Where To? The Best and Worst Coffee Spots in Las Vegas

We all know that the food in Vegas is amazing! But let's be honest, the coffee scene sucks! Having gone to Vegas since childhood and dabbling with their coffee scene the last ten years, I've found some spots that are pretty good and won't put a huge dent in your wallet. Here is a list of my go-tos followed by list of places to avoid.

My coffee go-tos: 

1. Mon Ami Gabi: Really amazing coffee! I started coming here ten years ago with one of my best friends (and fellow snob) from SoCal. We always end our Vegas trip by hitting up Mon Ami Gabi for brunch and coffee. It has the best view of the Strip, being across from Bellagio and it's gorgeous fountain. And during the summer mornings, the weather is perfect! Anyway, after ten years, their house blend still wows us. I usually don't do more than one cup in the morning but when I'm at Mon Ami, I'll easily have 2-3 cups with no regrets. At $4 and with free refills, it's totally worth it. I'll admit that the food items are a bit pricey here but they have coupons via text message. Check out their website for more info and if you'd like free profiteroles or burrata during your next dining experience!

Rating: 5/5 :) 

Go-to house blend coffee, lovely view, and go-to Pradas. 

Lovely morning brew! I think I need a refill soon! ;)

2. Sambalatte:  I started coming here a few years back when it first opened and their Nutella latte with almond milk always wins me back. Their coffee beans are legit and come directly from Brazil. The owner, Luis Oliveira, lived in Rio, worked at 4-5 star diamond resorts for 28 years, and traveled through Europe and South America to find the best coffee. And now...he created Sambalatte! Now, having gone to Brazil and trying a lot of Brazilian coffee (more on this is my next post), I've learned that I'm not a huge fan of Brazilian coffee :(; however, I do appreciate how their beans come from sustainable farms in Brazil and I think this place knows how to brew coffee.

I actually came here after seeing it on MyVEGAS. If you're unfamiliar with this, it's from MLife and is an app on your phone as well as on Facebook. Basically you gamble with their free money or purchase more of their money and use your gold coins to get free stuff in Vegas. I've gotten free drinks, desserts, and food. You can also use it on hotel room deals and even free play if you're staying at a particular MLife hotel. 

Anyway, I used a buy one get one deal and got the Nutella almond milk latte. I've gotten. Sweetened almond milk latte and a vanilla almond milk latte. I liked my drinks but I do feel like you can taste the slightly burned almond milk in some of their drinks, not so much with the almond milk, though. My SoCal friend and I went earlier this month and she enjoyed her coffee, even though she also doesn't like Brazilian coffee but I thought my sweetened latte was a little too sweet and slightly burned. I don't like how their syrups are Grocery brands and not their own recipe but it's ok.

Bottom line: come here with the buy one get one deal With MyVEGAS and either get the Nutella latte or a regular coffee.  Without the deal, this place is pricey and adding almond milk increases your price to over $6 for one drink.!

Rating: 4/5 for Nutella latte with the MyVEGAS deal 

Beans from Brazil just chilling in the coffee shop :)

Sweetened almond milk latte-first time trying it but it was a tad bit too sweet and a bit burned... 😕  

Nutella latte with almond milk! It's a winner! 😀

3.  Espressamente Illy: I started coming here a few years ago when I stayed fruether down the Strip toward Venetian. I found this place through Yelp and I'll admit, it's not the best coffee I've had, but in Vegas, it's one of my favorites. I haven't been there since April of 2016 but the prices were so cheap! I would get a vanilla latte with almond milk for $5.45! In Vegas and in the boyfriend Venetian shopping center, that's pretty damn cheap! They use grocery store syrups but their lattes are never bitter with almond milk. Their service is also spectacular! I came here for three days straight during a trip two years ago and the lady ringing me up would remember me and would give excellent service. I highly recommend!

Rating: 4/5

4. Starbucks: I don't normally recommend this  it if you have gift cards or a gold card, you might as well come here. You'll get the same quality coffee elsewhere and at least you get perls at Starbucks. There are several locations throughout the Strip, most notably in The Mirage and the Crystals shopping center.

Places to avoid!!! 

1. Va Bene Caffé: I...can't...stand...this place. I've come here a few times because I was staying at Aria and Cosmopolitan during a couple of different stays and it was one of the only options around. Aria used to have a coffee shop that was similar to Va Bene as well but luckily it shut down this past year. So why do despite this place?! They charge $7 for a vanilla almond milk latte and it's not even good! You're basically paying for a drink from Cosmo and while the Cosmo has some of the best restaurants on the Strip, avoid it at all costs for the coffee.

Rating: 2/5

2. Jean Phillipe Patisserie: their pastries and cakes are very tasty and you can get MyVEGAS deals for those but their coffee is overpriced and not very good. I've gone to both the Aria and the Bellagio locations and their almond milklattes are super bitter and unappetizing. Their prices are expensive as well! Expect to pay between $6-$7 for an almond milk latte. $1 more for almondmilk.

3. The Coffee Bean: this used to be my go-to because they give you the bigger sized cups and for a medium-sized vanilla almond milklatte, at $6.50 it's not terrible. However, I think it's too sweet now even with half powder. I think it's because their almond milk is also sweetened and it's an almond coconut blend. Again, it's decent for pricing with the bigger size and it's in the Forum shops at Planet Hollywood, but the quality is kinda crappy. Maybe cuz I live in Cali now and I don't like coffee chains very much?

Rating: 3/5

~•~•I'll continue to report back once I find some more spots! Free free to comment with your favorite spots, too! 😃~•~•