Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

September 20, 2016

Eating For Cheap on the Las Vegas Strip.

     I spent Labor Day Weekend of this year in one of my favorite cities on earth, Las Vegas! I have been there once before, three years ago for a girls' week with my mom. (Trip recaps from 2013 here, here and here.) Traveling with friends in Vegas is a very different experience then traveling there with parents. It's also different to be there at 21 versus underage. So it was definitely a lot of fun to be back!


     Although Vegas is famous for some of the best restaurants in the country, it is also an expensive destination in terms of food and beverage. Prices for dinners at some of the hotels' better restaurants can quickly get up in the hundreds of dollars (!!), and it's not uncommon for lunch prices to be ranging between $20-$40. Despite the fact that just about all food in Vegas is out of this world, the average price points can be very hard for anyone on a budget to fathom for a multi-day vacation. I'm currently on a fairly strict budget as I'm in broadcasting school this year, and I'm also working to pay for school loan-free! Anyone who is also on a student budget, or anyone who might be on a budget in general could have a hard time paying that much for food on vacation.


    But luckily, Vegas does have lots and lots of affordable restaurant options as well! They just take a little digging to find. I am rounding up all of the places that I enjoyed eating at during my Labor Day Weekend in Vegas that didn't break the bank- I would definitely recommend each one of these spots to anyone who might be traveling to Vegas in the future!





*Sambalatte at Monte Carlo: I have to give credit to one of my favorite fashion bloggers, Emily Gemma from The Sweetest Thing, for how I found out about this darling spot! Emily and her husband visited Vegas earlier this summer, and after she instagrammed a picture of a latte from this coffee shop I knew that this was a must-visit for me. Sambalatte has the menu of a typical coffee shop: they serve the typical iced and hot coffee and tea beverages, and since it's Vegas they also have some adult beverages on the menu too. But what sets this coffee shop apart is the incredible colored latte art that they're able to do on some of the foam beverages! I have never seen anything like this, and getting to see the beverages in person was even more amazing. I ordered my standard hot beverage, a chai latte, and not only was it incredibly delicious,  but was also the prettiest drink that I've ever had! My chai latte was $6 and I think most of the Sambalatte latte art beverages range from $5-8. Definitely worth it in my opinion though!







*The Buffet at Aria: This was the one "splurge" meal of the trip. My roommate really wanted to visit a classic Las Vegas buffet while on our trip- which let's be real, if you're going to Vegas then you have to do at least one buffet on the Strip! I spent literally weeks researching all of the buffets at the various Strip hotels, and comparing Trip Advisor reviews, sample menus and prices. I ended up deciding that Buffet at Aria was the one that I wanted us to visit.
      It did not disappoint! We decided to go for lunch instead of dinner to save money (Lunch is $25.99 and dinner is closer to $40), but the lunch buffet is still full of amazing options. They had a huge section of different Asian cuisines which made me very happy, since those are my favorite type of foods! The build-your-own pho bar and fresh naan bread were definitely hits. And the dessert bar... don't even get me started on that! I am sad that I was already quite full from lunch so I didn't get to try a lot of the desserts that I wanted to, but the few that I did sample were incredible.
     The next time that I'm in Vegas for a longer period of time, I might buy the "Buffet of Buffets" pass from Caesar's. It gives you unlimited access to buffets at five or more Strip hotels for as many days as you would like on your trip. This package was a bit expensive for what were were looking for during this trip, but definitely something to think about during future travels since buffets are a hit!




Build your own Pho station, and sampling the different hummus varieties. 



More yummy Asian delicacies from the Buffet.




Just a few of the great desserts!


*In-N-Out: There are plenty of affordable chain restaurants with convenient locations on the Vegas Strip. Everything from fast food such as Burger King and McDonald's, to popular sit-down chains like Outback and PF Chang's. We wanted to eat at places that we might not have access to back here on the East Coast, so although eating at these chains would have definitely been affordable, we chose not to visit any while in Vegas. But one chain restaurant broke our rule: In-N-Out! (Although we don't have this on the East Coast... so technically it didn't break any rules about chains that we have access to at home. ;-) )
     If you're not familiar with In-N-Out, it's a West Coast burger chain with a sort of similar restaurant structure to Five Guys, and it definitely has a large following. My first time eating at In-N-Out was when my mom and I went to Vegas three years ago, and I couldn't wait to eat there again! Their burgers are definitely worth the hype. And best of all, just about everything is under $10, if not under $5!
    There currently isn't an In-N-Out on the Strip, so we ate at the one closest to. It was about a 10 minute drive from our hotel. I read online though that there should be an In-N-Out built right on the Strip before the end of 2016, which is exciting!






