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bigup2dahorns

By bigup2dahorns
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ChiTownDoc
ChiTownDoc

So it was worth it.  We did two choppers and threw extra girls on a party bus. It was 2 hrs each way.  Chopper worth it.  Here’s a pic of the party bus at 9am.  

Angry Gorilla
Angry Gorilla

Just a heads up, you can't smoke on planes anymore

RPM
RPM

I!m shooting craps with TJMiller at El Cortez. We both  had good  runs throwing. I  walked away +$1000. We killed it.    20220410_050405.mp4

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Nice Guy Eddie

Nice Guy Eddie 13730

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It came across that the casinos/resorts were caught off guard by the governor's order. Immediately all guests are thinking they will have to wear a mask in all situations outside of their hotel room or outside. Basically a mask when gambling, dining, bar, night club, shopping.

The casinos should have been prepared to reassure guests that if they're eating or drinking, masks are not required at that point. The drinking aspect creates some loopholes. If I'm drinking at the blackjack table, is a mask required? 

Even if I pulled the trigger too fast on cancelling my trip, I'm feeling pretty good about the decision given the Delta contagiousness. 

 

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Incredulity

Incredulity 11876

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3 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

It came across that the casinos/resorts were caught off guard by the governor's order. Immediately all guests are thinking they will have to wear a mask in all situations outside of their hotel room or outside. Basically a mask when gambling, dining, bar, night club, shopping.

The casinos should have been prepared to reassure guests that if they're eating or drinking, masks are not required at that point. The drinking aspect creates some loopholes. If I'm drinking at the blackjack table, is a mask required? 

Even if I pulled the trigger too fast on cancelling my trip, I'm feeling pretty good about the decision given the Delta contagiousness. 

 

I was in Vegas last Oct. during former mandate.

They made you wear a mask when not actually taking a drink  at a table game.

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Francisco 2.0

Francisco 2.0 32590

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Got home late Tuesday from our 5 night excursion.  If the wife or I are not carrying Delta it might be a small miracle.  Masks were in a very tiny minority, and the only time we left Wynn was to go eat at a few other places.  

On the plus side, probably the best haircut and straight razor shave I've ever had in my life was by a barber at the Wynn, so I've got that going for me.  And when the driver picked us up at McCarren, the first thing he said when we got into the car was what dispensary we wanted to visit.

 

 

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Francisco 2.0

Francisco 2.0 32590

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Some guy free climbed Aria on Tuesday to protest mask mandates.  Arrested at the top.  

 

 

 

https://www.reviewjournal.com/crime/man-scales-600-foot-strip-hotel-to-protest-new-covid-mask-mandate-2413351/

 

Spoiler

At the first glimpse of sunlight on Tuesday, Las Vegas-based rock climber Maison Des Champs set out to scale the exterior of a Strip hotel in protest of Nevada’s latest COVID-19 mask mandate for indoor public areas.

Maison Des Champs, 22, said he had been scouting the Aria, a 600-foot-tall skyscraper, for the better part of the past year.

After his grandfather died by suicide during last year’s pandemic-triggered lockdown, Des Champs said, he was inspired to find a way to peacefully protest against Nevada’s mandates in his grandfather’s honor.

“I don’t expect everyone to agree with me,” the climber told the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Wednesday. “COVID is dangerous, and masks aren’t that big of a deal, but it’s what they stand for: a loss of freedom and personal choice.”

By the time Gov. Steve Sisolak had announced the latest mask requirement, which went into effect Friday, Des Champs said he was ready to scale the Aria.

The new order, based on revised guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, applies in counties with substantial or high rates of transmission of COVID-19, including Clark County. As of Wednesday, more than 5,950 people in Nevada had been killed by the virus.

Ropeless, Des Champs began climbing around 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

Less than a half-hour later, with about 30 feet of climbing left before topping out, Des Champs said someone inside what appeared to be a corporate office had noticed him on the exterior of the building.

A request for comment from MGM Resorts International, which operates the hotel-casino, was not immediately returned Wednesday.

Soon after he was spotted, Des Champ said, he was met by Las Vegas police officers at the top of the Strip hotel, after scaling more than 60 floors.

“This reckless act is extremely dangerous & very illegal,” Las Vegas police Capt. Dori Koren wrote in a social media post on Wednesday.

