Las Vegas is an ever-changing city and if you happen to work in the food and beverage industry it’s de rigueur to have different bars and restaurants at many different properties on your résumé. Well, Megan Cuevas, general manager of Best Friend at Park MGM bucks convention. “I have physically been in Park MGM, also when it was Monte Carlo, for 15 years,” she says.
When she moved from her home state of Ohio, her first job was as a server at The Brew Pub when Monte Carlo was still operating. She then helped open Diablo’s Cantina and her first management gig was at Double Barrel Roadhouse. When all three venues closed and the property transitioned into Park MGM, Cuevas then managed Bavette Steakhouse & Bar and helped open Best Friend, where she became general manager a couple of months ago.
“I learned a lot from my management teams when I was a server myself,” she says. “Those are the managers that you always go to and you want to learn from. They helped make me the manager I am. … I’m very hands on, in the trenches. If we’re real busy I can jump in and do any position, except for cooking.”
Watermelon Photo by: Nick Coletsos
And managing Best Friend is right up her alley, Cuevas says. “It’s family style, food forward, bold and fun. There’s variety. It’s a fun gathering, a fun party at every table. We have live DJs four days a week; the staff wears track suits. It’s a blend of Vegas and L.A.”
When Cuevas isn’t managing Best Friend, she loves to ride her Harley motorcycle. “It’s ease and you’re at peace,” she says. “It’s just you and the wind and your bike and that’s it.”
Watermelon
When it comes to design, Best Friend is truly one of the coolest restaurants on the Strip. When you first enter, you’ll find yourself in the bodega, separated from the main dining room—it’s an awesome representation of a typical bodega one would find in L.A. Inside the bodega is a bar where you can take a seat and order up some delish cocktails, like the popular Watermelon. The sweet and savory cocktail is a mix of Cimarron tequila, Monin watermelon syrup, fresh watermelon juice, lime juice, Gochu salt and Thai basil.
