The Lady Silvia is the latest piece of evidence in the increasingly strong case being made for Tony Hsieh's vision of the future of Downtown Las Vegas. While Hsieh's mad-scientist plans to use his personal fortune to turn a desolate neighborhood North of the Las Vegas Strip into a thriving, artistic, creative, and cohesive community seemed like madness just a few years ago, the existence and success of businesses like The Lady Silvia, an artsy speakeasy with a sexily bookish vibe, prove that Hsieh's vision is slowly but surely becoming a reality. But I've sung the praises of the online shoe sales magnate enough on this blog... this post is about why The Lady Silvia in specific is such a vibrant and cool place to get your drink on in Sin City.
The Speakeasy style bar has a nondescript entrance that can make it hard to find, but it's worth the initial annoyance of figuring out exactly where the eff it is for the dramatic moment you'll experience once you enter the low lit beauty. The Lady Silvia's stunning interior design is based on Prague's Strahov Monastery Library and decorated with tall bookcases stacked high with leather-bound tomes. Paintings by local artists hang on the black walls, while original murals scrawled with graffiti hang from the ceiling. The black and white checkerboard flooring and the colorful leather and velvet furniture add to the unique atmosphere of the bar. While this might make The Lady Silvia sound a bit pretentious, the vibe of the bar is anything but as the place has a warm atmosphere that's much more inviting than some of the snootier hipster bars in L.A's Silverlake neighborhood.
On most nights, you can find a DJ spinning a smartly selected playlist at a comfortable volume that actually makes it possible to have a conversation with your friends while you drink. Cooler still, The Lady Silvia offers a Jazz Happy Hour from 6:00- 9:00 PM every Friday, with happy hour prices on all drinks and bottle service while local Sax wizard Tommy Thompson blows some killer live tunes.
The bartenders serve up a great selection of simple yet perfectly mixed cocktails, while stocking a great selection of interesting Beers and Wines. The Lady Silvia, as is standard with any classy Las Vegas lounge, does offer bottle service in which you can reserve seats as the staff brings you overpriced bottles of liquor. But like everything else in Dowtown, their version of bottle service is more relaxed and less show-offy than what you'll experience (of if you're as broke as I am, watch rich people experience) in clubs like Tryst or Marquee on The Strip, where the VIP status of the haves is flaunted in the face of the 99%.
Located inside the Soho Lofts, a building filled with condos occupied by
artsy types and Zappos employees (which boasts fantastic views of The Strip from a very cool rooftop pool deck), the bar has become a popular watering
hole in the increasingly busy neighborhood.The Lady Silvia is short walking distance of other newish Downtown hipster bars like Artifice, Bar + Bistro, The Griffin, and The Downtown Cocktail Room, making it a key stop for an epic Downtown bar crawl, and the place always has something interesting up its sleeves during the First Frdiays Art Walk event. The unique approach that the owners of The Lady Silvia took in crafting their bar makes it stand out as a place worth visiting while simultaneously fitting in perfectly with the artsy, progressive, and youthful vibe that the neighborhood has cultivated. It's just the latest example of a business that is helping Downtown come together as a cohesive and exciting community built by and for locals. Plus The Lady Silvia's old-world library vibe makes it the perfect spot to tell ghost stories while you enjoy a classic cocktail and some excellent music.
Unfortunately, I won't be celebrating the 4th of July in Las Vegas this year. It's a shame because if any city knows how to Independence Day right, it's Vegas. Sin City is hardly a place that represents what's best about us as a nation, but it does represent what's massive, loud, stupid, and fun about us... and even though the American Revolution was one of the great victories for democracy and freedom, the 4th is really about Beer, BBQ, and Fireworks. Which is why I submit that Las Vegas is the ultimate destination for celebrating our nation's independence.
