Las Vegas' Mob Museum Has An Underground Speakeasy, And It's A Must-Visit

The Mob Museum, located in Downtown Las Vegas, is an extremely cool place to visit. It's chock-full of Mafia-related ephemera, from a wall from the St. Valentine's Day Massacre to a wide variety of artifacts dating back to the mob's earliest days. But no visit to this museum is complete without heading downstairs into the basement, where a brand new "speakeasy," The Underground, awaits.

This spacious cocktail bar is smartly designed, with a long bar, ample seating, and some highlights from the museum (like original flapper dresses and other 1920s artifacts) in display cases along the walls. Guests arrive through an old door with a sliding peephole, and a large painting on the wall opens to reveal a hidden exit. There's also a fully-functioning distillery on-premises, making corn-based moonshine that's used in some of the cocktails on offer; it's fully open to view from behind a glass wall, so I definitely suggest you take a look.

The available cocktails tend toward the old-school, with offerings including the Southside (gin, lemon, mint, and sugar), Hanky Panky (gin, vermouth, and Fernet), Corpse Reviver No. 2 (gin, Curacao, Lillet, lemon, and absinthe), Blinker (rye, grapefruit, raspberry, and lavender), and Kickback (rye, pineapple, cassis, and velvet falernum). House-made moonshine makes appearances in the Moonshine Mayhem (with moonshine, pineapple, tea, and cardamom) and the Ginger Jake (moonshine, ginger, lime, and spices). The Underground Ale, made in the speakeasy's own brewery, is also available.

There's no shortage of great places to drink in Downtown Las Vegas, but none are quite like The Underground at the Mob Museum. The cocktails are great, and they come with a side of history as well.