Las Vegas Archives - Nolan Dalla

Posted by Nolan Dalla on Jun 30, 2026 in Blog | 0 comments

Rage Against the Machine

“A man’s got to know his limitations.”

— Dirty Harry

The one thing I’m going to miss when driverless autos take over the world is — the car horn.

With driverless automation, there won’t be a need for car horns anymore. Think about it.

I love to use (e.g. abuse) my car horn. It’s the sword of road justice, and the war canon of revenge. “Death Wish” and vigilante god Charles Bronson be damned, we can’t run over people or smash into stupid drivers to teach them a lesson. That’s what the car horn is for. A weapon. A pacifier. Hey jerk who cut me off in traffic…..enjoy the sound of my middle finger.

Whaaaaaaaaa!……Whaaaaaaaaaa!…..Whaaaaaaaaa!

That said, what i witnessed today near The Strip in Las Vegas made me think and it made me laugh. Here, I’ll explain.

What made me *think* was this: When driving, there’s construction and detours and traffic cones everywhere. Especially here in Las Vegas. It’s common to see three-lane boulevards toothpaste-squeezed into a narrow single lane of passage. Of course, this always happens around rush hour. When I’m in a hurry. When late. Move it, you fucking shits!

When traffic *merges*, there’s an unwritten drivers’ code. One car from one lane, and another car from the next. It’s like a zipper. Most drivers understand the code and merge with the flow.

Well, driverless taxis have no conscience. They don’t make friends. They don’t care about the other driver and upsetting the natural order of the universe.

I watched on Desert Inn as a Zoox, which is one of those cube-looking robotic taxis merged with traffic but then didn’t adhere to “the code.” Zoox saw a lane and an opportunity and darted into the free space. Well, that set of the driver in front of me like a ticking time bomb.

This isn’t a hit piece on driverless vehicles. I’m generally supportive of technology and things that improve public safety. However, witnessing this merge traffic situation made me think about it. There is no substitute for a hand wave. There is no robot that understands common courtesy. In essence, driverless cars see the road as war zones. They flood the space. They conquer the odometer. The conquest is in getting from Point A to Point B without having to pay the labor cost of a driver.

I mentioned that I laughed, and I’ll explain that now, too. The driver who festered with entitlement and felt he was cut off because the road code was violated by the Zoox taxi robot blasted his horn like he was Curtis LeMay raining down flames on Tokyo. He let that cube taxi have it. Whaaaaaaaaa! …… Whaaaaaaaaaa! …..Whaaaaaaaaa!

I watched from afar and behind, wondering what the noise-fuckery was all about. Doesn’t that horn-hog driver know the auto-robot taxi is basically like a computer chip affixed to a satellite signal? No one is watching, or listening — pal. Oh, except for the terrified tourist family Zoox passengers probably from Nebraska wondering who the fuck the road rage terrorist is that’s blasting his horn like a psychopathic madman.

Watching this clash of intellect and technology in front of my eyes, I felt like blasting my horn at the asshole just to make it a fair fight. But instead, I just shook my head and lectured Marieta with one of my pearls of road wisdom.

“Look at that jerk-off. Why is he blasting his horn at an Zoox taxi? The robot can’t hear the horn and that guy looks like a fool! Doesn’t he know how stupid he looks?”

Marieta (who is used to my rants and has developed her own special skill set micromanaging my outrage-rant-chaos) deadpanned the perfect delivery of a retort:

“You mean like when you scream at the television when watching the news and sports?”

Pregnant pause. About ten seconds of dead silence filled the front seat.

Softly nodding. Sheepish half grin. Head down. Point conceded. Defeat acknowledged.

Yes indeed — a man’s got to know his limitations.

Posted by Nolan Dalla on Jun 20, 2026 in Blog, Las Vegas | 0 comments

Saying Goodbye to Tony

SAYING GOODBYE TO TONY

When I moved to Las Vegas in 2002, there were four Tony Roma’s restaurant locations spread all over town. I tried them all–many, many times.