If the founding fathers hadn't taken a stand against England, we wouldn't be gambling in giant casinos with features like hugely wasteful water shows in the middle of the desert. We wouldn't be sipping sugary cheap margaritas out of comically large plastic souvenir cups (shaped like guitars that play riffs from Sammy Hagar hits or the Eiffel Tower) while we enjoyed colorful explosions above recreations of landmarks from all over the globe. And that's why Las Vegas is the best place to celebrate all the freedoms we enjoy today... but it comes with its own drawbacks. The town will be filled up more than usual, with a high percentage of bros who think the backward ballcap and no shirt look makes sense on any level. You'll need a guide to steer you to the best ways to enjoy Las Vegas on America Day. And even though I won't be there, let me be your Sindependence Day spirit guide.
Where to Stay: If I've said it once, I've said it a million times (or at least 15 times): when it doubt, head Downtown. The crowds will be fierce on The Strip and room rates will be high. Save some of that much needed booze money by checking into a Downtown Hotel. I've already sung the praises of the awesome Cabana Suites at the El Cortez. If you can't book a room in one of the boutiquey suites, you might be able to find a good deal at the old school Golden Nugget on Fremont Street... which has one of the best pool areas in Downtown (a necessary feature in the hot July sun) and the added bonus of featuring a translucent waterslide that goes through a shark tank. If you're filled with child-like glee and wonder (or just immature) like me, this feature alone is enough to get you to check in there.
Where to Keep Your Cool: Las Vegas is in the middle of the dessert, so visiting there in July means it will be very, very hot. Make sure you book a room at a hotel with a great pool area... and make sure said pool area doesn't become an obnoxious day-club/ pool party/ quasi-orgy during the summer. While resorts like The Hard Rock (who kicked off the trend with their Rehab parties) usually have a smaller and demure pool area, you'll want something more than the also ran pool. You'll want that perfect balance of a great place to take a dip with nice amenities without the loud bumping dubstep beats and that gross outdoor nightclub vibe. As mentioned above, The Golden Nugget probably has the best pool area in Downtown, but if you insist on ignoring my advice and staying on The Strip, Mandalay Bay has a massive playground for soaking in chlorinated water, complete with a wave pool, lazy river, multiple standard pools, and a few hot tubs. If you feel like gambling while you're swimming (because we live in a culture where multi-tasking is everything) The Off-Strip Red Rock Resort has a few chilled out swim up tables and Wynn will let you put down some money like a classy, James Bond style high roller (even though you're dripping wet and don't look as good as Daniel Craig or any of his many Bond girls in a swimsuit).
Where to Drink: I may be pretentious, but I'm not going to recommend that you totally avoid The Strip on America's birthday. I've sung the praises of Public House at The Venetian in a recent post, but let me reiterate this fact: if you love good beer, this is your best bet in Las Vegas. With hundreds of varieties of Craft Brew available and Nevada's first on-staff Cicerone (kind of like a Somelier for beer, also known as the best job in the world), this is the place you have to visit in order to properly raise a glass in honor of our flag. Also their burgers are awesome.
Where to Eat like an American Hero: Nothing says America like scarfing down on some fatty meats, and if you're not going to miss out on grilled food prepared in a backyard because you're in Vegas, there are still plenty of places to enjoy BBQ style cuisine. As mentioned above, Public House has an excellent burger, while Holstein's at The Cosmopolitan, KGB Burger at Harrah's, and Hubert Keller's Burger Bar at Mandalay Bay all offer gourmet twists on the American classic. Hot Dog lovers have some great options, like LA icon Pink's at Planet Hollywood and Brooklyn classic Nathan's at New York New York. And if you're looking for some kitsch mixed with your ribs, enjoy a down home meal at Lynyrd Skynyrd's BBQ and Beer at Excalibur, which serves surprisingly excellent Southern comfort style food (just don't tell Neil Young you ate there).