Des Champs was arrested on one count each of trespassing not amounting to burglary and disorderly conduct — both misdemeanor charges. He was released from custody by noon on Tuesday “with no regrets.”

“The climb wasn’t as big of an accomplishment as the courage it took for me to do it,” he said. “I knew I was going to get arrested, and I took the risk because this is important to me. Wearing a mask, staying at home, those are choices that each person should be allowed to make.”

Des Champs plans to protest against the mask mandate — from the ground — at 8 am. on Aug. 14 outside Planet Hollywood Resort. He hopes others will join him in peaceful protest.

 

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Murfdogg21

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I was at the Cosmo this past Wednesday night through Sunday morning. When the mask mandate hit Friday morning, there was a brief bump in mask wearing but by Friday night it seemed like mask wearing indoors, especially at tables, was below 50%. They had security at the doors telling you to put one on, but nobody really enforcing it inside. We don’t gamble a lot, so most of our trip was spent in the pool, bars, or restaurants which are all mask-free areas anyway. Didn’t hit the Rhino to see if the strippers left their masks on or not. 

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Wally Pryor

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5 hours ago, Murfdogg21 said:

I was at the Cosmo this past Wednesday night through Sunday morning. When the mask mandate hit Friday morning, there was a brief bump in mask wearing but by Friday night it seemed like mask wearing indoors, especially at tables, was below 50%. They had security at the doors telling you to put one on, but nobody really enforcing it inside. We don’t gamble a lot, so most of our trip was spent in the pool, bars, or restaurants which are all mask-free areas anyway. Didn’t hit the Rhino to see if the strippers left their masks on or not. 

Thanks.  Was wondering.

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Nice Guy Eddie

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On 8/6/2021 at 9:54 AM, Murfdogg21 said:

I was at the Cosmo this past Wednesday night through Sunday morning. When the mask mandate hit Friday morning, there was a brief bump in mask wearing but by Friday night it seemed like mask wearing indoors, especially at tables, was below 50%. They had security at the doors telling you to put one on, but nobody really enforcing it inside. We don’t gamble a lot, so most of our trip was spent in the pool, bars, or restaurants which are all mask-free areas anyway. Didn’t hit the Rhino to see if the strippers left their masks on or not. 

As I've previously wrote, I just cancelled my trip. As you describe it, my fears were perhaps overestimated but I'm still feeling good about postponing vegas until later in the year or next.

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Brew

Brew 3049

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Heading back in early November for the first time since all this shit started. I’m looking forward to it, mask or no mask. If I can wear one for 5-6 hours in transit, I can wear one around the casino floor. Trying to decide between Aria or the Cosmo again, think I may go Aria for something different.

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Chewbacca

Chewbacca 7830

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3/2 BJ on the Strip possibly almost gone soon, as we have discussed recently. (CET = all Caesars properties)


And that's why i don't play blackjack anymore. Used to be that playing perfect basic strategy gave the house less that 1% edge. Now it's pushing 4-5%. Fuck that.
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bigup2dahorns

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Brothers Kevin and Steve Aoki follow in their famous father’s footsteps with the opening of Kuru Kuru Pa Yakitori at Resorts World (Eater Vegas):

Thanks to the restaurant pioneer Rocky Aoki, Benihana was the first exposure to Japanese cuisine for many Americans of a certain age. The teppanyaki trailblazer paved the way for other Japanese foods — such as sushi — to eventually become as ubiquitous as pasta and tacos in the U.S. “The minute I forgot I was Japanese, success began,” Aoki, who died in 2008, once told the New York Times. Now, Rocky Aoki’s oldest two sons have opened Kuru Kuru Pa, a fast-casual chicken yakitori spot, at Resorts World’s Famous Foods Street Eats with hopes to do for yakitori as their legendary father did for teppanyaki in the 1960s. Though the Japanese-style chicken on a skewer is common in the coastal U.S., it has yet to find the wide popularity that sushi and ramen have. But if things go the way the Aoki brothers want, that is about to change.

“The goal with Kuru Kuru Pa is to blow [yakitori] up so that everyone knows about it,” says Steve Aoki, the younger of the two by almost a decade, who made his name as a DJ performing acrobatic stunts on stage. “We are owning our Japanese heritage and making it as Japanese as possible with anime, manga, and all the familiarities of Japanese culture. We want the Japanophiles to come and spread the gospel. It’s about the cult of it. We want to get to the core, and we want to break open chicken yakitori in America.”

