Las Vegas on the Cheap: Best Five Under-$20 Lunches

So I paid for a meal in Vegas, much to the disbelief of my editor here at EscapeHatch. It happens on occasion. While cruising through the MGM Grand, searching for a place where I could eat a casual lunch and enjoy a beer and a game,  I landed at Emeril’s New Orleans Fish House.

Emeril’s was once a regular hangout for me, back when I coveted chips on felt tables and was adept at counting cards and doing quick addition so long as the numbers didn’t add up to more than twenty-one.

The bar area at Emeril’s is still one of the most comfortable places in Las Vegas to dine on a quality meal while sitting in front of a television. You get a beer, a Po Boy and some time to watch a game on the televisions above the bar.

It seems I’m always on a quest for an inexpensive lunch in Las Vegas, shooting to spend less than $20 for a beer or two and something filling. At Emeril’s New Orleans Fish House, I opted for the gumbo. Pretty tasty stuff, easily the best taste of New Orleans for miles around.

Other notable places I you can get a decent lunch for less that $20

• Oyster Bar at Penazzi at Harrah’s Las Vegas — Chowder, crackers and a beer, all for less than $15. This is easily one of my favorite places on the Strip, especially since it’s right off the casino floor. You sit at a lively bar full of terrific people-watching. What’s not to like about a meal and a show?

• Corned Beef on Rye at Canters at Treasure Island – The generous size of this sandwich is just right to keep you full most of the day. Carnegie deli at the Mirage will give you an even better sandwich, but it will cost about $5 more and you’re likely to overstuff yourself trying to finish the enormous pile of beef..

• Meatloaf and water at Wolfgang Puck’s Spago – Just under $20 – No alcohol here if you want to keep the cost down, but the port wine sauce, garlic mashed potatoes and pancetta-wrapped meatloaf will do wonders for your overall mood. Spago makes a meatloaf so incredible, I used to eat it once a week.

• Pozole and a Margarita at Hussong’s Las Vegas– Simple soup with pork, hominy, cabbage and a spicy broth spiked with tomatillos. Their Margarita is part of life’s formula for never ending happiness.

Zeke Quezada is the Las Vegas Editor for EscapeHatchDallas and Guide to Las Vegas for About.com, and, since he’s a media star, he rarely pays for anything in Vegas. If it’s on the Las Vegas strip, Zeke has swam, slept, eaten, drank or lounged there.