pho saigon 8.

Chinatown Vegas is a very, very close second to the Strip when it comes to highest concentration of deliciousness in a certain area of the valley. The suburbs of Summerlin and Henderson battle it out, and then you've got some other neighborhoods on the rise or holding steady. You might think, of course, the Strip is a no-brainer. But Chinatown is right there, and if you take value into consideration, you've probably got an upset champion.

Another you-might-not-know is this: Chinatown Vegas is far from just Chinese. Every Asian cuisine is well represented, from Korean to Malaysian to Thai to Filipino to Japanese. For Vietnamese, one of the city's favorite spots is Pho Saigon 8, near Spring Mountain Road and Jones Boulevard. Like most of the incredible restaurants laced up Spring Mountain, this casual eatery is modestly decorated and serves authentic, soul-warming food. Today's utterly satisfying lunch consisted of bi cuon, two shredded pork skin spring rolls (in the soft rice wrappers, not the crispy fried egg roll wrappers), and a big bowl of pho chin bo vien, beef broth noodle soup with razor thin shards of lean beef and some mushy meatballs.

Pho. Onions and cilantro, chili paste and jalapenos, bean sprouts and basil leaves. That spicy, soothing broth. I just read some blogger's comments that writers should stop calling food "amazing," that food is never amazing, not amazing like landing a jet in the Hudson without killing anyone. But ... good pho is amazing. And this is great pho. And this is my biggest problem when trying to work my way through all the "amazing" restaurants of Chinatown: I get stuck going back to the same place and eating the same "amazing" food.

blt.

At the Mirage, BLT does not stand for bacon lettuce tomato. It stands for Bistro Laurent Tourondel, and this restaurant company and its namesake, the acclaimed French chef, opened BLT Burger here last summer. It is one of the newest gourmet burger joints in Vegas, along with the respectable LBS way out west at the Red Rock Resort.

After one lunch at BLT Burger, it is my favorite burger spot in the city, besting Hubert Keller's Burger Bar at Mandalay Bay. I have yet to try the infamous Bradley Ogden bar burger, but right now I have no problem saying the rather simple "BLT" burger here is the best one I've had in Vegas. (Note: The best hamburger I've ever had in my life, hands down, all time, is the Awful Awful at the Little Nugget in downtown Reno. I don't know if that place still exists or still serves this thing, but it wins.)

This great Vegas burger is seven ounces of certified Black Angus beef, double smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato and sauce. It's definitely the meat, a blend of sirloin, short rib, chuck and brisket cuts of the cow, that makes the difference. The taste is rich and satisfying, and yet somehow putting one of these babies down doesn't kill you. It's light. With a Hoegaarden draft, it was a damn near perfect lunch. I wish I hadn't ordered the fried pickles, though, which were soft and pillowy tempura shit when they should be crispy and salty.

But I must go back, because look at these menu choices: an American Wagyu beef burger, a Colorado lamb tandoori burger, a veggie falafel burger, and holy fuck, an Asian banh mi burger made of pork and shrimp with pickled daikon and carrot, cucumber and sriracha mayo. Seriously? Oh, sriracha, how I love you ... long live the rooster sauce. All this plus sliders, shakes, fries and rings, barbecue brisket nachos, salads, s'mores and a macaroon ice cream sandwich. Damn. Is this my new favorite lunch on the Strip?

encore. sushisamba. dos caminos.

I didn't think one Saturday would be enough to properly peruse the dining and drinking options in Encore, Wynn, Palazzo and Venetian, but we actually managed to cover quite a bit of ground.


While browsing menus at Encore, trying to decide where dinner would be taking place, a question struck: why don't these swanky Strip super resorts have cool little joints to stop in for a quick bite? Casino tapas bars. Where are they? The thought had little time to mature before we found what we were looking for: the Lobby Bar & Cafe. Like everything else here, it's red and gold. We took a seat a cozy little table surrounding a giant golden tree person statue. Don't you like how normal that sounds? This nook appears to be a place for coffee or cocktail, but it also serves perfect desserts and small plates. We shared a tapas tree consisting of three of them: tomato and mozzarella skewers, cheese and bacon croquettes, and prosciutto-wrapped, almond-stuffed dates. Also, we ordered a hummus sampler, which was actually a small tasting of hummus, creamed feta and completely non-bitter babaganoush. All bites were delicious and accompanied by mimosas and pear ginger martinis.