Tony Roma’s wasn’t just a good place to eat. It was a meeting destination, err make that a “meating” destination. It always was reliable. It was a spot that most people could agree on, at least it was back then. And there always seemed to be a wait at the door, the sure sign of good food.

Tony Roma’s initially started out in Miami, and by 1972 the chain had opened up it’s first Las Vegas location. No one would call it fine dining or anything fancy. And the spartan surroundings resembled a Denny’s more than a luxury steakhouse. TR’s wasn’t destined to win any Michelin stars. But, it was — affordable. Half rack of ribs was around $20 (back then). Full rack cost $22. So, for just $2 more, you got twice as many ribs. Plus two sides.

As for memorable meals–I’ve lost count. The food wasn’t particularly memorable. It was pretty much always the same, which is what we all expected. Here in Las Vegas, I remember dinners from nearly 30 years ago:

— Stu Ungar and Mike Sexton and I went to the Tony Roma’s on E. Sahara about a month before Ungar’s death.

— That same location was where the real car explosion happened back in the 1980s, when Lefty Rosenthal’s Cadillac blew up in an assassination attempt (featured in the movie “Casino”).

— When I worked as the PR Director for Binion’s Horseshoe, I often ate in our steakhouse. But the ribs across the street at Tony Roma’s in the Fremont were a special treat where I went with friends all the time. I must have enjoyed 60-70 meals at that flagship location.

— Tony Roma’s used to have a spot at the old Stardust. Again, this was the restaurant that was really tied to the “old” Las Vegas. Those were the good times when Friday nights included dinner at TR’s, a free radio show and handicapping seminar with weekly picks during NFL season inside the sportsbook, where we naturally also put in a few bets.

— Tony Roma’s even opened a location closer where I live on the west side of Las Vegas. This store never got the crowds of the other spots, so they began running Happy Hour specials.

— The last time we went to a Tony Roma’s was back in February. But we made the mistake of going to the Fremont location (which by then was the only one left in Las Vegas) and we showed up at 5 pm when they opened and the line was out the door and around the block. Somebody told me this was a daily thing because TR’s offered an early prime rib special and every grizzled local in the city must have gone there at least once a week. We looked at the line with perhaps 150 people, and said fuck it. We left. Reminds me of the old line — “nobody goes to that restaurant anymore, it’s too crowded.”

I kinda’ wish I’d stuck it out and dined one last time at Tony Roma’s. Had I know that final store would close, as they did last month, I’d have paid my respects. In fact, I didn’t know until very recently that the TR’s had closed. That idea seemed unthinkable. I mean, it was packed every night. There was always a wait. Naturally, a “wait” naturally meant many bored diners wandered over the video poker machines, or the pit, or hit the sportsbook — just steps away. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say I had quite a few $250 rib dinners at the Fremont Casino Tony Roma’s. But hey, I did get to enjoy the full rack. Oh, and damn the Phillies.

I don’t get it. I don’t understand why a no-frills casino downtown would want to lose a people magnet like Tony Roma’s. There’s one report the casino wants to expand the fancy restaurant next door, so they’ll knock down a few walls. The very last thing this city needs is another snooty high-dollar steakhouse.

I do miss the golden days when we could pull right up into the Fremont, complimentary valet the car inside their garage for a $3 tip, make a sports bet, enjoy a giant margarita, and two people could eat and leave happy and full. It was a reason to go downtown, and sadly there are far fewer and fewer reasons each time I read the news and see a story like this one.

Good article here, worth reading — and remembering. CLICK HERE

Bye Tony, thanks for the memories.

Posted by Nolan Dalla on Apr 28, 2026 in Blog | 0 comments

Women Rule: Did You Know This About Nevada?

WOMEN RULE:
DID YOU KNOW THIS ABOUT NEVADA?

This past Saturday, I had the rare opportunity to spend the afternoon with Congresswoman Susie Lee. She’s been a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since the 2018 mid-term election. Rep. Lee represents most of the west side of Las Vegas, including my home district.