After documenting the wonderfully ornate ancient-Rome-meets-American-suburb Mall, I head to a modest casino across the street. You can see it here mixed in with the neon and the juxtaposition of eye-catching shapes. Casino Royale, which evokes James Bondian luxury, is very different on the Las Vegas Strip. It’s a Best Western hotel that features very accessible restaurants.

Surrounded by a McDonald’s and a Panda Express, the Casino Royal features an even more modest chain — my destination. Something that I discovered on a previous trip to Vegas.

White Castle is a burger chain started in Wichita, Kansas, in 1921. They make iconic little burgers that are now referred to as sliders. There are no locations in Texas. I have them once in a while, purchased frozen at the local supermarket. How different would a fresh one be?

This outlet on the Vegas Strip had a souvenir display. I’m not a big enough fan to buy any of it, but it was worth a picture.

The menu looks large but is primarily variations on that small hamburger — they were unexpectedly expensive. I got a single cheese slider that cost $1.69 — remember, these are tiny, requiring about two or three bites to finish. But we are on the Las Vegas Strip, where everything is jacked up in price.

The cheese slider was remarkably tasty and much better than I imagined compared to my frozen supermarket experience. The bun was warm and fluffy, and the layer of onions — missing from the frozen version — made all the difference.

The light dinner I had earlier that night was from Din Tai Fung, an award-winning international restaurant in the swanky and upscale Aria. While fantastic, I was honestly more impressed with the White Castle slider.

For the price I paid at Din Tai Fung, I could’ve gotten a Crave Case with 30 sliders — just kidding. I like how my first meals in Las Vegas turned out. Something new and fancy and something cheap and comforting — good to balance both.

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