Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
over a large hammer and sickle in the entryway tile into a dim lounge with decay-
ing walls; rough, hardwood, bloodstained floors; bent bronze candleholders and
chandeliers; and Soviet propaganda. Of course, the ambience stands in contrast to
the impressive menu (and attractive clientele), which boasts more than 100 kinds of
vodka served atop an ice bar, and extensive caviar offerings.
While sitting at the bar, you can get a nice view of the big spenders anteing up
the $250 or so required for bottle service; they're then provided faux mink coats and
giant fur hats to down said bottle in the “Vodka Locker” (a freezer off the side of
the bar; it's here that you'll find the head to that Lenin statue). There's more than a
little irony in watching people pay that much to sip vodka in a veritable Siberia (the
freezer is kept at a steady 8°F/-13°C temp for the, er, comfort of the patrons).
What kind of tippling grounds would the Strip be if it didn't offer at least one
Irish bar?
Nine Fine Irishmen
(in New York-New York;
%
866/815
-
4365 or 702/
740
-
6463; www.ninefineirishmen.com; cover Fri-Sat
$
5 men, ladies free, local
men free; daily 11-2:30am, with live music 9:15pm)
is a two-story Irish pub named
for nine Irish nationalists who fought for Irish independence in 1848 and lost. The
British government sentenced them to death but commuted their sentence to
avoid making them into political martyrs. They were exiled to Tasmania, but only
six went. The other three came to America. None are in any way related to this bar,
but their story inspired its name. And, no doubt, many toasts. If it looks authen-
tic despite being stuck in the middle of a casino, that's because in a way, it is: Its
dark wood decor and deep green furniture were imported from the Old Erin.
Because of its tourist draw, this inner casino hideaway is pricier than most Irish
pubs, but gets appropriately rowdy thanks to the soundtrack of toe-tapping jig
inspiring tunes and, well, because tourists are suggestible and because they're in an
“Irish” bar, they feel free to act like they're in an Irish bar. Service isn't great, but if
you have enough pints and enjoy looking at the servers' exposed bellies and short
kilts, while listening to the live Irish band, you'll stay entertained enough.
For extreme theme overload, there's
Coyote Ugly
(in New York-New York;
%
866/815
-
4365 or 702/740
-
6330; www.coyoteuglysaloon.com; cover
$
10 after
9pm; daily 6pm-4am),
which is a bar based on a movie that was based on a New
York City bar which may or may not be the original Coyote Ugly or the similarly
themed Hogs & Heifers (it's a long-standing and rather esoteric debate, as bar
debates go). Coyote is part of a chain of 15 bars, all of which are known for their
honky-tonk, trash-talking women servers. The walls are studded with bras, license
plates, and American flags—and there are no chairs or barstools so it ain't the
most comfortable place to hang. But who needs comfort when there are hot bar-
maids stomping across the bar and screaming at the mostly male crowd? Those
daring enough to get up on the stage are thanked with a shot of something
brightly colored and overly sweet (like Pucker) poured directly into their mouths.
It's primarily a tourist spot. When locals are looking to be abused and titillated
they're more likely to head to Hogs & Heifers, located downtown.
“There's televisions everywhere,” says an athletic-looking man, practically drool-
ing like Homer Simpson as he walks into
ESPN Zone
5
(in New York-New York;
%
866/815
-
4365 or 702/933
-
3776; www.espnzone.com/lasvegas; Sun-Thurs
11am-midnight, Fri-Sat 11am-1am).
With 150 TV screens surrounded by score-
boards, scrolling neon news tickers, and anything else that's distracting and related
to sports, this is the ultimate sports bar. And even non-sports fans (like myself ) can't