That was breakfast. Yes.


Before leaving Encore we stopped for an additional cocktail at the nearby Eastside Lounge, another cool place with a shitty name. This bar has lounge seating overlooking the pool, or outdoor patio seating right on top of the pool. The unseasonably warm weather took us outside. A munchies plate of homemade, greasy-but-good potato chips and spicy little Japanese cracker snacks arrived, and we drank weird drinks: a raspberry-tinted version of a French 75 (vodka and champagne) and a cherry-tinted Tom Collins. Encore, you are a good place to drinky.


Sticking with the theme of out with the old, we completely bypassed Wynn Las Vegas and moved on to Palazzo, wandering through expensive, empty shops. Despite the fact that it opened at a terrible moment in time, despite the fact the restaurants and nightclubs inside of it have already shuttered or been horrifically re-done, I have developed a strong affinity for this place. Not sure why.


For no reason, we decided our next stop would be SushiSamba, a restaurant I previously had no interest in. Think of it as a sort of mini-Tao: a menu with multiple personality disorder, a scattered, urban decor, and generally a place selling experience over food. But after a few of the best Caipirinhas I've tasted in Vegas, I'm ready to give this shit a try. To snack on, we ordered sweet coconut rice, black beans and crispy plaintains, and it was solid. Other dishes swing Asian or Latin, but overall the menu looked interesting enough.


After more walking and store gazing through the busy Grand Canal shops of the Venetian, we decided to come back through Palazzo and have dinner at Dos Caminos (pictured), a New York transplant and product of the same company behind Fiamma in MGM Grand (which is great). After weaving through the dark, hipster lounge, we found ourselves in a truly massive dining room that included a private space where a wedding reception was taking place. Other than that, business was light in the early Saturday evening. Started with the obligatory guacamole and asked for it spicy; it did not disappoint. Feeling the effects of a day spent boozing and noshing, we decided to keep it simple. Tacos.


On the menu, they were called Tacos en Cazuela. Chipotle chile roasted chicken tinga tacos came with corn done Mexico street-style, spicy slaw that was not very spicy and simmered pinto beans with a bacon kick. Tamarind braised beef shortribs tacos came with sweet potato croquettes and a useless zucchini salad. Both dishes were great, particularly the shortribs. The meat was tender and crazy rich. Dos Caminos is officially on the map and ready to challenge Border Grill for the title of Best Mexican Restaurant on the Strip.

los tacos.

Anytime I've ever walked into a little restaurant and I was the whitest guy in there, the food has always been good. Always.

There is no shortage of taco shops along East Charleston Boulevard, and many of them are too scary looking for me to try. But I will return to Los Tacos, a taco shop that clearly used to be something else, but I'm not sure what. What it is now is a friendly little restaurant with delicious food, including a selection of lean meats from which to choose from when piecing together tacos, burritos, tortas, quesadillas or tostadas.

Actually, the tostadas are strictly seafood, either shrimp or a ceviche of oyster, shrimp and octopus. Looked interesting, but I stuck to basics on my first visit: two tacos of carne asada with a side of rice and beans. The large tacos, two soft, fresh, corn tortillas to each of them, start with melted white cheese and whole pinto beans, topped with your meat and two large stripes of smooth avocado and a pulpy pico de gallo. I don't know if tacos in this style are traditional from a certain area or what, but one of them would have been plenty. The steak was tender and juicy, if underseasoned, but the other toppings made up for that. The beans and rice were simple and great, perfectly cooked.

I probably should have got a combo plate, your choice of meat with rice, beans and tortillas. More meat options are carnitas (yes), chorizo, the beef head scrapin's dubbed "cabeza," tongue, al pastor (marinated pork), chicken or a ham and cheese setup. The menu is simple like a great taco shop should be. Sometimes the risk (of eating in a strange health department hazardish joint) brings a great reward.

another try at ti.

