Backstage Country

Downtown Brew Festival Comes to Las Vegas

The Downtown Brew Festival is returning this weekend to celebrate the local craft brew community. And this makes me happy because I love a good beer. The annual beer and…

Downtown Brew Festival

The Downtown Brew Festival is returning this weekend to celebrate the local craft brew community. And this makes me happy because I love a good beer. The annual beer and food party features more than 200 brews from 60 different breweries, including some of my favorite local spots, like Able Baker Brewing on Main Street In The Arts District (Downtown), Big Dogs Brewery, which is located on North Rancho and a Vegas mainstay, and HUDL Brewing.

The Downtown Brew Festival Low-Down

Guests at The Downtown Brew Festival can also get their grub on and indulge in tasty bites from more local favorites, Fast Eddies Burger, Empanada Factory, and another of my favorites, The Glazed Nut Hut (No Comment), among others. The festivities will also feature Live music and interactive activities that will keep the energy rocking and the fun times flowing for all of us beer-drinking folks. 

Downtown Brew Festival History

Founded in 2011, Downtown Brew Festival is Las Vegas’ iconic celebration of “backyard” craft beer. Everyone from local and guest breweries has been offering more than 200 beers every year. The annual Brew Festival has also featured music and some of the best Food Trucks in the city, every year. In other words, This beer and food party is a blast, so much so, I recommend getting an Uber afterward.

The Downtown Brew Festival is going down on Saturday, October 19th. And if you're broke like me, you can get GA tickets here, and you are welcome to roll in at 5 p.m. However, if your car has all its windows, and you can afford the price of gas right now, well then, your VIP tickets are here. Plus you get to start the party early an hour earlier (4 p.m.).

More information about Downtown Brew Festival and all the good stuff is available at downtownbrewfestival.com,

5 Must-See TV Shows Set In Las Vegas

What are your favorite TV shows set in Las Vegas? It's the entertainment capital of the world, and there are plenty of TV programs to choose from.

While iconic movies like The Hangover and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas might be the first to come to mind when you think of programming set in Vegas. However, those are movies and we're talking TV shows right now! Movies get enough chatter, and now it's time to highlight the little guy on the small screen. If you're looking for some TV shows set in Las Vegas to watch, you can't go wrong watching these 5 shows.

What Are The Best TV Shows Set In Las Vegas?

Hollywood might get most of the attention when it comes to entertainment, but we all know where the best place for it really is. Not only are there great shows to see at the various resorts and stages around town, there have been many fantastic shows that chose Las Vegas as its setting. Honestly, some of the biggest shows in TV history were set right here in Vegas.

Sure, when you think of Sin City, TV shows probably aren't the first thing that comes to mind. There's a lot more happening here to distract you. The bright lights can be pretty distracting and can lead you to thinking of several other things. There's the live shows, the residencies, and all the fun you can have at the casino. Then, there were many blockbuster movies set in Vegas that got a lot of attention. Am I too bold if I say that The Hangover (the first one, obviously) was the most recent quotable comedy movie? Even though that came out back in 2009 I don't think anything quotable has come out since then. Am I wrong on that? I'd be happy if you could provide a more recent example.

Only going with 5 TV shows set in Las Vegas posed a unique problem--it's a small number and there have been lots of shows that take place here. So, I'm going to have to name some Honorable Mentions before we get to the 5 final shows that actually ended up making the list. Bad Ink was big for a while and so was American Restoration, both of those were based here. Dr. Vegas was an interesting show but has no business making the final 5. I also didn't include any older shows because I haven't watched them and it wouldn't be fair to put a show on the list that I haven't seen. Ready for the list? Check out the best shows set in Sin City below! Have you seen all of these?

CSI

Not only is CSI one of the greatest shows set in Las Vegas--it's one of the best shows ever. The Las Vegas version was the first in the CSI franchise and ended up having spin-offs such as: CSI: New York, CSI: Miami, CSI: Cyber, and a revival series CSI: Vegas. At one point, it was the most successful show on CBS and was a national phenomena. The show was so big it gave real life Crime Scene Investigators problems known as the "CSI effect" where people thought they knew more than the professionals thanks to the show. It's a great show and does a good job showcasing Las Vegas.

Hacks

If you haven't seen Hacks on Max you are missing out! It is so funny and the cast is phenomenal. It stars Jean Smart, Hannah Einbinder, and Kaitlin Olson. The show has won 6 Emmys including Best Actress, Best Writing, and Best Directing. The show follows legendary Vegas comic Deborah Vance as she struggles to regain her former glory and hires a young writer to help out. The chemistry between the 2 is great. It's a funny show for anyone, I love it just as much as my parents do. Actually, they might even like it more than I do!

Las Vegas

It's pretty where Las Vegas took place based on the title. The NBC show starred James Caan, Josh Duhamel, James Lesure, and Nikki Cox. The show started in 2003 and concluded in 2008. The show follows a security team at a Vegas casino. It was pure Sin City. It was a powerful cast with some serious star power! Definitely a must-see show set in Vegas.

GLOW

GLOW follows a Los Angeles actress who moves to Las Vegas and discovers an amazing world of women's wrestling and gets involved in the scene. It's funny, it's engaging, and it's very Las Vegas. It has a unique cast made up of Alison Brie, Marc Maron, Sydelle Noel, and Betty Gilpin. The show ran for 3 seasons on Netflix. It came to an unexpected end due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Flip Or Flop Vegas

For the record, I love HGTV but I can't stand Flip Or Flop (the original). Both of the hosts annoy me and I don't trust them. Having said that, Flip Or Flop Vegas has different hosts who I can actually tolerate. However, it's not about the hosts. It's all about the beautiful homes and what they do with them. Is it my favorite show on HGTV? No (that's Rock The Block) but it's good enough to recommend. However, Flip Or Flop the original you should avoid because those 2 hosts are something else.

carlotaAuthor
Carlota is the music director and midday on-air personality for KXTE Las Vegas. She has been with the station since July of 2023. Carlota has been in the Las Vegas market since 1998, First with KXTE, 92.3 KOMP for 18 years, and now back with KXTE. She is known mostly for her on air work but also writes about Las Vegas happenings and where to find the best tequila in Sin City.