North End of the Las Vegas Strip: Before and After the Show

If you’re seeing a show in Las Vegas, there is much to be said for enjoying the entirety of your evening in or near your show venue.  The alternative involves spending a big part of your night standing in taxi lines, waiting in valet, or looking for your rideshare pickup. Avoid the rookie mistake of dining in one casino and trying to hoof it to your theater in another: distances are farther than they appear.

To help you plan, we’ve broken Las Vegas venues into four regions: North, South, Downtown, and Off-Strip.  In this dispatch, we’ll head to the north end of the Strip, giving you some tips on where to go, eat, imbibe, live it up, and boogie down before and/or after you attend a show at four major resorts.

The Venetian Resort Las Vegas

The Venetian Resort Las Vegas features a trio of venues, including the opulent, 1,800-seat Venetian Theatre where residency acts like Earth, Wind & Fire and The B-52’s rule the roost; The Palazzo Theater (recently remodeled!), where magician Shin Lim—the only person to win America’s Got Talent twice—trades off with comedians like Whitney Cummings and Lewis Black at Punchlines at the Palazzo.  The smaller Summit Showroom hosts acts like the Robert Cray Band and psychic medium Matt Fraser, while it’s the intimate Art Deco-inspired Voltaire where headliners including Kylie Minogue, Cristina Aguilera, and now Dita von Teese leave audiences begging for more.

If you’re a steak person, do it right at CUT by Wolfgang Puck, the famed chef’s contemporary steakhouse, located in the resort’s Palazzo tower, where American Wagyu beef sashimi and the Alaskan king crab hand roll are the perfect lead-ins for many cuts of American, Australian, and Japanese Wagyu.  Also located on the Palazzo side, luxuriate in the alluring Mott 32, where the scrumptious Chinese cuisine by Chef Alan Ji (Apple wood roasted Peking Duck!  Signature Iberico pluma char siu!  Smoked black cod!) always hits the spot.

Keep the party going (or get it started) with a trip to the exquisite Rosina Cocktail Bar (located off the Palazzo casino floor), and imbibe cocktails both classic and unique, such as the French ’75 and the Coke & Smoke.  More interested in beats per minute than mixology?  Head over to TAO Nightclub in the Grand Canal Shoppes and bask in the glow of hundreds of flickering candles around the enormous Buddha, or catch your breath on the 40-foot outdoor terrace between your dancefloor antics.

Wynn Las Vegas and Encore

There are two gorgeous theaters at Wynn and Encore Las Vegas: the Awakening Theater, home to Awakening, and Encore Theater (the highest-grossing theater on the planet with a capacity under 2,000 people) where you’ll see residency shows by such headliners as Lionel Richie, Diana Ross, David Blaine and Nate Bargatze, and a clever curation of artists like the Pretenders, George Benson, and Herb Alpert.

‘A stone’s throw from both theaters, Allegro—serving Chef Enzo Febbraro’s delectable takes on such classics as bianca pizza, rolled beef carpaccio, and baked lasagna Napoletana—is a great pre-theater dinner spot.  Over on the Encore side, Casa Playa beckons with Chef Sarah Thompson’s lauded coastal Mexican cuisine (Thompson was just nominated as a finalist by the James Beard Foundation for “Best Chef: Southwest”) in eye-catching interiors.

And if you’re still looking for some action after the show, Little Bubble Bar at Delilah is utterly gorgeous and always a scene, and you can nibble on Delilah’s legendary original chicken tenders or pigs in a blanket while sipping on clever concoctions by Master Mixologist Mariena Mercer Boarini, like the Stepford Wife and the Film Noir. For those looking to dance ‘til dawn, the gilded XS Nightclub (one of the country’s top clubs) continues to raise the roof thanks to residencies including The Chainsmokers, Diplo, Marshmello, and Sofi Tukker. 

Fontainebleau Las Vegas

Like a gleaming blue monolith brimming with Miami modernity, Fontainebleau Las Vegas is home to the BleauLive Theater.  The Strip’s newest concert venue, BleauLive hosts touring contemporary artists and heritage acts alike, including Alabama Shakes, Pitbull, Tears for Fears, and The Smashing Pumpkins. Upgrade your seats to one of the boxes (sections 100 and 111), where you’ll be eye-level with the performers on stage.

Dive into the dim sum-y yumminess of Washing Potato for a light and lovely pre-theater dinner featuring the recipes of Chef Richard Chen—including his signature Peking duck salad, the squash and pine nut dumplings, and the Hainanese chicken—in a sexy space-aged setting.  For something more old-school and upscale, Don’s Prime hits all the right notes with fantastic takes on classic steakhouse fare (think jumbo lump crab cake, iceberg wedge, and the 22oz. dry-aged bone-in ribeye).

Not ready to call it a night after the concert?  Check out the vibe at the clever, quirky NoWhere, a multi-room combo laidback speakeasy, game room, lounge, and live music venue, where local chanteuses and crooners like Mikalah Gordon and Blake Lewis sing jazz standards while you cue up your shot at the billiards table.  Those looking to let their hair down should make their way to LIV Las Vegas, where such world-class DJs as Tiësto, David Guetta, and Eric DLux spin, driving crowds of revelers to lose their minds under the Halo.

Resorts World Las Vegas

Across the Strip, the Resorts World Theatre (featuring Las Vegas’s largest and highest performance stage) is the white-hot epicenter of entertainment at Resorts World Las Vegas.  One of Las Vegas’s most thoughtfully configured concert venues (Comfy seats!  Cup holders!  Lots of space between rows!), the theater is home to residency shows by headliners like Janet Jackson, Carrie Underwood, Kevin Hart, and Tina Fey & Amy Poehler.  Avoid the lines and upgrade to a ticket package including access to the exclusive Gold Lounge and use of the VIP entrance.

Enjoy a leisurely stroll through Famous Foods Street Eats, a fun and exciting concept based on Southeast Asian street markets, where you can order from any of the couple-dozen vendors from digital kiosks located throughout and have them delivered to your table.  Some Famous Foods faves include the sheng jian bao (Shanghainese pan-fried pork soup dumplings) at Ah Chun Shandong Dumplings, the roast duck burrito at FUHU Shack, a bowl of clam chowder from Han’s Fish & Chips, and the spicy fried chicken sandwich with sweet potato fries at Streetbird.   For a great steak, head to Carversteak, where Chef Daniel Ontiveros’s skills prove the perfect foil for Master Mixologist Francesco LaFranconi’s potent potables (we’re looking at you, Season’s Essence and Spiced Alibi).  The art-filled dining room is cast in a warm cognac-hued glow, while the terrace—with its outdoor bar and gardens overlooking the Strip—is a joy year-round.  Ignore the Wagyu cheesesteak bites at your own peril and give yourself over to the tantalizing marbling of the 10oz filet of ribeye.

If a post-dinner (or post-show) cigar is your jam, then stop by Eight Cigar Lounge at some point (and maybe multiple times) throughout your evening.  The service is so on-point that whether you’re a first-time toker or an aficionado, you’ll feel welcome and pampered.  Step up to the big leagues with the sultry, spicy notes of wood, walnut and cocoa found in the Sigmund – Chapter One: The Disruptor, the can’t-keep-it-on-the-shelves limited-edition 7½ x 50 double robusto vitola from FREUD Cigar Co.   And keep the party going until the wee hours at Zouk Nightclub to the sounds of world-class DJs including Kaskade and Illenium, as well as hip-hop artists like Nelly and T-Pain.

Check out the rest of this series for venues south of the Strip, Downtown Las Vegas, and Off-Strip.