Las Vegas go hard or go home thread

[kevwun 15341]

I also just tested positive for covid, so this was a heck of trip.

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

Surly has a strong batting average for coming back home with covid recently.

[Lurch 5916]

I somehow avoided it. Figured WSoP floor was ground zero. Booster in May might have helped

[Angry Gorilla 1748]

Coming back from Vegas with Covid as the only contracted virus seems like a win

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

[closetojumping 62010]

On 7/20/2022 at 12:31 PM, Francisco 2.0 said:

Got home late last night.  I've commented on the unusual of the trip, so nothing more to add.  This was a very laid back trip (no shows, no sightseeing except for Area 15-Omegamart).  Just eating, drinking, some light shopping and laying in the sun.   Missus had a spa day, and I had a shave + haircut.

As for dining:  Barry's Downtown Prime at Circa is outstanding.  I'd put it up against anyplace on the Strip.  It's really hard to separate the high end steak joints; you can make an argument for SW over Prime, or Bavette's over Cut, for example.  This place is worthy of a visit, despite having to venture to Fremont.  Had the Barry's Rib Cap.  Barry himself came to our table and visited for a few moments.  On the whimsical side, we had the tableside Smore's for dessert.

Had outstanding jambalya with shrimp at Emeril's Fish House one evening.  Joe's Stone Crab did not dissappoint as usual.  Jardin for breakfast is a must-have for us as well.

Caesars is really into the deferred maintenance thing.  We had never stayed there previously, and had wanted to.  Just a lot of overall shabiness that you wouldn't expect at that place, considering it has Bellagio/Aria/Wynn level pricing.  Too many mergers, too much debt being incurred, etc.  The room was fine (Palace Tower suite), but the public areas are really showing their age.

Oh, followup of my previous post on why there was no gaming at Caesars Sunday; their security cameras were all down.  For nearly two hours, either they had no security cameras at all property wide, or all the cameras in the gaming areas were off line.  Either way, that has to be inexcusable for a Vegas strip property.

 

 

Good rec on Barry's. Had never heard of it, but we might look at it for steak night this fall. Regarding Caesar's, I stopped being willing to even go in there for dining or gambling about a decade ago because it had gotten old as fuck. The dealers and servers were all old union who had been there for decades, it all looked and felt old, etc. Every casino I have been in or stayed in since has been nicer. Sounds like nothing has changed.

[TXSooner518 2419]

We really enjoyed Barry's. Andiamo at The D is also very solid, get the meatball.  Probably will try Oscar's next time. 

[Skipper 5969]

2 hours ago, closetojumping said:

Good rec on Barry's. Had never heard of it, but we might look at it for steak night this fall. Regarding Caesar's, I stopped being willing to even go in there for dining or gambling about a decade ago because it had gotten old as fuck. The dealers and servers were all old union who had been there for decades, it all looked and felt old, etc. Every casino I have been in or stayed in since has been nicer. Sounds like nothing has changed.

I wanted to stay off-site of conference this past week and tried Caesars as I haven't stayed there in over a decade.  My last 3 stays (Palazzo, Aria, Cosmo) blow it away.  Gordan Ramsay Pub was fine for a burger at lunch and Amalfi was solid but definitely won't be staying there again anytime soon.  Checked out the pool area for a bit and it and wasn't too impressed with it either.

[Francisco 2.0 32226]

6 hours ago, Skipper said:

I wanted to stay off-site of conference this past week and tried Caesars as I haven't stayed there in over a decade.  My last 3 stays (Palazzo, Aria, Cosmo) blow it away.  Gordan Ramsay Pub was fine for a burger at lunch and Amalfi was solid but definitely won't be staying there again anytime soon.  Checked out the pool area for a bit and it and wasn't too impressed with it either.

 

We had a cabana at Caesars, and I told my wife that we were spoiled as shit from the treatment with the cabana staff at Wynn.  There, we had a semi-dedicated server who took care of 2-3 cabanas, and nothing more.  You had contact with this person at least every 15 minutes, unless you were snoozing. Plus, food options.  At Wynn, whatever you wanted to order, you could within reason (SW isn't open during the pool hours, but you can get a filet from another of their restaurants, for instance).  You were brought real silverware, there's an actual table in the cabana, etc.   At Caesars, it was either 3 cold sandwiches from the snackbar, or use your phone to order from 1 of 4 participating restaurants, which had limited menus.  

Yes, all of that is very minor quibbling. But the level of service between the two resorts, despite paying the same price for the cabana at both resorts, is eye-opening.

One more pool story.  Caesars has a night swim, which we tried out.  It was pretty laid back, not crowded, you get the idea.   Limited to one of their pools.  Had a single cocktail waitress working who was probably 4-5 months pregnant (and this was my wife's observation, not mine) so in her standard bikini-ish uniform, she was protruding.  Hey, a girl needs to work, nothing wrong with that.

