While Las Vegas is best known for attracting scores of tourists to its famed gambling, nightlife, and entertainment, it has other characteristics, such as the fact that Vegas is one of the most ethnically diverse areas of the country. Due to this diversity, visitors and locals can find ethnic cuisines from around the globe in the city. Our Crème de la Crème staff invites you to explore the best ethnic cuisines in Las Vegas.

Calabash African Kitchen

2010-09-18_15-18-41 by zmtomako is licensed with CC BY-SA 2.0

For an authentic taste of African cuisine, head to Calabash African Kitchen at 1750 S. Rainbow Blvd., Suite 8. They specialize in Jollof-inspired West African food, combining Senegalese and Gambian influences. For appetizers, try the akara, blacked-eyed pea fritters, or the neem, which are egg rolls with beef and shrimp.

For main courses, they serve a variety of Jollof rice, soups, and stews, including Jollof Rice/Cheb-Bu-Jen, which includes rice and vegetables simmered in tomato sauce, with a choice of beef, chicken, lamb, fish, or a vegetarian/vegan option. You can also try the Egusi soup with a choice of lamb, goat, fish, beef, chicken, or vegetarian/vegan with rice or fufu, a boiled then mashed starchy root vegetable.

Hafez Persian Cuisine

To taste the Middle East, go to Hafez Persian Cuisine at 3900 Spring Mountain Road, Suite 2. You can start with various dips, all served with taftoon bread, a special bread made with refined flour, milk, yogurt, and eggs, then baked in a clay oven. Their dips include Kashk O Bademjan, a mashed sauteed eggplant blended with walnuts and garlic, mixed with a creamy yogurt sauce known as kashk, and topped with mint oil. You can also opt for Mast O Moosir, which combines yogurt with shallots and house seasoning.

Another appetizer is Tabbouleh Salad, made from bulgur wheat combined with chopped cucumber, parsley, tomato, and onion in citrus dressing. The choices are endless for your main meal, with stews, kebabs, platters, and family-style shareable meals. Some dishes include beef Koobideh, skewers of tender meat made fresh daily, cooked over an open fire, and served with basmati saffron rice. Hafez also offers mixed kabobs, which include marinated chicken breast and beef tenderloin accompanied by sweet and sour barberry basmati rice. Save some room for Baklava dessert, layers of filo dough with walnuts flavored with cinnamon and homemade syrup.

House Of Dutch Pot

For Caribbean fare and seafood dishes straight from the traditions of the islands, stop at House of Dutch Pot at 4255 S. Durango Drive, Suite 110. Start your meal with appetizers, including codfish fritters made with flour batter, minced codfish, bell peppers, and green onions, then deep fried and served with a sweet chili sauce. Fan favorites include the Red Stripe jerk chicken wings, marinated in jerk sauce, or the Feel Good Coconut Shrimp featuring butterfly jumbo shrimp, coated in coconut flakes and fried, and served with sweet chili sauce on the side.

For main courses, you can dig into a variety of savory dishes. Drum Pan Jerk Chicken is seasoned with jerk sauce, marinated, then slow-cooked on a drum pan grill. The Dutch Pot fried chicken is seasoned and deep-fried, then served with their signature sweet sauce. Be sure to try the Escovitch Chicken, simmered in a sweet and sour sauce until tender and deep fried. For one of their seafood specialties, check out the Pineapple Jerk Salmon Boat, which includes salmon in jerk sauce, grilled pineapple chunks, white rice, or rice and peas.

Rincon De Buenos Aires

For Argentine steakhouse fare, check out Rincon de Buenos Aires at either 5300 Spring Mountain Road, Suite 117, or 8820 S. Eastern Ave. You can indulge in succulent beef dishes such as short ribs, skirt steak, filet mignon, grilled meat combos, and more.

Try their Lomito Completo Sandwich with fries for a unique taste of Argentina. This sandwich is as common on Argentina’s streets as the hamburger is for Americans. It’s a savory steak sandwich made from sliced, thin filet mignon or eye fillet steak. Completo refers to the fact that this sandwich is topped with many tasty ingredients, including lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, chimichurri sauce, ham, a fried egg, and cheese. It’s all served up on a bun or rustic bread roll. This complex combination is a unique flavor explosion.

You can also opt for an empanada, a pastry turnover stuffed with beef or chicken, then baked or fried. If you have room to spare, you can choose a delicious dessert of Dulce de Leche or Tiramisu to round out your meal.

Naan & Curry

For the best Indian food in town, visit Naan & Curry at 7425 S. Durango Drive, Suite 103. Begin your adventure with samosas, a crispy pastry filled with mildly spiced peas and potatoes and served with tamarind and mint sauce for dipping. Another great choice is the onion bhaji, India’s answer to onion rings, made with thinly sliced onions tossed in aromatic spices covered in chickpea flour and fried. For dinner, try a popular favorite, Tikka Masala, a creamy tomato sauce with notes of garlic, onion, and ginger, served with your choice of protein: chicken, lamb, fish, or paneer.

Butter chicken is another solid dinner choice. It’s made with chicken marinated in yogurt and spices for 48 hours, making it extra tender, then charred in a tandoor oven and finished with a creamy, savory tomato curry flavored with fenugreek. It’s customary to order naan bread with your meal to dip it into the curry. Naan is a fluffy, round flat bread finished with ghee. It also comes in varieties such as garlic naan, cheesy naan, chili garlic naan, or bhatura, a fried version of naan bread that’s crispy on the outside and soft inside.

The Crème de la Crème of Las Vegas team hopes you enjoyed this selection of some of the best ethnic restaurants in Las Vegas. There are certainly more, but this list is a great starting point to explore some of the many culinary wonders that await you in the city. With so many international restaurants, you’ll never be bored at dinner in Las Vegas.