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Best Coffee and Study Spot: Grouchy John’s Coffee
Don’t you hate going to a café to get a little studying done only to find poor, overpriced latte? Grouchy John’s Coffee is the opposite of that experience. Not only can you smell its delicious coffee a mile away, you’ll immediately feel invited in by the mellow, funky ambiance. The menu at his Henderson gem is affordable, and the store provides student discounts, making this a perfect study spot. – MU
grouchyjohns.com
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Best Coffee and Study Spot: Desert Wind Coffee Roasters
The beans are great, the iced mocha is incredible, and the atmosphere is perfect for studying or working. Unlike coffee joints that turn up the music to push you out faster, Desert Wind welcomes extended conversation, with owner Pam Mason often joining in. – JS
desertwindcoffee.com
Best Bespoke Powdered Tea: Urban Matcha
Matcha lovers, you’ve met your match. Enter Urban Matcha, an adorable Chinatown café that can fulfill even the craziest matcha obsession. The store sources its powder from the finest tea farms in Japan, so every sip bursts on your tongue with that grassy, slightly bitter flavor. It’s an unmatched matcha experience. – LBM
matchalv.com
Most Beautiful Dining Room: La Fontaine
This room is a little Miami art deco, a little Golden Age Hollywood, and a little classic Vegas showgirl, with mauve tones, gilt-edged curves, and flattering lighting that could turn a jet-lagged grandmother into a MGM starlet. It’s the perfect setting for chef Laëtitia Rouabah’s menu of elegant French classics. Every dish is outstanding, and be sure to save room for the strawberry soufflé — airy, theatrical, and absolutely scrumptious, it’s like the room on a plate. – LTR
fontainebleaulasvegas.com
Best Happy Hour With A View: Boom Bang Fine Foods & Cocktails
Elia Aboumrad, a Top Chef alum, and her team did a fine job with Boom Bang Fine Foods & Cocktails — and that goes for their happy hour, too. Once you’ve taken in the panoramic look-around, settle onto a plush stool and indulge in cocktails and food served on an elegant placemat. It’s a small bites menu, so order everything, then turn your gaze to the tranquil view outside. – SB
boombang.restaurant
Best Place for a Scallywag to Drink Up: Stray Pirate
Stray Pirate, a fun tiki bar that leans heavily into a nautical theme, brings you to a realm where midcentury leisure collides with Queen Anne’s Revenge. “Porthole windows” feature video loops of fish swimming underwater, and netting on the ceiling makes you feel like you’re aboard an 18th-century booze cruise. – EDV
straypirate.com
Best Holiday Decorations: Silver Stamp
Silver Stamp is deservedly recognized as one of the best beer bars around, but you have to have visited during Halloween or Christmas to truly understand this honor. The devil is in the details for this downtown hot spot during October, with gruesome, custom-made animatronics, limited-edition merchandise, and delightfully horrible things in every corner. In December, the bar transforms into a cozy wonderland St. Nick would happily drink in. – KDS
instagram.com/silverstamplv
Best Brewery Worth the Trek: North 5th Brewing
For those of you limiting your beerventures to the Arts District, it’s truly been your loss, as quality breweries and draft/bottle hangs have popped up in all corners of the valley. North 5th Brewing sits in an industrial North Las Vegas neighborhood, but inside it’s one of the most welcoming beer spots in town. Owners/siblings Amanda and Matt Payan go the distance in matching your preferences with one or more of their delicious brews, and their charm rubs off on their patrons. – MP
north5thbrewingco.com
Best Spot for Mixed Drinks and Spun Records: SEVEN:45
Tucked away in the Arts District, the microlounge SEVEN:45 — reminiscent of listening bars in Japan — is far removed from a typical night out in Sin City. A password at the door unlocks the audiophile experience, in which every moment is crafted with an appreciation for the art of sound. Open your ears to R&B records in high fidelity and vibe to vinyl DJ sets every Sunday. – BJ
seven45lv.com
Best Summer Treat: Sul & Beans
For a cold wake-up from this nightmare we call summer, hit Sul & Beans for a Korean dessert called bingsoo. This milk-based shaved ice with endless toppings, including fruits, matcha, and condensed milk, will make you forget the heat exists. Bring a friend because a bowl is large enough for two. – MU
sulandbeans.com
Best Modern Classic: Milpa
This comes with a warning: After Milpa you’ll never want to eat Mexican food anywhere else. This three-year-old restaurant in Spring Valley, led by chef DJ Flores, is a casual café with a short but perfected menu that relies on high-quality, sustainable ingredients. (Indeed, the name of the restaurant refers to “an agricultural system practiced by Indigenous communities.”) Enjoy flavor-punching tacos in blue corn tortillas, some of the best birria in town, and a breakfast menu to salivate over. – KDS
