but is it? >> bondi: what is the rest of the country? i don't know, but it's that place where they all leave and come here. ♪ i took a walk through this beautiful world ♪ ♪ felt the cool rain on my shoulder ♪ ♪ found something good in this beautiful world ♪ ♪ i felt the rain getting colder ♪ ♪ sha la la la la sha la la la la la ♪ ♪ sha la la la la sha la la la la la la ♪ >> bondi: i can go to the desert, but i am not going to get there by accident. but that's part of the whole experience of the desert is that you know, it ain't friendly, it ain't nice, it ain't good, you know? you're, you're out here, you know, a half a mile. it doesn't matter if you're a half a mile out or you're 20 miles out. you know, there's no reason to walk a mile further, because you're already in infinite desolation. sin city was true, it was real. part of moving out here was you were never going to see the family again. i mean, that was it. i'm moving to vegas and you ain't coming to see me and i ain't coming to see you, and i mean, that's the character of the city. but it was really was the, you know the pit of the -- of america. it wasn't that somebody came out here because, "i want to make a million bucks." it was, "i'm going to come out here, i'm going to survive, and you all ain't going to bug me anymore back home. " >> anthony: in vegas, there's winners and losers, and god knows, i've been both. in a place like this where you can lose your shirt on the unlucky turn of a card, you need a friend. and for my sins, i got ruhlman. currently evading prosecution in just about every jurisdiction from his hometown cleveland to grand forks, wanted for bail jumping, usury, misuse of livestock, assault, grand theft auto, also the respected author of such food-related classics as "the french laundry cookbook" and "soul of a chef." he washed up in vegas at just the right time. vegas was always the most unlikely of dreams, the longest of long shots, in the middle of the desert. a real but imaginary space that keeps expanding, creeping ever larger across the wasteland. back in the '40s, the '50s, it was a small town. 100,000 became 300,000, became 500,000. then a million. then two. but it doesn't matter if it was 5 years ago or 50. the town has always ended like this -- an abrupt cut and the desert rats on the horizon. but there are comfortable, dark places too. where a man can have a drink, meet like-minded sophisticados of the open west. places like this. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> bartender: it's the good stuff. it's jameson black. >> bartender 2: yeah, that's gone. >> anthony: ah. >> ruhlman: you can do 30 of those. >> anthony: puntridge tavern, where those who have to live it, see it, the things that men do day after day, night after night, in a town where people are encouraged to do their worst. where they can drink the stain away. this is the side of vegas i like. >> ruhlman: this side. >> anthony: yeah, because people here are like, really cynical. >> ruhlman: really? >> anthony: they have a dim worldview. even more dim than me. >> ruhlman: that's hard. >> anthony: you know what this whole show's about? you know, there's a theme. >> ruhlman: no. >> anthony: this is about people who live here. you know, when all -- when all the meatheads come and go, they're still here. these people have seen every variety of horrifying human behavior. so the whole business model is, come to vegas and behave really, really badly. >> ruhlman: i think it's encouraged people to be their worst. they're expected to do that. it kind of makes my skin crawl. >> anthony: really? >> ruhlman: not here. here, i like it. i'm comfortable here, even in my blazer. >> anthony: right, right. is this an easy town to make a living or a hard town to make a living? >> bartender: depends on what you do. 25 years behind a bar, you see some shit. >> anthony: if you were born and bred here -- >> bartender: i am. >> ruhlman: she is. she's third generation. >> bartender: third generation. >> anthony: third generation. >> bartender: yes. >> anthony: are you an optimist or a pessimist? do you think that basically, the human race are good people? >> bartender: i'd say roughly half of them. >> anthony: half. half are going. >> bartender: half are going. >> ruhlman: there are probably more knuckleheads per square foot in the, in the vegas strip than anywhere in america. anywhere in america. >> anthony: yeah, but i'm not, i'm not hanging with those people, man. there will be a few, a few high-end meals during our adventure here. we will be sampling the other side, but there's a, but there's a price. >> ruhlman: there's always a price with you. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> anthony: there are places in vegas where the available rooms are not listed on any websites. places reserved for the whales, the high rollers, the $10 million a night gamblers who arrive by private plane. ♪ bobby flay probably lives like this all the time. >> ruhlman: yeah, it could, it could go dark, couldn't it? could get very dark here. i honestly never thought it would have come to this. >> anthony: well, i was dunking fries 14 years ago, so. >> ruhlman: you have, uh, you've made some, uh, steps up. >> anthony: you're making me feel about -- feel better about all of this luxury, looking back at that. >> ruhlman: yeah, you deserve this. >> anthony: you're right, you're right. >> ruhlman: you deserve this. >> anthony: entering my golden years era. they don't show this in the viagra commercials, you know? they're always running on the beach with a tennis racket. they're never sitting here. you know, go out and kill some young people. he'd be like, throw another poor person in there. we're getting cold. to victory, ruhlman. victory in our time. you always try to comfort yourself in situations like this, thinking, "oh i'm sure there are, you know, people who are really, really wealthy, but they're probably really miserable. they don't know the sort of ups and downs of happiness, the, the, the contrast, the passion that i have." but we don't know, do we? right, like maybe every day is like wonderful. >> waiter: gentlemen, just to welcome you, a little toast foie gras, black truffle vinaigrette. >> anthony: oh, thank you, lovely. >> waiter: here you go sir. toast foie gras, black truffle vinaigrette. >> ruhlman: perfect, thank you. >> anthony: mm. delicious. >> ruhlman: perfect, perfect. ♪ >> anthony: the hadrian villa at caesars palace. a little pad they give you if your credit line runs into the 8 figures. how did i get it? i told the casino that wolf blitzer was coming, that was he was expected any minute. i suggested that wolf might be hungry, and they sent up guy savoy. fortunately, he doesn't watch a lot of television. and i plan to live large until they figure out that wolf ain't coming. [ speaking french ] >> anthony: i'll deal with the fallout later. but for now, we live. >> chef: so gentlemen, this dish is called the "colors of caviar." everything is in layers. on the bottom of the glass you're going to find the caviar vinaigrette, topped with a cream of caviar, then topped with a puree of french green beans with caviar, then a canal of golden oscietre caviar. and we are finishing the dish with caviar sabayon. >> anthony: ah, beautiful. look at that. >> ruhlman: it's rare that i say it's too beautiful to eat. >> anthony: i was just thinking that. oh, speaking of fantastically luxurious. >> chef: so monsieurs, this is a specialty of mr. savoy -- the artichoke soup with fresh black truffle and shavings of aged parmesan cheese. >> ruhlman: oh, man. that's truffle. >> anthony: mm. >> chef: so monsieurs, this is the marmitte. it's a combination of pheasant, white rabbit, duck, seared foie gras, cabbage, and white mushrooms. please enjoy. >> anthony: wow, look at this. that is beautiful. do you feel guilty eating this well? >> ruhlman: i do. >> anthony: you do? >> ruhlman: i do. >> anthony: i'm feeling guilty now, but it will pass. >> ruhlman: i'll follow you, then. mmm. >> anthony: wow. have you ever even seen anything like this? >> ruhlman: i don't think i've ever seen anything like this anywhere. >> anthony: yeah, me either. >> ruhlman: and the thing is, you can see the main pool from the window here. you can see the hoi polloi. >> anthony: i was thinking about inviting them all up to our crib. >> ruhlman: don't you dare do that. >> anthony: for a party. >> ruhlman: no. >> anthony: hey, don't they deserve a good time? i don't know. maybe not. >> ruhlman: not going to happen. >> anthony: we're getting back to guilt. do you feel enlightened and inspired by this meal? >> ruhlman: what are you asking? what are you getting at here? you're trying to get at something. >> anthony: trying to make myself feel better. i mean, i'm trying to, trying to prove that i'm down with people, man. i'm still, i'm still cool. >> ruhlman: this, this guilt, this guilt keeps coming back. you keep bringing up the guilt. >> anthony: you're right, i feel guilty. >> ruhlman: then don't do these shows! what are you doing here if you feel so guilty about it? >> anthony: i don't, i don't. i feel guilty about not feeling guilty. >> ruhlman: that's more to the point. now you're starting to be honest with yourself. >> anthony: you're right. right. ♪ ults with moderate to severe crohn's or ulcerative colitis, stelara® can provide relief, and is the first approved medication to reduce inflammation on and below the surface of the intestine in uc. you, getting on that flight? back off, uc! stelara® may increase your risk of infections, some serious, and cancer. