Cafe Gelato, Bellagio Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV USA

The trip was timed perfectly – Rachel had a conference in Las Vegas and my cousin was getting married the same week, meaning we’d be able to both enjoy this trip… and I could arrive a day early to support Rachel and meet her colleagues.

I was fairly sick with a headcold our kids left me, so my energy level was at about 50%… thankfully being in Vegas automatically injects energy into oneself, so I was cautiously optimistic I’d be able to rally for the wedding. Plus, having been to Vegas dozens of times, I didn’t mind just relaxing and working upon arrival.

We stayed at The Bellagio for her work, and I joined her team for dinner at Le Petit Maison, an absolutely fantastic – and I mean I couldn’t believe how great it was – French meal in the Cosmopolitan that I would highly recommend…. But tiredness came over me, and I was in bed by 945pm local time.

Up at 11pm. Up at 1:30am. Up at 4:30am. I got out of bed at 6am feeling slightly better, and even more optimistic. Work calls took over my morning, but Rachel and I were in need of breakfast, and she recommended Café Gelato right in the lobby of The Bellagio, so we went….

With 60+ people in line, the juice did not look worth the squeeze on this one, but I noticed a mobile order QR code, and within 3 minutes, our order was placed. I opted for a coffee and club sandwich, Rachel said she’d share my club while also opting for the parfait.

We walked to the front of the line and picked up our coffees and food 2 minutes later… what a great convenience that QR code was! And my goodness, if there’s one positive thing that came out of the pandemic, it was the mass adoption of QR codes.

The club sandwich itself was a hot mess. Half heavy breakfast, half just heaviness, I was hoping for more substance and less “I drank a lot last night and need something greasy and heavy to fill me this morning.” My first bite down apparently didn’t cut through the produce, and the entire lettuce leaf and tomato came out as I tired to prevent cheese from getting all over my shirt.

Meh. This is not one for the books. This is not one Bellagio would be proud of.

We finished up work, checked out so we could check into Caesars for the wedding portion of our trip, and went on our separate ways to reconvene later…