It's easy to shit talk a joint on the Strip and say there's no reason to go, especially if it's older and less hip and not overflowing with exciting restaurants or clubs. But when you want a mini-vacation and you don't want to pay $300 a night (or when the economy sucks and every hotel is reducing room rates, and you want to find the best value), you might find yourself doing a weekend in a place just like that. A place you just shit talked.


But even though we had a lot of fun with our two-night stay at Treasure Island, the original assessment still holds true. Most of that fun was spent roaming, drinking, shopping and eating at Encore, Wynn, Palazzo and Venetian, TI's superior neighbors. Although it was beautifully sunny and probably warm enough, the TI pool was closed. A Friday night dinner at Isla was once again reliably good, but outdone by a Saturday night dinner at Palazzo's Dos Caminos Mexican restaurant. The standard king bed hotel room was nice enough (the bed was great), but obviously an old room with a few modern touches (flatscreen TV) and not really a room renovated. Skipped room service, didn't do the spa ... because we were too busy enjoying the amenities of better hotels within a short walking distance.


There is something to be said for TI's steakhouse offering, however. Boringly named The Steak House, we paid it a visit for a late snack Friday night, crashed the bar and received superior service from our barman. He let us sample wine, speedily brought more plus martinis plus a shrimp cocktail, garlic whipped potatoes and a delicious endive salad with slab bacon, and capped it off by advising that the best dessert in the house was actually served at the coffee shop next door. Then he sent somebody to grab one. (It was chocolate cake, not that special. But it's the effort that counts.) Let this be a lesson: When in doubt, head to the hotel steakhouse bar.


Perhaps the best example of TI's stature is its respected but now sleepy sushi restaurant, Social House. Buzzed about for months when it opened in 2006, the place seems to be a shell of its former fast-paced self. (Full disclaimer: I've never eaten there. I'm sure it's great. But it looks like it's been forgotten completely.) Last year you couldn't squeeze your way in to get a drink in the lounge downstairs. That lounge was crickets Friday night, and the staff was slow, too.

pop's.

Weeks back I caught a Food Network show that was illustrating the great rivalry between Pat's and Geno's, warring cheesesteak factions of south Philly. They're across the street from each other. Pat's is pretty much credited with inventing the cheesesteak and stays true to the belief that Cheez Whiz is the way to go. Geno's chops its beef a little differently and touts Provolone or American as more authentic. If you watch the show, or if you know these joints, there really isn't a big difference between them.

I've never been to Philadelphia, but when I do, I plan to eat one at Pat's and then walk across the street and eat one at Geno's. That'll clear up a few things around here.

Above all else, the show made me want to go for the best cheesesteak I can get my hands on in Vegas, and there's really no competition. Pop's can be found on the corner of Decatur Boulevard and Alta Drive. The building (It looks like a fucked up barn and there's nothing in it but the kitchen; all eating is outside) was constructed in the '60s as a WeinerSchnitzel, and it's gone through several owners and versions. It's been a cheesesteak joint for at least 15 years. As Pop's, it's open 24 hours, every day, all year.

The nine-inch rolls are baked by the Amoroso Company in Philadelphia. The meat is thinly sliced, marinated sirloin. The cheeses are from the East Coast or the Midwest, but I don't really care about that because I believe a cheeseteak is steak, peppers and onions, and Kraft fucking Cheez Whiz. Sure, you can get mushrooms on it, or Swiss or Provolone or whatever. Chicken instead of steak. Bacon. Chili. There are options at Pop's. There's a pepperoni pizza cheesesteak. I'm sure it's awesome. I'll stick with mine.

So I was waiting for my sandwich, nibbling on fries, watching the cook chop shit up on the big flat top. It was damn cold outside, and I wasn't a bit worried about perching on a plastic stool and freezing my ass while I devoured this thing. There was a group of five pseudo gangsters behind me, wannabe-thug high school kids smelling of weed, ordering up all kinds of shit and taking some grief from the cooks. Traffic flew by on Decatur. I could have been anywhere else, a real city instead of Vegas. It could have been Philly, I guess. The cheesesteak was better than I remembered.