It’s great that Symon and his smokehouse are returning, and so is Scotch 80, an exceptional steakhouse. Few casino resorts in town have a real BBQ spot, and few of those are standouts, so Mabel’s is clearly the best (I also love the niche BBQ Mexicana at Mandalay Bay).

Las Vegas has long been a culinary giant, but has always been surprisingly lacking in this extremely popular cuisine. A meat specialist, Symon is one of the nation’s top celebrity chefs and his original Mabel’s in Cleveland is one of the best upscale yet authentic barbecue spots in the world. The collection features one of my favorite restaurants in Las Vegas, Mabel’s BBQ by Chef Michael Symon. These include several notable returning eateries that were relatively new before Covid. Mabel's BBQ by celebrity chef Michael Symon is easily the top barbecue spot in all of Las Vegas. One of the most iconic features was the 55 th floor Ghost Bar, a large cocktail lounge cum night club famous for its open-air portion with glass floor looking straight down - way down. The Palms was also a pioneer and early success story the Vegas nightclub scene, and among other innovations, brought the Playboy brand back to Vegas after decades of absence and was the first casino resort in the city to add a recording studio, fitting its celebrity image.

Even among the continuous excess and over the top creativity of La Vegas it pioneered several unique signature wrinkles, including elaborate fantasy theme suites, such as one with a basketball court and full professional locker room (the Hardcourt Suite), one with two bowling alleys and other one-of-a-kind amenities such as a private whiskey room (the Kingpin).

The Palms was developed by George Maloof, then owner of the NBA Sacramento Kings, and it opened to great fanfare as a celebrity favorite with a deep Los Angeles and California connection, attracting A-List pro-athletes and Hollywood stars. What’s next? Well, the latest salvo in the ongoing “What’s New in Vegas?” saga is the rebirth of a golden oldie, the new Palms Casino Resort, opening this month.

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