Since Las Vegas' casinos are open 24/7, they're staffed on a shift basis, with the so-called "graveyard" shift generally running from midnight to 8 am. Although various romantic hypotheses have been suggested as to where this shift got its name, including Victorian body-snatching taking place in the wee hours, the generally accepted theory is best summed up by etymologist Michael Quinion in his World Wide Words, in which he explains that the "graveyard shift is an evocative term for the night shift between about midnight and eight in the morning, when -- no matter how often you've worked it -- your skin is clammy, there's sand behind your eyeballs, and the world is creepily silent, like the graveyard. The phrase dates only from the early years of the twentieth century."
The so-called "graveyard special" is a long-established tradition in casino coffee shops, catering both to swing-shift workers who're just getting off work or the graveyard shift that's just beginning its workday around midnight, and to night-owl gamblers who need some cheap comfort food to sustain them. The dishes served are generally discount-priced breakfast deals, including ham/bacon/sausage/steak and eggs combos, biscuits and gravy, and pancakes, and the usual hours they're served are from 11 pm or midnight until between 5 am and 7 am. For a complete list of all the current graveyard specials available around town, click here.
