Let’s bust the myth that you can’t find cheap dining in Las Vegas. I give real-world examples from my recent five-night Vegas stay explaining how I spent almost $0 on dining in various strip restaurants.
It pains me to see ‘influencers’ or general critics and lamentors claiming that Las Vegas is expensive, pointing to some admittedly overpriced examples including $12+ slices of pizza, $20+ minibar water and a $34.99 Idiot Sandwich (no joke) at Gordon Ramsey Burger with Just Fries (RIP Darryl McEwen, there’s no justice with that price, it’s Just Expensive).
Like many other destinations, expensive dining options exist, but just because some expensive dining options exist does not justify the conclusion that ‘Vegas is expensive’ and casino greed is responsible for a decline in tourism. With some effort and preparation, it’s easy to pay almost nothing for food in Las Vegas, especially on the Strip which has a reputation for being expensive.
MyVegas MGM rewards: stack discounts with MGM Rewards Points (comps)
I’ve been ‘playing’ (launching and auto-spinning on alternate devices for the most part, see my recent video) the various free-to-play MyVegas games for several years redeeming dining rewards including $20 off $40, free starter with entrée, and BOGO offers.
Although some rewards were recently removed (I miss Diablo’s Cantina and Lemongrass), many remain, and very low effort of auto-spinning to win on extra mobile phones and a laptop easily has saved me hundreds of dollars per trip.
I recently redeemed these for cheap dining in Las Vegas:
Lala Noodle at Park MGM: free starter with entree. I ordered curry laksa soup with spring rolls.
Best Friend at Park MGM: free starter with entree. I ordered eggplant schnitzel and charred zucchini
Moneyline at Aria: $20 off $40. I ordered a personal Okie Dokie Artichokie pizza with a Caesar salad. Add toppings or a drink to get to $40.
Cafe Gelato and Patisserie at Aria: BOGO gelato
Public House at Luxor: $20 off $40. I ordered a veggie burger with extra toppings (or fillings?) and spinach artichoke dip
TAP at Excalibur: $25 off $50. I got the 3 for 33 combo (starter, entree, drink) and more food to take back to my hotel room
Tom’s Urban or Watch Bar at New York New York: free starter with entree. I ordered the hummus trio with a southwest bowl (veggie salad-type dish)
Other options include BOGO buffets. MyVegas also provides Blackjack match play, comp hotel nights (as I discussed here in a recent article about saving on hotel rooms in Las Vegas), and other rewards.
Learn how to ‘play’ with my MyVegas YouTube video:
Rather than paying a cash rate for the difference after the MyVegas dining discounts, I use MGM Rewards Points (comps) earned from spending on MGM credit cards, including the recently related Iconic credit card I wrote about here.
Using comps + MyVegas rewards also eliminates the tax on food, so just leave a tip with room charge earning 6x Tier Credits and comps or freeplay when linking the MGM Iconic credit card to your room (or just use the card to tip at the restaurant).
During my last Las Vegas stay, I redeemed my MGM Iconic $200 resort credit benefit at the MGM (not MLife, that changed in 2022) Rewards Desk, so the $249 credit card annual fee is effectively $49 in a sense, and that resort credit can be used across many dining visits because the $200 is added to your overall comp balance.
Casino tier matching: extra dining credits
Earn MGM Rewards Gold or Platinum status through credit card spending and perhaps some online and/or in-person play to match to other casino statuses. Personally, I play almost $0 in-person at MGM casinos (and won’t play Borgata Poker anymore because they again raised the rake and the room continues to be poorly managed with player-unfriendly policies) and am able to spend my way to status with in-person grocery store spending and BetMGM Blackjack play funded by MGM credit cards. Read more here.
You can also now also spend your way to status using the new Caesars Rewards Prestige Credit Card (and/or combine spend with play) for a $100 Celebration Dinner at Diamond status (15k). The new credit card also gives another $100 annual dining credit. Read more here. I was finally able to upgrade my older Caesars Rewards credit card through the credit card Comenity website login, and plan to use the $100 dining credit later this year.
During my last stay, I matched status to Virgin All-Access for two $50 dining credits. In the past, I also tier matched at Wynn for a $150 birthday comp and Fontainebleau for $150. In the future, more tier match opportunities may exist.
Use quarterly Hilton credits at Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas
Various American Express credit cards have quarterly Hilton credits that can be used for dining at qualifying Hilton restaurants. Following the demise of using Hilton credits for Hilton gift cards (war on happiness), I used my credits in Vegas although I had many options with MGM (first world problem, too many rewards).
I dined at Zen Kitchen and Peacock Alley inside Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas and the $50 Amex credit was posted soon after the transaction went from pending to posted. Having two Amex Business Platinum cards and two Surpass cards gave me $200 in dining credits. No room reservation is required.
Las Vegas Advisor coupon book (off-strip)
If you lack certain credit cards and/or are in Downtown Las Vegas, consider the Las Vegas Advisor Coupon book for various food coupons (and free play, match play, and other valuable deals) including BOGO menu items, 25% discounts, free alcoholic drinks, comp food with a low amount of machine play, and more.
Stay tuned for future articles in this ‘Las Vegas Doesn’t Have to be Expensive’ series. I plan to
discuss other inexpensive options like cheap dining in Las Vegas, particularly food, drinks, good gambling opportunities, and cheap flights to and from Vegas.
Have you scored a cheap Vegas trip without sacrificing quality? Drop your wins in the
comments or tag @HurdyGurdyTravl on X.
As always, use credit responsibly and gamble intelligently.
Join the TravelZork FB Group -> HERE
Visit: TravelZork Travel
Stay up to date with: ZorkFest
Also: Watch, Like, and Sub on YouTube
Check it out: The Yo-11 Minutes Playlist on YouTube