See Caramella's Hidden Lounge Speakeasy at Planet Hollywood

Key Points:

• The Hidden Lounge Speakeasy is tucked behind a small candy shop inside Caramella.

• Cocktails start at $25.99. My "Midnight Oil" was fantastic, and the service was better.

Planet Hollywood's Caramella is an Italian restaurant known for its $55 AYCE weekend brunch offering, an outoor patio with Strip views, and a "Social Hour", featuring $10 cocktails and bites.

A smaller subsection of visitors know it for the speakeasy hidden behind a candy shop.

A speakeasy connoisseur, I was excited to (finally) swing in for a drink.

How to Get In

I checked in with the host posted up outside the restaurant and let her know that I was there to visit the Hidden Lounge speakeasy.

She directed me to head straight back through the restaurant to the candy shop, which serves as a front, and the guy behind the counter would let me in.

This is the candy shop you reach after navigating through the restaurant.

As instructed, I spoke with the gentleman working in the candy shop, and he opened the door to the lounge, which is the illuminated shelving unit in the middle-back of the image (below).

No password or goofy "hoops" to jump through, which I appreciate.

I've been to almost every speakeasy in Vegas, and this one was pretty standard.

Small. Intimate. Dark. Elegant.

They say the lounge is designed to have "1970s Italian Vibes", but I can't comment on the authenticity of that claim, as I was born in the mid-80s.

It's a cool scene, though.

I was the first one in, and the room filled quickly. Reservations are available on the website if you want to guarantee yourself a seat.

In my case, I tried to snag a rezzy about an hour before the speakeasy opened, and none were available. They were still able to sneak me in, though. So don't be afraid to walk up.

The Experience

I bellied up to the bar and scanned the drink menu. Most cocktails start at $25.99 and beers at $13.99.

Now, I'm usually a "light beer guy" at bars, so I had no idea what any of these fun-named drinks were... even after reading the ingredients... which I also didn't understand.

So I went off menu and ordered an Old Fashioned, which they call "Midnight Oil".

My Midnight Oil was made with Pendleton Midnight Whiskey, Quintessentia Nonio, Oleo Saccharum, Angostura, and Cardamom Bitters.

Which doesn't sound like a drink recipe.. It sounds like what the 3 wise men hauled through the desert on their way to Bethlehem. Except for the whiskey part. They didn't bring whiskey for the baby.

That said, they likely could have. I doubt there were strict laws around underage alcohol consumption back then.

I'm off the rails. I apologize.

The drink was good. And strong.

Now, I've made it my mission to hit every speakeasy in Vegas, so I've had a few drinks in a setting like this.

This was a top-3 service experience for me, along with The Cosmopolitan's The Ski Lodge and The Lock at Horseshoe.

It's rare to get a bartender who genuinely cares, or is really good at pretending they do, about your plans that evening, what you're looking for in a drink, where you're coming to Vegas from, etc.

My self-diagnosed social anxiety typically makes awkward small talk with strangers undesirable, but these folks were great.

Yeah, my drink was good. But the people made the experience.

Related: See my rundown of Speakeasies in Las Vegas.