We SALUTE You on Labor Day

You know who never gets Labor Day off?

Chefs. And cooks. And bar backs. And dishwashers.

Nope, they never get three-day weekends. (Well, maybe they do, but not like the rest of us.)

Especially on Labor Day. And especially in Las Vegas (Nevada, not New Mexico).

Because over 315,000 hungry souls invade the High Mojave this weekend looking for fun, sun and sustenance.

And someone has to be working their tails off to feed them. From our vaunted frog ponds to the lowliest buffet, our restaurants will be humming today.

Labor Day also kicks off  “The Season” in our humble burg — the time of the year when the bargain-hunting day-clubbers leave, and every conventioneer, honeymooner, bevy of bachelorettes:

….and high-roller in da woild descends upon us, looking for whatever their version of “fun” is.

And, as we said, they all have to eat and drink.

And spend a lot of money doing it.

So, on some level, all those restaurant workers are probably not that unhappy about slaving away at the stoves today, because the living they make at it is probably better than it is in almost any other city in America.

Still though, they’re working today and you probably aren’t, so hats off to them: the good folks who feed us (and 42 million visitors a year), so well.

While we’re at it, The List*:

Ferraro’s Italian Restaurant and Wine Bar (Great food, greater than ever, even greater wine list.)

Hachi Japanese Yakitori Izakaya (Just opened – yet another izakaya around Spring Mountain Road – worth a look.)

Mothership Coffee (Get the coffee; use the pastries as a doorstop.)

PublicUs (Coffee and pastries don’t get any better around town.)

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SLS Turns 1 as its Suppers Continue to Shine

When ELV — the man, the myth, the inveterate, insatiable, fastidious fresser — announced (on Facebook) he was about to do a dinner crawl through the SLS Hotel and Casino last month (to see how its eateries have held up after a year in operation), the comments he received both shocked and disappointed him.

“It used to be good, but isn’t anymore.”

“That place is always empty.”

“It’s about to go out of business.”

“You’ll find that most of the restaurants have either closed or have changed hands.”

Yep, that was the tenor of the comments he received….even as his staff was plowing through dish after tasty dish at the hotel….and he was live-tweeting about how extraordinary each mouthful was.

Well, nothing could be further from the truth.

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How GLUTTON Makes a Better Burger

ELV note: In case you missed it, here is chef/owner Bradley Manchester of  Glutton, on Wake Up With the CW last Friday morning, explaining what goes into his superlative burger. For future reference (and for all of you early rising foodies out there), KSNV TV (NBC) Channel 3 in Las Vegas has expanded its chef/restaurants/food morning segments on Fridays.

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