More Than Buffets: Stretching Your Dining Dollar in Vegas
June 30, 2010
•Le Cordon Bleu
•Las Vegas
• 0 Comments
Despite its current claim as an international dining hot spot, Las Vegas has a rather lackluster history when it comes to serving quality food at a good price. Previous incarnations of Sin City as the town of Bugsy Siegel and the Rat Pack provided quality food for its high rolling guests, but the average Joe could count on little more than standard hotel fare served from under heat lamps. If you wanted quality you had to pay the same as Old Blue Eyes himself.
Then along came the all-you-can-eat buffet. A better name would’ve been all-you-can-stomach, which, quite frankly, wasn’t much. The buffets were seen as loss leaders to get hotel patrons in to see the shows and drop their dollars at the tables, where the real profits were. So hotel buffets seldom carried their promise of cheap and good much farther than cheap.
But despite the uninspiring offerings of wilted lettuce, ambrosia salad, and shriveled green beans to go along with the gristle-laden prime rib, it was successful. The tourists flocked in to catch Elvis at Caesar’s and a few $.99 buffets. It was a winning combination that lasted for years.
Hard Times and Rebirth of the StripThe recessions of the 1970s and early 1990s combined with outdated hotels and attractions started to damage the bottom lines of Vegas’s hotels and casinos. As a result, most saw new ownership. Others saw the wrecking ball. Out of the ashes came the new mega resort-like hotels and casinos that cater to every whim of their guests: entertainment, gambling, and dining.
Loss leader buffets were replaced by fine dining restaurants designed to make their new owners money. The new restaurants came with high price tags and celebrity chefs. The days of cheap eats in Las Vegas were over. Or were they?
Affordable Dining in Vegas is Still PossibleYou may not think it to stop into the average high-priced hotel restaurant, but affordable eats are still out there out there in the desert. Here are some tips to find the best dining deals in Las Vegas.
1. Get off of The Strip.It’s common sense. The closer you are to The Strip, the more expensive everything will be. Get off the Strip and head into Las Vegas proper. Eat where the locals eat, which is not The Strip. A favorite is Hash House a Go Go. Located just a couple of miles from The Strip on W. Sahara Ave., this self-proclaimed home of “twisted farm food” provides unusual takes on traditional diner fare and serves them up in huge servings. Most menu items can feed two.
2. Fast FoodYes. Fast Food. If your desire to save money overwhelms your desire to not be caught dead in a fast food joint in this dining Mecca, then fast food is for you. Just like any big city, fast food choices abound in Las Vegas, both on The Strip and off. Can we at least suggest going to In and Out Burger or Pink’s Hot Dogs and skip Mickey D’s? We can? Thanks!
3. Chain RestaurantsAgain, Las Vegas is a big city with a lot of people who can’t afford to eat at Wolfgang Puck’s new place every night. So when in Las Vegas, do what the Las Vegans do and eat at Chili’s or Applebee’s or Friday’s. You won’t be getting the quality of the hotel restaurants, but it’s better than fast food and cheaper than Bobby Flay.
4. Food CourtsMost of the big hotels have food courts to accommodate diners on the go and on the cheap. Choices range from fast food to pizza joints to hot dog stands and just about everything in between. They’re also usually open later than the hotel restaurants so you can find a late night nosh without having to break the bank for room service.
5. BuffetsBut didn’t we just say that the buffets in Vegas are dead. No. We said that the super cheap buffets are dead. The buffet is still very much alive and well. You just have to pay more than you did back in your father’s Las Vegas. Nearly every hotel still has a grand buffet with hundreds of food choices. Most have dining plans that reward multiple meals with cheaper prices. But be careful, just because the prices have gone up doesn’t mean that the quality has followed. Do your research and you may find a good one and save a lot of cash.
Whether you want to splurge on the latest Cirque du Soleil show or drop more money at the tables, you can use your savings from these dining tips to fund your Las Vegas fun.
This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Las Vegas. Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Las Vegas offers culinary arts and pâtisserie and baking training programs in Las Vegas, Nevada. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit
Chefs.edu/Las-Vegas for more information.