The Aoki brothers have always had a close relationship, and their differences in personalities and skill sets make for a fruitful business partnership. “We have a lot of ideas together,” Steve says. “We’ve always wanted to do [food and beverage] concepts together. I love building brands and food and beverage is in our DNA, so it just made sense.”

As a natural creative, Steve gravitates toward marketing and ideas, whereas Kevin Aoki is more operations-minded. The image and branding of Kuru Kuru Pa — which translates to “crazy” — is attributed to Steve. The menu, sources for ingredients, recipe preparations, and systems are Kevin’s specialty. He sourced the juiciest Jidori chickens, sweet and smoky kiawe wood, and the flavorful tare sauce from their mother’s recipe. “I am different from my dad,” says Kevin as he reflects on his father’s larger-than-life persona. “I am more of an operations guy, my dad was more of an entertainer. Steve has that entertaining spirit. My dad loved being in front of everything. When the cameras came on, he would light up. When they turned off, he’d fall asleep.”

As the eldest, Kevin spent the most time with their father and went with him everywhere — from thrilling boat races to bustling kitchens — until he was 7. He would watch from the corners as Rocky — who he saw as a godlike figure — fiercely pursued his dream of creating an empire. “I had always wanted to open a restaurant and be like my dad,” says Kevin, who started working at Benihana was he was 13 years old. “I grew up thinking that I was going to try — especially as his firstborn son.” He started by working in the kitchen and learning all aspects of the business in the front and back of house, eventually earning his way into management.

Steve also grew up in the restaurants and remembers peeling hundreds of onions a day. “After working in a kitchen, I never wanted to be in a kitchen again,” he says, despite his admiration for their father. Steve was a vegetarian between the ages of 15 and 30, so he steered away from Benihana and instead pursued music — a career that catapulted him to international fame. However, Kevin remained in the food industry, and today he has a thriving restaurant portfolio of his own, including coffeehouses, sushi hot spots, teppanyaki venues, and even a Vietnamese restaurant called 1938 — named after their father’s birth year. Although the Aokis are partners in restaurants in Miami and Honolulu, Kuru Kuru Pa is their first joint venture in Las Vegas.

As with many things in Las Vegas, the restaurant on the Strip came about through relationships. “Huey Lim is one of my really good friends who I’ve known for more than 10 years,” says Steve, referring to the chairman and CEO of Genting Berhad, the Malaysian corporation that developed Resorts World. When Lim told them about the smaller space they had available at Famous Foods, the siblings knew that their chicken yakitori idea would be a perfect fit.

“The chicken has many interesting parts to it that are really delicious that the Japanese eat,” Kevin says. “The nankotsu that is the cartilage of the chicken, the skin, the thighs, the gizzard; chicken is probably the most delicious animal to eat. Ours is free-range. We are going to explore all of the delicious parts of the chicken and introduce them to Americans.”

Steve’s personal favorite is the chicken hearts skewer, while Kevin prefers the nankotsu. The cartilage has a crunchy texture and contains lots of collagen, among other nutrients such as phosphorus, magnesium, and calcium. At Kuru Kuru Pa, the skewers range from $7 to $10 each, and they also offer other Japanese items such as musubi and other entrees adapted from family recipes. The brothers say that they have “a lot of plans in Vegas,” so this restaurant seems to only be the beginning.

Their father was a man on a mission, whose train would stop for no one, including his family. “You had to jump on his train or miss out on the experience,” Kevin says. Now, as grown adults, Rocky’s sons have adopted a similar iron ambition.

When asked what their father might have said if he had witnessed the grand opening of Kuru Kuru Pa on the world-famous Las Vegas Strip, the pair laughed, since Rocky was not one to offer heaping praise, no matter how proud he was. “He’d say, ‘Not bad,’” says Kevin while tipping a flat hand side-to-side with a “so-so” motion. “We know what that means.”

https://vegas.eater.com/2021/8/10/22601345/steve-kevin-aoki-kuru-kuru-pa-yakitori-feature-resorts-world

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Incredulity

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8 hours ago, bigup2dahorns said:

Brothers Kevin and Steve Aoki follow in their famous father’s footsteps with the opening of Kuru Kuru Pa Yakitori at Resorts World (Eater Vegas):

