Vegas is know to offer some exotic experiences so if you’re looking for an out of the ordinary trip experience in the notorious desert, then the lounge/bar experience in Las Vegas, give the Lady Silvia a try.

First thing you should know is that it can be hard to find. It’s north of downtown, in the Soho Lofts building, near Heritage Park. There’s no sign outside and even though the address says it’s on S. Las Vegas Blvd, the actual entrance is on Hoover Ave., going towards 4th St. You’ll find off-street parking at 4th and Hoover.

Inside, the decor resembles a library, complete with books on the wall. There are a few areas to sit, but the staff hates it when larger groups try to rearrange the furniture. I would say the whole place comes off as a prohibition-era speakeasy.

Music is provided nightly by a DJ with the sound leaning towards house, and they also sometimes hold special events like art and fashion shows.

This vibe extends to the bar menu. Basically, they do simple drinks like scotch on the rocks, classic martinis, Manhattans and the like. Surprisingly, the brew menu has quite a few microbrews, as well as a few of the usual suspects.

Prices are a bit on the high side, but no more than you’d find anywhere else on The Strip. You can save a bit by visiting during their daily happy hour, from 4pm-6pm, and their mid-week reverse happy hour (Tuesday through Thursday from 11pm-1am), when drinks are half-off.

Lady Silvia opens daily at 3pm and, in a rarity for Vegas, is smoke free.

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The Lady Silvia
900 Las Vegas Blvd S
Las Vegas, NV 89101
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[Image courtesy of The Lady Silvia]

There’s nothing I like better in a happy hour than great drink and food specials at a reasonable price. I’m even happier when said specials aren’t the normal nachos and a can of PBR.

Chicken & Waffles with a Cotton Candy Martini

So when I heard about the new “50 for $5″ happy hour at T-bones Chophouse and Lounge at Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa in Las Vegas, I had to check out what they were offering.

Luckily, they had the happy hour menu online, so I took a look, and I have to say, this looks like a killer promotion.

On the food side, some of the items that caught my eye were the chicken & waffles (buttermilk marinated chicken strips, malted waffles and jalapeno-infused maple syrup), crispy rock shrimp tempura, chili and cheese tater tots, and Beef on Weck (prime rib sandwich served au jus with fries).

The drink specials sound just as good. There are several different martinis, including a Pistachio Martini (a combo of vanilla vodka, Kahlua, chocolate and pistachios) and the blueberry flavored Cotton Candy Martini (with real cotton candy).

Beer drinkers not only have the normal domestic and import beers, but great microbrews including Young’s Double Chocolate Stout (it’s like a chocolate malt with beer), Arrogant Bastard Ale and Fat Tire.

There’s also wine by the glass and premium liquors to drink on the rocks or by the shot.

T-bones doesn’t open until 5pm each day, so that’s when the “50 for $5″ happy hour starts. It runs until 7pm, giving you plenty of time to try a few things off the menu before you head off to some of the other parties happening in Vegas.

T-bones is located at the Red Rock Casino, which is about 30 minutes west of The Strip via Charleston Blvd.

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T-bones Chophouse and Lounge
Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa
11011 W. Charleston Blvd.
Las Vegas, NV 89135
Phone: 702-797-7576
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[Photo courtesy of Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa]

The first thing you should know about Hemingway’s Lounge in Hollywood, California, is that while it’s on the main thoroughfare of Hollywood Blvd., it can be a little difficult to find. It helps to know it’s in the same building as Cinespace.

Hemingway's Lounge Entry Room in Hollywood

The second thing you should know is this lounge is trying really hard to be the newest “It” place to be seen, so they have a person at the door who says you need reservations to get in. However, if you’re early and dressed to impress, you should have no problem getting in. Up the odds by showing up on a weeknight. You should probably also arrive before 9pm or you’ll end up getting hit with a $20 cover.

Once inside, you’ll dig the decor, especially if you love books. The lounge is decorated like a private library, complete with classic tomes and older editions of books. One wall is even decorated with vintage typewriters. The writer in me wanted to go over and play with them, but I had a feeling that wouldn’t be appreciated.

There are booths and tables, but those are generally reserved for those who wish to drop a couple of thousand to have someplace to sit. As a result most people congregate standing up at the bar area or sitting on the red couches in the entry room, which was hazy from all the lit cigarettes.