We order a couple of drinks from her, and get into the pool.  Maybe 10 minutes pass and she brings them over poolside, and asks if we want to open a tab.  I tell her to charge them to the room, she asks to see ID.  So I get out of pool, fetch the license and hand it to her, give her the room number...and she has this astonished look on her face.

"Your name is.....NONE"?!

Puzzled, I tell her no, that is not my name.  She insists because it says NONE on my license. Then it hit me.  She was looking at the restrictions section on my license.

 

 

[Angry Gorilla 1748]

Caesar’s has been a dump for years

[kevwun 15341]

We had a cabana at Cosmo this week and the staff was very attentive.  I asked the girl for a painkiller and she froze for a second and said, "I think we can get one from a store and then my wife laughed and said No, he meant the drink.  She was totally going to try to find some advil or something for me.  We walked through Caesar's one day and the animatronic Atlantis thing in the forum shops is pretty laughably terrible.  It had a huge crowd though.

Edited July 23, 2022 by kevwun

[Murfdogg21 4398]

We went back to Beauty and Essex for dinner last night and it’s still on point. The prime rib French dip sandwiches and tuna poke tacos were the favorites. Southern chicken sliders were good but quite same tier. While one never expects to be wow’d by brussel sprouts, we were sad these tasted like a ready bake version you buy from HEB. Mushroom truffle risotto was good. We went with the beignet style donuts for dessert and they were awesome and probably 5000 calories. End report. 

[Murfdogg21 4398]

Yeah, Caesars continues its journey to full dump. The last time I stayed there (2016?) the rooms hadn’t been renovated since the late 80’s. Every year the floor looks crappier as CTJ said. We only opted to walk through it to get to dinner two nights this week (Amalfi and Roku sushi) because the alternative was walking down the sidewalk in 113F heat.

[thunderlounge 7642]

50 minutes ago, kevwun said:

We had a cabana at Cosmo this week and the staff was very attentive.  I asked the girl for a painkiller and she froze for a second and said, "I think we can get one from a store and then my wife laughed and said No, he meant the drink.  She was totally going to try to find some advil or something for me.  We walked through Caesar's one day and the animatronic Atlantis thing in the forum shops is pretty laughably terrible.  It had a huge crowd though.

I thought same from cabana at cosmo. They did well. Attentive, friendly, but never in the way.

 

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

I’m not a huge fan of Caesars Palace but it does have a few things going for it: location, some good restaurants (the best buffet), and they have decent headliner shows at times. Stayed there in fall 2019 for a work conference and the conference tower had recently renovated rooms which were fine. Agree on the gaming space issues and dealers.

[RPM 26098]

On 7/22/2022 at 2:59 PM, Skipper said:

Checked out the pool area for a bit and it and wasn't too impressed with it either.

I'd like to find a decent adult pool to hang out that didn't cost an arm and a leg and wasn't overrun by yutes. A unicorn, I know.

[Francisco 2.0 32226]

Continued Caesars piling on.

 

 

 

 

[Bogeywon 2518]

On 7/15/2022 at 11:14 AM, Francisco 2.0 said:

I'm here, bitches.

(picture taken on Thursday, but I got too hammered to post it yesterday)

 

Bro how tall are you 7’16

[kevwun 15341]

3 hours ago, RPM said:

I'd like to find a decent adult pool to hang out that didn't cost an arm and a leg and wasn't overrun by yutes. A unicorn, I know.

The smaller Chelsea tower pool at Cosmo fits your bill, but I'm not sure if it's open to the public.  It's much less crowded and there's not a dj.

[Skipper 5969]

On 7/23/2022 at 8:27 AM, Murfdogg21 said:

We only opted to walk through it to get to dinner two nights this week (Amalfi and Roku sushi) because the alternative was walking down the sidewalk in 113F heat.

How was Sushi Roku? I had a really good meal there 7-8 years ago.  Actually had a reservation a few weeks back when there with my wife but after a full day at the pool wasn't feeling it and cancelled.

[Murfdogg21 4398]

37 minutes ago, Skipper said:

How was Sushi Roku? I had a really good meal there 7-8 years ago.  Actually had a reservation a few weeks back when there with my wife but after a full day at the pool wasn't feeling it and cancelled.

It’s no Uchi, but pretty good. The pan fried eggplant appetizer was excellent and resembled the consistency of fried plantains. We split a couple rolls and the Chilean sea bass. Sea bass was good, not great, but I might order it again. 
 

[Buzzrock 14785]

What does a cabana at Cosmo or Wynn run you?

[kevwun 15341]

It was an $800 food and beverage minimum at Cosmo.  That might be a discount though.  I have a friend who stays there enough that she has a host and gets a ton of comps and she books everything for us.