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms, sores, new skin growths, have had cancer, or if you need a vaccine. pres, a rare, potentially fatal brain condition, may be possible. some serious allergic reactions and lung inflammation can occur. lasting remission can start with stelara®. janssen can help you explore cost support options. firefighter maggie gronewald knows how to handle dry weather... ...and dry, cracked skin. new gold bond advanced healing ointment. restore healthy skin, with no sticky feeling. gold bond. champion your skin. with mucinex all-in-one you've got powerful relief from your worst cold and flu symptoms. so when you need to show your cold who's boss, grab mucinex all-in-one... and get back to your rhythm. ♪ the relief you need. the cash you want. ♪ >> bondi: it's so easy to say i come out here because it's the land of opportunity, well, that's really great, you know? but if you're not here for -- why else are you here? there's the good old wreck your life, you know, scenario. that's always pretty popular. but if you change your mind about wrecking your life, now what do i do? there's a lot less self-reflection about why people are here than there is about most other places. what a lost opportunity that is. >> anthony: sinatra and the mob are gone, but there remains, still, a certain sentimental attachment to the way things used to be. there were rules then. a way that things were done. and when they weren't done, there was always the desert and a hole in the ground. also, there were lounges and rug joints and places where a man could get a proper plate of italian american meatballs and spaghetts. thankfully, there still are such places. places like this. the bootlegger. it's a family operation, mama maria's family has been running it for 41 years. you got your veal parm, your fettuccine alfredo, your steaks and shrimps. don't forget the iceberg wedge with the blue cheese, which, believe me, you want. >> laura: good evening, ladies and gentlemen. welcome to the bootlegger. thank you very much. this is charlie shaffer, my esteemed father. my name is laura shaffer and, uh, we're your entertainment for the evening. ♪ i've got the blues i feel so lonely ♪ ♪ i'd give the world if i could only make him understand ♪ ♪ oh, that surely would be grand ♪ >> anthony: the bootlegger has a reputation for being a locals' joint. and it is. but there's a lot of out-of-towners, too. sentimental fools like me, who, if they don't exactly miss frank sinatra, definitely miss dino and louie prima and keely smith. >> laura: when i was 19 i got my first show on the strip, and it was a small casino which is not there anymore now. it's been imploded for something newer, bigger, and better. ♪ oooooooh baby won't you please come home? ♪ what i do, anyway, it's part jazz, part nostalgia, but i mean, obviously i do it with a heavy dose of nostalgia because i'm recreating the whole look, not just singing the old songs. which is what makes it fun for me and -- ♪ to call your name when you left you broke my heart. ♪ >> anthony: pick one -- dean martin or frank sinatra. you get to see one of them live in a small room like this. >> laura: si -- uh, frank sinatra. >> anthony: i'm going with dino. >> laura: i like dino as a person better, because i have never heard anybody say anything bad about him. >> anthony: whereas sinatra, you'd have a hard time hearing something good. there does seem to be a soundtrack to old vegas. >> laura: a soundtrack upon check-in? >> anthony: a soundtrack, right. yeah, yeah, yeah. does that help? >> laura: who, me, or any other entertainer? >> anthony: yeah, does it help you? well, an affection for the classics. an expectation that while i'm here i should hear some standards. >> laura: i don't know if there's a certain place that people stay who are sentimental about las vegas because there are very few hotels left that were there in the old days. they have all been imploded. >> anthony: they've recreated ancient rome, sort of, and the amalfi coast and paris. you would think somebody would want to recreate vegas. i'd go there. >> laura: i'd work there. >> anthony: yeah. ♪ every hour, every day you will hear me say ♪ ♪ oh baby won't you please come on