sammy's l.a. pastrami & burgers (and dogs).

Hip, sleek, innovative food trucks are all the rage in L.A. these days, slinging everything from dim sum to Korean tacos to decadent desserts at their faithful following. It sounds like a gourmet roach coach concept, and that sounds like fun to me. Sadly, the trend just doesn't exist (yet) in Vegas. We would love to see an army of shiny, feisty hot dog carts along the Strip, but that's probably not going to happen. That doesn't mean there's no street food in Vegas, it just means our version doesn't come from wheeled carts or other mobile deliciousness.

Sammy's is probably the closest thing we've got. It started out a few years ago as a drive-through hot dog stand near the corner of Flamingo Road and Decatur Boulevard, serving dirty water-style Sabretts topped with pretty much anything you could think of. They're still doing just that, but the menu has morphed to include massive burger and sandwich creations like: the pastrami burger, a quarter pound of beef plus a half-pound of decent pastrami, provolone, mustard and pickles; and the very popular chipotle burger, with a fried egg, bacon, fries on the sandwich, cheese and spicy ketchup. There are still lots of dogs at the original location but a second, slightly larger shop on East Tropicana Avenue specializes in these burgers, gyros, Philly cheesesteaks and other artery-clogging fare. A lot of people stop by just for the fries, garlicky shoestring suckers, and there is a selection of frightening "fry plates" to choose from. If you dare, go for the Three Squares - a pound of fries with a half-pound each of pastrami and grilled ribeye steak, chili, cheddar cheese, grilled onions, bacon, onions and jalapenos, topped with three fried eggs. Or you could just walk into the traffic on Tropicana because that'd be a quicker, less painful way to die.

Unhealthy as it may be, we like this place, and not just because they have a quote from MenuVegas hanging on the wall. The dogs and burgers are solid and the creative toppings usually work out, the whole menu is reasonably priced and the custard shakes are pretty good. It seems like everyone is into foodie nostalgia, which explains the popularity of Sammy's and the TV show crews that have paid the place a visit or are about to.