Saturday, March 15, 2025

Vegas Eats March 2025

 Here's a photo dump of some of the food we ate during our March 2025 Vegas trip


Clubhouse sandwich with fries and onion rings from Triple 7 at Main Street Casino. The fries were "meh", so we're glad we got the onion rings. 



Fried rice . . . it was ok . . .


. . . and oxtail stew . . . pretty good, from 


California Noodle House is the Cal's upscale casual dining restaurant. Some of the items are similar to Market Street Cafe, the 24-hour restaurant, but a little more elevated. The portions were pretty big and definitely sharable. 


Corn beef hash breakfast and loco moco (eggs scrambled) for breakfast from Market Street Cafe.




$3 beer and hot dog from the Downtown Grand.

On our Strip day, we had dinner at Pinky's by Vanderpump at the Flamingo. This is her third restaurant in collaboration with Caesar's Entertainment. The other two locations are at Caesar's Palace and Paris. The menu consist of sharable selections and unique cocktails. Some menu items are unique to the location and the decor is beautiful and unique to each location as well.

As of this post, it was just announced that Lisa Vanderpump will be rebanding the Cromwell, a boutique hotel right across from Caesar's Palace. A part of the agreement will include room and casino renovations. I'm excited to see how everything turns out when it's completed in 2026!








Thanks for reading!


More from this trip:

Vegas Trip Diary March 2025

 March is a great time to go to Vegas! We visited the first week of March, and the weather never went above 60 degrees (the air was cool and crisp!) and it wasn't crowded at all!

Since we're frequent visitors to the 9th Island, our trips have gone from "go-go-go" to "slow-slow-slow" so it was definitely a relaxing trip. We stayed the Cal, Hawaii's home away from home, and ventured out to the Strip on one day.

Here's how it unfolded . . . 

Did you know that if you show your boarding pass at the El Cortzel player's club/rewards desk within 24 hours of arrival you can get some freebies? It includes $10 free slot play, $25 match play and a free drink. This perk is available once a year; multiple if you earn 100 tier credits on your prior trip that year.



I put in my free $10 slot play into this Happy Prosperous slot machine and was lucky to hit a bonus! This was a great way to start our trip! 


I started playing video poker on this trip and I had a nice win during this session. Unfortunately I wasn't lucky enough to replicate this. LOL.


Wheel of Fortune remains popular, but there aren't as many machines as before. This was a nice bonus.


We played bingo at the Plaza. I haven't hit bingo yet out of the several times we've played, so on our next trip, I'll still play, but I won't buy as many cards.


There was a two-day Super Bingo Tournament at the Plaza when were there, so we needed to wait until the sessions were over. before we played in the late afternoon. A huge convention hall had tables and tables of bingo players. With your entry, they provide you breakfast and lunch and there are special room rates as well. I think I may do this one day! :-)



Unfortunately, our trip coincided with the week that switched out the conservatory display. One week earlier, we would have experienced the Chinese New Year display; one week later, the Spring display.


It's kinda cool to see them putting everything together.


I'm sure these pictures won't do the actual display justice.


We could still walk around the back portion of the conservatory, so I was able to view this live floral frame. 


It was very windy on the day we visited the Strip.


We visited this really cool art installation called Colors of Mexico, showcasing the culture of Mexico. Located at Fashion Show Mall with FREE admission, it consisted of several rooms with displays, including digital ones. It was really cool. Does anyone know how to add video to Blogger? There is an option to upload media, but it never works. I would love to be able to include videos on this blog to show you how cool it was.












Every time I go to Vegas, I get obsessed with something, whether it be a new machine, a new souvenir or things to do. This time it was Silver Strike slot machines that dispenses collector coins.


This one was from the Plaza. Each machine has several different, limited edition coins you can collect. 


This one is from Four Queens. The machines are quarter machines and you play three credits per pull. I didn't have to play a lot before I got the coins. It says on the coins that they are worth $10. Not sure if I actually tried to redeem them at the cashier's cage they would give me $10? I looked it up on the internet and a $10 Silver Strike coin are 42mm in diameter, has a .999  pure silver core and a heavey gold electroplated outer brass ring. Total silver content is about .65 oz. There's even a Silver Strike Club where you can buy/sell/trade coins, and they hold meet-ups in Vegas!

There was this really cool racing game that I found at New York New York. It's a slot machine and the bonus rounds allows you to race a car, similar to Mario Cart.





