Hello WSOP people:
Welcome to Las Vegas, as a local and a poker player (well
occasional poker player), let me say hello, pull up a chair, and enjoy your
stay. One thing that comes with living
is Las Vegas is that I get to play tour guide, unlike many I actually enjoy
doing this. I love seeing the city through a guest’s eye, and introducing
seasoned visitors to things that they've never done.
There are a bunch of things to do in Vegas other than gamble
(gaps), this post (hopefully the first in a series) will discuss a few of your
WSOP dining options. This list contains 10 places that I personally enjoy, all
are within 10 minutes of the Rio, most can be visited during a 90 minute dinner
break, a few would probably be better on an off night, or if you want to drown
your bust out sorrows in a plate of food. Many of these places aren't that
crowded, and will be free of poker players (for the most part), so they can
also be good places for a sit down discussion of play without the worry of eavesdroppers.
So without further rambling ladies and gentlemen (ok mostly
gentlemen) I present to you
Mitzula's 10 WSOP Friendly Locations within 10 minutes of the Rio for
the 2014 WSOP
1) Naked
City Pizza Shop (Desert Inn and Arville) Hours: 11a-3a Daily
Naked City Pizza Shop is one of my go to places in Vegas, it’s
minutes from the Rio (twain to arville) and is inside of one of the diveiest
bars in the city (Moondoggies). The menu
includes pizza, wings, sandwiches, salads, and burgers. There is a full service
bar, and the entire place is 21+ and smoker friendly.
I have eaten at Naked
City more times than I can count and have yet to have a bad meal there. Chef
Chris and his crew know what they’re doing and the food they’re serving out of
that tiny kitchen never fails to amaze me.
My recommended menu items include Wing Dip (imagine spinach
artichoke dip but with buffalo wings), Poutine, Bacon and Eggs Pizza (trust me
it’s AMAZING), and The Royal Sandwich.
Almost everything in Naked is Hand Made and is relatively
cheap, with the average dinner setting you back under $20 + drinks. The service
can sometimes be spotty and if the kitchen is backed up it can take a little
while to get your food, but trust me it’s worth the wait.
2) Fat
Choy Inside the Eureka Casino (E Sahara
and Maryland Pkwy)
Hours: Mon-Thurs 11a-9p Fri/Sat 11a-midnight Sunday
9a-10p (special brunch menu)
Fat Choy is a new kid in the culinary world, it’s a bit of a
challenge to find inside the Eureka Casino (on East Sahara just before Maryland
Parkway), but trust me once you visit you’ll be heading back in no time. Chef
Sheridan has a kitchen pedigree that is unmatched by many chefs in Vegas, after
working at several top level restaurants on the strip he packed up his knives and
moved into a tiny stall inside of a hair salon, he served up nothing but Bao at
the location, until he started getting busier than the Salon and he was booted.
If Fat Choy was downtown it would be the talk of Las Vegas and would be
impossible to get into, however since it’s in the Eureka it’s still considered
a hidden gem.
I have personally ate my way through pretty much the entire
menu and can say without a doubt that Grandma’s Pot Stickers are hands down the
best I’ve ever had. The filling is great; the skins are delicate and crisped to
perfection, I have to have an order every time I visit. My other go to item is the
Short Rib Grilled Cheese on Sourdough Bread. Its one part grilled cheese and
one part bbq sandwich, served with a side of onion jam, it’s my go to entrée.
Other menu highlights include Bone Marrow, Bao (Pork Belly and Duck), Duck
Rice, The Fat Choy Burger (with short rib and a fried egg).
On Sundays Chef Sheridan and crew serve up an all day brunch
menu that includes: Chicken and Waffles, Kalbi Steak and Eggs, a Fat Benedict (eggs benny with pork belly
replacing the ham), and nutella roti. If you find yourself wanting a Brunch fix
I highly recommend checking them out!
They also have some great desserts , it’s a new place and
there are sometimes some hiccups (they’re working them out as the crew gets
more experience). There is usually one chef in the kitchen so orders may take a
while to get our but, the quality of the food more than makes up for the few
hiccups you may encounter.
3) Big
Wong (Spring Mtn and Decatur) Hours: 10a-11p Daily
Big Wong is a great little mom and pop Chinese joint in the
same plaza as Monta Ramen, Raku Susho, and Trattoria Nakamura-Ya, however they’re
not nearly as busy or expensive as their neighbors. The menu is pretty deep and
offers up a bunch of great food for under $10 per item with the average item
price being closer to $5 than $10, the only things over $10 are the Steak
Special and the Dungeness Crab (which is prepared fresh to order). I am a big
fan of their Salt and Pepper wings (possibly the best wings in Vegas), Beef
Ramen, Bok Choy, Chicken and Chinese Sausage, and Dessert Roti (which for only
$1 each may be the best dessert deal in the city).
On a street filled with many great Asian places Big Wong’s
Quality, Portion Size, and Low Price make it stand out above the many options.
4) Desnudo Tacos (Desert Inn and Arville Next Door To Naked City Pizza)
Hours: 11a-8p Sun 11a-10p Mon-Sat
Desnudo is quickly becoming my go to Mexican restaurant. It's a great little spot inside the bones of a former transmission shop. It is a owned/ran by Chef Chris Palmeri (owner of Naked City) and Christian Dolias. Now I know what you're saying, come on you're recommending a Mexican Joint owned by 2 white guys??? Yes...Yes I am, I have eaten here a handful of times and it's never disappointed me.