home baby won't you please come home ♪ ♪ thank you very much. ♪ ♪ >> penn: you know, you used to be able to go see louie primo, 3am, have breakfast, and then go out and watch an atomic bomb explode in the distance. i mean, that, that's a place i would like to live in. >> anthony: yeah. that sounds like a good time. was it better before? is it better now? is it different? >> penn: well, you know. it was better to talk about before. people loved having their mob stories and there's that weird romance of bad people. >> anthony: yeah. >> penn: uh, i don't think it actually was better. i think it was really good if you were sinatra. >> anthony: penn jillette. another cog in the entertainment machine, though at a somewhat more elevated level. of the live acts left in vegas, his might be the biggest draw. i suggested this place because raku off the strip is where every chef i know, who knows this town, said i should go. the japanese modern izakaya, known as one of the best places to eat in vegas. casual, but pricey. pricey because the ingredients -- many from around the world. there's sea urchin from santa barbara, okay, that's not too far, but good. the tuna is from spain, where it's best. the fresh river crab, from japan. >> penn: that was good, right? >> anthony: yeah, delicious. >> penn: i didn't even know oysters came that big. >> anthony: oh yeah. isaki sashimi, isaki belly, juicy deep-fried chicken. hamachi belly, and one of my favorites, fish collar, where all the best, tastiest, moistest, meatiest bits hide their favors. penn has been living here and performing here for over 20 years. he knows. >> penn: the thing about magic is, you cannot see it electronically. many people who come to vegas are people that see one or two live shows a year. and if you see one or two live shows, you might as well see something that you could only see live. >> anthony: right, right. >> penn: but you can never, ever see a magician any way but live. >> anthony: these days, for better or worse, live acts, live performers, are being squeezed out in favor of edm. electronic dance music. it's a deejay's world, and where once they used to say cocaine was god's way of telling you, you had too much money, now, maybe edm is. >> penn: we get invited to all the openings and new clubs. but i simply don't understand it, and i'm embarrassed that i don't understand it. >> anthony: are we just old? >> penn: i think that might be it. >> anthony: or are we non-douchey? >> penn: i don't know. you want to spin it the latter, i'm afraid it might be the former. >> anthony: used to be a whole spectrum of entertainers who existed almost entirely in vegas. danny gans was huge here. wayne newton, they were gods. but, what's the big money draw now? this. ♪ come ye lords and princelings of douchedom. hear my clarion call. anointeth thyself with gel and heavenly body spray. maketh the sign of the devil horns with thine hands, let there be the high-fiving and the hugging of many bros. for this is the kingdom and the power. now frolic and maketh it to rain. cockpit. power. >> jason: yeah, it is, man, it gets crazy. >> anthony: just press a button and the people respond. >> jason: they do, man. >> anthony: wednesday night at the marquee. deejay jason lima works for the house. tonight at marquee and at other clubs like it around vegas, somewhere between eight and ten thousand people, are going to stop by and drop a whole -- load of cash. >> jason: i mean, it's not just coming in here and ordering a bottle and sitting there, drinking it. you're getting a full-on group experience. >> anthony: the new money. the new vegas. where the take at the big nightclubs is outpacing the take from gambling and slots. where everybody, for the right price, and with enough sparkles, and the right mix, can be a winner. after you finish work, how long does it take for your adrenaline to level off? >> jason: at least an hour, at least an hour. >> anthony: what are your dreams like, man? >> jason: i'm not going to lie, sometimes i close my eyes and i still see the strobes. ears are ringing. still got like flashing strobe lights in my head. they release medicine fast for fast pain relief. and now get relief without a pill with tylenol dissolve packs. relief without the water. feeling sluggish or weighed down? it could be a sign that your digestive system isn't working at it's best taking metamucil everyday can help. metamucil psyllium fiber, gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down. it also helps lower cholesterol and slows sugar absorption to promote healthy blood sugar levels. so you can feel lighter and more energetic metamucil. support your daily digestive health. and try metamucil fiber thins. a great tasting and easy way to start your day. new vicks vapostick. strong soothing vapors... help comfort your loved ones. for chest, neck, and back. it goes on clear. no mess just soothing comfort. try new vicks vapostick. look! oh my god... oh wow. ♪ i want my daughter riley to know about her ancestors and how important it is to know who you are and to know where you came from. doesn't that look like your papa? 