# Las Vegas restaurant recommendations **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 18, 2009, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062 "2009-11-18T20:12:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MrSquishy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9e5f3/32.png) [@MrSquishy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrSquishy)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/1 "2009-11-18T20:12:40Z")
I’m heading to Las Vegas next weekend. Can anybody recommend some interesting restaurants to try? I’m not really all that interested in the high-end swanky casino places (although feel free to recommend something), more like interesting “local”-type places (although if they’re close to the Strip so much the better). For example, on past trips I have enjoyed meals at [Hash House A Go Go](http://www.hashhouseagogo.com/) and [Memphis Championship Barbecue](http://www.memphis-bbq.com/mainmovie.html), to name a couple. While we’re at it, what is the best BBQ in Vegas? We don’t really get “real” BBQ where I live so whenever I’m in the States I like to go to a BBQ place. I know Nevada isn’t exactly the home of BBQ but what’s the closest I can get to “authentic” there? How about Mexican? I love Mexican food too, but again we don’t have too much up here in the way of Mexican so I usually try to find an authentic place when I’m in the States. Also, which is your favourite buffet (and why)? I’ve always been a big fan of the Sunday Brunch at the Bellagio but I’ve heard good things about the Wynn and the new (well, newer than the last time I was there) buffet at the Mirage. Also I heard that there is a buffet at the M resort where beer and wine is included in the price, which is very intriguing to me. 🙂 I’ve been to Samba at the Mirage a couple of times; are there better Churrascarias? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/2 "2009-11-18T20:34:15Z")
[Peppermill](http://www.peppermilllasvegas.com/) You’ve already eaten at the only decent BBQ joint I’ve found in Vegas. The Wynn buffet is excellent. The pastries alone would take it into the Top 3. The buffet at M Resort is also very good, and cheaper than most of the rest. The beer is ok. A step above commercial swill, but not transcendent either. Just the thing for washing down a variety of foods. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/3 "2009-11-18T20:39:08Z")
> [@MrSquishy](#): > > How about Mexican? I love Mexican food too, but again we don’t have too much up here in the way of Mexican so I usually try to find an authentic place when I’m in the States. I’m sorry I can’t help you with the BBQ joint (I’m a veg), but the best Mexican food I’ve had in the 13+ years I’ve lived here is at [Taqueria Santa Cruz](http://www.yelp.com/biz/taqueria-santa-cruz-las-vegas) (map at that link). It’s not a fancy sit down restaurant; it’s a taqueria, but the food is excellent, and the atmosphere (families with kids hanging out, watching soccer & Telemundo) is great fun too. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/4 "2009-11-18T20:43:38Z")
I know it’s higher end than you might prefer, but when we had dinner at [Hugo’s Cellar in the Four Queens Casino Hotel on Fremont Street](http://www.hugoscellar.com/), we had a chocolate dessert there that we still talk about. Our host, a local, took us there. They also have a café upstairs that is also good, with a strong local flavour. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/5 "2009-11-18T20:51:18Z")
Every time we go to Vegas, we eat at [Battista’s Hole In The Wall](http://www.battistaslasvegas.com/), an Italian place right behind the Flamingo. The dinner portions are huge, and you get free house wine with your meal and cappuccino afterward. And you gotta love Gordie, the accordion player, who’s been there for about 30 years now. Be warned: the food is so excellent that by comparison, all other Italian restaurants serve Spaghetti-Os. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/6 "2009-11-18T21:07:48Z")
On our first date I took my fiancee to the Yardhouse. It was the best tasting steak in my life and, if you’re into that kind of thing, has over a hundred beers on tap. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/7 "2009-11-18T22:24:28Z")
I was in Vegas a couple months ago and went to the Hofbrauhaus. Good schweinebraten and strudel, and where else are you gonna see a guy play the _Star Wars_ theme on an alpenhorn with the bell end resting on a woman’s thighs? Every song is a German drinking song. ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/8 "2009-11-18T22:32:34Z")
> [@MrSquishy](#): > > Also, which is your favourite buffet (and why)? I’ve always been a big fan of the Sunday Brunch at the Bellagio but I’ve heard good things about the Wynn and the new (well, newer than the last time I was there) buffet at the Mirage. Also I heard that there is a buffet at the M resort where beer and wine is included in the price, which is very intriguing to me. 🙂 [True.](http://www.themresort.com/dining/studiob.html) Excellent buffet at the M Resort for the money. Lots of good food and great dessert bar. I’ve also dined at Marinelli’s and Terzetto’s as well, both are excellent. The bread girl at Marinelli’s was fun to talk to also…a young and beautiful Hungarian immigrant that looks like a young Susanna Hoffs (Bangles). ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/9 "2009-11-18T22:47:55Z")
Try the Burger Palace in Imperial Palace. Nothing fancy, by any means, but a nice, inexpensive burger, made of real meat and garnished with real vegetables. Take the escalator from the front of the entrance. ---
**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2009, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/10 "2009-11-18T23:28:46Z")
[QUOTE=silenus;11793466 You’ve already eaten at the only decent BBQ joint I’ve found in Vegas. .[/QUOTE] Oh no no no- [http://lucillesbbq.com/](http://lucillesbbq.com/) beats the pants off Memphis BBQ any day, it’s well worth the cab ride (near GVR). The ribs are especially good and also highly recommend the banana pudding for dessert. I’ve heard alot of people rave about the buffet at M recently. For a more quirky, English meal- Crown & Anchor makes a killer Guiness beef pie and is a fun bar (Trop/Maryland Pkwy- there’s another one that just opened up on the west side too). Actually, Crown & Anchor is one of my favorite places in the world, at least they were until they stopped carrying McEwan’s. My boyfriend went to the steakhouse at Delmonico’s over five years ago and still fantasizes about it. If you want to do tapas- the only place I like (I’m not a huge fan of tapas, but this place won me over to them) is Firefly but go to the one on Paradise, NOT the one in the Plaza- big difference in quality IMHO. For mexican- Dona Maria’s on Las Vegas Blvd (I hope it’s still there, been awhile) is very straight up Mexican fare, hole in the wall kinda place-good and especially reccomend their cheese and green chile tamales. ---