Where to Watch Explosions: Caesars always fires off an epic round of fireworks every 4th of July. Sometimes the most mainstream and obvious answer is also the correct one. Try and score spots close to the action, because the sidewalk will fill up fast. If you don't want to stand around for hours holding a spot for yourself while you're on vacation (and you don't mind splurging a little bit), book a table at one of The Bellagio's fancy pants restaurants with patio seating on The Strip... I've eaten at Todd English's Olives, and it's a bit pricey but also excellent. You can enjoy the fireworks show from a comfortable seated view, an excellent meal, and perfect views of the resort's famous dancing fountain show. Note: this plan is best implemented if you're in Vegas with that special someone. But there's nothing wrong with sharing a bottle of wine and a fine meal by a beautiful body of water with a few your closest bros.
So get out to Vegas and get blitzed, gorge yourself on unhealthy food, waste time by the pool, and enjoy sparkling explosions in the sky in America's stupidest city... and celebrate the fact that you live in a country where you have the freedom to be as stupid as you wanna be.
Atomic Liquors is the oldest bar in Las Vegas, a Downtown institution that hosted some of the most glamorous stars and seediest gangsters over the course of its six decade history. Opened in 1952, Atomic took its name because visitors could watch test blasts from the roof as they enjoyed a stiff drink. The bar holds the oldest liquor license in town, was issued the first package liquor license in Vegas, and was once occupied by a cafe (according to legend) named after Bugsy Siegel's girlfriend.
Over the course of its long history, The Rat Pack, The Smothers Brothers, Clint Eastwood, Robert DeNiro, Burt Reynolds, and Rod Serling spent time at the bar, rubbing shoulders with the equally flush yet less reputable mobsters who ran the town. Diva Barbra Streisand even had a personal seat reserved only for her visits. A memorable (and ultra-violent) scene from Martin Scorsese's Casinowas filmed in the bar, while Atomic's iconic sign was used in various Vegas-set films, most recently in The Hangover.
Original owners Joe and Stella Sobchik ran the bar for nearly 60 years until they both passed away within a few months of each other, which led to initial shuttering of the classic watering hole. The passing of the couple, who had become an local institution as much as their place of business, could have meant that The Atomic would go the way of so many other iconic Las Vegas legends whose storied histories were decimated in dramatic implosions. But this is one story with a happy ending, as a group of industrious and ambitious investors saw an opportunity in the classic Vegas venue, leasing the place from the Sobchik's son and dreaming up elaborate renovation plans that would modernize the venue while retaining the classic spirit. This week, the new owners accepted the keys to the place and are already planning their extensive updates, with plans to open the new and improved Atomic Liquors in December.
The new owners include Derek Stonebarger, who runs Theater7 in Downtown, a small yet awesome venue that screens indie and art house film and hosts live performances. Stonebarger is a filmmaker himself and a true cinephile who plans to turn the bar into an even more ambitious outlet for artists and the creative community than his theater, which recneetly celebrated its one year anniversary.
Plans for the renovation include a brand new Beer Garden with views of The Fremont Street Experience, larger bathrooms, and an expanded back-bar area. The owners also plan to pay homage to the entertainers who drank at Atomic with The Rat Pack Corner, Smothers Brothers Alley, and Barbra's Seat (a restoration of the original seat reserved for the favorite star of Jewish mothers and gay men everywhere). The interior will be treated like a museum as much as a bar, with decor dedicated to honoring the history of the place and plenty of old school Vegas artwork and photos hanging from the walls. The bar is located next to a large garage which will be used for live performances, and the parking lot will be converted into The Atomic Drive In, where classic and indie films (as well as atomic blast test footage) will be projected during outdoor screenings.
Like the recently rescued from the brink of extinction Clifton's Cafeteria in Los Angeles (which is also going through its own series of ambitious renovations aimed at mixing in modern elements with the restaurant's classic, Disneyland inspiring kitch), what could have amounted to the loss of a old school piece of a city's history will be reborn anew.