Thanks to the restaurant pioneer Rocky Aoki, Benihana was the first exposure to Japanese cuisine for many Americans of a certain age. The teppanyaki trailblazer paved the way for other Japanese foods — such as sushi — to eventually become as ubiquitous as pasta and tacos in the U.S. “The minute I forgot I was Japanese, success began,” Aoki, who died in 2008, once told the New York Times. Now, Rocky Aoki’s oldest two sons have opened Kuru Kuru Pa, a fast-casual chicken yakitori spot, at Resorts World’s Famous Foods Street Eats with hopes to do for yakitori as their legendary father did for teppanyaki in the 1960s. Though the Japanese-style chicken on a skewer is common in the coastal U.S., it has yet to find the wide popularity that sushi and ramen have. But if things go the way the Aoki brothers want, that is about to change.

“The goal with Kuru Kuru Pa is to blow [yakitori] up so that everyone knows about it,” says Steve Aoki, the younger of the two by almost a decade, who made his name as a DJ performing acrobatic stunts on stage. “We are owning our Japanese heritage and making it as Japanese as possible with anime, manga, and all the familiarities of Japanese culture. We want the Japanophiles to come and spread the gospel. It’s about the cult of it. We want to get to the core, and we want to break open chicken yakitori in America.”

The Aoki brothers have always had a close relationship, and their differences in personalities and skill sets make for a fruitful business partnership. “We have a lot of ideas together,” Steve says. “We’ve always wanted to do [food and beverage] concepts together. I love building brands and food and beverage is in our DNA, so it just made sense.”

As a natural creative, Steve gravitates toward marketing and ideas, whereas Kevin Aoki is more operations-minded. The image and branding of Kuru Kuru Pa — which translates to “crazy” — is attributed to Steve. The menu, sources for ingredients, recipe preparations, and systems are Kevin’s specialty. He sourced the juiciest Jidori chickens, sweet and smoky kiawe wood, and the flavorful tare sauce from their mother’s recipe. “I am different from my dad,” says Kevin as he reflects on his father’s larger-than-life persona. “I am more of an operations guy, my dad was more of an entertainer. Steve has that entertaining spirit. My dad loved being in front of everything. When the cameras came on, he would light up. When they turned off, he’d fall asleep.”

As the eldest, Kevin spent the most time with their father and went with him everywhere — from thrilling boat races to bustling kitchens — until he was 7. He would watch from the corners as Rocky — who he saw as a godlike figure — fiercely pursued his dream of creating an empire. “I had always wanted to open a restaurant and be like my dad,” says Kevin, who started working at Benihana was he was 13 years old. “I grew up thinking that I was going to try — especially as his firstborn son.” He started by working in the kitchen and learning all aspects of the business in the front and back of house, eventually earning his way into management.

Steve also grew up in the restaurants and remembers peeling hundreds of onions a day. “After working in a kitchen, I never wanted to be in a kitchen again,” he says, despite his admiration for their father. Steve was a vegetarian between the ages of 15 and 30, so he steered away from Benihana and instead pursued music — a career that catapulted him to international fame. However, Kevin remained in the food industry, and today he has a thriving restaurant portfolio of his own, including coffeehouses, sushi hot spots, teppanyaki venues, and even a Vietnamese restaurant called 1938 — named after their father’s birth year. Although the Aokis are partners in restaurants in Miami and Honolulu, Kuru Kuru Pa is their first joint venture in Las Vegas.

As with many things in Las Vegas, the restaurant on the Strip came about through relationships. “Huey Lim is one of my really good friends who I’ve known for more than 10 years,” says Steve, referring to the chairman and CEO of Genting Berhad, the Malaysian corporation that developed Resorts World. When Lim told them about the smaller space they had available at Famous Foods, the siblings knew that their chicken yakitori idea would be a perfect fit.

“The chicken has many interesting parts to it that are really delicious that the Japanese eat,” Kevin says. “The nankotsu that is the cartilage of the chicken, the skin, the thighs, the gizzard; chicken is probably the most delicious animal to eat. Ours is free-range. We are going to explore all of the delicious parts of the chicken and introduce them to Americans.”

