Top 3: Las Vegas
I am going to try something new here. As I have mentioned before, as an entrepreneur, it is important to take vacations, and completely turn off the e-mail for a few days. It gets the creative juices flowing and prevents burnout. Everyone has different ways that they like to spend their time off. I love to travel because a change of scenery helps me to reset.
Since I have a few trips in the upcoming months, I thought I would try something new. This isn’t going to be an extensive travel guide, but instead, I am documenting the top three things that I did in Vegas. Think of it as the Cliff Notes version. Next time you are there for a vacation or work trip, hopefully, you can check out these things.
Over the last year or so, I have been surprised by how much I have fallen in love with Vegas. What is not to love? Great food, gambling, shopping, always something to see or do! Not to mention from Austin the plane tickets are extremely inexpensive (shout out Frontier Air, which btw wasn’t a bad experience).
For me, Vegas is also a sentimental place. It reminds me of my Grandma because she loved it so much. It makes me happy that it is now a place that my husband and I both enjoy together.
While I do love pretty much love everything about The Strip, on my most recent trip, I made it a point to venture off The Strip and see what else Vegas has to offer.
Below are my top 3:
I am starting with food because well, duh! It is worth a 10-minute car ride off The Strip for this prohibition-themed steakhouse.
The cocktail menu is the shining star. They have a two-page list of classic cocktails listed by time-period with the history of each drink printed next to it. You can step back in time, and enjoy a cocktail from the Gothic Age, Golden Age, Prohibition, Rat Pack Age and the Tiki Boom.
As someone’s whose life motto is: “I would rather eat my calories than drink them,” meaning I am all about ordering another appetizer, rather than wasting calories on another drink. The things are not to be missed if you check out Herbs and Rye.
Herbs and Rye also has a noteworthy happy hour! From 5 – 8 PM and again from midnight to 3 AM, steaks are half-off. They also do have some discounts on drinks and other food items. If I am totally honest, another reason that I wanted to check out this restaurant is the Truffle Mac & Cheese. It kept coming up in many of the reviews that I read. It didn’t disappoint.
Pro tip: make a reservation! It was a busy place.
When I was looking for things to do off of The Strip, this area kept popping up in my searches. If you are looking for a different side of Las Vegas, I would highly recommend checking it out.
I would recommend starting at the corner of E. Charleston Blvd and S. Main Street and then walk South on Main Street. As you are walking down, there are at least 7-8 vintage shops to check out. Some of the ones to note are Rockin Bettie, Vintage Vegas Antiques, and Patina Décor. It is worth noting that Patina Décor had one of the best-curated selection of vintage home goods that I have ever seen. It wasn’t the type of place that you have to dig around because they have done an excellent job of picking the most beautiful and unique pieces.
Another store that can’t be missed is Las Vegas Oddities, which is “The Weirdest Little Store in Las Vegas.” It lives up to its name.
After we shopped till we dropped, we stopped at Makers & Finders for a salted caramel latte.
Unfortunately, since we went on a Monday afternoon, most of the art galleries were closed. However, there is a First Friday event every month, where everything is open. I would have checked it out if I was there for it. More details can be found here.
We stumbled upon this area by accident.
We had some time to kill before a dinner reservation, so we were walking about The Fremont Street Experience, which is in downtown Vegas. As we neared the end of The Experience, we realized that down the street it looked like there was a lot of stuff going on. We decided to keep walking, which is how we ended up in this area.
The area is filled with trendy bars and restaurants, which unfortunately we didn’t get to try. While I can’t recommend anything by personal experiences, Eater has put together a list here. The historic El Cortez Hotel and Casino is also in this area.
We did get to spend some time at the Downtown Container Park, which is a shopping, dining and entertainment center built out of shipping containers.
The next time we go back to Vegas, I want to make it a priority to spend more time in this area.
While I love writing posts on business related things, I am feeling the urge to write more lifestyle & travel content. Let me know if that sounds interesting to you! I am thinking of doing a “Top 3” post from my trip to Mexico City, which was a few months ago. I had such a great time that it might be worthwhile to do the post.
Bonus: The Neon Museum
Okay, I know it is my first post in the series, and I am already cheating by adding a bonus. However, I loved The Neon Museum, and highly recommend checking it out. It is a place where they have preserved the iconic Neon signs from Las Vegas businesses, hotels and casinos that have closed down. If you go, you will take a tour through their Neon Graveyard, and see all of the signs. You will see signs from the 1930s through today. It is a fascinating, different way to learn the history of Vegas.