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if there is, he would probably be this guy. former mayor oscar goodman. a man who knows, allegedly, and to the best of my knowledge, where all the bodies are buried. some of them, equally allegedly, by some of his former clients. we meet over drinks at oscar's, the steakhouse that bears his name, and boasts beef, booze, and broads. you had some colorful, uh, clients. who was nice, and who was less fun to have a -- >> oscar: well, the truth of the matter is, all my clients were nice to me. because i kept them out of prison. >> anthony: did, uh, alleged mob guys know how to eat? >> oscar: my mother used to say, two things she said -- she's the greatest lady. she said, "oscar's clients don't hurt anybody, they just kill each other." >> anthony: right. >> oscar: and she also said, "oscar's clients take us to the best restaurants." >> anthony: they knew where to go. >> oscar: they knew where to go, yeah. and always treated right. i mean, they were always treated like kings and queens. >> anthony: did the feds hold it against you? i mean, you know, you were just doing your job, but i mean -- >> oscar: they didn't see it that way. >> anthony: they didn't see it that way. >> oscar: they thought that i was a consigliere, as a matter of fact, in order to murder somebody, they had to get my permission. i mean, that's how stupid these people were. >> anthony: anthony "the ant" spilotro, meyer lansky, these were gentlemen not unknown to mayor goodman. >> oscar: well, a lot of people will tell you that this was a better place when the mob was running it. and in many ways, that's true. >> anthony: there, there were rules then that mattered. you know the old saying -- what happens in vegas stays in vegas. and when the mob ran things, there was a certain -- urgency to that suggestion. >> oscar: well we saw that with prince harry. i mean that's a perfect example. i mean, here's a guy who was here to have a good time -- in the old vegas, and that would have never happened. there would never have been a disclosure. in today's modern age, it was all over the world in moments. >> anthony: moments. >> oscar: yes. >> anthony: it says something about the town, that his honor served three terms as mayor. he's an unabashed booster, entrepreneur, drinker of hard liquor, and gambler. and he was never shy about admitting it. i mean, it's unique. it's its own sort of hothouse environment. >> oscar: but that's what vegas, that's what vegas is. vegas is unique. but i'll tell you one thing. you go to the airport here, everybody's smiling. when they come in they're smiling and they can't wait to lose their money. and then when they leave they're smiling after they lost their money. so i think it's very, very special. it's a special kind of place where people can take their basest instincts and just let it, let it fly. i think that's good. i have no problem with that at all. >> anthony: when you come to vegas, you see this. the lights and smoke and mirrors, the casino floors. but who manages the machine? where do they come from? beneath the floors, behind the walls, above the winking surveillance camera lenses -- a whole other world. manned by thousands and thousands of waiters, maintenance people, repairmen, chefs, engineers, plumbers, and croupiers. three shifts a day, they slip in and out of the casinos almost unseen through their own entrances. but it's these people who've seen it all. seen everything. night after night. benny's been working here since caesars opened in august of 1966. he's dealt cards to everybody. >> benny: i've dealt to diana ross, harry belafonte, sinatra, sammy davis. >> anthony: sinatra was not supposed to be, uh, particularly, uh, amiable at the table. >> benny: sinatra was class. >> anthony: really? >> benny: he was class. he was a gentleman. but those were the good days. but it's nice now too. >> anthony: would you describe yourself as a degenerate gambler? >> erick: yeah, i definitely have been, i'm trying to move past that. we have a 2 year old at home. so i'm working in that phase. but i'll