Converting the old warhorse into a hip and vibrant bar, beer garden, museum, live venue, and theater is an ambitious undertaking, but it's the exactly what Downtown needs to keep evolving into a mecca for the young and creative. I can't wait to drink at the reborn Atomic for years to come... assuming the end of the world doesn't happen this year. But even if the Mayans were right about 2012, I plan on watching the nukes explode from the rooftop of The Atomic as I sip on their strong drinks, just like the original patrons did almost 60 years ago.
The New York Times recently ran a fairly in-depth piece about the rise of DJ and dance music culture in Las Vegas. Framed by the insanely successful 2012 Electric Daisy Carnival, the article is notable (in addition to its hilarious details about 70 year old billionaire Steve Wynn befriending DeadMau5 and hyping a performance by Afrojack) for declaring that electronic dance music has finally arrived in the mainstream (after some false starts in the 90s), and that Las Vegas is becoming the ground zero of EDM culture. A dance record company exec is even quoted declaring that "Las Vegas is the new Ibiza."
The EDM scene has certainly exploded in Las Vegas in the recent years, with big-name DJ's creating an advantage in drawing thronging crowds to the city's many competing mega-clubs. Nightclubs have emerged as one of the city's most reliable revenue generators over the last decade, as The Hangover and the "what happens here, stays here" PR campaign put the Sin back in the City and restored its reputation as a hard partying mecca of excess (after the 90s were spent trying to market Vegas as a family friendly tourist city. But we all made mistakes in the 90's. It was the decade that The Spin Doctors became famous, after all) helped attract eager groups of young people looking for all night parties.
But before the recent EDM-slosion, the soundtrack at most Vegas nightclubswas generally made up of Hip Hop and Top 40 bangers, with some crowd pleasing 80's and 70's classics thrown in for good measure. Only recently have DJ's themselves become draws at clubs (replacing celebutantes like Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton, who were paid stupefying fees to dumbly wave their hands in clubs during the first half of the 00's), with fans coming in knowing and expecting to hear their original music. Big name DJ's are now attracting Saturday night sized crowds to the clubs on Wednesdays, and Wynn is taking the trend even further, with plans to start an in-resort TV channel based around his nightlife destinations and sell CD's to guests (which seems adorably retro considering that exactly no one buys CD's anymore).
So Las Vegas is developing a new image, as it does every few years, one defined by party starters standing behind laptops and turntables. While (readers of this blog will already know) I'm not into the EDM scene... at all. In fact, I wouldn't want to come want to touch a ten foot pole ten feet away from a club banging out Skrillex music with a twenty foot pole on most nights. Big name DJ's are also headlining douche-filled Dayclub Pool Party parties, with their oiled up STD riddled crowds, which horrifies me even more. I can cut a rug (badly) on the dance floor with I get enough drinks into me, but I'd rather gesticulate wildly to some 90's hip hop classics or a goofy 80's pop song instead of listen to the angry robot beats of a typical Dubstep track. That said, I think the growing popularity of EDM in Las Vegas is a hugely positive sign.
Yes, EDM is becoming more and more popular in mainstream culture, but Skrillex and DeadMau5 are hardly moving the kinds of units that Rihanna or Kanye move these days (even though they barely move any units themselves since the recorded music industry is dead). DJ culture has exploded, but it's still a niche more than a full on cultural movement (the fact the NYTimes is talking about it all is pretty significant, and the fact that AO Scott and David Carr discuss it in their bookish nerd and old guy video show is even more so). The fact that Las Vegas is actively courting a niche, even if it's a rather large and growing niche, is proof that the definition of a "Las Vegas person" is ever evolving. While I spent the better part of the last decade defending Las Vegas to my snobby and pretentious film and art school graduate friends, the fact that a once underground music genre is filling megaclubs on weekdays in the least underground of cities is proof that it could become the preferred vacation destination of that same group within a few years.
