Royally Flushed

I get asked this question a lot — “When you go to Las Vegas, what and where do you play?”  As I’ve written in other posts, I am mostly a video poker player so I always look for my favorite games with the best pay tables.  On The Strip in Las Vegas, you can find me at Planet Hollywood where they have the games I like – Spin Poker™ and Super Times Pay™ plus the multi-game All-Star Poker™ machines – and the pay tables are reasonable for what I’m playing.  For several reasons, ”Planet Ho” just has a “vibe” that appeals to me.  I like the music and I really like the adjustable chairs.  The drink servers are friendly and pretty good about keeping me supplied with bottled water and the occasional glass of white wine.  Plus, (more…)

The top spot on our Las Vegas list goes to Mon Ami Gabi at Paris Las Vegas. Grab a table here for primo people-watching plus a great view of the fountain show at The Bellagio.

Without further ado, here are my top five best spots for championship people-watching in Las Vegas.  Rather than counting backwards like we did with yesterday’s five great spots, today we start with number one – my absolute favorite spot for checking out the Las Vegas crowds.

1.  Mon Ami Gabi restaurant at Paris Las Vegas.  Not only does this center-Strip café and its year-round patio offer terrific food – it’s voted #4 out of 1600+ restaurants on Trip Advisor’s Las Vegas forum – it also provides diners with a birds-eye roost for viewing both Strip traffic and The Bellagio’s famous fountain show.   An excellent list of wines-by-the-glass, a sublime chicken liver mousse pate and loaves of warm, crusty French bread complete the experience. 

2.  Trader Vic’s at Planet Hollywood.  Another great Strip-side patio perch – this one offers live music at night as well as a prime spot for watching the steady stream of shoppers entering the Miracle Mile Shops as well as those hoofing it down Las Vegas Boulevard.    A seriously strong Mai-Tai – a Vic’s specialty – makes the night fly by (almost before you know it.)

3.  Parasol Up/Parasol Down at Wynn Las Vegas.  They’re two, two…two bars in one!  Well, not really since one really is up (stairs) and the other is down (the escalator) but both offer prime people-watching complemented by absolutely stunning décor.  ”Down” offers a great view of Wynn’s Lake of Dreams — don’t miss the singing frog — and lots of May/December couples sipping expensive wines.  (more…)