by Earl Mcgill

Created on: July 06, 2009

A few months after vacationing in France, my wife and I spent three nights at The Paris, Las Vegas. After experiencing the real thing, you may ask, why would anyone do that?

Two reasons: First, we'd received a slot club mail offer that was hard to turn down. Paris for $64 a night (versus a couple of grand for the real thing), which included two-for-one show tickets, a trip to the top of the mini-Eiffel, dining credit, and promotional gaming chips.

After checking that Southwest Airline's fares were just $49 a pop, each way, we were practically out the door..

In many ways Paris Las Vegas is a lot more fun than it's French daddy. I mean, how many accordion players, museums, roast ducks, and bottles of wine can one person absorb?

Yes, it's missing the Louvre, but there are some mighty fine art galleries close by that aren't nearly as big (nothing is) but come close in quality. And maybe the food and wine doesn't measure up to the real stuff. On the other hand . . .

Dining-wise, we tapped our favorite Mon Ami Gabi for lunch. We were also quite pleased with the Nicoise salad, shrimp scampi, and Beaujolais wine at La Provencal. Cafe. St. Louis breakfast fare was disappointing and expensive (for Vegas). However, the crepes at La Creperie on the Paris street that winds under the hotel and connects with Bally's next door were as delicious as you'll find anywhere.

Located almost under the Eiffel Tower (in Las Vegas, that is) lunch at the Mona Ami is special. My first taste of Mon Ami wasn't just good, it was probably the best lunch I have ever eaten anywhere-including a few in that other Paris.

Not so long ago Vegas food was cheap and awful. Before the fancy new Casinos and the stampede of famous chefs, the best Vegas could offer were cheap buffets that sometimes resembled junior high cafeteria food fights. Even the so-called gourmet restaurants were barely better than chain steak houses or spaghetti factories.

On our first visit to Mon Ami we enjoyed seafood crepes and brisket sandwich from a menu self-described as simple French food. Since then we've sampled other items equally enjoyable. Everything on the menu is reasonably priced, even for a casino town. The French fries are beyond comparison, so good that I felt as though I'd never eaten fries before. I usually settle for merlot or some other red wine and am, more often than not, disappointed with what I've ordered. I've been told that this is because the bottle has been "breathing" too long

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