instagram.com/milpa_lv
Best Place to Overfill on Hot Pot: U Shabu
U Shabu makes the overwhelming variety of all-you-can-eat a good thing. This restaurant has combined the self-serve style of a traditional Vegas buffet with the specialties of Japanese hot pot. With a seemingly endless display of meats, seafood, vegetables, sauces, and sides, you won’t have to worry about a lack of options. – MU
ushabulv.com
Best Night-Out Tacos: Taqueria Casa Del Sabor
Nothing completes a night of dancing and drinks better than a street taco at 2 in the morning. Once a hidden gem, Taqueria Casa del Sabor has seen tremendous growth in popularity in the last year — prices, too. But that shouldn’t stop you. Casa del Sabor isn’t just a restaurant, it’s an experience, all of the tacos like biting into corn pockets of savory comfort. Try the salsa roja if you like the heat. – MU
casadelsaborlv.com
Best Place for a Noon Wine Tasting: Wineaux
It doesn’t have to be 5 o’clock for you to be an oenophile at UnCommons’ desert chic Wineaux. For us, the early afternoon experience includes bougie bites like hamachi tuna and caviar curated by James Beard Award-winning chef Shawn McClain, paired with vino chosen by master sommelier Nick Hetzel, as the knowledgeable staff regales you with stories of the soil and the grape’s legacy. – LBM
wineauxlv.com
Best Place to Have Your Burrito and Eat BBQ, Too: BBQ Mexicana
Did you know the awesome OG chefs of the classic Border Grill restaurants own a Mexican food-barbecue mashup? You can find BBQ Mexicana at Allegiant Stadium, Mandalay Bay, T-Mobile Arena, and the Las Vegas Ballpark — and now at Sunset and Durango. The smoked-brisket burrito is elite, a marvelous mix of slow-smoked meat, crispy potatoes, cilantro coleslaw, cheese, red rice, and signature barbecue sauce. We’re also addicted to the house-made chile de arbol salsa; spread it on everything for a meal that’s todo bien. – LBM
bbqmexicana.com
Most Food-Sensitive Eats: Power Soul Cafe
Foodies love to rip on people who need special diets, but celiac disease is no joke, and gluten intolerance isn’t a walk in Sunset Park. With most fast-food and franchise spots offering few gluten-free options, restaurateur Dina Mitchell saw a need. Enter Power Soul Cafe, which not only is a dedicated GF eatery, focusing on quick-service foods and smoothies, but its website helps you eliminate other potential troubling ingredients or adhere to other menus, like vegan and keto. With three locations opening within a half year, Power Soul Cafe has already struck a chord. – MP
powersoulcafe.com
Best Place to Take Out-of-Town Guests for Drinks: Legacy Club
Las Vegas has a lot of street-level sparkle, but sometimes it’s best appreciated from 60 stories up, where Circa’s Legacy Club offers a near-360 degree view. Settle into the plush armchairs or by a firepit on the balcony and catch up over a well-crafted cocktail. Or just relax and let the skyline do the talking. The central location offers plenty of post-libation options, too. – LTR
circalasvegas.com/drink-dine/legacy-club
Best Fifth-Generation Sourdough Starter: Yukon Pizza
It took multiple generations of fermentation and cultivation to achieve the craveable sourdough wood-fired pizza you can devour at Yukon Pizza. Owner/pizzaiolo Alex White became a world pizza champion this year using a family dough starter that’s been passed down for 125 years. There isn’t a substandard slice here, but our favorite is the Y-Train, a New York-style cheese with zesty tomato sauce, mozzarella, provolone, and roasted garlic oil. – LBM
yukonpizza.com
NOT the Best: Overbearing street vendor regulations
You’re familiar with the colorful umbrellas adorning carts where you can buy Mexican street corn or chili-flavored fruit. For decades, sidewalk vendors have operated under the radar, often near parks or schools, constantly moving to avoid police while making an honest living. The state law that passed last year aims to bring these vendors out of the shadows by requiring local jurisdictions to regulate sidewalk vending. At first bite, it seems like a sweet opportunity. However, the required startup paperwork in some local jurisdictions can total a whopping $1,250, plus annual fees more than $500. Additionally, vendors can’t operate within 1,500 feet of a resort hotel, 500 feet of a park or school, or 150 feet of another vendor or restaurant (yeah, you read that right). If the goal is to legitimize sidewalk vending, then maybe we shouldn’t make it so hard for these micro-businesses? If the goal is to eliminate competition with small brick-and-mortar food establishments — who do, after all, do have exponentially higher costs — then … it’s working. — CA