above photo by smartmeetings.com-JT Long
Angry Crowd
When Vegas went to Phase 2 of reopening in June, I saw my opportunity to return to Sin City. I booked a trip for the 4th of July week.
Just days before the trip would begin, Nevada, Las Vegas in particular, saw daily spikes of new Covid cases; 500 a day on average.
Since this writing, Las Vegas has returned to a modified Phase 1, closing stand alone bars that had no food service.
The flight to Vegas seemed typical on Southwest Airlines, except no one sat in the middle seats, unless it was a family member or a friend. It’s a short 1 hour hop from San Jose, Ca. to Las Vegas, Nv.
The airport was not it’s usual hustle and bustle. The bars and restaurants were closed. It was eerily quiet. Only Peete’s Coffee and Starbucks were open. And, Southwest only offered water and snack service. I wore an N95 mask on flight and never took it off until we got out of the plane. Then, a mad dash to the restrooms to wash my hands and arms. I tossed the N95 into the garbage and put on a comfortable cloth mask.
My 4th of July experience in Las Vegas was a weird one at best. The usual Los Angeles hipster crowd that would flock Vegas on the weekends was not there, mainly due to no night clubs. No real nightlife for the hipsters to thrive in.
Instead, it was a crowd of angry people. The type of folks that were itching to get drunk fast and physically fight people upon eye contact.
That particular group of people refused to follow social distancing and refused to wear masks; challenging restaurant servers and managers, and the general public to fights, having no regard for the safety of other people (who were following all the Covid rules) trying to enjoy their moment in Las Vegas.
It was a Vegas I had never seen before in all my visits here! But that didn’t stop us from our mission to have some fun!
Tom's Urban Restaurant, New York-New York Hotel & Casino
We were greeted with enthusiasm by the hostess and warmly welcomed to dine-in. We kept our masks on until our first round of drinks arrived.
The restaurant had a QR bar code scan on the table to view the menu through your smart phone. If that didn’t work they had a menu available for you to view or the server was more than happy to tell you the choices by his/her own memory.
I had the Prime Rib sandwich with cheese, fries and a rich tangy Auju to dip my sandwich in. A kicked up version of the french dip sandwich.
Cabana and Pool Day...
The only way to enjoy a peaceful day at the pool is to rent a cabana in the adults only section. No kids screaming and crying or running around the pool knocking your drinks over.
For those of you who thought “adults only” meant topless…it’s not you perverts! That would be the European Pools at Mandalay Bay. And, in this angry climate of visitors, probably not the kind of people you would want to see topless!
It was a relaxing day in the dry desert heat of 104 degrees. The kind of day when over-drinking the Jameson whiskey and over-indulgence of food, with the occasional dip in the cool water, was all you needed. And, all served to you by your assigned server exclusive to the cabanas.
One fight broke out in the “general” and overcrowded pool between two angry visitors just a few yards away from our pool. Not sure what the fight was about, nor did we care, it was free sports entertainment for most of us!
Surf and Turf Dining
I can’t have a trip to Vegas without having a meal at Joe’s Seafood, Steak, and Stone Crab Restaurant inside Caesar’s Forum Shops.
Joseph Weiss and his wife Jennie opened Joe’s Stone Crab in Miami, Florida, way back in 1913, on the front porch of their home. Joe’s Stone Crab Restaurants are famous for their Florida Stone Crab and Key Lime pies.
Masks on and tables spaced apart appropriately, we had a very nice dine-in experience as only Joe’s can do!
I had the bone-in rib eye steak rare, stone crab claws and a bowl of king crab legs, lobster tails, and shrimp!
An amazing meal! That’s all I can say!
Off the Strip Eating and Uber Rides
Getting around town was difficult due to hardly any taxis or Uber/Lyft cars available. And the City shut down the Monorail.
Many transport workers have not come back to work. Mainly because the risk of becoming infected with Covid was still high. Some, I suspect, have not come back because they are comfortable making money on unemployment.
Those two things combined spelled long wait times (over 30 minutes) for a cab or Uber. Most times we were stranded and had to walk.
The few times we got lucky and scored an Uber ride, we headed off the strip to the Broken Yolk Cafe, 2 miles south off the strip.
I had the Corned Beef Hash on a bed of crunchy hash browns and scrambled eggs. I also had a bloody mary with Tejin, bacon and a mini waffle.
The perfect breakfast combo meal after a night of excessive whiskey drinking.
Giordano's Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza
Giordano’s at the Grand Bazaar Shops in front of Bally’s Hotel and Casino, is another favorite stop of mine when visiting Vegas.
The deep layer of melted cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, and bell peppers with zesty sauce on top; in concert with that thick, crunchy crust is a mouthful of awesome flavors and texture all at once.
Four Queens Hotel & Casino on Fremont St.
Prime Rib Dinners are a dime a dozen here in Vegas. There is a notable difference in quality of prime rib meat in each restaurant I have visited in Vegas, but I have yet to have a bad one in this town. This rib was served at Magnolia’s Restaurant.
Blueberry Hill Restaurant
This is the Dixie meatloaf and eggs breakfast! This beast had homemade style meatloaf coated with Tennessee breading, topped with a sausage country gravy and two slices of bacon, fried home potatoes, and two eggs anyway you wanted it. And it came with a side of three scratch made buttermilk pancakes.
Another great “off the strip” breakfast diner. The one we went to is about 2 miles East off the strip. It’s a family owned restaurant that’s been in business since 1966! They have four Vegas locations and have been serving Las Vegas since 1987.
The After Breakfast, Breakfast!
When in Vegas, losing track of time is deliberate! I only knew it was 10:30 in the morning when I read the time stamp on my receipt for these drinks.
Morning Dirty Martini’s and Jameson on the rocks was an awesome way to break down that big O’l breakfast I had at Blueberry Hill restaurant.
Noodle Asia
Kevin Wu, known for his Royal Star Seafood Restaurant in Santa Monica, California, created Noodle Asia inside the Venetian Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. It’s a place for a quick meal during the day or late night.
We had dim sum, shrimp pad thai, BBQ pork and crispy fried duck. They also serve a variety of noodle soups that I like, including ramen bowls!
The food is good, quick and a satisfying meal.
So long Vegas!
Another Vegas trip done! It was not the Vegas I have come to know and love. The strip was half open and the other half either closed temporarily or closed forever.
It was difficult to maneuver through the strip given it was the 4th of July week with thousands of people. In my opinion, about 75 percent of the people followed the Covid 19 rules.
We dutifully wore our masks, washed our hands excessively, avoided touching our faces, and kept our distance from people and large groups of people during our visit. As I write this article, it is now day 16, since my visit to Las Vegas, with no symptoms of Covid 19, and a scheduled test coming up soon.
Wow,Las Virus seems like a strange and eerie place to visit during these tough times.#Good Luck Las Vegas!
Super strange!