Las Vegas has a secret! Well, actually, several.
Las Vegas has its fair share of the amazing, advertised on flashy billboards across the city – and country! But some of the most fun activities are kept on the downlow and are very hush hush — and the fun is in finding them. (No – not that. That’s for another time.)
The Speakeasy. A throwback to the 1920s when alcohol was banned and sneaky partiers headed for hidden bars to down bathtub gin. Speakeasies have been enjoying a reemergence, so to speak. Ninety years after the end of Prohibition, these secret cozy hotspots are tucked away in alleyways, behind bookcases and behind unmarked doors. And Las Vegas is rich with those hidden bars and secret restaurants.
Now, it’s time to share the lowdown on some of the most popular on, and off the Las Vegas Strip.
Probably the most well-known Las Vegas speakeasy — a personal favorite, and very popular with Las Vegas locals – that completely commits to the theme of the era, is The Underground at Las Vegas’ Mob Museum.
Make sure you go through the museum first. The exhibits and interactive experiences teach visitors about mob bosses, organized crime and law enforcement. Take that in, then head down to the basement for a drink.
The Underground offers a full bar, a distillery and a cocktail parlor hidden behind a wall. Grab a seat and order up a prohibition-era cocktail, a gin-based Bee’s Knees, perhaps, which comes with a side of Charleston dance history, or a Bathtub Fizz — served in a little bathtub.
There’s a secret entrance at the bottom of a nondescript set of stairs outside, but you’ll need a password to get in. (Luckily, the Mob Museum posts that little detail on its social media.)
The Underground offers a full bar, a distillery and a cocktail parlor hidden behind a wall. Grab a seat and order up a Prohibition-era cocktail. A gin-based Bee’s Knees, perhaps, which comes with a side of Charleston dance history, or a Bathtub Fizz, which is actually served in a little bathtub, or an old fashioned, discreetly served in a bottle hidden inside a book!
Once you find one speakeasy in Las Vegas, guaranteed you’ll want more. Just make sure you know the password.
-Carla Rea
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Commonwealth
Across the street from the famous El Cortez Hotel, you’ll find The Laundry Room tucked inside what is now the Commonwealth Bar. Actually – the Laundry Room will find you. Make reservations! Then stroll into the bar, text the speakeasy and wait for a hostess to take you back in time to the Prohibition era. The space (a former laundry) is decked out in 1920s style with space for just 22 guests. It’s one of Las Vegas’ most popular speakeasies, this one is complete with Made to order cocktails, a dress code and rules of decorum: quiet voices, no smoking and no standing at the bar.
The Cosmopolitan has Speakeasies galore!
The Cosmopolitan on The Strip, has surprises around every corner and probably the most speakeasies. Superfrico — the “Italian American psychedelic” dining venue — will send your brain into overdrive with performers dancing among the tables at random intervals. Step through the doors of Superfrico’s hidden Ski Lodge, and you’re transported to a mountain ski lodge where penguins (humans dressed as penguins) show up for photo ops and the “windows” always depict a snowy scene.
Long lines queue up outside the hotel’s Barbershop, too. Yes, you can get your hair cut here. But if you head for the janitor’s closet at the back of the shop, you’ll find yourself in a stylish speakeasy with high-end craft cocktails and karaoke or live music, depending on the day of the week. (Psst, you’ll need reservations.)
Resorts World
Resorts World Las Vegas has its own hidden agendas, including a tequila-centric Jalisco Underground, next to Wally’s Wine & Spirits, and the Here Kitty Kitty Vice Den. A wall of lucky cats camouflages it the resort’s Famous Food Street Eats area. Stop by the host stand, and be escorted through a secret passageway, into an intimate, dimly lit bar serving up one of a kind cocktails, including one with a rather risque garnish. It is Vegas, after all.
Area 15, Omega Mart
Area 15 has its own speakeasy, too. You’ll need admission to the surreal Omega Mart, that masks itself as a freaky grocery store. Hidden somewhere inside is Datamosh, a bar modeled after what creators imagine a pharmacy would look like in another dimension. The cocktails are almost as crazy looking as the space itself, served in off-balance glasses, that will keep you off balance, too!
The Horseshoe (formerly Bally's), Cabinet of Curiosities
The Cabinet of Curiosities. The same makers behind the Real Bodies and Discovering King Tut’s Tomb exhibits have created a bar just outside The Horseshoe (formerly Bally’s). It’s filled with strange knickknacks, with QR codes so you can learn more, and it holds the entrance to The Lock, a speakeasy behind a bank vault door.