[Francisco 2.0 32226]

24 minutes ago, Buzzrock said:

What does a cabana at Cosmo or Wynn run you?

My cabana at Wynn last July (on a Sunday) was $400, no food or beverage credits, no tip included.

[Francisco 2.0 32226]

1 hour ago, Bogeywon said:

Bro how tall are you 7’16

In heels.

 

Wide angle shot.

[thunderlounge 7642]

5 hours ago, kevwun said:

It was an $800 food and beverage minimum at Cosmo.  That might be a discount though.  I have a friend who stays there enough that she has a host and gets a ton of comps and she books everything for us.

That’s what I paid last October. Well, Sep 30th technically. Whatever. 
 

Prices seem to fluctuate, so ymmv. 

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

[gyroprotagonist 2591]

On 7/22/2022 at 10:05 PM, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

We had a cabana at Caesars, and I told my wife that we were spoiled as shit from the treatment with the cabana staff at Wynn.  There, we had a semi-dedicated server who took care of 2-3 cabanas, and nothing more.  You had contact with this person at least every 15 minutes, unless you were snoozing. Plus, food options.  At Wynn, whatever you wanted to order, you could within reason (SW isn't open during the pool hours, but you can get a filet from another of their restaurants, for instance).  You were brought real silverware, there's an actual table in the cabana, etc.   At Caesars, it was either 3 cold sandwiches from the snackbar, or use your phone to order from 1 of 4 participating restaurants, which had limited menus.  

Yes, all of that is very minor quibbling. But the level of service between the two resorts, despite paying the same price for the cabana at both resorts, is eye-opening.

One more pool story.  Caesars has a night swim, which we tried out.  It was pretty laid back, not crowded, you get the idea.   Limited to one of their pools.  Had a single cocktail waitress working who was probably 4-5 months pregnant (and this was my wife's observation, not mine) so in her standard bikini-ish uniform, she was protruding.  Hey, a girl needs to work, nothing wrong with that.

We order a couple of drinks from her, and get into the pool.  Maybe 10 minutes pass and she brings them over poolside, and asks if we want to open a tab.  I tell her to charge them to the room, she asks to see ID.  So I get out of pool, fetch the license and hand it to her, give her the room number...and she has this astonished look on her face.

"Your name is.....NONE"?!

Puzzled, I tell her no, that is not my name.  She insists because it says NONE on my license. Then it hit me.  She was looking at the restrictions section on my license.

 

 

 

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

One: Lotus of Siam is opening a new location in Red Rock Resort. Timeline: End of year.

Two: The original Lotus, currently closed on East Sahara Avenue, is completing renovations. Timeline: End of year.

Three: The current Lotus, on East Flamingo Road, will shut for a makeover, then temporarily set up shop on East Sahara once work there is finished. Timeline: End of year.

Four: Temporary Lotus will eventually return to its renovated Flamingo Road space, with East Sahara continuing as a public restaurant, and as a commissary kitchen for the other restaurants. Timeline: Second quarter of 2023.

Which means: In about a year, Lotus of Siam will have gone from a single location now to three locations then, a Las Vegas expansion (after 23 years) that the owners have long been of two minds about, even as the restaurant enjoyed international acclaim for its Northern Thai food, at once robust and refined.

“We were courted by people in Texas, L.A., San Francisco. We even had people in Mexico who wanted us in a resort,” said Penny Chutima, managing partner of Lotus of Siam, who spoke with the Review-Journal in an exclusive, first-ever on-the-record discussion about these developments. Her parents, chef Saipin and Bill Chutima, founded the restaurant.

“It’s a mom and pop shop,” Penny Chutima continued. “They were first generation here. They were very content. They weren’t really pursuing another location even if the logistics were there.” (And a brief unhappy experience in 2010 with a business partner in a Manhattan outpost only confirmed the challenges of expansion.)

But over the past five years, things changed. Penny Chutima became more involved at Lotus of Siam (sister Sabrina also helps run the business). The pandemic highlighted how precarious the restaurant industry can be, even for icons (so: how to cement a legacy?). And the Chutimas found a congenial partner to expand with, one with similar roots.

“We’re growing organically, not forcing ourselves to grow,” Penny Chutima said. “We wanted to get this right.”

A longtime friend helped bring about the expansion.
Lou Abin, who helped build the Tao Group hospitality hegemony, has known Penny Chutima (who once worked as a Tao restaurant hostess) and her family for many years. Two or three times a year for more than a decade, Abin would ask if the Chutimas were ready to open another Lotus of Siam.

“These were business proposals, site locations, really thorough pitches,” he said.

