Truth & Tonic: The First (Mostly) Vegan Restaurant on the Strip Worth Getting Lost For

^{Truth & Tonic was a beautiful, bright environment to sate my thirst at the end of the journey.}

LAS VEGAS – I stood in the bathroom strapping on my black suede high heels. I'd finally found Truth & Tonic, a wellness café hidden in the exclusive Canyon Ranch Spa tucked away in The Venetian Resort and Casino. I added the final touches to my dress and heels and went out the door, where the cafe would be around the corner to my left.

Truth & Tonic opened as the first fully vegan restaurant on the Las Vegas Strip. It has since added a few “animal protein” options, but it hasn’t strayed far from its initial vision as a breakfast and lunch spot built around superfoods and wellness cuisine, with inspiration straight from the apothecary. 

According to the menu, Truth & Tonic was designed with the philosophy that food should heal, with ingredients like turmeric and black pepper to ease inflammation, avocado oil for brain function, and mushroom powder to detoxify and sustain energy. Every dish comes with a nutrient analysis, vetted by Canyon Ranch's expert nutritionists. 

It's located right outside the Canyon Ranch Spa check-in desk and rock-climbing wall, where you can book everything from aromatherapy massages to fitness and personal training. 

My cardio of the day would come from locating the café. This environment makes you feel special and pampered … once you find it.

Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict are just one sample what Truth & Tonic has to offer.

The Journey

I was meeting a business friend of mine, ergo the dress and heels, who was visiting from Canada. He picked Truth & Tonic as our meeting place. He works for the One Drop Foundation, founded in 2007 by Cirque Du Soleil founder Guy Laliberté, which helps provide people around the world with access to safe drinking water.

I knew myself well enough to give plenty of time to find the café. I am geographically "challenged" and have even gotten lost in my own neighborhood. I've learned to give myself three times the amount of time I should need to find a new place on the Strip.

I found the Venetian easily enough and decided to splurge on valet in the parking structure, a place I'd parked many times in years past. I get there and see a sign that it doesn't open for another 45 minutes. Crap.

I now don't have the time to wind myself down the parking garage to the other valet at registration. I say a quick prayer, drive down to the main floor of the garage, and end up finding self-parking. I park on the sixth floor, taking a quick pic of my car because when I emerge from any casino, it feels as if my memory is wiped.

I looked at the time and realized I had a much shorter window to get to Truth & Tonic. I made my way to the glass doors that led to the casino and followed the flow of people towards different elevators. I got into one and looked at the buttons. You couldn't reach the Canyon Ranch Spa directly from that elevator, but there was an elevator button where you could see that it existed. Somewhere.

Sea of Suits

I picked the right elevator, got off at the right place, and made my way to the escalator that led down to the casino. It felt like hordes of suited professionals greeted me on the casino floor. They're easily identified as conventioneers wearing blazers with badges attached to lanyards swinging as they walk.

Casinos aren't known for making it easy to get OUT of them. I walked around looking at the signs in the midst of beautiful marble, the smells of cigarettes, perfume, and bad decisions.

I broke down and asked someone who worked there where to go.

She pointed to a gold elevator bank in the corner near the escalator I'd just come down from, almost underneath it. I walked in that direction, but there were two elevator banks in that section, one of which was watched over by a suspicious security guard.

What I didn't know back then is that security guard is the gatekeeper. Non-hotel guests can access both Canyon Ranch Spa and Truth & Tonic, but you must show a valid photo ID to pass security. He looked at me carefully and said with all the authority of an exclusive club bouncer who had his own velvet rope, "Go ahead."

Again, there were multiple elevator options, and I chose one I thought was correct. There were a few non-conventioneer men dressed in t-shirts and shorts in there with me, and when we disembarked, we looked at each other and laughed. We now had three or four choices of hallways to go down. I'm sure there were signs saying exactly where I needed to go, but I was more and more unsure as the clock ticked down. The guys wished me luck, and we went down separate hallways.

The hallway was long and beautiful, while feeling ghostbuster-length, where I saw glimpses of hotel rooms being cleaned.

Finding the Holy Grail

When I saw the sign that said "Canyon Ranch," I felt like I'd chosen the holy grail of hallways. I was inordinately proud of myself and walked around the corner, where it opened into a space with cathedral ceilings. 

Truth & Tonic was on my left and Canyon Ranch Spa on my right, with 134,000 square feet of spa, fitness studios, a 40-foot rock-climbing wall, and relaxation lounges. Canyon Ranch has operated here since 1999, which means Vegas has been keeping this secret tucked away above Venetian's casino floor for 25 years.

I now had five minutes, and I hurried into the bathroom and changed into my high heels. It made me think about when I went to see Ludacris at Light Nightclub and how I'd made friends with other women while we changed our shoes. We've all seen women barefoot at the end of the night, abandoning their shoes along with their sobriety.

Mmmmm, shrimp tacos were just one of the (non-Vegan) items on the menu.

As I put my name on the waiting list to sit down at the restaurant, I looked around and saw a lucky few conventioneers who had also found their way here. After putting my name on the list, I sat down on a plush couch outside the café and finally exhaled.

My friend showed up a few minutes later, and we were ushered to a table. Truth & Tonic is a beautiful, light-filled space. It feels classy with flowers on the table, colorful napkins, and bustling service people.

Where's the Nooch?

I look down at the menu, which is still mostly vegan but does have a few meat options. This also explained why I saw sausage at the table to my right, much to my initial confusion. The “chicken” bao buns are vegan, as are the scrambles and JUST Egg frittatas. The breakfast burrito is not, unless you get it with soyrizo, which I admittedly had to Google. 

If you're in a hurry, there are house-baked muffins. And this is still Vegas, after all, so there are mimosas, mojitos, and Bloody Marys spiked with turmeric and saffron. Locals get 20% off with ID, which feels like the wellness equivalent of a comp.

As I perused the menu, I saw there was an option in the scramble to get “nooch.” Until that moment, I had no idea what nooch was or if I needed it in my life. I did another quick search, and according to Nooch.com, it is a “premium nutritional yeast” that comes in different flavors. OK, no nooch for me.

I ended up ordering the strawberry lemonade as all the walking had made me thirsty. I've never had a better one in my life! It was fresh, perfectly chilled, and had some small strawberry pieces in the glass. My friend ordered a fancy coffee. Neither of us ordered food because it was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. 

We were really here just to have a great time catching up. The tables were close together in that section, but far enough away that you could have a private conversation. Vegas has created little pockets of exclusive spaces that can be hushed in a city that feels as if you're vibrating on a live wire. Now that I've experienced this one, I can't wait for the next time I have a reason to visit.

I reflected on all it took to get me there. As I'm slowly learning, the journey had become a part of the destination. I thought back to the unexpected laugh I shared with the men as we got off the elevator, the sea of suits, and the help I received getting to Truth and Tonic. But most importantly, I enjoyed the class, the elegance, and the satisfaction I felt when I finally made it there.

I said goodbye to my friend and headed back to the bathroom. I took my heels off and smiled.

Truth & Tonic is open daily, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Non-hotel guests are welcome with a valid ID. Las Vegas locals get 20% off with proof of residency.

All photos are courtesy of Canyon Ranch Las Vegas