Experts suggest the best public restrooms

Millions of Vegas dollars go down the toilet in a different way. Our poshest restaurants, clubs and hotels know that a castle is only as good as its throne. But expense isn't the only factor.

For our list of the best seats in the house, we asked three people who would know: a bathroom guru, an interior designer and a plumber.

Do yourself a favor and skip to their favorite loos.

DAVID BRANDT

Survey editor for Cintas, the Ohio cleaning supply company behind the annual award at bestrestroom.com

Brandt trusts his tens of thousands of voters. His three favorites also were competition finalists. (Ten are named per year.)

"To be in this contest, the restroom has to be memorable," Brandt says, "and these are." (This year's winners will be announced in September.)

1. Zeffirino Ristorante, The Venetian

3355 Las Vegas Blvd. South

A 2009 finalist, Zeffirino boasts custom-made mosaic tile artwork, Carra marble floors, Venetian plaster, Murano glass chandeliers and wash basins, limestone water fountains and private restroom suites.

According to a restaurant spokesman, its owners spent $750,000 on the restrooms alone. According to Brandt, it was not wasted.

"If your first thought when you walk into a restroom is 'Wow,' then they've accomplished what they've set out to do," he says.

2. China Grill, Mandalay Bay

3950 Las Vegas Blvd. South

A finalist in this year's awards, the China Grill conceived of its restrooms as individual, frosted glass pods with LCD screens imbedded into the wall.

"It's a very tranquil setting," Brandt notes.

3. Mix Lounge, Mandalay Bay

Brandt likes the fixtures and the tiles of this 2007 finalist, but what really floats his Tidy-Bowl man is the view -- from the seat itself.

"When you're sitting there doing your business, you're looking out over the beautiful Vegas Strip," he says.

The bowls face backward, out floor-to-ceiling windows 64 floors high.

"Of course, the windows are one-way, so no one can see in," Brandt notes.

LESLIE PARRAGUIRRE

President of Colours, a Las Vegas interior design firm

Parraguirre -- who has designed interiors for the Park Towers, Golden Gaming and the clubhouse at Coyote Springs Golf Course -- says restrooms are where all good designing begins.

"When you go to a property, the restroom is used by almost every guest at one point in the evening," she says, "so it demands attention in design."

Parraguirre says her picks not only look beautiful, they function beautifully.

"Not just meaning the fixtures, but the way you move through the space," she explains. "There's a natural progression through the space addressing the function it's meant to have."

1. The Spa at Encore

3131 Las Vegas Blvd. South

Parraguirre digs the onyx countertops and walls, Crema Europa limestone, and pearl and sand dollar-filled architectural glass designed by Todd-Avery Lenahan.

"From the moment you walk in the door," she says, "it's very clear that the designer intended for every surface to have a sensory impact -- through use of materials and clever design."

2. Red Rock Resort

11011 W. Charleston Blvd.

"I've been in every public bathroom there," Parraguirre says (at least every one without an "M" out front)."And it didn't matter what part of the property the restroom was situated in," she says. "They addressed it at the highest level of design -- from the finishes on the partitions, to the plumbing fixtures, to the use of stone and tile."

3. Vintner Grill

10100 W. Charleston Blvd.

Parraguirre describes this as South Beach: "It's the colors -- bright white and fresh chartreuse green. The second you walk into the restaurant, that's the palate. But when you walk into the restroom, it's brighter."

More importantly, Parraguirre points out, it's a good bright.

"The worst thing for a woman is to walk into a restroom when you're trying to feel beautiful at dinner and have some sort of stadium light fixture that does damage to your self-esteem."

VINNY RAUCCI

Plumber, Hawthorne Plumbing, Heating & Cooling

Raucci has seen some of the best restrooms in the valley at some of the worst times. This man knows his crappers.

1. Ruth's Chris

Steakhouse

3900 Paradise Road

Raucci calls its men's room "the cleanest I've ever seen."

As a customer, Raucci says he's not afraid to sit -- even seat coverless, if necessary (although the establishment's attention to detail makes it never necessary).

"Someone must be in there cleaning them all the time," Raucci says, adding: "And if I had to lay on the floor to change a faucet, I wouldn't be laying in urine."

2. Carluccio's
Tivoli Gardens

1775 E. Tropicana Ave.

Like the man who approved every architectural design of this building, its bathrooms are unique.

"They've got deep red sinks," Raucci says. "You never see that."

Liberace opened this Italian restaurant in 1983 (the Carluccio family moved there in 1988), and employees have reported paranormal phenomena sometimes tied to the former Strip headliner.

"It is kind of freaky when you go in there," Raucci says.

3. Foundation Room, Mandalay Bay

When you enter one of these stalls, an actual door shuts behind you.

"You're in a room, not a stall," Raucci says. "To me, that's cool."

Contact reporter Corey Levitan at clevitan@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0456.