**Author:** ![Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soul_brother_number_two/32/3515_2.png) [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul_Brother_Number_Two)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/11 "2009-11-19T01:48:39Z")
Go to the Thai restaurant Jonathan Gold has called “the single best in North America.” Order from the Issan menu. > **[Lotus of Siam | Lotus of Siam - Northern Thai Food](https://lotusofsiamlv.com/)** > > Lotus of Siam. World Famous Northern Thai open with two locations at 953 E. Sahara Ave and 620 E. Flamingo Rd. Award winning restaurant including James Beard and Best Thai in Las Vegas > About 15 years ago, Chef Saipin Chutima established her family... ---
**Author:** ![MrSquishy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9e5f3/32.png) [@MrSquishy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrSquishy)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/12 "2009-11-19T06:18:09Z")
This is great, thanks a lot everybody. I think I will check out the Studio B, maybe pull the old “show up at 3:30, pay the lunch price and stay for dinner” trick. There has got to be a better name for that trick… Sounds like I should try Lucille’s; I’ve been to Memphis Championship a few times so something different will be good. I’ll have a car so the location is not a big deal. > [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](#): > > Go to the Thai restaurant Jonathan Gold has called “the single best in North America.” Order from the Issan menu. > > [http://www.saipinchutima.com/](http://www.saipinchutima.com/) So is that what they call the “Northern Menu” on their website? From what I read it sounds like the Northern menu is something else, so is the Issan menu just the regular menu? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/13 "2009-11-19T06:21:21Z")
Lucille’s is ok, I guess. I’ve had better. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/14 "2009-11-19T08:38:47Z")
> [@Yeticus\_Rex](#): > > [True.](http://www.themresort.com/dining/studiob.html) Excellent buffet at the M Resort for the money. Lots of good food and great dessert bar. I’ve also dined at Marinelli’s and Terzetto’s as well, both are excellent. The bread girl at Marinelli’s was fun to talk to also…a young and beautiful Hungarian immigrant that looks like a young Susanna Hoffs (Bangles). Most certainly try “M” buffet! The dessert bar alone is worth the trip, but the rest of it is great too. Beer and wine, all you can drink - by the way, they also have a great root beer on tap, but that is not everyone’s taste. Marinelli’s is great too…if you go there early (about 5) they have a special, cheap deal as well. **Silenus** …how could you not find Lucille’s better than Memphis?! Better location, better atmosphere, better selection and - quite simply, better food! I have taken many visitors there and every one of them insists we go back there whenever they are in town. My cousin and his wife come to Vegas every year around Memorial Day and two places we have to hit: Lucille’s and Hofbrauhaus. Back to the OP - there are so many great places to eat in Las Vegas, it is hard to pick. China Town area has, obviously, some great Chinese food that is just over the I-15 freeway on Spring Mountain (the street between Treasure Island and Fashion Show Mall)..just go about a mile or two and you will know you are there! You do know about In 'n Out Burgers? Again, cross over the 1-15 on Tropicana and it is on the right. A West Coast chain of burger restaurants that is legendary. I also mention a few other places - Indian food for instance - on my website. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/15 "2009-11-19T17:54:44Z")
There’s a Lucille’s about 45 minutes from here we’ve eaten at several times. Good, but not anywhere near my Top 10 for BBQ. I like Memphis better, although it doesn’t crack the Top 10 either. Come to think of it, all 10 on the list are either in North Carolina or Texas. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/16 "2009-11-19T17:56:03Z")
> [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](#): > > Go to the Thai restaurant Jonathan Gold has called “the single best in North America.” Order from the Issan menu. > > [http://www.saipinchutima.com/](http://www.saipinchutima.com/) Agreed…We had a Dopefest in Vegas back in 2006 which included dining there…great food. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/17 "2009-11-19T18:48:02Z")
> [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](#): > > Go to the Thai restaurant Jonathan Gold has called “the single best in North America.” Order from the Issan menu. > > [http://www.saipinchutima.com/](http://www.saipinchutima.com/) I prefer the [Komol Restaurant](http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=thai+kitchen+las+vegas&fb=1&gl=us&hq=thai+kitchen&hnear=las+vegas&ei=MJIFS7mFNMWvngfV88G8Cw&sa=X&oi=local_group&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CBEQtgMwAA) personally. ---
**Author:** ![zoog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7ea924/32.png) [@zoog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoog)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/18 "2009-11-19T19:00:22Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > [Peppermill](http://www.peppermilllasvegas.com/) I’ll second the Peppermill. It ain’t a Vegas trip in my book unless I get over there for an omelet at least once. Go hungry. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/19 "2009-11-19T20:26:44Z")
Lotus of Siam. Killer Thai food. Found it by word of mouth, and read later that Gourmet magazine called it the “single best Thai restaurant in North America”. 53 E. Sahara Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89104 (3/4 East of Sahara Hotel) Tel. (702)735-3033 ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062/20 "2009-11-19T20:43:35Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Lotus of Siam. Killer Thai food. > > Found it by word of mouth, and read later that Gourmet magazine called it the “single best Thai restaurant in North America”. > > 53 E. Sahara Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89104 (3/4 East of Sahara Hotel) Tel. (702)735-3033 Lotus and Komol are in the same shopping center. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/las-vegas-restaurant-recommendations/518062.md?page=2)