always have that gambling gear, there's no doubt about it. >> anthony: erick and erica lindgren are professional gamblers. poker players, to be precise. it's routine for them to sit down to a game with a bankroll of half a million dollars. tonight? slightly smaller stakes. >> erick: hey benny, how do you like my chances? >> benny: good. good. >> erica: that's a trained answer. >> anthony: instead of actual poker, we're set up with a dumbed-down, for the camera version, of texas hold 'em. you play against the house. the odds, to say the least, are stacked against you. >> benny: oh here's a winner! here's a winner! yep, two pair. he's cutting up over there. see how easy it is? you got this game down. >> anthony: uh-oh. those are famous last words. >> erick: all right, let's put out a hundo, let's see what happens. >> benny: all right, now we have a pair of sevens. >> erick: i want to bet. >> benny: okay. i have trips. that's going to be pretty hard to beat. >> erick: you're a dead man benny, i bet again. >> benny: i'm a dead man. okay. two pair! pair of deuces. two pair! pair of tens! >> erick: oh no. >> benny: pair of kings! >> erick: benny! oh! >> benny: full house! >> erick: goodness, benny. >> benny: huh? >> erick: you got a full house. this is unbelievable. is there, like, a cooler standing behind us? >> anthony: all right, well, that works for me. >> benny: thank you very much. >> anthony: this is what we call a learning experience, in my case. >> erick: that was fun. we got away with our shirts. >> anthony: let's not do it again. >> erick: yeah, let's never do it again. i've never woken up like this before. i feel like doing things... and then doing other things after those things. it's hard to explain, i'm just back. crafted with clinically studied plant-based ingredients that work naturally with your body. i feel really good. for restorative herbal sleep, like never before. pain hits fast. so get relief fast. only tylenol rapid release gels have laser drilled holes. they release medicine fast for fast pain relief. and now get relief without a pill with tylenol dissolve packs. relief without the water. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom for me and you ♪ (music) ♪ so i think to myself ♪ ♪ oh what a wonderful world ♪ ♪ ♪ >> bondi: it's easy to find people that'll help you untangle a mess, but somebody's got to be the one to create the mess in the first place, that calls for untangling. where's a metaphor here. easy to tangle. but untangling this -- this is going to be so much fun. >> anthony: anthony bondi is an artist, and a born and bred vegas native. after many adventures, and i'm guessing some misadventures as well, he chose to live here. >> bondi: to what degree am i complicit in the worst of our city by making art that glorifies the city? i don't profit directly from what those people do. but of course i do, because i live in the city. and just that money rolls all around us. but how do we live with it? it's not what, why, and where the people come from who do the grotesque things people do here. it's how do we live here, complicit at it. and that's the big issue is to be able to be self-reflective about the place. or you got to just go and stay high all the time because of the shame. i mean, you know, which is another popular way of dealing with living here. >> anthony: is vegas a friendly town? >> bondi: yeah, always friendly, because that's our job. >> anthony: but i mean, to itself. you know, you're a local. >> bondi: uh -- no, hah. >> anthony: no! >> bondi: not a bit! ha, this town's never had any respect whatsoever for the people who just happen to live here. in the old days, you know, we were co-conspirators in those days. we weren't citizens. the new authority is the new power, it is exactly as anonymous as the old power. no phone number, no access, not a chance. >> anthony: there has been for some years an art community in vegas. you know, like art, that makes your life, all our lives, better and makes us think. granted, vegas is a town designed to make you not think. to separate you from your money in as pleasurable a way as possible. so pleasurable that even after you limp out of town, leaking from your ass with nothing in your pockets, you want to come back and do it again. reflection, not so good. as a resident, what are the general rules of survival? >> bondi: don't cry about being broke. i mean, if i'm broke, more than likely it's because i threw away my money, and too bad for me because i didn't get lucky. >> anthony: don't cry about being broke, okay. what's another one? >> bondi: i'd give that one. well, it's