Where to Eat in Vegas
Overview
Vegas is one of the easiest places to dine alone, since many people travel to Vegas alone for business and vacation, and even people with traveling companions may eat separately because one is gambling and the other is not. Most restaurants (especially in casino hotels and on the Strip) have bars that serve full meals. I often eat at bars when I go out and am perfectly comfortable. However, if you would prefer to sit at a table, you have every right to do so; if the staff tries to steer you toward dining at the bar, be firm about wanting a table. A truly solo-friendly restaurant will ask you what your preference is, instead of making assumptions. Buffets can be useful for the solo diner because there is no awkward wait time between ordering food and having it arrive. There are many buffets in Vegas, as well as food courts and fast-food restaurants when you just want something quick.
Here is a list of solo-friendly dining options, organized by location. It’s not comprehensive, but it’s a good place to start if you’re unfamiliar with dining solo in Las Vegas.
Bellagio
Bellagio Buffet: This is one of the higher-priced buffets on the Strip, as well as one of the best quality buffets. I’ve had dinner and breakfast here, and both were fantastic, but not cheap. I was pleased with the number of healthy options it offered, which is important to me. Breakfast was especially wonderful, with fresh berries, the best oatmeal I’ve ever had, choy sum (stir-fried) and some kind of white bean dish. (Don’t worry, they have the usual suspect breakfast items, too, like omelettes made to order, bacon, french toast, etc.) Customer service was excellent, and because it was a buffet, I was comfortable eating alone. Additional bonus: There is bar seating here as well.
Cafe Bellagio: 24-hour cafe. Nice counter seating as well as plenty of tables for two near windows for solo dining. Good food, good service. The atmosphere is lovely–large, bright and airy with gorgeous views of the Conservatory gardens on one side and the pool area on the other.
Michael Mina: Full menu served at the bar. Likely to meet other solos dining here.
Olives: This Todd English restaurant has a great menu and bar dining. It also has a view of Lake Bellagio.
Sensi: Watch the kitchen action from the bar here.
Fix: Full meals available at a lively bar.
Caesars Palace
Spago: Famous Wolfgang Puck restaurant. Has bartop dining. A table at the patio cafe provides prime real estate for people-watching.
Bradley Ogden: Has both bar menu and full menu available at the bar, just not the tasting menu. Likely to meet other solos dining here.
Cheesecake Factory: Yes, this is a chain. I don’t care. It has bar seating and fabulous food, and that’s what’s important to me when I’m dining alone. Strangely, I have yet to try their cheesecake.
Mesa Grill: A Bobby Flay restaurant with a Southwestern flair. Full menu served at the bar. Likely to meet other solos dining here.
Rao’s: Has many solo-friendly seating options, from a large counter where you can get the full menu to tables overlooking the pool area or the Palace casino. Also open for breakfast.
The Palm: Sit at a table overlooking the mall for people-watching. They offer a great businessman’s lunch special.
Nero’s: Friendly bar seating available here.
Joe’s Prime Steak, Seafood and Crab: Bartop dining available. If this one is anything like the one I visited in Chicago, the customer service as well as the food will be awesome.
Fashion Show Mall
Cafe Ba Ba Reeba: This tapas restaurant has a bar area for dining.
Flamingo
Margaritaville: This place is a blast. There is bar dining, live entertainment, balcony seating overlooking the Strip, and great food. See my full review here.
Hard Rock Hotel
Nobu (off-Strip): Japanese fusion restaurant by famed chef Nobu Matsuhisa. Has a sixteen-seat sushi bar. Gets generally positive reviews for its food and service, though customers acknowledge the restaurant can be quite loud at times and it is pricey.
The Pink Taco (off-Strip): The Pink Taco has a laid-back atmosphere and full bar dining with good (loud) music, bartop VP, and a patio for hanging out. They offer a weekday Happy Hour with some good food and drink deals.
Mr. Lucky’s 24-7 (off-Strip): Very casual 24 hour cafe at the Hard Rock that offers some screaming food deals. Home of the legendary $7.77 Steak and Shrimp special. Has lots of counter seating for the solo diner.
Mandalay Bay
The Burger Bar: Lots of solos dine at the bar, reportedly. Also rumored to have the best burgers in Vegas. (Hmm…sounds like a challenge to me.)
Rumjungle: Fabulous Caribbean menu. Bartop dining available.
Stripsteak: Bartop dining with good food and good service.
MGM Grand
Emeril’s: Counter dining with people-watching view of the walkway. Not to mention great food!
Craftsteak: Bartop dining is available.
Fiamma: Full service menu at the bar. Read my review of Fiamma.
Wolfgang Puck: Casual dining. Read my review of Wolfgang Puck.
Rainforest Cafe: There is bar seating and plenty to keep you occupied while you wait for your food to arrive. Just look around (and listen!) to the exotic animatronic jungle animals. The food is very average and overpriced, but if you’ve never been to one of these cafes before, you might find it amusing. Or just go for a drink to enjoy the atmosphere and eat elsewhere.
L’Atelier: Plenty of seating for solo diners at the counter where you can watch your meal being prepared. Pricey.
Mirage
California Pizza Kitchen: One of my favorite places to eat. They have a bar where you can watch the chefs fixing people’s meals, taking the pizzas out of the wood fired oven, etc. In addition to creative pizzas, they have delicious salads, and the price is reasonable. You can order a half-sized salad here (but even that was enormous!).
Cravings Buffet: The old Mirage buffet was terrible, and apparently, management knew it because they revamped it, complete with an all new contemporary look in chrome and red and now it’s a very good buffet. The price is a little high, but the food has more hits than misses. Some people aren’t crazy about the cafeteria-like seating, but I liked it.
