😋 New must-try restaurants in Vegas

💸 Couriers Used in Multi-Million Dollar Scam

A dozen people were arrested and charged with scamming more than $3 million from victims in Las Vegas. Police say the suspects posed as financial institutions online or via text, then sent over couriers to pick up the money. [KLAS]

⚾ What if the A’s Stadium Doesn’t Work Out?

Early work continues on the A’s baseball stadium on the Strip, even as questions linger about financing. So what happens if the project fizzles out? The team reached an agreement with Clark County to supply a $3.7 million security bond to cover decommission costs if construction goes stagnant for 180 days or longer. [Las Vegas Review Journal]

🚝 Las Vegas Monorail Passes Checkup

The Las Vegas Monorail can’t last forever — and we’ve discussed why — but there’s still at least 10 years left for the transportation system. That’s according to the LVCVA following a recent inspection and the promise of a healthy investment towards maintenance. [KSNV]

We’re just five months into 2025 and it’s already been an intriguing year for food in Las Vegas, between the one-month residency of pastaRAMEN, a culinary revamp at the English Hotel, and new grocery stores like H Mart and Aldi. And yeah, we got some brand new restaurants too.

🐟 Amaya

Amaya is everything you want in a Strip restaurant, between a stylish, lounge-like dining room and menu of seafood-heavy Mexican cuisine at the Cosmopolitan. Begin with the bigeye tuna tostada, continue with a Mexican play on Oysters Rockefeller with Oaxacan cheese, and order the Angry Fish (fileted branzino with hot chili oil) as the main entree. There’s even a surf n' turf burrito, loaded with shrimp, steak, beans, and rice.

🥖 Bar Boheme

James Beard’s culinary empire continues to grow in Las Vegas and the chef remains as passionate as ever about his craft. Bar Boheme gives the Arts District a sophisticated, but loose French bistro with a courtyard and large windows that allow natural light to pass through the entire dining room. Whether it’s chicken liver and foie gras terrine, bruleed tarragon over bone marrow, or French-style cold seafood like scallops with light accents of apple and verjus (a grape), the restaurant gives the Arts District — and Las Vegas — something new. Petite Boheme is a neighboring sister cocktail lounge with a focus on light-bodied cocktails.

🍣 Basil Vegan Thai & Sushi

Basil Vegan Thai & Sushi is the latest concept by Mindy Lim, the chef behind Daikon Vegan Sushi. This time around, the menu is expanding to include a wider array of Asian cuisine like curry and pad thai. Lim makes a point to avoid processed “fake meat” substitutes, allowing spices and herbs to bring flavor to tofu and vegetables.

🍪 Cookio Café

As the name suggests, Cookio Café specializes in cookies, cakes, and other desserts, prepared with a Latin touch. Located near Summerlin inside a cozy strip mall space, the restaurant also surprises with savory options, including a Cuban sandwich, grilled and layered with ham, pork, mustard, and cheese.

🔈 Echo Taste & Sound

We were sad to report the closing of Eat, but chef Natalie Young has already moved on with a new concept in the Arts District. Echo Taste & Sound brings back a few familiar dishes (like the shrimp and grits) alongside crispy mushrooms, wagyu beef skewers, and other shareable small plates. The food and cocktails match well with the vinyl selection, spinning in the background on a high-def system that’s never too loud.

🥐 Le Café Central

The husband and wife team behind Le Café du Val in Henderson and Le Café du Sud in Southern Highlands just opened Le Café Central in Chinatown’s Green Leaf Lotus apartment tower. The decor is more industrial, but remains cozy for a comfortable setting to enjoy French pastries, fresh coffee, and sandwiches prepared with imported meats and cheeses.

🫔 Lucia Mexican Grill

The ever-changing Mexican restaurant space at Virgin Hotels is now Lucia, but things are looking up under the direction of Executive Chef Noe Alcala. You get enchiladas and barbacoa tacos, but also surprises like taquitos paired with a mole consommé and Asian touches with miso-glazed salmon and seared and sliced ribeye marinated in lime juice, jalapenos, and soy sauce. The best seats are on the outdoor patio.

🐠 Pisces

Pisces takes over the restaurant formerly known as Lakeside at the Wynn. The dining room was completely renovated in warm blue tones, a fresh seafood display, and dramatic layered ceilings. As always, doors open wide to an outdoor patio on the Lake of Dreams. The prices are high, but so is the wow factor in dishes like thin spaghetti served inside a lobster, sous vide halibut with peppers and olives, and crispy filo cigars stuffed with crab. The restaurant stays on trend with a Dubai chocolate dessert as well.

🌱 Stubborn Seed

The Resorts World restaurant by “Top Chef” champ Jeremy Ford is ambitious — even by Strip fine dining standards — serving inventive global cuisine a la carte or in a choice of two multi-course tasting menus. Stubborn Seed serves dish after dish in creative combinations that always let the basic ingredients shine, whether it’s Australian wagyu with local mushrooms and a French brown butter sauce, a foie gras and truffle tart, or barramundi with leeks, curry, and fennel.

➕ Great food is meant to be shared with good company, so City Cast Las Vegas sat down with foodie influencer Philip Tzeng (LasVegasFill) for suggestions on the best restaurants for group dining. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]