It was super fun! I didn't win a lot on the racing rounds. I only bet the minimum and I didn't do very well (as usual) during the races. I think I raced about 4-5 times and I won less than $2 each time. But it was sure fun! I will definitely be back to play this machine.

On our December 2024 trip to Vegas, we stumbled upon a wrestling match at the Container Park. On this trip, we witnessed the 2025 World Sign Spinning Championship on Fremont Street! Yes! Who knew there was such a thing! We only stayed to watch a few contestants, but we were impressed by their skills. Again, I wish I knew how to upload videos to Blogger!






This post is getting pretty long, so I'll do a food post separately. I'll end here with a congratulations Boyd Gaming who is celebrating their 50th anniversary this year. A lot of the staff were wearing "Cheers to 50 Years" shirts (I asked if customers could buy them, but unfortunately we can't), the table game felts had 50th anniversary branding as well as chips and player's club cards. Happy Birthday Boyd!



Thanks for reading!

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Sunday, January 19, 2025

Circa Resort and Casino Review 2024

 Opened in 2020, Circa Resort and Casino is the newest hotel and casino in Downtown Las Vegas. Although all of the properties in Downtown have undergone renovations through the years, Circa was built from the ground up on the block that once housed the Las Vegas Club, Mermaids and Glitter Gulch. Golden Nugget's Rush Tower opened in 2009 and Downtown Grand's Gallery Tower opened in 2020 as well, but these were additions to already established properties. 

Circa is the most Strip-like property with its modern design, technology and luxury amenities. Prices here are higher than any other Downtown property but lower for comparable properties on the Strip. You can still get cheaper room rates on the Strip at the mid-to-lower tier properties on the Strip, but it's definitely cheaper compared with Bellagio, Wynn and Caesar's properties.

Circa is also a 21+ property and you'll need to show your ID at all entrances before stepping onto the property. 



Night time view of Stadium Swim from our room on the 26th floor. Stadium swim comprises six pools on tiered levels, much like a stadium. It includes a 40-foot LCD screen that is on 24/7. The pool is open year-round, but during the winter months, only a couple of pools (heated) are open. We did see a few people lounging during our December trip. By the way, brothers Derek and Greg Stevens owns Circa, D and Golden Gate. If you are staying at those other properties, you have access to Stadium Swims. Guest can also use the facilities for a fee.


Night view of Plaza from our room.


View of Fremont Street canopy, Golden Nugget and the D.


Vegas Vicky used to sit outside one of the structures that was replaced by Circa. I'm glad they saved and installed her inside the casino. Love her.


The Mega Bar is one long bar. The bar outside is pretty long as well. The D also has a pretty long bar. 



Circa Sports is a sport lovers dream. Huge monitors show games over two levels of seating. So impressive. 


Room tour time! We books a king room. Rooms were spacious with floor to ceiling windows. Our room faced South so we had a view of the Stratosphere in the distance. In the picture, you can see a desk and a bench below the television.


We had a couch in the room. We thought it was a pull out bed, but it was not. You could sleep on it though. The middle of the couch sunk in a little, so I think it's time to replace the cushions!



The bathroom had double sinks. The area in between was a little vanity area with a chair tucked below the counter. It was nice to put all your stuff in the middle and keep the sink area clutter free.


There was no tub, but a HUGE walk in shower.


At the entrace (and across the bathroom) was a closet. What I didn't take a picture of what this little shelf right against the closet where you could put your key or other small things when you walk in.


What was cool about the room was the tech. Right by the door, there is a little digital display. If you press the "hello" (I think) button, all the lights in the room turns on. When you hit the "Bye" (I think) button, all the lights turn off. There's also an iPad that controls various lights in the room (like the reading light over the bed) and the curtains (black out or outer curtains or both).

I didn'r take any photos of the dining options, but Circa offers a lot, including a Saginaw's (24-hour deli), Jack Pots (similar to Starbucks), Project BBQ, Barry's Downtown Prime (steak), Victory Burger, Legacy Club (which boasts amazing views), 8 East (Asian)and more! We've eaten at Sagniaw's, Project BBQ and 8 East.

As far as the casino floor, Circa is a two-story casino. I can't think of any other casino that is multi-story. I guess the Cal? But not the same. LOL. I actually played quite a bit here, mostly the Squid Games, Kong and Wizard of Oz slots. They were kind to me. :-)

Would I stay here again? I sure would! Hopefully I get some offers that will allow us to stay again. Until our next trip, a hui hou! 

Want to read more? Check out my 2024 Vegas recap