Stack: Full meals are available at the bar. There is plenty of counter and bar seating here.
Orleans
Big Al’s Oyster Bar (off-Strip): Bar dining close to food prep. Plenty of other solos sitting there. Good food, decent prices.
French Market Buffet (off-Strip): Bargain buffet. The food here is way better than the price would suggest. It’s not a gourmet buffet, but it’s got lots of options, well-prepared. I found the waitstaff to be attentive. I was there on Mother’s Day one year, and even though I told them I wasn’t a mother, they gave me a long-stemmed red rose anyway. That really scored brownie points with me.
The Palms
N9ne Steakhouse (off-Strip): Has bar seating and good food.
Palms Place
Simon Restaurant and Lounge (off-Strip): Has counter seating and serves wine by the glass. Overlooks Palms Place pool. Sunday brunch here sounds like a blast. Read this review by my friend JoAnna Haugen of Kaleidoscopic Wandering.
Paris
Mon Ami Gabi: Bartop dining, inside and on terrace; terrace has view of Bellagio Fountain show across the street. Great food. Fine dining. Very popular.
Eiffel Tower: I wouldn’t go here alone on Valentine’s Day, but don’t assume only couples dine here. If you’re comfortable at a table for one, request a window table here, and you’ll have one of the best views in town (including the Bellagio Fountains). They have reasonable portion sizes and attentive service. They do serve wine by the glass.
Ah Sin: This restaurant has an open-air indoor/outdoor location on the Strip, making it a prime location for people-watching.
Le Cafe Ile St. Louis: Another upscale 24-hour cafe with wonderful food. Portion sizes are large and prices are a bit higher. I had very gracious and attentive waitpersons when I ate here and found the atmosphere excellent. There is, however, no counter seating here, so dining during off-hours might be a good idea. I had one of the best NY Strip steaks of my life here.
Planet Hollywood Resort
PF Changs: Bar menu is pretty good here. Read my review of PF Changs.
Spice Market Buffet: I’d recommend this for younger solo diners. The demographic here skewed to twenty-somethings, at least when I was there. Read my full review here.
Rio
Buzio’s Seafood Restaurant (off-Strip): Buzio’s has single seating at an oyster bar overlooking an open kitchen. You can chat with the chefs while they work.
Treasure Island (TI)
Kahunaville: I love this place. They have flair bartenders, so sitting at the bar for dinner is especially fun. They also have music, great food (I recommend the Pina Colada Chicken) and drinks (the South Beach rocks!), and an overall great atmosphere. Customer service is fantastic here. Personal story: During one trip, I got a knife with food still crusted on it. It wasn’t a big deal to me, I just flagged down the waiter and asked for another. He apologized profusely, the manager came over and apologized profusely, and the end result was a free dessert. I couldn’t believe it. I mean, it wasn’t like I found a cockroach in my salad or anything. I was very impressed.
Venetian/Palazzo
Grand Lux Cafe: Bar dining is available. I’ve eaten alone at a table at the one in the Venetian was perfectly comfortable. I cannot say the same about the time I ate at a table alone at the one in the Palazzo. The staff there seemed younger and less experienced with how to deal with solo diners.
Postrio: A Wolfgang Puck restaurant. There is a formal dining room and a more casual cafe that overlooks St. Mark’s Square (good people-watching).
Delmonico Steakhouse: Bartop dining. Fine dining. Wine served by the glass.
Bouchon: Has an oyster bar and serves an excellent breakfast.
Wynn/Encore
Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare: Full menu served at the bar. Likely to meet other solos dining here.
SW Steakhouse: Full menu served at the bar. Likely to meet other solos dining here. Also has an outdoor patio overlooking the Lake of Dreams. Excellent service.
Daniel Boulud: Has a lounge area for dining.
The Wynn Buffet: Here’s a great review from David Matthews’ blog on this buffet, complete with shiny pictures: Wynn Buffet Excels, but is Pricey.
Downtown
Triple 7 Brew Pub, Main Street Station: In addition to good food and microbrews, bar dining is very solo-friendly here. Read my review of Triple 7 Brew Pub.
Main Street Station’s Garden Court Buffet (Downtown): This is the most popular Downtown buffet and highly affordable. If you find yourself on Fremont Street some night, give it a try!
Off Strip
Lotus of Siam (off-Strip on East Sahara): There is a small bar area for solo dining. Best Thai food in Vegas. Lunch buffet for those who like to graze and don’t want to wait for their meal to arrive, but they have a great menu as well. They serve wine by the glass.
Rosemary’s Restaurant (off-Strip on West Sahara): Great neighborhood restaurant and bar that comes highly recommended by many. Well-known for being especially attentive to solo diners. Has plenty of bar seating as well as two top tables by the window.
Places to Avoid:
I consulted some Vegas message boards I frequent for feedback on solo dining experiences.
One person reported having trouble dining alone during peak dim sum hours at Chang’s on Decatur (limited tables for two and large crowds make for a long wait).
Another reported an uncomfortable dining experience at Ellis Island on Koval Lane. Staff made solos feel they had to sit at the bar rather than in the dining room, because otherwise they were taking up table space. That’s just not cool.
Multiple persons report that Red 8 at Wynn has a communal dining table, but that people who eat at it are generally not very communicative. I wouldn’t recommend putting yourself in a situation where you are seated at a table with strangers who won’t talk to you. Been there, done that, it wasn’t fun.
For information on solo-friendly Vegas lodging, shows, and activities, go back to:
Solo-friendly Las Vegas