If the kids who were made fun of for liking weird electro music have found a home for their subculture in Las Vegas, why can't the town accept more and more niche groups into its ever growing big-tent? Superstar DJ Steve Aoki (who has a montly residency in two of Wynn's megaclubs) describes the evolution of the scene by saying that he "used to consider Las Vegas the most musically ignorant place in the
world. Now it’s completely flipped." If it can happen with EDM, why can't it happen with other niches? I can envision a scenario where Las Vegas becomes an indie rock mecca, with bands moving to town for the lower than Los Angeles rents and the abundance of venues in which to perform. There's already tons of standup shows going on every night in Las Vegas (many of them filled with the hackiest hacks who ever dared to hack), so why couldn't the city evolve into a home for hip alt-comics, sharp improv performers, and inventive sketch artists down the road? Cinevegas never took off, but with Downtown's evolution into a cool urban center, I could see an art-house theater and a yearly film festival popping up near Fremont Street. Las Vegas has already become a foodie mecca with namebrand celebrity chefs opening restaurants across a variety of resorts, but why can't rising chefs make their mark in the city as well?
With the rise of the interwebs, the idea of the mono-culture has been completely decimated as people are able to find the kinds of entertainment that appeals to them specifically. While Las Vegas casinos have worked hard to appeal to all people at all times, the way culture has broken us all down into specific mini-niches makes that far more difficult... and appealing to more specific niches just makes more sense at this point. In his review for Midnight in Paris, Roger Ebert compared Woody Allen's surprise hit to typical Hollywood fare by admitting that he's "wearying of movies that are for everybody-- which means, nobody in particular." Though it seems absurd to expect Las Vegas, a city that is almost a too convenient metaphor for capitalism to evolve into a place that's not just meant for an unspecific everybody, the smartest resort owners of the future will find ways to create experiences that appeal so specific niches... or more accurately, to someone in particular.
In the two years I've been writing this blog, I've recommended more than 20 places in Las Vegas where you can pretty much avoid dealing with the douchebag element that haunts most Las Vegas establishments. I've tried to help you steer clear of the bro-ed out elements that infest The Strip's more commercial attractions, but there comes a time when a man has to face his deepest fears and stare the beast in the face.
And there is nothing in Las Vegas that encompasses the perfect ideal of douchebaggery more fully than the Franklin and Bash VIP Package that the Luxor is currently promoting.
Brought to my attention by VegasChatter, one of my absolute favorite Las Vegas blogs, The Bashover VIP All Inclusive Package sounds like a dark Lovecraftian nightmare made flesh and promoted with an over abundance of hashtagged Tweets.
Full disclosure: I've never seen an episode of Franklin and Bash (and while I am in the market for a new "hate-watching" candidate, it sounds like Aaron Sorkin's new HBO show The Newsroom will finally fill the Aaron Sorkin's ego-sized hole left in my heart by the cancelation of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip 5 years ago), but as far as I can tell it's about a couple of cool guy bro lawyers (broyers? broterrnys?) played by Zach Morris and the dude from Road Trip. Promos for the showfeature scenes where the lawyers make out with clients on the witness stand, admit that they're drunk in front of judges, get attractive women to take their tops off to win caes, and call other lawyers "lame" for raising objections (and doing their jobs like professional adults), essentially acting like entitled pricks who treat the courtroom like a frat house.
Of course there is audience out there for this kind of idiotic garbage. While I fully buy into the idea that we're living through a golden-age of television, an era when visionary, deeply intelligent, and artistic programming like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Louie, Community, Girls, and 30 Rock have brought the auteur theory to the small screen, there are still many hours of programming to fill on many channels. The cream of televisions crop might be creamier than ever, but the medium still allows for a lot of base level stupidity, which explains the prominence of shows starring the Kardashians or Real Housewives and basic cable mediocrities like F and B.