*The Food Court at the Grand Canal Shops at The Venetian: Amazingly, every strip hotel in Vegas is large enough to have its own food court. The variety in the types of restaurants that are found in the food courts vary from hotel to hotel though. The best food court experience that we found was at the Venetian/Palazzo, in their Grand Canal Shops mall area. The Food Court had some chain favorites like Johnny Rockets and Chipotle, and also some really creative eateries such as a quick-serve Indian restaurant, and a European-style cafe which served crepes! I enjoyed a dessert crepe for lunch and can honestly say that it compared to the crepes that I ate when I studied abroad last summer. The Grand Canal Shops Food Court is a very affordable option for eating compared to the sit-down restaurants in the shopping area, but it still provides a lot of variety in terms of food choices!





*Hexx Chocolate and Confexxions at Paris (for dessert): Each day when we would walk past the Paris hotel on the strip, I would notice large signs in the windows for Hexx candy store that advertised their gourmet ice cream sandwiches. They take homemade cookies in a variety of flavors and pair them with your choice of any of their homemade ice creams! The pictures on the signs looked incredibly amazing, and I knew I had to experience this treat at least once before leaving Vegas. We finally made it over here on our very last morning in Vegas before heading to the airport and waited for Hexx to open- I was actually the first customer of the day! I had my ice cream sandwich made on two sugar cookies, and with half cinnamon ice cream and half banana chocolate. It was divine. Possibly one of the best desserts I've ever had! So rich though that I could not finish it.... I guess that just means I'll have to go back for another someday!
   



   


      I already can't wait to be back in Vegas again in the future! One of my favorite cities ever... I could definitely write a very long blog post on all of the reasons that I love Vegas as a vacation destination. I'm already planning to write a recap of the Britney Spears concert that I saw while there for the blog soon!



     Have you ever been to Vegas? If so- where were your favorite places to eat for cheap?



     xoxo Miss ALK
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39 comments

  1. Last time I was in Las Vegas, I stayed at the Venetian and there are so many good shops and restaurants there!

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  2. Those lattes are so cool!! I have never seen something like that. And I looove In N' Out!!! I am hoping to make a trip out to Vegas again soon!

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  3. Last time I was in Vegas I was 10, so I can only imagine how much more different of an experience it is to visit Vegas when you're of age. I'm definitely going to bookmark this post - my boyfriend and I have been talking about visiting for months!

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  4. I loved the buffets when I went to Vegas last year! http://www.callmeliz.co.uk/2015/11/las-vegas-2015.html

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  5. Those lattes are so cool!!! I love that they are colourful.

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  6. I haven't been to Vegas in forever! Looks like you had such a fun time!

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  7. Uhm this all looks SO good!! Especially that cookie!! Yum! Pinning for hopefully a future trip!

    Rachel | www.theconfusedmillennial.com

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  8. A trip to Vegas can definitely be expensive! Saving money on food can leave room to shop or see a show or spend in one of the many other fun ways! (:

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  9. That coffee shop looks SO cool! I don't drink coffee, but I would just to get an insta pic :-) I've never been to Vegas! Lots of my friends have gone but I've never taken the plunge.

    http://thealwaysblog.com

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  10. I'm dying to check out the cool coffee art spot! You can also never go wrong with In & Out girl!!

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  11. I love Vegas. My favorite restaurant there is Hakassan but it's definitely pricey. So many restaurants on the cheap are far from cheap so it's a breath of fresh air to read these options.

    LiveLifeWell,
    Allison

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  12. That latte is so cool! Definitely worth the extra few dollars :) And the buffets sound amazing. Currently planning a Vegas trip!

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  13. I've never been to vegas but am definitely saving this for when I go!
    Greta | www.gretahollar.com

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  14. Vegas is on the top of my to-visit list! Thanks for this post! Hopefully when I get the chance to go, I can save some real $$$. Everything looks so yummy, and that latte is gorgeous!

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  15. I love the colored latte art! I might not drink that coffee because it's just so pretty lol! Your pics made me so hungry that I want to pack my bags and go to Vegas. Thanks for the share! xx

    http://www.prettyweirdbombshell.com/get-through-a-busy-day/

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  16. That latte art is amazing!! Almost too pretty to drink!

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  17. Definitely going to bookmark this if I ever go to Vegas!! That latte art has to be one of the coolest things I've ever seen! XO, Nicole // www.empirestyles.com

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  18. All of this food sounds so delicious! Those lattes are absolutely stunning :)

    xoxo, SS

    Southern And Style

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  19. I have recently been to Michael’s Gourmet Room and I was amazed…All in all, this stands out as one of most memorable meals ever. There were 7 of us. We had a variety of drinks etc, etc.. The bill without tip was $900 and I left $200 for the excellent service we received. Again, far from cheap, but not stupid expensive..especially for Vegas. Bottom line…I really can’t wait to go back.

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