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Taste the West: Las Vegas

Gone are the days of discount buffets dominating the Las Vegas culinary landscape. See how Sin City has become a foodie’s paradise

Sunset
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Haute Cuisine within Reach

Joël Robuchon's main restaurant is famous for being the kind of experience doctors and lawyers need to save up for. It’s still not a bargain, but the less lavish L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon offers the master chef’s signature French dishes à la carte.

2 /8 Photo by Thomas J. Story

Comfort Food Classics

Chef Natalie Young’s Eat attracts a discerning downtown crowd with breakfast classics like buttery pancakes and steel-cut oats with cinnamon roasted apples and pecans. Stick around for lunch with a Southern accent: soft and pillowy beignets, shrimp and grits, and the best grilled cheese in town.

3 /8 Photo by Thomas J. Story

Chefs Know Best

Chef Mitsuo Endo uses binchotan, a special Japanese charcoal, to grill mountain trout, pork cheek, and a long list of robatayaki at Raku, an elegant izakaya. But the big star is the agedashi tofu, silken housemade tofu topped with salmon roe, a favorite with the local chefs who crowd the counter after their shifts.

4 /8 Photo by Thomas J. Story

The Best Little Noodle House in Vegas

Credited for launching Vegas’ ramen revolution, Monta Japanese Noodle House boasts rich and salty broth with a hint of marrow. Choose between the shoyu (soy) and the heartier, thicker miso ramen before piling on the toppings—hard-cooked egg, tender slices of roasted pork.

5 /8 Photo by Thomas J. Story

The Local Hang

Downtown Cocktail Room feels exactly like a downtown cocktail room, with a slight speakeasy vibe, harlot-lipstick red walls, and mildly alarming abstract art. Must-drink if it's on the menu: The Carciofo Swizzle, which is essentially a full-fledged tour of Italian amaros in a glass.

6 /8 Photo by Thomas J. Story

Fresh Fare

Not every leafy morsel of organic goodness comes to LV in the back of a FedEx truck. The Friday morning Downtown3rd Farmers Market takes over a repurposed transit terminal next where local producers sell jerky, jams, honey, mushrooms, and more.

7 /8 Photo by Thomas J. Story

Bangokian Cuisine

The chintzy metal façade and unadorned tables at Le Thai might be annoying if you didn’t know what was to come: authentic Southeastern fare like pad Thai noodles redolent of green onions and cilantro, with no cloying sweetness. The three-color curry and the beef meatball noodle soup—made from a stock slow-simmered with bones and tendon—make this one of the toughest reservations in town.

8 /8 Photo courtesy of Vintner Grill

Splurge!

It may be off the Strip, but Vintner Grill is well worth the trip. Order standouts from the always-changing contemporary American bistro menu show off influences from the Mediterranean, like its white bean hummus with spicy pita chips or braised lamb osso bucco.