The go-to justification for a weekend of debauchery at Las Vegas casinos has long been to cite the quality of the buffets keeping gamblers stuffed between hands of blackjack.
But Vegas buffets — much like the city’s overall tourism — are struggling, and it’s in part thanks to a new food phenomenon drawing away their customers: food halls.
In recent years, several of Sin City’s famous buffets have become food halls. Rio’s Carnival World Buffet shut down in 2020, and reopened four years later as the Canteen Food Hall.
The ARIA Buffet shut down in 2020 as well, reopening two years later as the Proper Eats Food Hall. In 2021, Circus Circus replaced part of its buffet with the Big Top Food Court.
Buffets and food halls both typically offer a wide variety of food options for various palates. Buffets typically charge one price for access to all the food — and the food is generally all made by the same cooks — whereas food halls are usually a collection of restaurant kiosks with cooks who specifically make the menu items from those restaurants. Rather than paying one overall fee, customers pay the restaurants directly.
According to Samiya Jakubowicz, a content creator in Vegas who spoke to Fox News Digital, there’s a common thread linking many of the buffet closures.
“There are only a few left on the Strip, and honestly, COVID was the turning point that really sealed that,” she told the outlet.
Patrick Miller, CEO of Rio Hotel & Casino, told the outlet that the pandemic was a major driving factor in its revamp.
“During the pandemic, interest in buffets continued to decrease while the costs of operating one increased,” he told the outlet. “With Canteen, we’ve managed to offer guests the same selection of flavors with a higher emphasis on quality [food] at an affordable price point that is made fresh to order, rather than sitting under a heat lamp.”
Heading into 2020, the Las Vegas Valley had more than 70 casino buffets. While there are still buffets at several off-Strip casinos, the only ones left on the strip are the Bacchanal at Ceasars Palace, the Buffet at Wynn, Wicked Spoon at Cosmopolitan, and the buffets at the Bellagio, MGM Grand, Circus Circus, and the Excalibur, according to Eater.
In addition to offering generally all-you-can-eat options for hungry gamblers and heat-beat families, many of the casino buffets were also themed to fit their venues.
The Luxor buffet, which closed in March, was themed to reflect ancient Egypt, replete with mummy replicas. Paradise Garden Buffet at the Flamingo included views of live flamingos and tropical flora. Le Village Buffet at Paris Las Vegas featured a recreation of a French village with cuisine to match.
Now, they’re all gone.
While the pandemic did a lot of the work to close the buffets, it isn’t the only driving force behind the shift.
Jakubowicz said that “even before that, Vegas was shifting toward more upscale dining and food halls were starting to take over.”
She called the buffet a “dying breed” in the city.
Food halls let customers walk up and order something fresh — not something that’s been sitting under a heat lamp — and they typically don’t require reservations.
While food halls aren’t often a cheaper option than buffets, they can be depending on the diner.
What they do offer is a variety of price points for customers. Rather than being forced to pay a set price for everything on offer at a buffet, customers can be more selective.
“You don’t need a reservation, they bring in well-known restaurants and chefs from all over, and you can get a bunch of different food options and price points all in one place,” Jakubowicz said. “The vibe also feels a lot younger and cooler, which makes them a fun spot to hang out.”
It’s no secret that Vegas has been struggling to pull tourists.
Long famed for its lavish entertainment and all-hours gambling, Las Vegas reported just under 3.1 million tourists in June, representing an 11 percent decrease compared to the same time in 2024.
Data from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported a 13 percent reduction in international travelers and an approximately 15 percent decrease in hotel occupancy.
Americans’ wallets are lighter thanks to inflation and rising prices across the board — which President Donald Trump’s tariffs are threatening to exacerbate — and there has been a drop in international visitors duriing 2025.
Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley shared during an August 7 press conference that Canadian tourism to the city dropped significantly after Trump insulted the nation and threatened tariffs earlier this year. Mexican tourism is similarly down, Berkley said.
“We have a number of very high rollers that come in from Mexico that aren’t so keen on coming in right now. That seems to be the prevailing attitude internationally,” she said during the press conference.
The drop has been so painful for the city’s coffers that Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley made an appeal to Canadians begging them to come back to Sin City.
“As the mayor of Las Vegas, I’m telling everybody in Canada please come,” she said. “We love you, we need you, and we miss you.”
