Sinfully good eats.

Every time I get ready to go to Las Vegas, I get a little weirded out...Vegas is such a strange place, and since I don't like to gamble (it's hard to watch my electric bill payment spent in a matter of minutes), I'm not always sure if people watching will be enough to get me through more than 2 days.

Spent a few days there about a week ago, though, and this trip was different. We met some friends from New York (my East Coast parallel and her husband) there, and I'm fairly sure we could have been trapped in a well-stocked snow cave with them and still been entertained. But besides the fabulous company, we ate like champs. And cause I take pics of my food, I'm now going to take you on a Vegas food tour.

At 1am Saturday night/Sunday morning, the idea of shrimp cocktail is pretty much the best thing ever. And when it's advertised everywhere—for 99 cents, no less—I'm the type that makes it her mission to find said cocktail. So as the husband sat at the blackjack table at the Freemont hotel, I went in search.

For the record, 99 cent shrimp cocktail tastes exactly what it should taste like. It does the trick.

But, as we soon discovered, if you want real shrimp (not the bay stuff) and real, thick, spicy sauce, you have to pay for it. It was still Vegas, though...it was 3.99 for this one. And again, at 1am, it's worth every penny.

The weekend got better. Wait for it.

By Sunday afternoon, we made it to the strip and luckily for my girlfriend and me, our husbands were both ready for some football (shocking!). We headed over to the ESPN Zone at NYNY, where we waited...and waited...and waited. Luckily, this is what they brought us once we got seated. And we know how I feel about nachos.

That night, however, is when things got ridiculous. I know I have a bit of a Food Network obsession, and Bobby Flay is the master. So last time the husband and I were in Vegas and found Bobby's Mesa Grill, we fell in love. And we dragged our friends with us this time.

Incredible food, incredible wine, incredible bill, but omg. Everything I have ever tasted that came out of that kitchen is unbelievable. We somehow ended up getting four vastly different dinners, and then we sort of passed forks around. I got the eggplant and cheese stuffed, cornmeal crusted chile rellano, the husband got the porterhouse, parallel got the crusted seared ahi, and her hubby got pork tenderloin. And we all of course also got random sides...I had the goat cheese and chorizo tamale. Mmmm.

If I had to pick one of them to eat forever, I'd go with the pork. It totally melted in your mouth...fantastic. And a word to the wise...just go with the cheap wine. When the least expensive bottle is 40 bucks, you're not gonna go wrong. It was perfect.

By Monday night, after a day wandering the aquarium, feeding the slots, and laying by the pool, we were ready for food, preferably something to keep the parallel and her hubby on their toes (always fun). They apparently have no Mexican food in Buffalo, so we were excited to introduce them to something outside their comfort zone. Which is what made the Luxor's Tacos and Tequila perfect. Not only did they have a photo booth (hello, you can't go wrong there), but it was about 200 steps from our rooms. Done.

No food pics (it was super dark in there, and the iphone is not so much for low light) but, the drinks...wow. I had the Spicy Lover (bottom left), which was a super spicy concoction of tequila, lime, agave, cilantro, cucumber and tabasco. It was almost as good as the ceviche sampler we tried. And even better, the New Yorkers were happy. Way to go, guys.

By Tuesday morning, time was moving a bit slowly, as seems to happen after more than 48 hours in Vegas. So after our late check-out, we decided what we really wanted was pho. And what I love about Vegas is that whatever you want, you can find. Especially after downloading the Yelp app...awesome. Turns out Little Saigon is only about a mile off the strip.

And at the Pho Kim Long (which translates to Golden Dragon...which I only know cause i have an old friend—who I really need to see, btw—by the same name. Minus the Pho part. Anyway.) we found it. Only in Vegas do you come across a 24 hour Pho restaurant. Fantastic. Terrible service, but the food was good, the portions huge, and the husband got Duck Pho and it had, like, a whole duck's worth of meat for something like 8 bucks. Plus everything, especially the spring rolls, came out within what seemed like seconds after we ordered them. We also decided to be troopers and get boba teas...neither of us could finish them, but the novelty of boba is always fun. I love the taste of thai tea, but the tapioca balls are just...too much. I do enjoy that they get a special wide straw, and these came in to-go cups, but unfortunately, after that much food, there's only so much room this tummy has.

Once we were stuffed with broth and boba balls, and after a stop to the Asian pastry shop next door for Almond cookies for husband, we were on our way home. All that included was a trip to the Bass Pro Shop (omg, have you been there? Go.), a jaunt through Baker—home of the world's largest thermometer (97 degrees that day) and a Dairy Queen—and a whole lot of weird desert sights you don't quite know how to explain. I mean, it always makes me wonder...Who lives out there? Who decides, 'Hey, I want to live in the middle of nowhere...in a trailer...and work at the only gas station/random restaurant/thermometer gift shop for miles and miles'? Who does that? And why?

So not the point. The point is...if you're going to Vegas, eat well. You're there to spend money. You're there to have fun. You're there to be impressed. Do it all, preferably at the same time.

So now, I'll just leave you with my latest Vegas lesson, which is: after you've been drinking all day, do not go to the Sephora. It's nothing but trouble. Trust me on this one.