But while the bar creates a very cozy vintage lounge feel, the drink prices will definitely snap you back to the present.

Main Lounge Area at Hemingway's in Hollywood

I have to admit that I found the cocktails named after Hemingway’s works cute. I tried the Death in the Afternoon, which was a Champagne cocktail mixed with muddled blackberries, a shot of sour and scented with a touch of absinthe. It was based on the actual drink recipe Hemingway contributed to a 1935 collection of celebrity cocktails, and I found it both unusual and tasty. The price tag of $20 (after tax and a tip), however, was a bit much.

However, if you like mingling in an upscale lounge atmosphere – or just love the idea of enjoying a drink or two in a library-like setting – you’ll probably dig Hemingway’s Lounge.

I have to wonder, though, what the writer himself, who was known to frequent little hole-in-the-wall bars like Sloppy Joe’s in Key West, would think of a bar bearing his name that had a door person, pay-to-reserve booths, and a cover charge.

Hemingway’s Lounge is open Tuesday through Friday from 8pm to 2am; Saturdays from 10pm to 2am; and is closed Sundays and Mondays.

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Hemingway’s Lounge
6356 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028
Phone: 323-469-0040
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[Photos courtesy of Hemingway's Lounge]

Our resident Austin blogger, Claudia, is on the scene, finding some of the best hotspots to visit on the cheap. She posted the following about some of her favorite nightlife places to go on the UpTake Austin Local Getaway Crew page on Facebook. Claudia’s talks about her favorites, Antone’s, The Broken Spoke, and the Warehouse District, and it makes me want to jump a plane to visit Austin.

Austin nightlife: diverse, vibrant, affordable!
With hundreds of bars, nightclubs, and live music venues, it is no coincidence that Austin touts itself as the “Live Music Capital of the World.” Dozens of musicians and bands make their home here, and touring bands make it a point to stop in as often as possible.

Legendary Antone's Night Club packs them in on a regular basis. Photo by Boz Bros.

Austin is home to legendary nightclubs like Antone’s , the home of the blues, where everyone from Stevie Ray Vaughn, to B.B. King, to Maceo Parker to Pinetop Perkins have made their mark in the musical history of the city. There is also Threadgill’s, the gas station-turned-honky-tonk where Janis Joplin caught her first break. Now a famous Southern-style restaurant,both locations still showcases live music almost every night, including the World Headquarters’ beer garden in South Austin. Jazz is well represented as well, more notoriously at the Elephant Room, a basement bar that would not be out of place on a NYC alley. With low lights and low ceilings, it is a cozy space to catch some of Austin’s best Jazz in all genres. Lately, Latin rhythms have found a new home on the East Side at Esquina Tango, a community space that showcases Latin bands and events, as well as and promoters like Bemba Entertainment who throws parties with local bands and DJs specializing in salsa, merengue, Afrobeat, and other Latin styles for dancing the night away. For Texas music with a country twang, you can’t go wrong at the Broken Spoke, a legendary dance hall for the best of Texas Swing, and at the Saxon Pub for established and up-and-coming singer-songwriters.

The Broken Spoke is Austin's most famous country and Texas swing dance hall. Photo by atmtx.

The younger generation and college set prefer to ramble around 6th Street, a seven block stretch between Congress and IH-35 dotted with tattoo parlors, shot bars with cover bands, souvenir shops, and the occasional eatery, a la Bourbon Street. 6th Street is host to a number of year-round events including the Mardi Gras celebration, SXSW, The Republic of Texas Bikers Rally, the Pecan Street Festival and Austin’s infamous Halloween celebration.

6th Street in full swing. Photo by Visualist Images

A more sophisticated crowd flocks to the Warehouse District for fine dining restaurants, alternative lounges, and signature cocktail bars, many featuring live music like the well-known Cedar Street Courtyard. The latest emerging scenes are the Rainey Street corridor just East of Downtown where mobile eateries and hip new bars like Clive Bar, Lustre Pearl, and Icenhouer’s are sprouting in refurbished cottages faster than mushrooms after the rain. Across the highway, new restaurants and hipster bars are crowding around East 6th and 7th Streets, including the art gallery/restaurant lounge East Side Showroom, and the lovely Uncorked wine bar, with a beautiful patio with one of the best views of Downtown Austin. Clearly, Austin definitely has a vibrant nightlife with something for everyone.