Q: Great place to get lunch.

A: positive

Q: EZ Pawn is a very trustworthy establishment. I found a piece of art for sale on-line and EZ Pawn staff assisted me through the entire process. Their staff returned my calls and emails on-time, completed the transaction on the phone, and assisted me getting the art piece delivered safely to my home in California. I am a very happy customer and I look forward to working with EZ Pawn again!

A: positive

Q: I have to stop by this place each time I'm staying at the MGM because the corned beef sandwich is just delish! The corned beef is soft and moist. I like to add cheese and coleslaw to my sandwich. Although the coleslaw lacks a lot of flavor and could definitely be better, the quality of the corned beef makes up for it. It conveniently open late so you can come here after a long night of gambling, partying or what have you. The service is super fast! Within minutes, your order is ready for pick up. The downside is there are not many chairs and tables so sometimes you may end up sitting in those cubicles in front of the big sports televisions.

A: positive

Q: I have to be careful with hotel reviews. I have 4-5 star aspirations on a 1-3 star budget. I must be careful not to rate a 2.5-star hotel poorly just because it doesn't have the offerings of a higher-rated property. And this is indeed a 2.5 star property. Based on Expedia and AAA, stars refer to services and amenities more than aesthetics. Hotel #1 with high-percale, Egyptian bedding but no internet, limited room service and no on-site eateries will be lower-rated than hotel #2 that has those services, even when hotel #2's rooms have cheaper furniture and lower quality bedding. So I use stars along with customer reviews to determine whether I might like a hotel. For me, hotels in old Vegas/Fremont are fine as 2-star properties because I'm not there for the hotel. I'm there for the wackiness known as Fremont. I'm not a gambler; $10 - $20 on the slot machine will last me all weekend. I care more about the food, internet and about room safety and comfort than anything. I stayed in the renovated tower section of the El Cortez, and I should say that I won a free hotel weekend through my travel agency. That won't affect my review (although it might have gotten me the renovated tower room with the Strip view, a perk about which I will not complain!) Upon entering the room I was struck with the comfy look and design. It doesn't come across as small. While the nearby California Hotel was almost comical in its extreme plainness, this room has homey-looking, interesting furnishings, like brass pineapple lamps. It even has a cute little sitting area by the window. Truth to tell, the loveseat was very light-weight and the coffee table looked like it came from a garage sale. Somehow, this all came together for a home-away-from-home feel. The room was quite clean, the view was great, and I appreciated the multitude of lighting fixtures. The TV is the older, bulky kind. Internet was $11.99 for 24 hours PER DEVICE. That's just crazy. I tried it with my iPhone and found it to be decent quality with little to no lag or disconnects. There doesn't appear to be internet in the public areas. The bathroom was odd- VERY tiny. The toilet/tub/shower room is separate from the sink area. The shower is basically no different than one you might install in your own home- a Home Depot-style plastic molded shower insert. As tiny as the sink area was, the "closet" and the safe were packed in there as well. Tiny, folks. There wasn't even a light over the sink- light came from the toilet room or from the sitting area. The beds were comfortable enough, with three pillows each (I like extra pillows). I liked the room a lot, really- just not the bathroom. Whenever I stay in a hotel I purposely order room service. Room service here is overpriced but is served promptly and my breakfast was really good. It apparently comes from the 24-hour Cafe Cortez. I kinda liked the Cafe. If I were a regular here, I could see myself with my newspaper or magazine, sitting alone there and drinking my coffee. The international waitstaff are attentive and friendly. I got a really nice credit for the Flame steakhouse, so I invited a friend to eat there with me. The hotel was also giving guests a free bottle of Mondavi wine. The small (but uncrowded) space, low lighting and live pianist give the place a slightly sophisticated air, but the sight of some of the patrons in jeans and old T-shirts knocked down the sophistication level by a few points. The wait staff were friendly. I had the French onion soup as my appetizer, which tasted fine. My friend got the crab cakes and we were both surprised by the small size of the two cakes compared to the price charged for them. They were tasty, though. As for entrees, my friend ordered the salmon. I liked it a lot- juicy, moist, nicely seasoned. Companion said she LOVED it. We both liked the accompanying bed of "sea beans" - now, that was a creative touch! I got the shrimp scampi, which was shrimp on a bed of linguini. I didn't really love my entree; the sauce tasted a little dull. It wasn't horrid but for $21 I wouldn't order it again. We shared an apple strudel for dessert and were totally unimpressed because there was absolutely nothing special about it. Our meal, including the $15 white zinfadel, came to over $80 (covered mostly by my credit), and for that price I want to be wowed. If they want to maintain their prices, I'd like to see originality and a more sophisticated decor. Those sea beans stood out because out of everything, they were a new experience, and well-prepared. People don't mind paying extra for the creatively (and deliciously) unusual. More of that, please! So would I come back? Yes, I would. The place is old-fashioned and homey, but that's a selling point. It's near Fremont Street. Great staff, decent price. I'm trying the Cabana suites next.

A:
positive