We went to the new 'secret' speakeasy bar in Las Vegas -- here's how to find it
Vegas is all about the glitz, glamour and special access.
It's a place where there are VIPs and real VIPs and it's socially acceptable to flash a player's club status card to cut everything from the nightclub queue to the regular taxi line.
Stretch limos pick up high rollers and whisk them from the airport to private driveways at casinos. Hidden elevators lead to suites that can’t be booked, regardless of how much you want to pay. There are regular pools and then there are the VIP pools. And there are special blackjack tables that simply say “reserved.”
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There’s something special about feeling, well, special in Vegas.
Most folks won’t ever get the truly high roller special treatment in Sin City. But there are ways to get a taste of that lifestyle without betting the family home on red. We recently got a taste of the "hidden" special secrets of Las Vegas.
Enter "Here Kitty Kitty Vice Den."
Hidden – but really located in plain sight – at the new Resorts World casino is this new speakeasy that impressed a team of TPG staff who were in town reviewing the complex last week.
Resorts World itself is a foodies’ paradise. There are more than 40 restaurants and eateries in the casino, the first new resort on The Strip in more than a decade. There are high-end spots like Genting Palace and a reimagined food court called “Famous Foods Street Eats” that focuses on Southeast Asian street food but also features a live DJ. It is Vegas, after all.
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But tucked away between the hustle and bustle of a dumpling shop, fried chicken stand and a yakitori eatery is an Asian-themed convenience store named Ms. Meow's Mamak Stall.
The store shelves are filled with flavored Kit Kat bars, Siracha peas, cups of instant ramen, potato chips and a row of cute little cat statues that wave at you.
That row of waving cats is a sign that you have arrived in the right spot. And not just in time to buy a cheap snack shipped from across the ocean.
Push back on that shelf and the entire wall moves back and lets you into this tucked away speakeasy, filled to the ceiling with ambiance and tasty drinks.
But don’t actually do that.
We got scolded for getting overly excited and trying to open the door by ourselves without first checking in.
Like most Vegas hot spots, it turns out that there is usually a waitlist -- it was about 90 minutes when we arrived during the opening week. We were told when it first opens in the late afternoon, it's usually pretty easy to get in. That said, the next night, the speakeasy was closed for a private event.
But once you are inside, you've been transported a world away from the busy food stalls and noisy craps tables. Or at least it feels that way.
In clear nods to the Prohibition-era roots of the modern-day speakeasy, this vice den is home to dim lights, brick walls, wooden rafters and a single bright, red light affixed next to the bar.
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The space looks industrial and thrown together while also welcoming.
You're encouraged to settle in and order a drink -- or two.
Here Kitty Kitty Vice Den is the newest hidden speakeasy in Las Vegas, but it's not the only one.
In a city known for hidden secrets, slights of hand and special access, you'll never want to assume anything, such as a barbershop, bookcase or even a snack shop, is simple as it might first appear.