These are the insider spots locals love to keep to themselves. But the city has so much more to offer: step off the Strip and hit the jackpot with some of the greatest restaurants and bars in town, from a Japanese late-night favourite to seriously good sandwiches straight from Florence. The bestselling Tamago contains deep breath : a beef patty with secret seasoning; an over-easy egg; crispy onion strings; teriyaki sauce and wasabi mayo; all topped with furikake.
The togarashi and garlic-spiked Jazz Fries are smothered in gravy and sweet chilli sauce. He serves them with smoky charred ribeye asado, lightly battered mahi mahi and a few of your other favourites. Flores did a stint at Quintonil in Mexico City where he clearly learned a thing or two about vegetables. His squash-filled tetelas stuffed triangle-shaped corn masa parcels need to be experienced, coming topped with fried eggs, roasted cauliflower, shimeji mushrooms and salsa macha.
Atomic Liquors atomicliquors No offence to fancy cocktails, but sometimes you just need a simple beer and a shot of house spirit in a dark dive bar. Atomic Liquors is that place. Bugsy Siegel, the legendary mobster who opened the Flamingo, was a regular, as was Hunter S.
Thompson, while The Rat Pack apparently used to sip libations on the rooftop. Day drinking never tasted so good. In the kitchen, chef Brian Howard infuses competently crafted dishes with exciting and unexpected flavour combinations. Borrowing boldly from the Asian pantry, he makes it seem perfectly logical to wrap ground duck, duck confit and foie gras with wood ear mushrooms and jicama in black rice crepes, then top with a fresh bean sprout salad, chillies and herbs before finishing with a coconut, kombu and peanut dressing.
Of course you end up staying for a nightcap. A bite-sized striploin carpaccio is perched on a cheese-filled, puffy puri bread, while a Peruvian scallop crudo mingles with tom kha sauce and candied lime. History hangs heavy among the red leather banquettes and wood-panelled walls with Wild West paintings. The restaurant shares an outdoor terrace with the excellent HUDL brewery, smokes its meats on that same space and boasts a stage where Journey recently played unplugged.
