Our Hell’s Kitchen Experience in Vegas

Monday was a very full day.   We pulled out of our RV park about 7:00 AM for a short trip to the Phoenix airport.  We had expected work traffic but not so.  We whizzed right to the airport much faster than expected. Lines weren’t long at airport security but since we normally (not always) get a TSA Precheck on our boarding pass don’t usually have to wait in the long lines.  Thank goodness for that.

The 13 hours we spent in Las Vegas were packed full.  You just can’t do the full Strip in that period of time.  In the past we had stayed at the Thousand Trails RV Park and also at the Boulder City Elks.  There had been drive time and we were limited with the number of hours we could leave our dog in the motorhome.  So, this was a lot of hours for us in a one day period.  Believe me though, one day definitely is not enough to check out all the amazing attractions on the Strip.

Upon arrival at the Las Vegas airport we bought tickets on the shuttle to Caesar Palace.  It cost us $9 each for a one way ticket.  If you ever do this, don’t take the shuttle.  Take a taxi.  It’s cheaper for two than the shuttle.  Besides it takes you where you want to go and much faster too.  We know that because we took the taxi back at the end of the day.

Serendipity  - Corned beef hash and eggs plus strawberry waffle

Serendipity's Restaurant is right in front of the casino we were dropped off at.  It was breakfast time and we were hungry.  Check out the size of breakfast we received.  If we had known the dishes were huge, we would have split one order not only for the size but also for the price.  Neither one of us cleaned up our plates and it was a pretty spendy breakfast.

Paul Dahl asked me to put a quarter in a machine and he’d split the winnings with me.  However, there’s a little issue with that.  I’m guessing it’s been a long time since he’s been to Las Vegas.  The machines no longer take quarters.  You have to donate a whole dollar bill.  I did that and lost it all --- Thanks, Paul.  You owe me a buck!

From Caesar’s Palace to Treasure Island to the Venetian and finally the Eiffel Tower/Paris, that’s where we were.  We didn’t get to see much more than that.  There’s an awful lot to see in just those four casinos – an awful lot!  However, we also took a number of breaks and spent very little time at any of the slot machines.  If we do it  again, we’ll start where we left off and work our way a little farther down the Strip. 

What we enjoyed most was our rendezvous with Hell’s Kitchen’s Season 12 winner, Scott Commings.   We watch several restaurant and chef shows.  Hell’s Kitchen with Gordon Ramsey just happens to be one of them.  Gordon has three restaurants (we know of ) in the Las Vegas area with one more to come.  When we walked by Gordon’s Pub and Grill in Caesar Palace, we just knew we had to return later in the day when it was open.  We put it on our schedule and made a point to go back for Happy Hour and appetizers. 

Happy Hour started at 3 PM and we made it back about 4:00 PM.  I can’t say we were ready for dinner.  After all we had a huge late breakfast.  So, we ordered the nachos off of the Happy Hour menu and a couple of 3 oz sliders off of the regular menu.  I’ve got to say both of these appetizers were just as we hoped and actually expected.  They were very good. Scott Commings, came out and visited with us at our table actually for quite a long time.  We thought that the best experience of the whole day.  What fun for sure!

Gordon Ramsey has a steak restaurant at the Paris Casino and a burger Restaurant at Planet Hollywood.  We’d like to visit those too.   Wouldn’t it have been nice to have been born with a silver spoon in your mouth so you could afford eating at places like this more often?  I’m guessing before we make reservations at Gordon Ramsey's Steak, we need to check when their Happy Hour is.  We looked at the posted menu and figured it would be hard to get in and out with dinner for two under $125.  That’s not going to happen anytime soon so we definitely need to know more about appetizers if we plan on visiting.

We’ve visited several Diners, Drive-Ins and Dive locations too.  You can pull an app online for the location of these establishments and visit when you’re in an area where one of the featured restaurants is located.  It’s fun to experience what others have rated as places good top food is served.   Sometimes we agree and sometimes not so much.

How about this for dessert?

Our flight was late leaving Vegas that night.  We should have figured not everything would be perfect but for the most part, it was a perfect day.  However, by the time we crawled into our own bed, we were pretty zonked.  It was fun but another visit is definitely not on our calendar for anytime soon.  After all, we’re back in Phoenix but now it’s time to get ready for our flight to Salt Lake City on Thursday.

‘Tis life on the road.