8560 W. Desert Inn Rd., 702-685-0466
Vegan is the new sushi in Las Vegas—whereas once there were almost none, now vegetarian and vegan restaurants can be found all over the city. We’re pretty much avowed carnivores at LVA, so we haven’t given this dining subset its due, but here’s one that we like for more than just the food.
If you eat vegan, you’re already familiar with seitan beef and tofu scampi and you’ll have no problem working your way around the VV menu. If you don’t, a safe route is to go with foods that are naturally vegan, e.g., salads, soups, and straight-up vegetable dishes. Violette’s serves eggplant in marinara, veggie nachos, and mac & cheese, which are in play according to the basic strategy, but our favorite is the “Ante Up Bandito,” a quesadilla made with Jack cheese, pinto beans, roasted corn, jalapeños, spinach, and guacamole ($11.95). It comes with homemade salsa and hot sauce and absolutely ranks with the best quesadillas of any kind we’ve ever had. Two more winners are the black bean corn salad with red onions, cilantro, and lime juice ($3.25) and a truly bad-ass potato salad ($2.95). There are also some “kool kids meals” (like a peanut butter, jelly, and banana sandwich), free coffee with breakfast, and of course, organic juices galore. The restaurant is located at Desert Inn and Durango about seven miles west of the Strip. Hours are 8 am-9 pm Monday-Thursday and 8-10 Friday-Sunday.
So there’s some pretty good grub here, but the real reason Violette’s Vegan is this month’s LC is for its cool gambling tie-in. Not that there’s a mention of it anywhere in the restaurant, but owner and namesake Cyndy Violette was one of the first female poker stars in the ’80s and early ’90s and an undeniable forerunner of the “poker babe”—the group of ladies who showed up later to cash in on various degrees of poker skills and good looks. But Cyndy could play for sure (and still can—she cashed three times at this year’s WSOP). Her bona fides include nearly $1 million in total WSOP cashes and a bracelet in the 7 card stud high-low 8 or better open event (not ladies only) in 2004. Had she come around a decade later, Cyndy Violette would have been a superstar.
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