13 Best Restaurants in South Strip, Las Vegas

Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger are the popular, green-minded chefs who created this cheery, sophisticated outpost of their now-closed Santa Monica restaurant. Service is snappy, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a tastier margarita in town—particularly the blood orange and chili-citrus versions. Starters include three citrusy ceviches and plantain empanadas, and grilled sustainable fish and hormone-free meats, such as short ribs and marinated pork, make healthful, flavorful fillings for tacos and tortillas. The all-you-can-eat weekend brunch, served from 10 to 3, features creative small plates, such as horchata French toast, diablo chicken with a churro waffle, and cajeta churro tots with cinnamon and raspberry sauce.

This pub serves up some of the best comfort food Vegas has to offer, including a great "Hangry" burger and Baja fish tacos. A convenient space between the hotel and convention center, it's lively and casual but can sometimes get loud during peak hours. Citizens, as it's known, also offers a mélange of side dishes and signature cocktails. Try the chocolate stout milkshake or a maple bacon coffee cocktail.

Fried-chicken sandwiches are all the rage now, but this is the OG, having started back in San Diego in 2015. This more recent outpost in The Park, between New York–New York and Park MGM, serves the brand’s nearly irresistible sandwiches, such as the "Coop Deville" (chicken breast with pickled Fresno chiles, lime mayo, and Napa cabbage on brioche), and the "Cali Drip" (pollo asado piled with fries, chipotle-bacon mayo, pickled onions, jalapeños, and melty Oaxacan queso on a crunchy torta roll). Whole fried chickens in half or whole birds, sides including fries and Mexican poutine, and bowls and meals fill out the flock.

This soothingly neutral Italian restaurant will satisfy carb cravings as well as yearnings for dishes that Grandma used to make. Crusty loaves of freshly baked bread, pasta, and dough for the excellent thin-crust, wood-oven pizzas are all made in-house. You can not only taste the love in your lasagna, but also feel the comfort that comes from watching it prepared in the exhibition kitchen, whence seasoned fish, grilled meats, and the specialty pollo alla Parmigiana are also created and plated with fresh ingredients. Tiramisu is a must and best enjoyed from the terrace, where you can watch passersby. Buy a loaf to go in the diminutive bakery, just steps away; other foodie finds are also available.  Il Fornaio is a great place for breakfast and brunch or for pastry takeout from the bakery.

If you’re looking for something a little more sit-down-and-relax than Eataly’s forage-style food hall, consider this mid-priced part of the Italian behemoth. Two towering, gold-tiled pizza ovens turn out Neapolitan-style pies in numerous varieties, while the pasta side offers house-made fresh pasta dishes, such as pappardelle al ragu di funghi, lasagna Emilia, and ravioli di zucca, and others made with dried pasta imported from Gragnano, Italy, such as bucatini cacio e pepe, and linguine alla scoglio. Antipasti and salads also are served. The prix-fixe Taste of Italy menu has three courses.

As casino companies relax their historically strict no-pets policies, canine companions are popping up with increasingly frequency on the Strip. While they're still no-go inside restaurants, they're frequently welcomed by those with patios, including this spot first established in Las Vegas at Town Square. The name's a clue, of course, as is the fact that LD has a special menu for dogs. As for humans, they'll find a varied menu including such starters of spicy tuna poke on crispy sushi rice, or Cajun fries with chipotle-ranch dipping sauce. Entrees include such homey choices as campfire pot roast, or a chicken pot pie, as well as steaks, burgers, sandwiches, and salads. There's a menu for human kids, too, as well as a gluten-sensitive menu; brunch dishes such as mountain berry pancakes and quiche are served on weekends. Suburban locations are in Summerlin and Henderson.

The Jonas Brothers have captured the hearts of a generation of music fans, and Nellie’s has claimed dominion over their stomachs. Named after their great-grandmother and an offshoot of the original in North Carolina, the restaurant serves appropriately Southern riffs-on-classics at lunch and dinner. You can start with a basket of biscuits with cinnamon butter and jam, pimento cheese or collards and artichoke dip, or fried green tomatoes, and proceed to dishes like fried chicken with four-cheese mac and drunken collard greens, a waffle with lobster tail dipped in Nashville hot sauce, meatloaf, or a rib-eye steak. Live music is, as you might expect, a staple.

Las Vegas has had restaurants themed for Motown, ESPN, Star Trek, magic, Hello Kitty, and more over the years, so this zeitgeist-grabbing spot feels inevitable. The energy of the casino floor carries into the neon-bedecked restaurant, where you'll find food and drink inspired by Netflix favorites, such as "Eggs Benedict Bridgerton" (with smoked salmon) "Stranger Wings" (with Buffalo, lemon pepper, or bbq sauce) "Orange is the New Mac" (mac and cheese with hot Cheetos), or drinks like the "Dalgona Rum Buzz" or "The House of Usher." Or indulge in the full Bridgerton Regency Tea, with finger sandwiches, scones, and everything else Lady Whistledown would expect. This is a pop-up that is expected to last into early 2026, but maybe it'll get a second season. It closes from 2 to 5 daily.

The sunlit Primrose perfectly reflects the all-about-nature theme of Park MGM and is a great place to stop for a quick morning coffee or pressed juice, a bountiful breakfast, or brunch or sparkling rosé all day (or at least until 2 pm). Breakfast is fairly traditional, with the likes of seasonal brioche French toast or lobster eggs Benedict, with soups, salads, sandwiches, and burgers later on.

When the Rainforest Cafe moved out of its longtime berth in the MGM Grand, the animatronic animals naturally made the journey with it, just up the Strip near Harmon Avenue. But while you're watching and listening to them there's plenty to eat, with a menu offering an eclectic mix of classic American food like St. Louis-style spareribs, chicken-fried chicken with country gravy, sandwiches, and burgers. International flavors are represented by the likes of fajitas and a spicy Korean stir-fry. And kids can indulge in "Python Pasta" or "Jurassic Chicken Tidbits." Brunch is served on weekends from 10 to 2, and an a afternoon happy hour gives Mom and Dad a break from walking the Strip. 

This fast-casual favorite born in New York City now has seven locations in Las Vegas, and the only thing different about it is that the lines aren't so long. It's a great place to stop for a Shack Burger and fries, and don't forget the shakes and frozen custard. The Strip location has been joined by others around town and at Harry Reid International Airport.

From restaurant-industry veteran and Smashburger founder Tom Ryan, this gastropub bridges a space at New York–New York between the casino and the Brooklyn Bridge that runs along the Strip, delivering great views of the action. The large menu of drinks and beers is matched by an extensive food menu, including burgers, pizzas, and other entrées. It's a good spot to try the salted caramel skillet French toast or crispy chicken and cornbread pancake for breakfast or brunch, and butter-poached lobster and shrimp tacos or Tom's Famous Prime Rib dip for lunch or dinner. The kids' menu has all of the favorites. Tom's also is open late—until till 1 or 2 am on Fridays and Saturdays—making it a handy post-game or after-concert spot.

If the weather's fine, decamp to the Veranda's poolside terrace for breakfast, lunch, or weekend brunch, or stay indoors, where the feeling is airy and light. The Four Seasons is probably the only place you'll find eggs cocotte on the breakfast menu, or you can go luxe with eggs and caviar or more plebian with good ol' bacon and eggs. There's a brunch buffet from 8 to 1 on weekends. For lunch, consider a bluefin tuna Nicoise salad, or mushroom ravioli with cheese fondue.