Beauty & Essex

"At first glance, Beauty and Essex at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas appears to just be a functional pawn shop. But step beyond the jewelry cases and wall-mounted guitars and you’ll find yourself inside a spacious dining room with a New York feel. It’s just the right setting to order the Wonder Wheel dessert, a small ferris wheel with a treat on every gondola." - Janna Karel

"The Vegas outpost of this New York bar feels cool, luxe, and glamorous, offering mostly appetizers perfect for sharing with friends. Highlights include grilled cheese and tomato soup dumplings and a dessert Wonder Wheel filled with macarons, small iced cakes, fruity candy squares, and bite-sized pastries." - Janna Karel

"The fruits, pastries, and treats that sit inside the gondolas of the Wonder Wheel are left to the chef’s discretion and rotate (pun intended) often. But the sweets inside are reliably as exciting as the wheel is charming. Think chocolate-covered strawberries, miniature whoopie pies, doughnut holes, and crunchy nut brittle." - Janna Karel

"A pawn shop at the front and a jewel-bedecked dining room are just some of the calling cards at Beauty & Essex from chef Chris Santos at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Order specialties such as grilled cheese dumplings, Thai-style deep-fried shrimp, or Beauty’s Wonder Wheel overflowing with desserts meant to share." - Susan Stapleton

"Walk through the pawn shop that serves as the front for Beauty & Essex, and enter the clubby space behind the hidden door. Like so many Vegas spots, the menu is designed to photograph well for your social media platform of choice, but no item is more visuals-driven than Beauty’s Wonder Wheel, a tabletop-sized Ferris wheel with paper baskets attached to it, holding bites like chocolate truffles, macarons, and more. Spin the wheel (gently!) and sample the desserts in each container. Or just snap a photo." - Maddy Sweitzer-Lamme