a smile. that is, that is absolutely local characteristic. >> anthony: this is a service industry town. >> bondi: this is it. one of our roles here has always been to take away excess money from people who don't know what to do with it or can't think of a better idea about how to spend their money. we'll always take it. >> anthony: is that worse than before, or -- >> bondi: that -- well, the wrong is that there are people with that kind of income who could put it to so many thrilling uses and can think of nothing so crass and boring than to wave the money in the air and throw it away. how loathsome. and within us, within those of us who live here, is that challenge. this has always been who we are. >> jet: you are sitting at lotus of siam, best thai restaurant in vegas, by far. one of the best thai restaurants in america. >> anthony: jet tile has been here before. an la guy, he came out here to do 4 years as executive chef at encore, a wynn casino on the strip. he's a reigning authority on thai food, but really, everybody who loves thai food knows about this place. >> jet: what you should order here should only be northern. if you go to the back of the menu, it says northern specialties. if you come here and eat chicken with cashew nuts, and drunken noodles, someone should punch you in the face. >> anthony: right. >> jet: it's one of those restaurants. >> anthony: saipin chutima is the owner and chef. now, get this, and it's important -- you don't do pad thai here, you do what they are uniquely superb at. which is, specifically, the food of northern thailand. >> jet: nam prik. >> anthony: oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, of course! love it. >> jet: literal translation -- chili dip. it's really more of like a composed, room temperature salad. nam kao tod is a puffed crispy rice salad with preserved pork sausage. >> anthony: oh that's good. >> jet: jackfruit salad. >> anthony: jackfruit salad. >> jet: jackfruit salad. this is hang lei, a pork curry braised down with garlic and ginger. >> anthony: mm, this pork is amazing. >> jet: isn't that great? and that's northern larb, very important dish. >> anthony: whoa, that looks really pretty. >> jet: this is kao soi this is the food my grandma made. >> anthony: mm. that's perfection man, uh. >> jet: what i love about vegas asian food is, on one street you got the best szechuan food, the best cantonese food, and you drive down the street you get the best thai food. it's a funky, awesome, asian -- >> anthony: how did that happen? >> jet: gambling. >> anthony: but i mean, were there high rollers who come into town and they need the good -- >> jet: a dude with a 2 to 10 million-dollar credit line and a win, is going to go eat a ten-dollar chinese meal because it's the closest thing he has to home food. i'm going to go eat asian food, i'm going to come back and drop 5 million more bucks. and then go home. with mucinex all-in-one you've got powerful relief from your worst cold and flu symptoms. so when you need to show your cold who's boss, grab mucinex all-in-one... and get back to your rhythm. ♪ the relief you need. the cash you want. is now a good time for a flare-up? 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>> anthony: served with onion puree, cream and finished with more, lots more, shaved white truffle. >> waiter: this is crispy chicken skin and escabeche. >> anthony: i'm sliding this off, right into my face. >> jose: incredible. >> anthony: mm. >> waiter: gentlemen, this is your portion of the salt roasted foie gras. then brian's going to come finish it with a clementine sauce for you. >> jose: light is key. light and flavorful. >> waiter: gentlemen this is your next course, kokotxas al pil-pil. >> anthony: this is squid ink, the sauce? >> jose: yep. >> anthony: awesome. >> waiter: this is secreto ibérico de bellota. secreto, or the secret, it's a secret cut of the iberian pig. located underneath the front shoulder. >> anthony: ah, yes. >> jose: this is an homage of the goodness of the sea meets the goodness of the earth. you know the work that goes into creating a menu like this? hold up -- that we put the work doesn't mean it's good. when the food critics, they come. and they say, "the chef was not there." and i look at the food critics saying, it's almost like a lack of respect. who do you think these people are? where do you think they come from? what do you think their careers are? every one of those amazing thousands of chefs, sous chefs, that we have across the world, they are as good if not better than the guys that have the big name on top with neon letters. one