Las Vegas is considered by many people to be one of the great dining cities of the world.  This being the case, it has been frustrating to me is that Las Vegas restaurant guides focus almost entirely on the Strip.  Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of very good restaurants on the Strip, but I don’t always feel like driving there.  While a Strip focus is great for tourists, it is not necessarily helpful for residents.  In short, you’d miss a lot of great places if all you had to go on were those guides!

As much as I would love to tell you about some of my favorite places to eat, that can wait. Today, I have other people’s opinions to share.  First,  we have an item by Ed Murrieta of The News Tribune in Tacoma (go figure) called “Off The Strip You can dine and drink well in Las Vegas while never setting foot on The Strip“.  His picks include Rosemary’s, Pamplemousse, Lucille’s Smokehouse Bar-B-Que, Memphis Championship Barbecue, CJ’s Texas Barbecue (clearly the man likes barbecue), Kilroy’s, In-N-Out, Hash House A Go Go, and Orchids Garden.  Yes, addresses and phone numbers are included.

The second item I have for you today is from yesterday’s newspaper, and it includes both on and off-Strip eateries.  It is the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s round up of local Happy Hours.   I’ve eaten at a few of these places — just lunch or dinner, not happy hour — and sincerely hope the rest are as good.

I’ve written a rather lengthy post on the government’s response to the current mortgage crisis, based largely on this New York Times item by a Yale economics and finance professor. You can read it at my personal site.

Thanks to BoingBoing for pointing out this USA Today story about Teller’s 10 acre mansion retreat near the edge of town.  Teller is the “quiet” half of comedian/magician act Penn and Teller. Interestingly enough, Teller is his full name!