Vegas Free-for-All - Vegas questions

Boilerman

Aug 10, 2015
3:22am

I'm making my annual college boys trip to Vegas on September 2 (year 33). Two of us will stay at the Golden Nugget night one, then we meet the other 12 guys at the luxurious Casino Royale for nights 2, 3, and 4. I've not been downtown for two years, and I'm consider dinner at Andiamo's Steakhouse, and Eat for breakfast. Any alternative suggestions are welcome. PJ, you always have something good to offer!

For our Friday night dinner, I'm considering doing the Firefly on Paradise. We'll have three cars, and it's only a 5 minute drive heading out the back way from the Royale. Again, any suggestions are welcome.

Does anyone know if the Casino Royale still has a terrible shortage of blackjack tables? It seems to me they have moved to mostly Pai Gow Poker and BJ Switch. We historically have spent plenty of time gambling at Casino Royale, but because of the inability to get onto BJ tables, we've been spending more time elsewhere.

Any and all suggestions for gambling, eating and drinking will be appreciated. Oh, and if it turns out that I'm off by a year and this is annual trip #34, I hope that Forkie won't call me a liar. Wish me good luck!

daisybasket

Aug 10, 2015
6:52am

Block User

lol, you are some kind of high rollers...lol, love it. Reminds me of some guy telling us he was on business and was doing $60 shots, we ask him where he is staying and wait for it, he says the wild, wild west on the company...couldn't contain my laugh. Love you said the luxurious CR, which my family lovingly refers to as "the dive"...order a case of midnight white castles for sure with the one dollar beers. You are men in Vegas.

If you walk right out the door, you can be in the party pit at harrahs, which usually has open cheap bj table. I might suggest Hash House a gogo for some man vs food chicken eggs benedict (at the linq, although I've never eaten at that location).....

Not sure why firefly would be on your list for a guys trip, but you know your people.

While a few dollars pricey, good portions for celeb chef and good food, we ate at Guy Fierri's.

If you have cars, old school is herbs n rye off strip speakeasy, they have half priced steaks and happy hour seven days a week. Old school is circus circus steakhouse....I am assuming you know about these places.

Also a new fave locals for me is the Viva Las Arepas at BLVD/Oakey, venezualian and so good, a casual kind of place with great food wood fired. That is about my only new fave from the dtp craze.

If you are into dumpster diving and have designated drivers in this group, there is one dollar bj on boulder and ten cent roulette at sunset klondike (or used to be still).

My parents like the availability of Sam's Town bj....on strip, I would suggest harrahs really. We also like to stay at Paris, so Bally's isn't always so busy either on off hours.

I am also assuming you know about the Pinball museum on trop, very popular among the boys. My hubby loves it.

And if this is your 33 trip, I think you've got this.

jphelan

Aug 10, 2015
7:26am

Block User

Gambling on the strip is pretty much a wasteland at low levels....you may want to try Ellis Island for a good time not far away at lower stakes. Tuscany is also not bad just around the corner from Ellis and they usually have Alaskan Amber on draft and $5 blackjack in a quieter atmosphere.

As for food, you cannot beat the BBQ at Ellis for the price and Guy Fieri's place outside the Linq is a good breakfast option along with Hash House A-go-go. I've also heard good things about rolling smoke BBQ which is not far away and they are a BYOB place so you can save a bundle on drinks if you BYO.

Enjoy - and don't do anything I wouldn't do !

daisybasket

Aug 10, 2015
3:50pm

Block User

lmao, if you want something disturbing and unforgettable go to the puppetry of the penis show...I got pulled along for a gal's birthday night and actually one guy ended up going, there were some couples and gay men in the crowd as well, it ended up being very comical and not sexual, it is housed in the erotic museum and next to the strip clubs on industrial...I am the conservative one of the group, but it ended up being very funny, "tactful" if you can say that and definitely unforgettable. I can see a group of guys going for lessons. We haven't stopped talking about it for 2 weeks now....

Also the new talk of the town is a mexican restaurant opened and owned by Sapphire's son, so it is attached and in the parking lot as Sapphires....food was good, the decor was interesting and not mexicanny, but velvet walls ish....oh, and fried grasshoppers are an appetizer....this would be a something different and only in vegas dinner...El dorado cantina....food was actually good.

Stewart

Aug 10, 2015
4:02pm

Block User

daisybasket offers such great suggestions! and a good LOL on wild wild west. years ago, don't know what I was thinking, but I got stuck staying at WWW for one night. in the same low roller price range, there are several and much better choices. live and learn.

Boilerman

Aug 10, 2015
9:36pm

Block User

I've been to the Downtown Hash House and was disappointed, but I'll give it a try this year at the Linq (my buddy liked it). I'm familiar with the Harrah's Carnival Court (party pit), and get there once or twice a year. Last year I had the greatest burger in my life at Guy Fieri's joint.

