Bay City Diner

Thursday, June 26, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Mercury

Eat: Recommended Restaurants

Late-night nosh

By James P. Reza

It's natural that in a 24-hour city, there would be places to scarf at almost any hour. Typically, those places have been casino coffee shops (did you know the Aladdin has the city's only 24-hour Starbucks?). But, in recent years, a number of alternatives, both on- and off the Strip, have opened that serve past 9 p.m. Our list covers both ends of the spectrum, so that you'll never be stuck hungry with no place to eat.

Bay City Diner

1 Fremont St.; 385-1906

$; Casual

Casino coffeeshops were once a refuge where bleary-eyed losers found solace at 3 a.m., slowly swallowing a prime rib special or a shrimp cocktail while wearing a thousand-yard stare and fondly recalling a time when they had money. Few iconic coffeeshops remain, so it's appropriate that this one, in Las Vegas' first hotel (the Golden Gate, opened 1906), stands like something from a noir western where politicians and power brokers still lunch 24-hours a day.

Bootlegger Bistro

7700 Las Vegas Blvd. South; 736-4939

$$; Casual/Smart Casual

This 24-hour Vegas institution serves some of the best Southern Italian in town. Typically, this bistro bustles with cooing couples and smartly dressed families, but on the weekends, when '50s-era Strip entertainers sing and dance, it's a Who's Who of Old Vegas. On any swing shift, you'll find the city's best servers and strippers in the lounge, sampling the slightly abbreviated but satisfying menu.

Capozzoli's

3333 Maryland Parkway; 731-5311

$-$$; Casual

Though serving a full menu of standard Southern Italian food, the pizza (as well as the late night entertainment, which sometimes includes post-show Strip entertainers) is the main reason to visit Capozzoli's. Everyone has her favorite pizza, and many consider this to be the place that serves it.

Fatburger

3763 Las Vegas Blvd. South; 736-4733

(and nine other locations)

$; Casual

Many late nights we have found ourselves seeking that post-gin nourishment, and too often found it in a burrito cheaper than a gumball. No more, we say. Instead, roll into the 24-hour drive-thru of one of these ubiquitous fried burger joints and enjoy thick-as-cement real ice cream shakes, fried egg-on-toast sandwiches, or the fattest burger your mama ever made. Hangover, away.

Food Express

2003 S. Decatur Blvd.; 870-1595

$; Casual/Smart Casual

The authenticity of an Asian restaurant is said to be measured by the gringo ratio; here it runs about 1-to-10, where busloads of jonesing Asian tourists often descend on this unassuming joint. The daily menu boards are hand written in Chinese characters, though a printed menu concedes to English. Get past the sometimes surly attitude to get at the good food, served until 2 a.m. every night.

Mediterranean Café/Hookah Lounge

4147 S. Maryland Parkway; 731-6030

$-$$; Casual/Smart Casual

Before the local palate appreciated ethnic dining, Paymon Raouf was serving tasty tabouleh and fab falafel to the college crowd. As the city sophisticated, so went the Cafe, adding a Hookah Lounge and expanding the hours and menu. Dinner crowd is pleasantly hip and articulate, and even when the dining room is closed, an abbreviated menu is available in the lounge, which is open late every night except Sunday.

Noodles

3600 Las Vegas Blvd. South; 693-8131

$$; Smart Casual

A relatively unknown modernist masterpiece tucked away in the Bellagio, Noodles serves delicious Pan-Asian comfort food until 3 a.m. every night. The room, designed by the internationally renowned Tony Chi, is a perfect backdrop for the parade of jet-setting hipsters who frequent the joint. Sit at the counter and slurp your noodles for a more authentic urban experience.

Mr. Lucky's 24/7

4455 Paradise Road

$; Smart Casual/Trendy

A modern reinterpretation of the classic casino coffee shop, Mr. Lucky's might feel contrived if it weren't done so well. Unlike the Hard Rock Cafe across the lot, Mr. Lucky's is by definition a hipper, less pedestrian place, but still very much a casino coffee shop serving breakfast--and everything else--24 hours a day to a constant parade of stars and star gazers.

Vigne Cafe

12261 S. Eastern Ave.; 269-8463

$$; Smart Casual

If upscale off-Strip restaurant menus follow a pattern, it's contemporary American, and Vigne, a recent addition to Green Valley, does it well. Vigne's chef, a veteran of Wolfgang Puck's Postrio, presents items such as duck and mascarpone agnolotti with roasted squash and sage brown butter--an item with a style familiar to anyone who enjoys Rosemary's. A particular attraction of Vigne is that it serves a special late menu until 2 a.m.

The Mercury wants you to EAT! We're compiling a special installment of EAT, one that will be written primarily by you, our readers. Please e-mail the name and phone number of your favorite restaurant, as well as a quotable paragraph or two about why you love the place (food? atmosphere? service?), to jpreza@lvcm.com. Ownership, management, staff and PR, please refrain from sauteeing your own beef. Not all submissions will be used, so get over it.