‘Pawn Stars’ boss Rick Harrison talks Las Vegas tourism drop and buffets’ decline

[ad_1] NEW Now you can take heed to Fox Information articles!

For many years, Las Vegas buffets had been a vacationer jackpot. At the moment, food halls are a giant draw.

Even "Pawn Stars" boss Rick Harrison has seen the evolution of individuals's consuming habits, calling the buffet's decline an instance of "Darwinism."

", 100 years in the past, lobster was thought of poor folks's meals, so all the pieces has modified," Harrison advised Fox Information Digital in a video interview from his restaurant, Rick's Rollin Smoke Barbeque & Tavern.

LAS VEGAS BUFFETS 'A DYING BREED' AS CASINOS PUSH 'YOUNGER AND COOLER' FOOD HALL OPTIONS

The once-famous buffets in Vegas have given solution to stylish Strip meals halls in recent times.

In 2020, Rio's Carnival World Buffet closed down earlier than reopening as Canteen Meals Corridor in 2024.

Canteen Meals Corridor debuted on the Rio Resort & On line casino in Jan. 2024, taking up the previous Carnival World Buffet area. (Rio Resort & On line casino)

ARIA Buffet additionally shuttered in 2020, reopening as Correct Eats Meals Corridor in 2022.

The Massive Prime Meals Court docket at Circus Circus, which opened in 2021, changed a small portion of the venue's buffet.

Regardless of the modifications, the menu at Harrison's restaurant leans on barbecue tradition – the type that takes 16 hours in a smoker.

PRICED OUT IN LAS VEGAS? 5 COSTLY STEAKS THAT CAN CUT INTO TOURISTS' WALLETS

"We do not lower the time," Harrison saidl. "It isn't 15-and-a-half hours. It isn't 15 hours and 45 minutes. It is 16 hours, each little bit of it."

Harrison mentioned all of the meat at his restaurant is regionally sourced.

"Pawn Stars" boss Rick Harrison spoke bluntly concerning the evolving meals scene in Las Vegas. (iStock; Fox Information Digital)

"We're sort of identified for our burnt ends," he added. "For individuals who do not know what the burnt ends [are], that is the fatty aspect of the brisket."

Harrison mentioned he was born and raised in North Carolina, which he known as "principally the barbecue capital of the world."

WHY SOME STEAKHOUSES ARE THRIVING WHILE OTHERS CAN'T KEEP DINERS COMING BACK: 'NOT JUST ABOUT THE FOOD'

His restaurant, which is subsequent to the pawn store, receives 1000's of holiday makers each day, he mentioned.

"Individuals from overseas do not find out about American barbecue, and after they discover out about it, they completely adore it," Harrison mentioned.