USA and TNT seem to be competing for the most banal show with the most generic title, and while Suits, White Collar, Rizzoli and Isles, Fairly Legal, Necessary Roughness, Royal Pains, Common Law, Covert Affairs, Burn Notice (featuring, in its defense, B-movie God Bruce Campbell), and the Dallas reboot (which is insane to me, by the way... it's 2012 and we're allowing a Dallas remake to happen?), but Franklin and Bash seems to be aiming so low on the totem pole of stupididty, it's almost heroic. Perhaps normally classy co-stars Beau Bridges and Malcolm Macdowell are actually dead and Franklin and Bash is their personal Hell as they are being forced to atone for sins we can only imagine. This may be a pretty existential explanation for the show, but makes more sense than a television executive, even one who works for TNT, green-lighting a show that was almost certainly pitched as "it's like Entourage, but with lawyers."
Anyway, The Bashover VIP All Inclusive Package includes such bro-dacious features as 24 hour all you can eat passes to Luxor's mediocre buffet, two tickets to the violently hated Criss Angel Believe (starring the Franklin or Bash of magicians), two admission passes to the Titanic Exhibit (getting that sinking feeling yet?), day spa passes (I have no snark for this, this sounds lovely, actually), VIP passes to Cathouse (so you can be as misogynistic as the cool lawyers from the show), admission to LAX Nightclub (where you can practice your awesome Pick Up Artist moves you learned by reading The Game), VIP check in privileges, and a "special gift" (even money that it's that Axe Body Spray that makes you smell like chocolate). Notice the package does NOT include admission to Luxor's Savile Row, an exclusive club that attempts to attract an interesting and eclectic clientele (whose the discerning gatekeepers wouldn't let you within a mile of the club if they found out you "got totally hooked up by the VIP Bashup package, bro").
If I was a more dedicated journalist (or had more money in my bank account), I'd sign up for the Bashup Package and dig in deep into the belly of the Chocolate-body spray smelling Beast to give you a hilarious and insightful warts and all account of what it's like to get VIP status with a package that ties in with a basic cable courtroom comedy drama thing. But instead I'll avoid the situation entirely and head over to Dino's for a stiff drink.
That said, if any Vegas hotels end up offering a "Sanctimonious Sorkin" VIP weekend, complete with walking and talking tours of the city where we all pontificate on how all other Vegas VIP packages are not nearly as intelligent as the one we're on, I will totally hate-participate in that.
I have made it no secret to readers of this blog that I'm an avid fan of the classic, seedier version of Las Vegas that's been almost completely replaced by slick corporate casinos that invite you to misbehave... in a controlled environment. The people behind the famous "What Happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" campaign are selling the town as a place where you can have an out of control weekend in which misbehavior will run so rampant you'll have to swear your friends to secrecy for fear that your life will be ruined if people back in the real world found out just how much fun you had. But the key is that it's an image that they're selling... at this point, most Las Vegas experiences are completely controlled, and the idea that the city is a Disneyland for adults is very apt... you are indulging in a constructed fantasy of illicit behavior that helps normals blow off some steam after working an endless succession of 40 hour weeks. But in today's Sin City, there is very little actual Sin.
That wasn't always true. Back in the day, the mob ran Las Vegas and it was a very different town, a true Wild West of loose morals. I'm not actually saying that times were better when getting caught counting cards meant you'd be driven out to the desert and forced to dig your own grave before you took two slugs to the back of the skull from a hulking henchman in a cheap suit named Tony or Joey or Frankie instead of simply being banned from the casino floor, but things were at least a little less slick and homogenized.
Dino's Lounge, which has been serving hard drinks for low prices since 1962, is a throwback to the city's seedier past. It's not a place where you're in any danger of getting whacked (you're more likely to run into a hipster belting out a Neil Diamond or Bruce Springsteen tune on the karaoke machine than a character from The Sopranos), but the walls are soaked with classic Las Vegas history.
Dino's was originally known as Ringside Liquors and owned by notorious Las Vegas mobster Eddie Trascher, where many shady deals were hashed out over glasses of the hard stuff. Trascher sold the bar to Rinaldo Dean Bartolomuci in 1962, when it was rechristened after the new owner's nickname. "Dino" ran the local's favorite bar until he passed away, but it remained in the family through generations. Now Dino's granddaughters run the place, which is more popular than ever even though (or maybe precisely because) it's barely changed in the half century it's been in operation.
