Have you ever been dining at a restaurant and thought, “Wouldn’t this whole experience be better with Lovecraftian horrors?” If you have, then there’s a special place waiting for you in Sin City, where you can watch Atlantis burn while digging into a top-tier Godiva chocolate cheesecake (which we think is the best option on the Cheesecake Factory’s menu). Through the labyrinth of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, there’s a dining hall that gets front row seats to a show called “The Fall of Atlantis.”
Choral music rings in front of the classical architecture as animatronic statues rise from the ground to perform the show, telling the story of King Atlas choosing one of his children to become his successor. The show is about 90% family drama, but in the last act, a giant monster takes form as Atlantis falls to ruin. Water fountains, pyrotechnics, and a smoke machine set the scene as the monster screeches and spreads its wings like something straight out of an H.R. Giger sketchbook. All of this occurs above an aquarium where, thankfully, the fish don’t seem too bothered.
Where to dine and watch the show
“The Fall of Atlantis” is part of the Forum Shops in Caesars Palace, a hotel and casino hotspot in Las Vegas known for its flashy-meets-classical aesthetic. It’s a foodie’s paradise, hosting restaurants by celebrity chefs such as Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis, and Gordon Ramsay. You might even recognize the backdrop from the “Hell’s Kitchen” cooking competition series. Caesars Palace, among its many shops and restaurants, also happens to have a Cheesecake Factory where you can watch the show from the front patio.
While some Cheesecake Factory dishes aren’t so dreamy, this Las Vegas location isn’t witness to any nightmares. The robots in “The Fall of Atlantis” are similar to the Chuck-E-Cheese band — the animatronics are a little quirky, but they’re not supposed to be scary. The Atlantis crew was sculpted by Advanced Animations, a team of artisans who have brought characters to life for Universal Studios and Disney theme parks. A lot of hard work and detail went into making the lifelike gods and monsters of Atlantis (and plenty more work maintaining them). While you can dine outside and get a front row seat to the spectacle, those with a sensitive stomach can rest easy and enjoy their dinner without having a fright as indoor seating is also available away from the show.
