Pinkbox Doughnuts and a Carousel Bar With Outdoor Video Poker Open in Downtown Las Vegas

Janna Karel is the Editor for Eater Vegas.

In the heart of downtown Las Vegas, the Plaza Hotel & Casino has transformed its vintage Vegas twinkling driveway into an eye-catching facade with four new projects right in view of the Fremont Street Experience canopy. On Thursday, June 8, the downtown hotel’s CEO, Jonathan Jossel, presented the reimagined Plaza entry, which includes a Carousel Bar where the porte-cochère used to be, a Pinkbox Doughnuts store with a giant doughnut out front, new patio seating for Oscar’s Steakhouse upstairs, and a smoke-free gaming area.

The exterior of the Plaza Hotel & Casino at night. — Plaza Hotel & Casino.

Jossel first introduced the Plaza’s enhancements last year, saying that he hoped they would make the hotel more approachable to foot traffic and generally improve the walkability of downtown. For a car-centric city like Las Vegas, it’s a big swing to close the area that had been reserved for cars to drop off and pick up passengers and transform it into a fully fledged bar. Directly perpendicular to Fremont Street, the twinkly lightbulbs of the Plaza have effectively beckoned tourists across the street for more than 50 years — and now passersby will be greeted by a 12-foot-tall sprinkled doughnut, a circle bar, and the only outdoor tabletop gaming downtown.

The twinkly lights over Carousel Bar, in front of Pinkbox Doughnuts. — Carousel Bar

The centerpiece of what the Plaza describes as its “reimagining” is the 2,500-square-foot Carousel Bar. The elevated bar offers seating for nearly 100 along the perimeter, in booth seating, at the counter, and on the outer rail facing the Fremont Street Experience. At the front is a 14-foot-tall neon showgirl sign. The bar also boasts outdoor video poker machines — a first for the downtown corridor. Below a ribbon of lights are carousel horses that will move up and down when the bar opens on Saturday, June 10. The bar also has a larger-than-life martini glass and other iconic Vegas decor on the way. A cooling system and the shade of the Plaza’s dome keep the outdoor bar temperate. The bar has signature cocktails like the One Hot Mama, a spicy tequila drink, and the Amalfi Swing, a pink vodka cocktail, plus the usual beer and wine offerings.

The entrance to Pinkbox Doughnuts at the Plaza. — Pinkbox Doughnuts.

Adjacent to the bar is the new location for the local chain, Pinkbox Doughnuts. Leaning into the theme of all things oversized, customers walk through a 12-foot-tall doughnut to enter. The interior is bright, pink, and colorful, with the shop’s 70 varieties of doughnuts lining the display case. The store is open from 5 a.m. until midnight Monday through Thursday and 24 hours on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday — just right for a morning coffee fix or a late-night treat.

Doughnuts line the display case at Pinkbox Doughnuts. — Pinkbox Doughnuts

Opposite Pinkbox Doughnuts is Brian Christopher Slots at Plaza, a smoke-free area for slot machines. And, upstairs, the fine dining restaurant, Oscar’s Steakhouse, got a patio for outdoor dining. The upstairs open-air area can seat about 225 people for dinner in view of Fremont Street’s Viva Vision light show. The kitchen also got a small expansion, plus additional staff, to accommodate the additional capacity.

The Plaza will host a grand opening on Saturday, June 10 for the four new venues. They join the Plaza’s other food and beverage offerings, including the Sand Dollar Downtown bar, the Hash House a Go Go brunch spot, and Pop Up Pizza.