There is nothing modern or hip about Dino's, and that's a major part of the appeal. The roomy dive bar still has the same smokey and booze soaked charm that's been its specialty since the 60's, offering visitors the opportunity to shoot some pool, see some great live music, play some beer pong, choose some tunes from their excellent jukebox, and embarrass by warbling some drunken versions of hit songs in front of a forgiving and encouraging crowd during their Karaoke nights on Thursdays- Saturdays.
The greatest thing about Dino's (other than their ridiculously cheap yet ridiculously strong cocktails) is the incredibly eclectic crowd. Locals, old timers, colorful tattooed types, and hipsters looking for something a little different will find a welcome home at Dino's. While some many of the cool, artsy types, both locals and visitors, can often be seen in Dino's, the vibe never approaches pretentious or exclusive.
This is a place for people who are serious about their drinking (their website even has a "drunk of the month" program where the bartenders elect a regular for keeping them in business through their heroic consumption of alcoholic beverages; winners are awarded perks that include their own exclusive parking spot for the month, which is most likely irresponsible but most definitely awesome), which means you'll get to hear a lot of great stories from the characters who frequent the bar along with the great music playing on the jukebox (or awful renditions of great music on the weekend Karaoke nights).
Dino's bills itself as "the last neighborhood bar in Las Vegas," and that's not just hype... like many of the patrons who frequent it, the old school saloon is a grizzled survivor with a tawdry past that refuses to change with the times and can hold its liquor as it tells amazing war stories about the Sin City's seedy good ol' days. Plus, it's a place where you can get onstage and butcher Cracklin' Rosie, if you're feeling brave (or drunk) enough in front of a crowd of people who won't judge you. What's not to love?
If you compiled a list of the most cultured cities in the world, Paris, London, and New York would undoubtedly rank exceedingly high, while Las Vegas, at least historically, probably would have fallen somewhere between Riverside and the woods where the Unabomber's cabin was located. But while it will take the world some time to change their perceptions of the glitzy gambling capital, the reality is that culture has indeed come to Sin City in the form of the breathtakingly beautiful Smith Center for the Performing Arts in Downtown.
The Arts Center boasts a classic art deco design inspired by The Hoover Dam, with a 17 story working bell tower, a 2,050 seat theater with a massive stage and orchestra pit, an intimate 250 seat Cabaret and Jazz venue, and a small theater built for community based performances and events. Original paintings hang on the walls throughout the buildings, and handcrafted sculptures are placed indoors and outdoors throughout the 5 acre campus.
The Center is surrounded by the peaceful and meticulously manicured Symphony Park, featuring more original artwork. Names of prominent backers (including, surprising to exactly no one, Downtown savior Tony Hsieh) are carved into marble in the stunning Grand Lobby that leads into the complex's centerpiece, the jaw-dropping (yes, I'm using many synonyms for the adjective "pretty," but The Smith Center is exceedingly pretty), multi-tiered 2,050 seat Reynolds Theater, where most of the Center's major events are staged.
The programming is diverse and designed to draw in the entire local community, as high culture performances are mixed in with more widely appealing commercial fare. March's extravagant opening night gala was hosted by Neil Patrick Harris
(who must have a closet full of tuxedos after as it seems like he's
emceeing or hosting a different classy event every weekend) and featured
performances by Carole King, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Emmylou
Harris, Mavis Staples, Jennifer Hudson, Joshua Bell, and John Fogerty. The Center is the home for the Las Vegas Philharmonic and Nevada Ballet Theater, as well as The Broadway Las Vegas series (which is bringing an ambitious slate of productions including Wicked, Mary Poppins, Memphis, The Million Dollar Quartet, Catch Me If You Can, La Cage, West Side Story, Billy Elliot, American Idiot, Beauty & The Beast, The Addams Family, Shrek, and Anything Goes to the city in its inaugural season), and is hosting performances from music and showbiz icons like Diana Krall, Pia Zadora, K.D. Lang, Chris Botti, and Steve Martin in the upcoming months.
