When I’m on vacation I have this little rule where I don’t eat at the same restaurant more than once.  I also won’t eat in franchises that are available to me at home unless I’m desperate and have no other choice.

Last week while in Las Vegas I had the pleasure of having lunch one day at this cute little restaurant in front of Caesars Palace called Serendipity 3.

We didn’t want to hit the typical hotel buffets but we also wanted something a little step up from fast food so when we read the menu with it’s sandwiches and pastas we thought this was perfect. We both ordered massive sandwiches that came with sides like sweet potato fries and a yummy creamy coleslaw.  Our lunch was fantastic.  But it was the food being delivered to the other tables that sealed our fate in coming back again.  Which we did.  The next day.

First off I decided to try the cotton candy martini.  Offered in apple, pear and peach I decided on the peach.  A maraschino cherry is placed in the bottom of a martini glass and topped with a handful of pink cotton candy.  The alcohol, a mixture of bourbon, Southern Comfort, peach schnapps, lemon and ginger is shaken in a martini shaker then poured over the cotton candy, melting it into the drink.

Of course it was just my luck that it was buy-one-get-one for $1.  This is the apple version with vodka, sour apple schnapps and a hint of sour.

Since it was noon it was necessary to follow those up with some food so we ordered and split the foot long hot dog we had seen the day before and those fantastic seasoned waffle fries.  The hot dog, which I swear was 2 feet, came with a condiment plate of onions, sauerkraut, relish and Dijon mustard.

Next came dessert.  Serendipity 3 is famous for their frozen hot chocolate.  A concoction of 20 different types of chocolate blended with milk, ice and topped with whipped cream, we definitely couldn’t pass that up.

Our wonderful waitress also highly recommended the deep fried Oreo cookie sundae.  Yes that’s exactly what I said, deep fried Oreos.  Coated with cornflakes and deep fried the insides were soft and gooey and perfect on top of 3 scoops of cookies ‘n cream, marshmallow cream and hot fudge sauce this was even better than the frozen hot chocolate.

I think we did a decent job on the sundae considering everything else we ate.

Had we been staying a few more days I can guarantee we would have gone back a third time just to sample more crazy food off their menu.  I highly recommend anyone visiting Las Vegas to take at least one break from the buffet scene and enjoy a visit to Serendipity 3. Men! Beware! There is a lot of pink in the place.  But done in a really cutesy, Alice in Wonderland kind of way.

There is a great strip of restaurants along King Street in the theatre districts where you can get anything from Indian to Italian to Asian cuisine while soaking up the atmosphere is this hip and happening part of the city.  Recently my boyfriend and I decided that we would try a different one each time we were in the area until they have all been tasted.  Sounded like a great plan to me.  So when my birthday came along I was happily instructed to meet him at one of these great places.

At The Red Tomato I started my meal off with a Jolly Rancher Martini which was not as sweet as I expected given the number of shots of fruit flavoured liqueurs used to make this concoction.  The bar has a lounge feel to it while the open kitchen concept allows you to enjoy the pungent smells from the meals being created.

For my main course I choose the Roasted Chicken Supreme seasoned with garlic, rosemary and thyme that accompanied a squash agnolotti in a grana padano Gorgonzola sauce.  The chicken was extremely flavourful though I would have preferred it boneless while the pasta was perfectly al dente and lightly sauced. 

I finished my meal with a light, mixed berry shortcake that was a refreshing end to a really tasty meal.

The Red Tomato offers dinner and drinks special as well as different theatre packages.  Check out their website to get directions and take a look at their menu.