When choosing a restaurant, I need to be cognizant that we have 14 guys, and some have fatter wallets than others. Some would be happy to drop $200 per guy for dinner, while others get squeamish past $40. Also, I want to limit our drive time to about 10 minutes, and for us to leave at 8pm on a Friday night, it takes 20 minutes to jump on I-15 alone.

Regarding the Firefly, I've been to the old downtown location several times and loved it. The food and view were both great. Certainly it was a perfect sort of joint for a bunch of 55 year old guys in Vegas. Noisy, fun, tapas. I've never been to the Paradise location, however, so maybe it's a different vibe. It does pull good reviews on Yelp, however.

I've been meaning to go to The Steakhouse at Circus Circus. Since I love Andiamo's and I'm staying at the Golden Nugget night one, Circus Circus will likely have to wait for another year.

Daisy, thanks for the help!

Quote

Originally posted by: daisybasket
lol, you are some kind of high rollers...lol, love it. Reminds me of some guy telling us he was on business and was doing $60 shots, we ask him where he is staying and wait for it, he says the wild, wild west on the company...couldn't contain my laugh. Love you said the luxurious CR, which my family lovingly refers to as "the dive"...order a case of midnight white castles for sure with the one dollar beers. You are men in Vegas.

If you walk right out the door, you can be in the party pit at harrahs, which usually has open cheap bj table. I might suggest Hash House a gogo for some man vs food chicken eggs benedict (at the linq, although I've never eaten at that location).....

Not sure why firefly would be on your list for a guys trip, but you know your people.

While a few dollars pricey, good portions for celeb chef and good food, we ate at Guy Fierri's.

If you have cars, old school is herbs n rye off strip speakeasy, they have half priced steaks and happy hour seven days a week. Old school is circus circus steakhouse....I am assuming you know about these places.

Also a new fave locals for me is the Viva Las Arepas at BLVD/Oakey, venezualian and so good, a casual kind of place with great food wood fired. That is about my only new fave from the dtp craze.

If you are into dumpster diving and have designated drivers in this group, there is one dollar bj on boulder and ten cent roulette at sunset klondike (or used to be still).

My parents like the availability of Sam's Town bj....on strip, I would suggest harrahs really. We also like to stay at Paris, so Bally's isn't always so busy either on off hours.

I am also assuming you know about the Pinball museum on trop, very popular among the boys. My hubby loves it.

And if this is your 33 trip, I think you've got this.

teach8

Aug 11, 2015
4:39am

Block User

Don't forget that Tix4Tonite has some great dining deals. Our last trip we got the 50% the entree at BLT Steak at Bally's After our deductions, dinner for two was $78, with one shared spinach salad, shared mashed potatoes, and two steaks. Would have been $138.

You may also want to check out Travelzoo for good dining deals, as well as Groupon.

Loved Guy Fieri's mac n cheese burger.

Joy

daisybasket

Aug 11, 2015
8:15am

Block User

Yes, I was being funny, not snarky...I am totally a believer in whatever people's needs and budgets are....just thought the guy posing at the www was funny....hey, if a shower and bed are the need, I would do it.

And I hear you about needing to provide needs for different price points...I also did a girls trip right out of college and one person dictated a steak dinner when others needed an under 20 dinner. So rude.

Yes, definitely check out groupons...planet hollywood buffet is almost always on there.

And yes, downtown Hash house was underwhelming for me...I always went to the one at the M.

Have fun Glad to help....I love my town and always try to do new and different things.

durham

Aug 11, 2015
10:57am

Block User

Quote

Originally posted by: daisybasket
. . .
Also the new talk of the town is a mexican restaurant opened and owned by Sapphire's son, so it is attached and in the parking lot as Sapphires....food was good, the decor was interesting and not mexicanny, but velvet walls ish....oh, and fried grasshoppers are an appetizer....this would be a something different and only in vegas dinner...El dorado cantina....food was actually good.

El Dorado Cantina was great for dinner. Parking is an issue on the weekends as it is attached to Sapphire's Gentlemen's Club.
We bought a $15 certificate for this restaurant at www.kshp.com for $5 . The Cantina is a bit pricey, so $15 is almost the price of one dinner entree. But, the chips and salsa were outstanding, the salsa being house made. There was a great Mexican guitar/singing duo on the night we went, so the live entertainment was a bonus.
I'd return to this place again.

durham

Aug 11, 2015
11:03am

Block User

Quote

Originally posted by: Boilerman
I've been to the Downtown Hash House and was disappointed, but I'll give it a try this year at the Linq (my buddy liked it). . . .
.

IMHO, the Hash House at the Linq is far worse than the downtown location. Service was horrible, the place just looked dirty everywhere, and the famous fried chicken (and waffle) was dried out and tasted like it had been in a warming pan for a week. UGH. Very disappointing.

The only Hash House location we've ever liked was the original one on Sahara, but that's a bit of a drive.

I'd just skip it.

FYI, if you all are at the Casino Royale, lucky you, no need to carry large amounts of cash to Vegas. The ATM at the Casino Royale charges a fee of just ONE DOLLAR to get cash.

Ha, cross over to the Cosmo, the ATM fee is something like $7.

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