Sundays in Las Vegas take on new meaning as the NFL season heats up
By Jack Houston
The Sporting House
The first weeks of the NFL season have already provided a few surprises. The beleaguered New Orleans Saints are off to their worst start since 2007, while the Arizona Cardinals have been resurgent behind backup quarterback Kevin Kolb. The New England Patriots are looking nothing like the team that was leading Super Bowl XLVI until the final minute, and the Cleveland Browns are … well, the Browns are still very much the Browns of old.
Las Vegas might not possess a major league sports team, but it does field some fine places to catch up on all the action—from Monday night’s showdown pitting the Houston Texans against the New York Jets to a rematch of last year’s NFC Championship Game between the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Oct. 14. Here are a few of them:
The Pub at Monte Carlo
Unheralded though it may be, the Monte Carlo’s watering hole has been a perennial fixture among the Strip’s top sports-watching spots. Consider the numbers: more than 300 beers, 35 flat-screen TVs, an 8-pound burger challenge and a weekday happy hour that offers $1 wings, $1 sliders and buy-one, get-one well drinks and domestic drafts. NFL equivalent: Patriots. Few pubs on the Strip have been doing it this well for this long. Monte Carlo, 702.730.7777
Lagasse’s Stadium
Emeril Lagasse’s Saints could use some of the chef’s trademark “Bam!” but his sprawling sports bar needs no such help. One hundred high-def TVs set the stage for the biggest of them all: a 9-by-16-foot projection screen that stands out as much as the New Orleans-style pub grub. Rent semi-private skyboxes or private luxury boxes, or mix and mingle with fellow fans over beer buckets. NFL equivalent: Atlanta Falcons. Like Lagasse, they’ve kicked it up a notch. The Palazzo, 702.607.2665
Public House Las Vegas
It may have only opened a few weeks ago, but the Vegas outpost of the New York and Philly pub has quickly established itself as a force to be reckoned with. Monday night specials ($25 Bud and Bud Light buckets, $20 wing buckets) and a weekend brunch ($20 per person with $15 bottomless mimosas and Bloody Marys) make game day comfortable. NFL equivalent: Houston Texans. The newest kid on the block is also the one making the most noise. Luxor, 702.262.4525
Todd English P.U.B.
The Sporting House
Two 16-foot big screens let viewers see just about every pore on the player’s face and every blade of grass on the field. Factor in 130 more high-def TVs and you’ve got a recipe for success that’s challenged only by the recipes in the kitchen. What sets The Sporting House apart from the rest of the competition is its upstairs, where a full arcade awaits. NFL equivalent: New York Giants. There were really only two ways to go here. New York-New York, 702.740.6766
Todd English P.U.B.
Celebrity chef Todd English is the name on the door, but it’s Jean Paul Labadie’s show in the kitchen, where the chef (late of Emeril’s Fish House, Table 10 and Marché Bacchus) is putting his own spin on English’s stellar tavern fare. While the game’s on, enjoy $25 Bud Light pitchers Thursday through Monday and tell us you’re not addicted to the Pastra-Mini sliders, dirty chips, lobster rolls and the extensive list of carvery meats. NFL equivalent: Green Bay Packers. The dynasty continues. Crystals at CityCenter, 702.489.8080