role of a lifetime...one sore throat. but she had enough. she took new mucinex instasoothe sore throat lozenges. show your sore throat who's boss. new mucinex instasoothe. works in seconds, lasts for hours. mom, hurry! our show's gonna start soon! i promised i wouldn't miss the show and mommy always keeps her promises. oh, no! seriously? hmm! it's not the same if she's not here. oh. -what the. oh my goodness! i don't suppose you can sing, can you? ♪ the snow's comin' down ♪ -mommy? ♪ i'm watching it fall ♪ watch the full story at www.xfinity.com/sing2 ♪ >> bondi: there is not an acre of preserved mojave desert in the city limits of las vegas. why would you preserve this? this desolation is not nurturing. we can't be here unless there's a lot of technology supporting our presence. and so, you know, there's a sense of the city versus nature. this is not our friend. >> anthony: you'd think looking at the vast lakes, the canals, the fountains of vegas, in the middle of a desert, the flush of a hundred thousand toilets at the casinos and what they bring, would constitute an obscene waste of water. and indeed, water is an ever more desperate premium as the water levels in the colorado river reservoir at lake mead decrease at an alarming rate. but it ain't the casinos that are the culprits. in fact, vegas casinos are a model of water-efficiency and conservation. main culprit? the all-american lawn, a little square of green. robert kern is water police. he patrols the vegas streets, looking for evidence of water violations. >> robert: there's finally some water in the gutter, actually on both sides. this is not their day. we're in an area where there shouldn't be any watering. yet there's water here. so that's what we do, we drive around looking for something like that to give them a little educational visit. "hey, you're not supposed to water today." >> anthony: so you don't wrestle them to the ground, cuff them and drag them in. >> robert: no, no we do not. although we can go to a, a fee. >> anthony: around how much? >> robert: $80. >> anthony: $80. what about the -- >> robert: then it doubles. $160, $320 -- >> anthony: and it just keeps going. >> robert: yeah. >> anthony: it seems to me a losing battle to try to keep your grass green. do you really need a lawn in the first place? >> robert: well, every -- most everyone that lives here came from the midwest or the east coast and it was all lush and green, and that's what vegas was 20 years ago. >> anthony: it was lush and green? >> robert: sure, sure. >> anthony: the city assigns watering days to control usage and also encourages xeriscaping, a landscaping style focused on drought-resistant plants and efficient irrigation. and if you don't get with the program, there's a hole out there in the desert for you, then. okay, not really. you get like a notice pinned to your door or something. but some people, they want the lawn. they got to have it. >> robert: yep. and they can have it, just don't water on the wrong days. >> anthony: how critical is it? >> robert: very. i mean, there's no snow on the western sierras, so we don't get any continued flow into colorado dumping into lake mead. so, unless something drastically changes, which there is no foreseeable relief in the near future, but we got to stay positive. >> bondi: for the first 34 years of the development of a town, you just couldn't conceive of what was ahead. what we had, whatever was, you know, the newest thing that was happening was so spectacular and wonderful and, oh my gosh, we've reached a new eastern edge or western, northern edge. the odds are slim to zero that we're going to extend to yet a further horizon. it was inconceivable. so there's the thing. so what does the desert do? it exceeds our ambition. >> anthony: in vegas, nothing is permanent. it constantly eats itself, tears down, builds up, expands according to no known or easily understood plan. an organic thing, responding to the dark dreams of the american subconscious. come frolic, live like caesar, or make money off those who do. drop a few moist bills at a gas station slot. see the full spectrum of human folly and commit some follies of your own . this is cnn breaking news. >> welcome to viewers in the united states and those joining us around the world. breaking news. sad breaking news this morning. archbishop desmond tutu, a pivotal champion of south africa's anti-apartheid movement in the 1980s, has died at the age of 90. the man known as "the arch" rose to prominence during the period of apartheid of political violence when racial segregation was enforced by the minority it