The Smith Center has filled a void in Las Vegas that once seemed un-fillable, bringing actual honest-to-gosh culture to Sin City, with a diverse programming schedule designed to invite the entire community to celebrate the arts. Beautifully designed and smartly curated, The Smith Center for the Performing Arts is a shining triumph in Downtown's metamorphosis from a post-apocalyptic wasteland filled with empty lots, drug dealers, and low-rent hookers into a vibrant, creative, and thriving community.
No offense to low-rent hookers; they deserve to experience the arts as much as anyone.
The Lady Silvia is the latest piece of evidence in the increasingly strong case being made for Tony Hsieh's vision of the future of Downtown Las Vegas. While Hsieh's mad-scientist plans to use his personal fortune to turn a desolate neighborhood North of the Las Vegas Strip into a thriving, artistic, creative, and cohesive community seemed like madness just a few years ago, the existence and success of businesses like The Lady Silvia, an artsy speakeasy with a sexily bookish vibe, prove that Hsieh's vision is slowly but surely becoming a reality. But I've sung the praises of the online shoe sales magnate enough on this blog... this post is about why The Lady Silvia in specific is such a vibrant and cool place to get your drink on in Sin City.
The Speakeasy style bar has a nondescript entrance that can make it hard to find, but it's worth the initial annoyance of figuring out exactly where the eff it is for the dramatic moment you'll experience once you enter the low lit beauty. The Lady Silvia's stunning interior design is based on Prague's Strahov Monastery Library and decorated with tall bookcases stacked high with leather-bound tomes. Paintings by local artists hang on the black walls, while original murals scrawled with graffiti hang from the ceiling. The black and white checkerboard flooring and the colorful leather and velvet furniture add to the unique atmosphere of the bar. While this might make The Lady Silvia sound a bit pretentious, the vibe of the bar is anything but as the place has a warm atmosphere that's much more inviting than some of the snootier hipster bars in L.A's Silverlake neighborhood.
On most nights, you can find a DJ spinning a smartly selected playlist at a comfortable volume that actually makes it possible to have a conversation with your friends while you drink. Cooler still, The Lady Silvia offers a Jazz Happy Hour from 6:00- 9:00 PM every Friday, with happy hour prices on all drinks and bottle service while local Sax wizard Tommy Thompson blows some killer live tunes.
The bartenders serve up a great selection of simple yet perfectly mixed cocktails, while stocking a great selection of interesting Beers and Wines. The Lady Silvia, as is standard with any classy Las Vegas lounge, does offer bottle service in which you can reserve seats as the staff brings you overpriced bottles of liquor. But like everything else in Dowtown, their version of bottle service is more relaxed and less show-offy than what you'll experience (of if you're as broke as I am, watch rich people experience) in clubs like Tryst or Marquee on The Strip, where the VIP status of the haves is flaunted in the face of the 99%. 
Located inside the Soho Lofts, a building filled with condos occupied by
artsy types and Zappos employees (which boasts fantastic views of The Strip from a very cool rooftop pool deck), the bar has become a popular watering
hole in the increasingly busy neighborhood.The Lady Silvia is short walking distance of other newish Downtown hipster bars like Artifice, Bar + Bistro, The Griffin, and The Downtown Cocktail Room, making it a key stop for an epic Downtown bar crawl, and the place always has something interesting up its sleeves during the First Frdiays Art Walk event. The unique approach that the owners of The Lady Silvia took in crafting their bar makes it stand out as a place worth visiting while simultaneously fitting in perfectly with the artsy, progressive, and youthful vibe that the neighborhood has cultivated. It's just the latest example of a business that is helping Downtown come together as a cohesive and exciting community built by and for locals. Plus The Lady Silvia's old-world library vibe makes it the perfect spot to tell ghost stories while you enjoy a classic cocktail and some excellent music.
