The fastest, cheapest, frequently best food on Las Vegas's streets.
Vendors, food trucks and stalls: the cheapest, fastest, frequently best food in Las Vegas.
Tacos El Gordo in Las Vegas is the Tijuana adobada specialist on the north Strip, slicing pork from the trompo into hand-pressed corn tortillas through the small hours.
Try: Adobada and suadero tacos on hand-pressed corn tortillas
Tip: Order at the cashier first, then queue at the meat station with your ticket; adobada and suadero are the two to get on a first visit.
Secret Pizza at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas is the unmarked New York counter at the end of a vinyl-lined corridor on level 3, slinging thin-crust slices until 04:00.
Try: New York-style cheese and pepperoni slices
Tip: From the Chandelier bar take the lift to level 3 and walk the record-lined hallway between Blue Ribbon and Jaleo; standing room only, slices $6-7.
Pizza Rock in downtown Las Vegas is Tony Gemignani's 13-time World Pizza Cup outpost at Downtown Grand, with a walk-up window doing slices in six different dough styles.
Try: Slice-window pizza by Tony Gemignani, six dough styles
Tip: The walk-up window does single slices; the Neapolitan and Roman get the best of the four ovens, the Sicilian travels well.
Lee's Sandwiches on Spring Mountain Road in Las Vegas is the Chinatown banh mi counter that bakes its own baguette in-house and turns out the workhorse dac biet from morning to night.
Try: Vietnamese banh mi on house-baked baguette
Tip: Order at the counter; the combo dac biet is the standard order at $6-8 and the Vietnamese iced coffee travels well in the parking lot.
Earl of Sandwich at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas is the 24-hour hot-sandwich counter on the Miracle Mile, doing the Original 1762 (roast beef, cheddar, horseradish) at any hour.
Try: Hot artisan sandwiches on fresh-baked bread, 24-hour
Tip: The Original 1762 and the Holiday Turkey are the two to order; service runs 24/7 and the queue moves fastest at 03:00.
Eggslut at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas is the breakfast counter from Alvin Cailan's LA original, doing soft-scrambled Fairfax sandwiches on brioche all morning.
Try: Egg sandwiches on warm brioche, the Fairfax
Tip: Order the Fairfax and the Slut (coddled egg in potato puree); the Cosmo line moves faster than the LA flagship by 09:30.
Shake Shack at New York-New York in Las Vegas is the Strip's outdoor-corner Shack, doing ShackBurgers, crinkle fries and concretes across from MGM Grand from late morning to midnight.
Try: ShackBurger and crinkle-cut fries on the Strip
Tip: The Strip walk-up window beats the indoor queue; the SmokeShack with bacon is the upgrade from the standard ShackBurger.
In-N-Out Burger on West Sahara in Las Vegas is one of the closest Sahara Avenue locations to the Strip, with drive-thru, dine-in and the late-night Double-Double until 01:30 on weekends.
Try: Double-Double Animal Style, Neapolitan shake
Tip: Order Animal Style off the secret menu (mustard-grilled patty, extra spread, grilled onions); the Neapolitan shake is three flavours in one cup.
Capriotti's on West Sahara in Las Vegas is the original Vegas outpost of the Delaware sub shop, slow-roasting turkeys overnight for the Bobbie (turkey, stuffing, cranberry, mayo).
Try: The Bobbie (turkey, cranberry, stuffing, mayo)
Tip: The Bobbie is the order, sized small to large; for the long-lined locations the line moves fastest if you order online and pick up at the counter.
Doña Maria Tamales in downtown Las Vegas is the Martinez family's tamale-counter-turned-restaurant since 1980, holding the Charleston and Las Vegas Boulevard corner with red pork and green chicken steamers.
Try: Red pork, green chicken, and sweet corn tamales
Tip: Tamales sell by the dozen for takeaway and ship overnight; on the menu, ask for them smothered in red chile and topped with an egg for breakfast.
Hot N Juicy Crawfish on Spring Mountain Road in Las Vegas is the original Chinatown boil counter, serving crawfish, shrimp and Dungeness in the house Hot N Juicy butter blend.
Try: Cajun crawfish boil by the pound, signature garlic butter
Tip: Order by the pound with corn and potatoes; ask for the Hot N Juicy seasoning at medium heat for the balance of garlic, lemon-pepper and Cajun.
Tacotarian in the Las Vegas Arts District is the plant-based taqueria from Kristen Corral, with vegan birria, al pastor and chorizo tacos on house-made tortillas at the Casino Center counter.
Try: Vegan birria, al pastor and chorizo tacos
Tip: Order the birria with consomme for dipping; the elote takis appetiser is the side everyone ends up sharing.
Peak food season in Las Vegas is year-round.
Local dining hours: lunch around 12:30, dinner from 19:30.
service is typically included; small extra is welcome but not expected.
Ask the next local you meet what they would order. Las Vegas rewards trust.