Steve’s personal favorite is the chicken hearts skewer, while Kevin prefers the nankotsu. The cartilage has a crunchy texture and contains lots of collagen, among other nutrients such as phosphorus, magnesium, and calcium. At Kuru Kuru Pa, the skewers range from $7 to $10 each, and they also offer other Japanese items such as musubi and other entrees adapted from family recipes. The brothers say that they have “a lot of plans in Vegas,” so this restaurant seems to only be the beginning.

Their father was a man on a mission, whose train would stop for no one, including his family. “You had to jump on his train or miss out on the experience,” Kevin says. Now, as grown adults, Rocky’s sons have adopted a similar iron ambition.

When asked what their father might have said if he had witnessed the grand opening of Kuru Kuru Pa on the world-famous Las Vegas Strip, the pair laughed, since Rocky was not one to offer heaping praise, no matter how proud he was. “He’d say, ‘Not bad,’” says Kevin while tipping a flat hand side-to-side with a “so-so” motion. “We know what that means.”

https://vegas.eater.com/2021/8/10/22601345/steve-kevin-aoki-kuru-kuru-pa-yakitori-feature-resorts-world

 

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Red Six

Red Six 131

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12 minutes ago, Wally Pryor said:

What is cocktail service like at the casinos?  I know the pours have been scaled back but not even sure if waitresses are working the tables now or not.

We were there in April during the stimmy ramp-up and before the end of the first mask times, and it was surprisingly good. We stayed at Paris and service was frequent there as well as Downtown. I could park myself at a slot, VP machine, or table and have a drink in my hand within minutes. I don't know how the pours are in mixed drinks; I just asked for straight Scotch and it was good enough for me.

Much better than our last time there at the end of February 2020, when it was awful everywhere I played. Wynn, Park MGM, Cromwell, Caesars, Ex, Luxor, Cosmo -- they all sucked. Service overall was much better this year.

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sidis

sidis 10017

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boots on the ground at Wynn/encore for last 24 hours…

99.999% masked and not fucking around at all. 

busier than I expected but certainly not full throttle. Feels 70%ish. 

aria/cosmo/bell run through on the agenda tonight. Curious to see if it is any different. 

Edited by sidis
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Lurch

Lurch 5950

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boots on the ground at Wynn/encore for last 24 hours…
99.999% masked and not fucking around at all. 
busier than I expected but certainly not full throttle. Feels 70%ish. 
aria/cosmo/bell run through on the agenda tonight. Curious to see if it is any different. 

How uncomfortable is the elevator ride? It was awkward as fuck when I was there in February
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sidis

sidis 10017

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8 minutes ago, Lurch said:


How uncomfortable is the elevator ride? It was awkward as fuck when I was there in February

Most are self-regulating. Just waiting and doing their own. 

One noticeable thing, I haven’t been since summer 2019 and this entire city now just smells like weed everywhere 24/7. Everywhere. 

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bigup2dahorns

bigup2dahorns 3348

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They aren’t really enforcing the laws on the books regarding weed smoking on the sidewalks of the Strip but that could change soon when the smoking lounges open. They just passed some ordinances to allow for the new lounges as places for tourists to smoke their weed. Then we might see some improvement in the smell on the Strip, or not.

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Francisco 2.0

Francisco 2.0 32590

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23 hours ago, Lurch said:


How uncomfortable is the elevator ride? It was awkward as fuck when I was there in February

 

When we were at the Wynn in late July, elevator rides were normal.  Some people masked up; most were not.  A few times if the elevator had 5 or so people in it, others would do a head count and wait for the next.

In fairness, we got home a few days before the new mask mandates went into place and Delta went totally nuts.  

Unrelated to your post; I'll chime in on what others said.  Smell of grass was strong outside, but the few places we ventured into (Caesars, Venetian/Palazzo, Wynn/Encore and Resorts World) we didn't notice it.

This trip was pretty subdued.  We didn't venture further south than Caesars over our 6 days.

 

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sidis

sidis 10017

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Saturday report, weekend crowd is here in force and it feels like a normal trip. That said, mask usage adherence is much higher than I expected. At least at Wynn/ecncore. 99% masked indoors based on my observation. 

last night at cosmo and bellagio, I would say it was closer to 85-90%. 

ive been stoned since Thursday night and haven’t smoked/eaten a thing.  if you don’t enjoy the smell of weed, Vegas is not the place for you at the moment. 

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