Vegas, Baby!

I just flew in from Vegas, and boy are my arms tired.

But seriously, folks...

Yes, we just returned from our first "real" vacation in 11 years, just me and the Speaker, and our two great friends, Brian and Lindsey, who were kind enough to invite us along to enjoy their timeshare for a week.

I am jotting down a few thoughts (mostly for myself) while they are still fresh in my ever-fading memory. Some (most?) will find it boring, but it's my blog... so there.

Anyway, the four of us headed to Sin City on Valentine's Day under the pretense of celebrating our anniversaries. Brian and Lindsey will be married 25 years in June. The Speaker and I will be married 20 years in September. 

But mostly we just wanted to get the hell away from the snow and cold and have a little fun. And that's exactly what we did.

First and foremost, a big thank you to Grandma for watching our two tax deductions so we could enjoy some time away. There was some separation anxiety for the kiddos since this was by far the longest we'd been away from them, but they survived (and so did Grandma)!

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There are times when the best ideas come by complete accident. And that's the case for the two "themes" of our Las Vegas vacation: 1) Music history  2) Bloody Marys.  

We ended up seeing three shows, all from different musical genres. I can honestly say all were well worth seeing again. We were never disappointed.

On our last night in Vegas, we saw Rock of Ages at the Rio. It was a terrific show and the music was from the '80's, which, of course, is "our" music. We loved it. A great production, a great cast and a terrific band (yes, the music was live. It's Vegas, baby!). I met two of the guitar players at the bar afterwards while I was waiting to get drinks. They were very cool and we chatted for a few minutes.

On Thursday night we saw The Million Dollar Quartet at Harrah's. It featured the music of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins. Once again, it was stellar. An excellent show and amazingly talented vocalists and musicians (yes, the music was live. It's Vegas, baby!). Highly recommended for all ages.

Getting ready to enjoy The Million Dollar Quartet at Harrah's Showroom. Like my hat? I bought it at the Mob Museum, which is another great place to visit in Vegas. You's gotta problem widdat?

But nothing could top the first show we saw on Tuesday night. We had VIP seats (front row!) to see The Rat Pack is Back at the Tuscany Casino.

After a wonderful Italian dinner at the Tuscany Gardens, we entered the intimate Copa Room, which was designed after the original Copa Room at the Sands Casino (long since imploded), complete with a bar and candle lit tables. The room wasn't very big, maybe held 150 people, and it really didn't look like much, but never judge a book by its cover. 

"Frank Sinatra" (played by David DeCosta) kicked things off and our jaws collectively dropped as he sang the first notes of "Luck Be a Lady," the show opener. This guy sounded exactly like Sinatra and I think I can safely say it gave us all chills. To give you a taste, this is DeCosta as "Frank Sinatra" performing in Chicago:

A little background here: the Speaker has always had a crush on Dean Martin. Well, coincidental as it may seem, during the show, "Dean" (played by Drew Anthony, who looks uncannily like Dean Martin) was constantly flirting with my dearly beloved, winking at her, blowing kisses, asking for her phone number, etc (remember, we were in the front row). 

And at one point, "Dean" sat on her lap, put his arm around her and asked for a kiss. As my bride leaned forward to give him a peck on the cheek, he turned his head and planted a big ol' smack right on the lips. It was absolutely hilarious, although my poor wife turned 50 shades of red in embarrassment. 

Moments before the show in the Copa Room at Tuscany Casino. Dean was about to meet his new girlfriend...

Everything about this show was impressive, from the vocalists to the comedy skits between songs (we laughed ourselves to tears) to the tight seven piece orchestra complete with a horn section (yes, the music was live... it's Vegas, baby!)

The cast was very personable after the show; we got to meet each of them, "Frank," "Sammy" and "Dean." "Dean" was even kind enough to pose for a picture with "his girl." He shook my hand and told me I was a very good sport. It was a terrific way to start our Vegas show experience. I loved the other shows, but this one took the cake. There is a reason why it has been in production for 17 consecutive years. What a blast!

My girl with her new squeeze after the show. I'm going to miss her. What a fun night!

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Our Bloody Mary tour of Las Vegas was not really planned. It just happened. The four of us are Bloody Mary aficionados, so the idea naturally evolved that we attempt to hit the top Bloody Mary venues in Vegas, according to Trip Advisor and the Drunken Tomato, a web site dedicated to Bloody Mary enthusiasts (yep, there really is such a thing).

Actually, we started our Bloody Mary excursion before we even left Minnesota. I am not a huge fan of flying (neither is the Speaker or Lindsey) so we decided to have a Bloody Mary at the MSP airport. I am not 100% sure, but I think the restaurant was Vero... (I was a little distracted as I was preparing for my imminent death, because something horrible was surely going to happen at 35,000 feet), so I didn't really pay too much attention to the restaurant we were dining.

Anyway, the Bloody Mary there wasn't fancy, but it was very good with a subtle hint of horseradish (in fact, it convinced me to start adding horseradish to my own Bloody Marys, although horseradish reminds me of not-so-pleasant childhood memories).

