Nobu can chalk up much of its success to a steady stream of crowd-pleasing dishes and concepts, which is why Chow is focused on remaking the restaurant’s storied teppanyaki program. “Too often people go into hibachi thinking they’re just going to get all their food put onto one plate and dip it into some sauces. I wanted to improve on that—all individually plated, individually sauced,” she says. “You still get all the fun, you still get all the jokes—but we’ve really elevated the food.” 

When she’s off the clock, Chow is as likely to be grabbing a stuffed-to-the-gills sandwich from a strip mall as she is to be savoring caviar at a fancy bar after midnight. She enjoys that contrast: “For the people who live here, there’s a real small town feel—but with the food and amenities of a bigger place.”  

“I’m not a big breakfast person—never have been—but you’ve got to love a good diner,” Chow says. That’s exactly what you’ll find at Mr. Mama’s, a 12-minute drive from the Strip, where you’ll find quintessential takes on greasy spoon classics such as biscuits smothered in sausage gravy, breakfast burritos packed with crispy hash browns, and made-in-house corned beef. Chow says the proof of the spot’s diner bonafides is in the servingware—and the service. “You know that thicker-rimmed type of coffee cup? They have those,” she says. “You take one sip, and they’re like, ‘Would you like some more?’”

“I was born and raised in Hawai‘i, and if I’m on my way to work and I’m hungry, I’m stopping by to get me a plate lunch,” Chow says. Las Vegas is sometimes called the “Ninth Island” because so many Hawaiians have made the desert their home, and you can find specialties of the 50th state—including by-the-pound poke—at this casual spot. Chow’s go-tos are the garlic chicken and loco moco, an old-school Hawaiian egg-topped hamburger patty smothered in gravy over rice.

Chow comes here for the best banh mi-style sandwiches in town. The “classic” packs in six different meats and cold cuts, plus a generous bundle of vegetables and fresh herbs. To take a deeper dive into the restaurant’s Cambodian roots, try a lotus root salad or an invigoratingly spicy chicken curry.   

Chow is all about the superlative gelato and fennel and grilled artichoke salad at this outpost of the celebrated Los Angeles restaurant by Evan Funke. But the real raptures start when Chow describes La Mortazza, a calzone of sorts stuffed with ricotta, pistachios, and a generous assemblage of mortadella florets. The last time she ordered it, she “asked for a box immediately,” since packing it up was the only way to stop herself from eating all of it in one go. 

Chow worked at this steakhouse when she was an up-and-comer, and now she goes back as a customer to admire the theatrical presentations of carefully sourced cuts of beef. “At Nobu, we want to showcase the ingredient for what it is. Everything else is there to enhance it,” she says. “You find that same ethos at Bazaar. I’m doing it with fish, and they’re doing it with meat.” 

This off-strip watering hole is the perfect place to stop in for a thoughtfully made cocktail on the later side. That’s why it has become a “staple” for industry people, according to Chow. Her regular order is the Bee’s Knees, an aromatic concoction of gin and honey. 

Part cabaret, part raw bar, this venue is steps away from Nobu at Caesars Palace. It’s an ideal spot to take a night from zero to 60 after a shift, says Chow: “A midnight caviar bump? Can’t go wrong.”  

Sometimes you’re in the mood for a good dive bar, and this one checks all the boxes: great music, cold beer, righteous neon. But unlike your average shot-and-beer purveyor, the Hard Hat Lounge serves a mighty good smashburger—as Chow puts it, “like, actually good.” For her, the food is the main draw: “I go for the burger. The drink is a bonus.”