Vegas is an expensive place. Sure, you can get cheap hotel rooms. Sure, you can find some cheap drinks. Sure, you can find some cheap entertainment. Sure, you can even find some cheap buffets.
…but there are some eateries, where you need to bring your checkbook.
As you know, I’m at the Mandalay Bay Resort for the Boarding Area conference. Traveling from my hotel room at the Luxor, to our conference took at the Mandalay Bay you’ll pass a variety of chain venues – Starbucks, Subway, Johnny Rockets, Nathan’s Hot Dogs. By virtue of the location, when you’re on a break and want to grab a cup of coffee, the Starbucks just outside the hallway is your best bet for a cup o’ joe. That’s where they got you.
I had lunch today at a Johnny Rockets on the lower level of the conference facility. I got a burger, fries and a milkshake. Ordinarily, at a regular Johnny Rockets, that same meal probably would have cost $15. Not a cheap lunch, but for a good place, it’s a meal I can stomach (no pun intended). Today, my lunch came up to just about $25…wait…did I accidentally order the filet mignon? The cashier behind the counter gave me a 25% employee discount, and when I inquired why, she mumbled something I couldn’t hear and asked for my credit card. I handed over my card, paid for my food.
I’m reluctant to pay such a high bill for a “cheap” meal…even with an “employee” discount. Unfortunately, with a short lunch break and a hungry stomach, I needed to grab food and get back to the next speaker session. That said, I really do feel guilty as a consumer any time I pay for something I know is truly not worth that much.
I don’t think it’s unusual for travelers to pay for that spur of the moment meal, knowing it wouldn’t be worth the same at home…or in this case, off of the Vegas strip.
What experiences have you had in this regard? Any opinions and suggestions on how to avoid it?
Jamie Larounis is an avid traveler, blogger and miles/points educator. Traveling well over 100,000 miles a year and staying in hotels for over 100 nights, he leverages miles, points and other deals to fly in first class cabins, and stay in 5-star hotels. The Forward Cabin shares his experiences, musings, reviews, tips, tricks, resources and industry news with you, the fellow traveler.
A lot of the places are like going to the doctor without insurance….
When I go, we spend a lot of time at the card tables. Always join the players club, you usually got stuff comped. Last trip most of our food bills that we charged to the room ended up being comped. You don’t necessarily have to spend a lot of money at the tables, they measure how long you’ve stayed, and what the minimum bets were.
Now back to the doctor. You get the bill, which states what they wanted to charge, then the line that says what the insurance company allows, what they end up writing off, and finally what you are responsible to pay. No Insurance, no comps.
Always get the players card, stick with the casinos on the card (MGM, Total Rewards, etc.).
Welcome to conferences…Vegas or elsewhere. Lots of people with limited time. Seen similar prices at many conference venues. Many convention hall and hotels. Chicago, LA, NYC, Orlando, NOLA and Vegas.
Remember that Vegas is Disneyland for adults and the prices are pretty much what you would pay for a meal like that in Disneyland! Nice meeting you and having an expensive lunch together today. Note that the wife and I had a coupon for 50% off at Nathans Famous that we got from some guy handing out those coupon books on the street. Really good to get those and check them out to see what you can use. Saved us $15 at Nathans!
No surprise there. I think you could have gone to one of the nice lunch buffets for $30.
Kudos to you though for getting the employee discount!!! He or she must have liked you! 🙂