The menu is pretty solid. I highly recommend the Torta De Puerco, the Chivo (goat), The California Burrito, and the Loaded Guac. The Torta is amazing, braised pork, confit pork belly, and house pickled veggies on an amazing Torta Roll, I order this pretty much every time I visit. The Loaded Guac comes packed with Bacon, Blue Cheese, and Pumpkin Seeds and is great. They also offer up wines, sangria, and locally brewed beers. You can also order from the Naked City menu next door if you want to eat pizza and avoid the dive bar next door.
5) Fuku
Burger Truck (weekly schedule on their SITE) Hours: Usually 8p-2a
The food truck boom was in full swing last year during the
WSOP, this year most of the trucks have scaled back their hours. One of the few
that are still out on the street pretty much every night is Fuku Burger. They
have been serving burgers up for over 2 years now and they do it right. Their
menu is pretty small, but their food packs a big punch. They offer up a few burgers, a chicken
sandwich, Moco Loco, Hot Dogs, and a daily special. But the best things at Fuku
weren't on the menu when the truck started. You have to try the Fat Hakujin (a
double pattied asian inspired bacon cheese burger with a fried egg on top) or
the lil’ Chris (same thing but with one patty) and their Jazz Fries (Gravy
fries with Crack Sauce). They’re out
most nights, their schedule is easy to find on their website, so hunt them
down, order up a burger and some jazz fries, pull up a Home Depot Bucket, and
enjoy one of the best meals in the city.
Fukuburger is also currently running the Faux Truck at FAME in the Linq, they're serving up the same menu as the truck, so if you're checking out Linq duck in for a burger and some Jazz Fries!
6) Bar
Forte (Rainbow and Flamingo) Hours: Sun/Mon 5p-10:30p Tues-Sat Noon-10:30
Forte is one of a handful of Tapas bars in Las Vegas, however
unlike Firefly, forte’s dishes don’t come with a side of Salmonella! Forte offers up tapas and a full menu that has
a Easter European twist. My personal favorites include the Jamon Serrano,
Chorizo Con Vino, Garlic Forte Fries, Hungarian Goulash, and the Bulgarian
Mixed Grill. Many of the sausages are made in house, and the bar serves up some
great drinks. It’s a little bit of a hike from the Rio, but trust me it’s worth
checking out.
7) Da
Lat (Flamingo and Cameron) Hours 9:30a-4a Daily
In a city full of Pho joints there are many great choices. I’m
picking Da Lat for a few reasons. It’s rediciously close to the Rio (just past
arville on flamingo), relatively cheap most bowls are between $7 & $9, and
is usually never too crowded. They may not best the best Pho Joint in the city,
but if you’re looking for a bowl of noodles and don’t have a lot of time to invest
you could do much worse.
8) Baby
Stacks Café (Flamingo and Buffalo) Hours M-F 7a-2p Sat/Sun 7a-3p
Baby Stacks is the only Breakfast place on the list. I know
most poker people don’t do breakfast but if you find yourself up after an all
night session you need to do yourself a favor and grab breakfast at Baby
Stacks. They offer up an decent
selection of traditional breakfast foods (benedicts, omelets, skillets, and eggs)
as well as a bunch of sandwiches for lunch, however the things that sets Baby
Stacks apart is their Pancake Menu. They have 15+ types of pancakes ranging
from the traditional buttermilk and chocolate chip to specialties such as red
velvet, bacon, rocky road, lemon
ricotta, and cinnabun just to name a few.
9) Sushi
House Goyemon (Decatur and Hacienda) Hours: 11:30a-3a Daily (last call at
2:30am)
Goyemon is without a doubt my favorite sushi places anywhere
in the US. They have an amazing selection of rolls, plus many items that you
will not find on a traditional sushi menu (including Pork Belly, Grilled
Calimari, Nigiri, and Ramen). Goyemon is owned by the same family that operates
Monta Ramen, every night after 10pm they add a Ramen to the menu, the ramen is
great and is even better if you toss a few pieces of pork belly in with it
(then again what isn’t). They are open
until 3am, and have a last call for rolls at 2:30 am. One nice thing about
Goyemon is you can get half your order in full or half rolls, by ordering halves
you can try a lot more sushi options without getting stuffed.
10) SN
Trukstop at Tommy Rockers (Dean Martin and Flamingo) Saturdays 9p-3a
This isn't a restaurant; however it is a great place
to check out. They bring in anywhere between 3-5 food trucks to Tommy Rockers
and they set up shop in the parking lot. The trucks rotate weekly, and Tommy
Rockers has a full bar for all your drinking needs. There is often a band
playing inside the bar, and you are welcomed to bring food from the trucks into
the bar. Once a month they do a Back of House Brawl where some local chefs throw down in a Chopped style battle
featuring a basket of secret ingredients, they’re given 30 minutes to prep a
dish on one of the food trucks, and the winner gets the PBR trophy. It’s a fun
thing to check out, and a great place to meet some of the industry peeps who
feed you outside of the restaurant. It's also minutes from the rio and the bar is open 24/7.