Wynn Las Vegas
I’ve been a fan of the Wynn for years and have had many great meals and drinks there over the years. It’s a luxury property - the creme de la creme - and so when they invited me for a two night stay that included a couple of fine dining dinners, I was very excited!
We stayed in the Tower Suites in a Wynn Tower Suite King. The suite was beautifully appointed and the bathroom was 10/10! Our room had a view of a golf course and of the Sphere which was very cool to watch it change designs. Due to the reflectiveness of the windows it’s tricky to get crystal clear photos of it at night, but the blue globe gives you an idea.
My post is presented in chronological order how things unfolded over our 2 day/2 night trip because that’s just how my mind works.
First Night Dinner: Casual Asian
For dinner on our first night, due to our travel day going sideways (we could have driven from San Diego to Vegas and back again in the time in took us to fly to Vegas) our very late arrival and missing our previously scheduled reservation, we needed to scamper and just find something.
So we literally took the elevator down from our suite, walked out, and encountered Red 8 which is casual Asian dining.
Our objective was getting food in our belly at 9:45PM before it closed and so we went casual - and starving! If you’re looking for casual yet filling Asian, this will work. We noticed some families with toddlers so if you need a kid-friendly spot, it works for that too.
The Wynn Pools
On our next morning, I had high hopes of going to the pool because there are many and they’re beautiful! I love Vegas pools and the Wynn pools were wonderful!
But we had some weird weather for Vegas in August and it was cloudy and even sprinkled on and off multiple times during our trip, but we did have a few bursts of sunshine and were able to carve out some time at the pool.
There are multiple pools including a pool are for those staying in the Tower Suites and an adults-only pool. However, maybe because many schools have already gone back, the pools were not swimming (pun intended) with kids. I’ve been to Vegas during spring break time of year and you can expect a lot of kids no matter where you go. Bringing young kids to Vegas was not a thing when I was raising my daughter and bringing small children to Vegas, but it is now.
There are cabanas you can reserve or just find a chaise lounge - no reservations were necessary although on a perfectly sunny day and especially on weekends, the early bird gets the worm in terms of snagging lounges.
There’s a fine dining breakfast, brunch, and lunch restaurant, Tableau, located within the Tower Suites.
And while we didn’t dine inside Tableau - I’m more of a grab my coffee and go person in the mornings and got my daily coffee from Caffe al Teatro - it’s adjacent to the Tower Pools and we ordered from Tableau’s menu while at the pool one day.
The jumbo shrimp cocktail were indeed jumbo and if you’re on a protein journey, shrimp are a great call. I washed it down with a strawberry frosé which was not too sweet (no 1990s syrupy strawberry daiquiri vibes, thank goodness) and just super refreshing. Shrimp + frosé = 10/10 on both! If the weather would have been sunnier, I can foresee those frosés going down super easily.
Fine Dining at SW Steakhouse
SW Steakhouse is where we had dinner our second night, which happened to be a Friday night. The restaurant was packed and extremely lively. I learned that they have outdoor seating but due to unexpected dinnertime rain, we were told they had to move about 100+ people inside, which caused the inside to be overwhelmed for a time.
SW Steakhouse is a flagship, Forbes award-winning restaurant, with an extensive high end dinner menu. Whether you’re looking for American or Japanese wagyu; or perhaps you prefer seafood, fish, lamb, chicken, or nearly any possible type of classic-yet-elevated steakhouse side dish, this is the spot.
Tips: If you plan to dine at SW Steakhouse, you need to make a reservation. It’s very popular, very busy, and you simply need a reservation. I personally would make it clear you want an inside table when you make your reservation and ask if that can be honored. Vegas isn’t known for its al fresco dining and for me after getting ready for a night on the town, I’ll take a pass on wind, heat, or any chance of rain and opt for strictly indoor seating if given the option.
This meal was wonderful and I will definitely come back here, no questions asked!
I made a video which I am dropping here and also shared it on my Instagram feed. I have also learned that SW does not mean ‘southwest’ in this case; it means Steve Wynn. I learn something new every time I travel.
This was a ton of food! Far more than the photos make it appear. The portions are very generous!
The oysters and crab Rockefeller were very generously stuffed with crab meat and cheese and were very filling. And the crab cakes were also big, succulent, meaty crab cakes.
The tomato salad was really refreshing and helped to balance the heaviness of the other dishes, and the asparagus was my ode to a vegetable and something green. My husband loves potatoes but we did not ‘need’ a large side of potato au gratin plus fries despite it being a half order of fries.
Our steaks were fantastic but neither of us could finish our respective steaks. I ordered my filet mignon medium rare plus because I was in between medium and medium rare. Some steakhouses don’t want to mess around with the ‘plus’ and make you choose either medium or medium rare - so that was nice there was an in between. My husband ordered his ribeye medium and he was happy as a clam with it. But a 16 ounce steak is, well, BIG!
My Tips: Starve yourself all day before you come here (kidding…well not really haha!), come with another couple if you can because I feel like the sides are suited more towards groups of 3-4 rather than 2 people; and if that’s not possible I suggest ordering your absolute must-haves so that you can finish your steaks or at least make a good dent on them. And I recommend saving room for dessert!
The chocolate chip cookie soufflé with brown butter cookie, chocolate, and ice cream was the best thing I ate all weekend. I don’t consider myself that ‘into desserts’ in the past ten years or so, but for me this was 10000/10!
Gym at the Wynn
After being wheeled out of the steakhouse by crane the previous evening, a workout the next day was a non-negotiable for me.
