
One of the best deals is the 99-cent shrimp cocktail at the Golden
Gate Hotel at the end of Freemont Street.
Name a country, and its ethnic food is likely represented here. China,
Japan, Mexico Italy, Greece, Cuba, well, we could in fact circle the
globe. Not sure of a country? Then pick a place: Hollywood (Planet
Hollywood), Daytona Beach (Harley Davidson Cafe),
the Amazon (Rainforest Cafe) even under the sea (Dive,
which brings new meaning to a submarine sandwich). Still can't decide?
Just stride through any casino and enjoy a feast of food choices.
Yet it is the buffets where Las Vegas hangs its food hat. These
all-you-can-eat extravaganzas were originated by the casinos in order
to keep people inside the building at eating time instead of having
them venture outside for a meal. The casinos also prefer that people
spend their discretionary income at the gaming tables instead of the
restaurant table, so the original prices bordered on ridiculous.
Sometimes, too, did the food. Remember the scene in the Las Vegas "Vacation"
movie, where Randy Quaid is plopping down purple and green food on his
plate while Chevy Chase is himself turning green? It was based on reality.
Fortunately, the quality has improved with increased competition, but
not in every case.
Two off the best deals for food and quality are off the main part of
the Strip at Boulder Station ($3.99 for breakfast, $5,99 for
lunch and $8.99 for dinner). The Fiesta Hotel (same prices) gets
equally good reviews. The Boulder Strip and Freemont Street areas offer
the kinds of deals synonymous with Vegas, meaning you can eat lunch
or dinner for the price of a gambling chip at the Mirage.
The best, though, is the Carnival World Buffet at the Rio. It's
not cheap -- $12.99 for breakfat, $14.99 for lunch and $22.99 for dunner
-- but with sushi, a Mongolian grill, and tasty stations featuring Mexican,
Italian, pizza, hamburgers and much more, it's well worth the price.
It's so good, locals eat there frequently. And then there's the buffett
at the new Wynn – fantastic but at $38 per person for dinner
it's also a feast on the wallet.
Quite often, the worst thing about the buffets are the lines. At meal
time, it seems as if every tourist in town suddenly became hungry at
the same instant, making half-hour waits commonplace. A quicker alternative
is the casino coffee shops, but the food is mediocre and prices
are on par with regular restaurants.
For good, fast food, our favorite place is behind the Rio. In 'N
Out Burger, a Southern California institution featuring a simple
menu with fresh items, has happily made its way across the border to
Nevada, much to the delight of visiting Angelenos. Order the Double-Double.
 Ride
the Party Bus Again!
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