text: Set along the decaying ruins of Las Vegas Boulevard South, Rincon Criollo is a true departure from the glitter and gulch of Vegas. There seems to be something of theme developed along LVBS, with a Salvadorian and another Cuban restaurant in proximity to each other. This one is set in a bland storefront, but once inside the atmosphere feels more Havanian than anything else. The food is simple and spicy and delectable: hot crusty bread and butter, as mentioned in another review, spicy chorizo, steaming rice and beans, chicken that cleaves to the bone, yuca and plantains and pressed cuban sandwiches. The staff seems to be all Cuban, and prepare everything in big pots in the back kitchen. They treat you with genuine hospitality, and aren't particularly concerned with turning the table and running up the tab. Sit there as long as you like and peer through the dusty storefront windows at the sunburnt downtown avenues. It is probably impossible to stay or visit downtown, see the humble immigrant businesses and the few tawdry titty bars set along a background of near shantytowns, and not question how so much glamour and wealth could neighbor such impoverishment. \n\nIn any case, turning back to the Rincon interior you'll find one whole wall engulfed by an aging aerial photo of Havana. The picture displays the Malecon sea wall as it weaves along the waterfront. The water is that tepid blue that suggests a photograph from the sixties or seventies. We ate under its shadow and thoroughly enjoyed what might be characterized as a repast, under the watchful eye of our waitress, who bore a helpful smile our entire meal. After we'd finished, we walked back out into the hot Vegas sun and stood along the unforgiving pavement for a few minutes, soaking in the strangely charmless vista of Old Vegas. Strange place for a Cuban restaurant, but in its oddly dislocated way it seemed to fit right in.