I ate and drank my way through every Lisa Vanderpump bar and restaurant in Las Vegas.Jacob Kepler for BILisa Vanderpump opened her first-ever hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in June.It's the crown jewel in Vanderpump's rapidly expanding empire in Sin City.I ate and drank my way through her four restaurants and bars over 48 hours for the Vanderpump Vegas crawl.Odysseus had his 20-year Odyssey. Hercules had his 12 Herculean tasks. I had 48 hours to eat and drink my way through every Lisa Vanderpump establishment in Las Vegas.I may not have the strength of a Greek warrior, but I do have the stomach of a seasoned bachelorette party-goer. So when I heard that Vanderpump had a brand-new hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, I began planning my arduous quest with a supreme sense of confidence.Instead of cannibal giants and three-headed dogs, there were smoking shots and truffle-loaded carbs. Sometimes, the journey was sweet; other times, it felt like I was near defeat. But with a bottle of Pepcid in one hand and a cocktail called Daddy Issues in the other, I descended to the desert for the ultimate Vegas crawl — Vanderpump style.The Vanderpump Hotel is the crown jewel in Lisa Vanderpump's expanding Sin City empire.Jacob Kepler for BIVegas was once the playground of Vanderpump's debaucherous cast of SUR waiters and bartenders on "Vanderpump Rules." (Who could forget the shirtless parking-lot brawl or illicit kiss in the swimming pool of the Golden Nugget?) Now, the desert is her domain.Vanderpump opened the Vanderpump Cocktail Garden, her first Vegas establishment, in partnership with Caesars Entertainment in 2019. Sean McBurney, the chief commercial officer and regional president of the hotel and casino conglomerate, told me it was an instant hit."The success we'd had with Lisa was super compelling," he said. "It really felt like we caught lightning in a bottle."The British restaurateur and Bravo reality star has since launched two restaurants with Caesars at the Flamingo and Paris Las Vegas, as well as The Vanderpump Hotel, which opened in June. Vanderpump is right on the heels of her friend Gordon Ramsay, who has seven restaurants in the city."I'm enjoying every second of it," Vanderpump told me. "Las Vegas is a playground of the world, and it's definitely a playground of America. When I show up there now and see my name on the side of the building, it's truly overwhelming."My first stop on the crawl was Pinky's by Vanderpump at the Flamingo.Anneta Konstantinides/Business InsiderVanderpump opened Pinky's at Flamingo Las Vegas in December 2024. The restaurant — which bears her longtime nickname — is a few steps from the back entrance of The Vanderpump Hotel, its glass atrium and pink sign beckoning all the Bravo fans nearby.The restaurant is a pink-and-green Art Deco dream that feels straight from the set of "Wicked."Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider"This is what you'd get if Glinda and Elphaba had a baby," my friend Kayla said as we walked into the whimsical dining room, flush with the characters' signature blush and emerald hues.Pinky's and the first "Wicked" film opened within weeks of each other, but their matching color palette was a happy accident. Vanderpump was inspired by the retro colors of the Flamingo, the oldest hotel still operating on the Strip.Metallic palm fronds shimmered under the lights, and a massive portrait of a flamingo in a pink top hat smiled back. Servers in baby-pink button-downs and black vests with ties passed by as Zara Larsson's "Midnight Sun" blasted from the speakers, perfect for the tropical vibe.We kicked things off with The Smokeshow, which includes two smoked shots for $27.Anneta Konstantinides/Business InsiderIt's extremely Instagrammable, like so many of Vanderpump's drinks, but the shots were also surprisingly delicious.Made with two types of rum, hibiscus, lemon, pineapple, and some jalapeño honey, the flavor was sweet but not saccharine. It tasted like liquid candy.Then we perused the menu, which read like a bingo card of appetizers that millennial women love.Anneta Konstantinides/Business InsiderThere's truffle mac and cheese, charcuterie, crispy rice, grilled-cheese pretzel bites… you get the picture.We couldn't resist starting with the $16 pull-apart bread, which came out beautifully golden and piping hot alongside a generous cup of honey butter. The nicely seasoned crust had a satisfying crunch. It gave way to the buttery and lightly sweet taste underneath, a rich and indulgent flavor bomb we couldn't get enough of.I loved the presentation of the Colossal Coconut Prawn Cigars, but they lacked flavor.Anneta Konstantinides/Business InsiderThe $27 cigars, delivered in a lovely vintage-looking wooden box, looked like they'd been cooked to crisp perfection. But when I bit into one, I was surprised to find that I couldn't really taste much from the shrimp.The accompanying sweet-chili sauce added some tang, but it wasn't enough to pump up the dish.Our next round of drinks was als
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