Without a doubt, the fitness center at the Wynn is the nicest hotel gym I’ve ever been in!
I really do not feel my best in general in life if I don’t work out, move my body, or get some steps in.
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Normally I would not have sought out a gym to lift weights on a short trip like this one, but it was cloudy and raining one afternoon so I said why not. And I am so glad I went! It recentered me and gave me energy to stay up and stay out for our next dinner. There are also spa treatments, massages and more at Wynn and Encore.
Tip - Take note there is a gym/spa in both Wynn and Encore so that if you are booking spa services that you go to the correct location.
Fine Dining at Casa Playa
On our final night in Vegas, we had the absolute pleasure of dining at Casa Playa. It’s located in Encore, just steps from Wynn, and you can walk easily between the two. Chef Sarah Thompson just won a James Beard Award for Best Chef Southwest and the food at Casa Playa delivered.
Think upscale Mexican that focuses on seasonal, coastal ingredients with a seafood focus. There’s also an extensive tequila and mezcal program.
I also made a video for this dining experience and posted it on my Instagram feed and am sharing it here too.
From the dinner menu, we started with a shrimp ceviche which gave shrimp aguachile vibes. It was light and refreshing because we knew from previous evenings the portions would be generous and didn’t want to over-order!
However, despite Chef Sarah Thompson being gone for the evening we were there, Chef Clarissa came out to our table to introduce herself and she was warm, kind, and truly it was the nicest touch!
She sent us out the prawns which had the presentation of almost like a lobster tail in the shell and very creative.
And we also sampled the vegetarian tlayuda (pronounced tla-LUUH-dah). If you’re not familiar, tlayudas are a paper-thin, flatbread type of item and they can be topped with just about anything from carnitas to mariscos to al pastor or veggie based. I wrote about some of my favorite tlayudas in my Ultimate Puerto Vallarta Dining Guide.
My husband opted for the branzino which surprised me a bit but it was with a zarandeado preparation which hails from the Nayarit region of Mexico, near Jalisco and not something you run into every day even in upscale Mexican restaurants. Paired with frijoles de olla, he was in heaven.
I got the American wagyu short rib suadero which is most closely related to brisket but not quite the same cut. If you’ve ever had a street taco in Mexico City, chances are you’ve had suadero which is tender and so flavorful. There were spicy serrano chiles and sauce underneath so take note! I almost got the birria since birria has gotten so trendy in the past few years, it’s not that tricky to find whereas suadero? Tricky!
Tips: All dishes can either be eaten as they are served; or you can make tacos with your protein because they serve corn tortillas too. So if you want to get your taco fix on, you can! There’s also a riff on al pastor con pina made with pork belly stacked high with mini pineapples. The presentation was adorable and I captured it in my video so if you like pork belly, it’s worth a shot.
To finish, we split the tres leches with coconut on top. It was the perfect size to share for two. There’s a banana flame style dessert on the menu but it’s more geared to share amongst 3-4 people our waiter told us.
Bars and Lounges
I’ve been drinking a lot less in 2026 than I have at any time in my life previously, and I feel great! So after two glasses of champagne or sparking wine with dinner, I didn’t have the energy or desire to partake in any nightcaps but mostly because I was just beat. Guess I am officially old. Or responsible.
In our defense, our dinner at SW Steakhouse was 3 1/2 hours and our dinner at Casa Playa was 2 1/2 hours. By 11:30pm I’m thinking bed, not bar.
But if you’re thinking bar, I’d go to either Aft Cocktail Lounge which has vibes of Rio de Janeiro meets Cozumel meets Monaco (I’ve been to all three of those destinations and I’d actually throw in Mykonos into the description rather than Cozumel). Swanky with views of the Lake of Dreams, and located right next to SW Steakhouse and PISCES so you can either go before or after your fine dining dinner for cocktails.
While we didn’t go this trip, I’d also highly recommend Bar Parasol which is also situated in between SW Steak and Pisces. They have the best charcuterie board and serve it with pretzel bread. Trust me, it’s so good and the best charcuterie board I’ve had in Vegas, and we’ve had it multiple times over the past 5 years ever since discovering it. There’s a very fairly priced champagne flight with three champagnes to wash it down with; also highly recommend that.
Finally, Little Bubble Bar at Delilah is your spot if you’re into old Hollywood vibes. Very small, chic, retro-yet-modern and sophisticated all in one.
What To Wear In Vegas?
Anything you want! Haha! Just about anything goes in Vegas BUT if you’re going to a fine dining restaurant, make sure you check the dress code.
People tend to go all out in Vegas in terms of getting dressed up and rising to the occasion at trendy, popular, or high end restaurants. There’s no other city in the world for women IMO where you can routinely get away with showing as much skin and no one bats an eye. But if that’s not your vibe, no worries. Cover up.
I posted every single thing I wore in Vegas here in a ShopMy collection with direct links to what I bought and brought!
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My piece of advice though is to always bring a sweater, jacket, suit coat, shawl or something to cover up with because air conditioning can be brutally cold. Maybe that’s because I don’t use air conditioning in San Diego but Vegas feels like a meat locker to me and I’m always cold. If it was chic to walk into dinner with a blanket I would! But I settle for a suit jacket draped over my arm to start and always finish with it on.
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Let me know if you’ve been to Wynn or Encore, or if you’ve been to Vegas recently or have any plans to go soon!
Those pull ups, core and amazing strength! WOW! Averie, you’re an inspiration…I stayed at the beautiful , Cosmopolitan hotel, it’s GORGE, pls review that next ! Vegas has its own 24/7 Vibe!
Thank you for sharing and following!