Long story short, we sampled six Bloody Marys in six days in Vegas. Other than the Palms Casino, all of them were listed in the "Top 15 Bloody Marys in Las Vegas" by Drunken Tomato:

• Monday: Guy Fieri's at the Linq
• Tuesday: The Palms
• Wednesday: Ram's Head Bar at Sam's Town
• Thursday: Mr. Lucky's at Hard Rock Hotel
• Friday: Hash House-a-Go-Go at Rio
• Saturday: Todd English Pub at the Crystal Shops

Here are my personal top four favorites:

4. The "BLT Bloody Mary"-- Hash House-a-Go-Go at Rio Casino

A delicious house mix which came with bacon, lettuce, tomato and a side of toast with mayo. A nice smoky, bacon blend. Simple but very tasty. 

If Bloody Marys aren't your thing, the breakfast at Hash House-a-Go-Go was also unreal (rated the best in Las Vegas). I had a pancake twice the size of my damn head.

3. The "Breakfast Bloody Mary" -- Mr. Lucky's at Hard Rock Hotel

This darling came with a deviled egg, waffle, sausage and cheese, shrimp along with the usual fixin's and a spicy kick. So did the Bloody Mary. An excellent way to start a Thursday... or any day.

2. The "House Bloody Mary" -- Guy Fieri's Kitchen and Bar at the Linq

This was our first Bloody Mary stop in Vegas. It was Monday morning and we were primed. This drink did not disappoint. It was frickin' loaded and the Bloody Mary bar was set high, pardon the pun. We asked for a beer chaser and the waitress brought us 24 ounce cans of Miller Lite. Like they say, go big or go home. The mix was absolutely delicious. That's Brian in the background and the Bloody Mary was as big as him, as you can see. By the way, the food here was also off the charts.

1. The "All About Mary" -- Todd English Pub at the Crystal Shops (near the Aria)

If you love Bloody Marys and you're in Vegas, this is simply a MUST. Ranked #1 by Drunken Tomato, I was expecting something over-the-top and I got it. This was one of those "Holy sh*t!" moments. It's not cheap, but it's worth it! The mix was a perfect combination of smoke, bacon and horseradish with a little bit of burn. Awesomeness in a 16 ounce glass.

The All About Mary came with shrimp, a corndog, a buffalo chicken wing, a bacon cheeseburger slider, pickled green beans, pickled asparagus, cheese, celery, lemon and lime wedge, stuffed olives, a pickled cucumber, pickled jalapeño pepper, and salami slices. Wow. Just wow.

A frickin' work of art, that's what the All About Mary is. It is truly the best in Las Vegas. Lindsey was impressed.

But we didn't just drink Bloody Marys (believe it or not, we did more!). We saw lots of cool stuff, including the Mob Museum, the Neon Museum, and Hoover Dam. 

We also connected with family in Vegas. My aunt Sandy and uncle Ray winter there, so we got to hang with them for a couple of days. We also met up with my brother Bob and sister-in-law Kathy (Kathy is Brian's sister, so we are one big happy family); they were vacationing and on their way home to Minnesota from Arizona. We all got together on Fremont Street on Monday night. It was time to party!

On Fremont Street where U2 filmed "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" in 1987. It really hasn't changed much since then. What a party atmosphere!

If you've never been there, the Fremont Experience is like the lovechild of a street dance, a circus and a county fair. I thought it was just insane. There was live music everywhere (including Elvis, of course) and we had a great night!

"Elvis" played by Tyler James. This guy was excellent and the show was free. Yet another great night in Vegas!

Taking flight lessons at Banger Brothers Brewery on Fremont Street. Choices, choices, choices.

Beers so big you need two hands to hoist 'em at Willy and Jose's in Sam's Town, overlooking Mystic Falls Park. 

One more thing... one of the highlights of the whole trip (at least for me) was dinner at the world famous Golden Steer. This place opened in 1958 and it has been the go-to place for celebrities ever since. This is where the Rat Pack dined after performing on the strip. This was also Elvis's favorite place in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In fact, Elvis's reserved booth was right next to ours, as was Joe DiMaggio's booth. The steak (and entire meal) was simply unbelievable and the service was beyond excellent.

It's dark, but here we are at Sinatra's favorite steak joint, the Golden Steer.

Next to our booth was the King of Rock and Roll's permanently reserved table. You can see an autographed picture of Elvis in the corner. You could find him in this very booth in the late 1960s/early 1970s after playing his legendary shows at the International Hotel just up the street.

I was playing tourist here -- I snapped this quickly as we left. This is the famous alcove where Frank, Sammy and Dean dined. They could be seen at the Golden Steer almost nightly in the late '50s and early '60s after performing at the Sands.

The Neon Museum is north of the Fremont Experience. The museum is dedicated to collecting and preserving the neon signs of Las Vegas's past. It is a very cool place oozing with history.

The sign from the famous Sahara Casino, pictured here, is the very same one we are standing next to in the above picture. As most of you know, I'm a sucker for history.

Lastly, no visit to Vegas could be complete without a visit to the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay. We couldn't stay very long since it was our last day, but we had to stop for a quick drink.

Cheers!