Heart Attack Grill Shuts Las Vegas Site After 15 Years as Downtown Traffic Slumps
Updated
Updated · Las Vegas Review-Journal · May 19
Heart Attack Grill Shuts Las Vegas Site After 15 Years as Downtown Traffic Slumps
9 articles · Updated · Las Vegas Review-Journal · May 19
9 a.m. Monday marked the end of Heart Attack Grill’s downtown Las Vegas run, with Neonopolis owner Rohit Joshi confirming the closure after 15 years.
The restaurant blamed casino prices, “corporate greed” and a city that had “excluded the middle class,” while Joshi said weak tourism, low hotel occupancy and softer spending had hurt tenants for six to eight months.
350-pound diners once ate free at the hospital-themed burger spot, which built notoriety around Quadruple Bypass Burgers and a deliberately over-the-top image.
2012 brought calls for the restaurant to close after a customer suffered a heart attack there, and a daily patron died in 2013; founder Jon Basso also faced a 2019 sexual-harassment accusation.
Neonopolis says other tenants still perform well, but the shutdown underscores broader strain in downtown Las Vegas as the complex looks for new plans.
Did 'corporate greed' kill the Heart Attack Grill, or did its shock-value business model simply become outdated?
Does the grill's closure signal a shift in America's cultural relationship with indulgence and unhealthy food?
As Las Vegas prices out 'affordable indulgence', is the American middle-class experience disappearing from iconic cities?