Discussions about expansion became serious a few years ago, Abin said, and continued into the pandemic. In 2021, Abin and Penny Chutima founded Bua Food Group, a company to own and develop restaurant concepts (Bua means “lotus” in Thai). Later that year, through a letter of intent, the business partners settled on Red Rock to house the new Lotus of Siam.

What sealed the garlic prawns for the Summerlin casino? Family.

The late Frank Fertitta Jr. founded Station Casinos, owner of Red Rock, in the mid-1970s, and members of the Fertitta clan are still among the owners and executives of the parent company.

“They’re a family company. We started off as a family company. That’s one of the things I feel close to,” Penny Chutima said. “There’s a special place in my heart for Red Rock.”

The menu at Lotus of Siam is famously expansive, with about 150 dishes on the current iteration, plus one of the city’s best selections of German white wines, which link arms beautifully with Thai food. The Red Rock menu will be slimmer, about 90 dishes, with fewer wine choices as well, Penny Chutima said.

But fear not for the khao soi: Signature Lotus items are making the trip west. Not just khao soi (crisp duck atop egg noodles in curry sauce), but also those garlic prawns (distinctively butterflied, with crisp edible “potato chip” shells), and dishes like Northern-style larb (prepared with Northern spices, not lime juice), whole red snapper and soft shell crab.
Neighborhood favorites like pad Thai and fried rice also appear on the menu, along with Thai-style crudos and ceviches.

Chef Saipin Chutima said she would be at the new restaurant every day until it settles, then one or two times per week after that. “I’m very excited for us to be in Summerlin so people in the west side don’t have to travel so far to dine with us,” she said. Jeffrey Sauz, future chef de cuisine at Red Rock, is learning the Lotus method at the Flamingo Road restaurant.
As Lotus of Siam moves toward three locations, such “training will be especially important because that’s where we make sure the steps of cooking, the steps of service, are followed,” the chef said.

Also helping to maintain consistency? The fact that base sauces — curry, fried rice, pad Thai, stir-fry, about 25 in all — will be made by the chef in batches at East Sahara for all the Lotuses. “Only three people know the recipes,” she said.

“We’ve been huge fans of Lotus of Siam for a long time,” said Joe Yalda, the resort’s vice president of guest experience. “Their values are very similar to our values. We are both Vegas-born businesses.”

Besides Lotus of Siam, Bua Food Group is joining with the casino in two other food and drink ventures: Naxos Taverna and Kallisto Oyster Bar at Naxos. The taverna will offer dips and spreads, salads, vegetables dishes, and grilled fish and seafood; Kallisto is Bua’s take on a traditional oyster bar, with Mediterranean influences.
“Greek cuisine has a lot of seafood, so they really work hand in hand,” said Abin, the Bua co-founder. “We feel Greek cuisine is an area of opportunity within the city. The healthy aspects of Greek cooking have been gaining momentum over the last several years.”

Lotus of Siam, Naxos Taverna and the oyster bar belong to a larger resortwide renewal that also features a new casino bar, a new cocktail lounge in the old Crimson event space, an adults-only pool lounge, upgrades to the High Limit Slot area and, in the food court, a Nielsen’s Frozen Custard, the first-ever expansion of the original Henderson store.

Chef Saipin and Bill Chutima purchased Lotus of Siam in 1999. There had been two other Asian spots, going back decades, in the restaurant’s Commercial Center storefront.

Just a year after it opened, Jonathan Gold, the late Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic, called Lotus of Siam the finest Thai restaurant in North America in a review in Gourmet. In 2011, Saipin Chutima was named co-winner of the Best Chef: Southwest category in the annual James Beard Awards. And over the years, encomia reliably ensued.

But in late 2017, the roof collapsed after a heavy storm, and Lotus of Siam moved from East Sahara to its current premises on Flamingo Road, with Penny Chutima leaving law school to help her parents.
Except for a year beginning in June 2020, when Nevada restaurants were allowed to resume in-person dining, the first Lotus of Siam has not been open to the public since the roof collapse.

“That’s like my mom’s first born,” Penny Chutima said of the original location.
Now that the first born is returning (in a sense) by reopening, now that Bua Food Group is thinking of launching even more Lotus of Siam restaurants, is Saipin Chutima finally thinking of retirement, even as a possibility?

“She’s not very retired. She’s still cooking,” Penny Chutima said.

“My only job now,” the chef said, “is to make sure of the ingredients.” But Lotus of Siam has always had the most important ingredient of all: family.

https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/food/lotus-of-siam-to-open-new-las-vegas-location-and-reopen-original-restaurant-2612645/

[thunderlounge 7642]

Nice little read. I, too, enjoy growing organically. 

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

[RPM 26098]

nope

[squib 1112]

On 7/11/2022 at 2:55 PM, Wally Pryor said:

Gambling / craps. Not looking for places to stay per se', more so casinos off Strip. Most likely where locals are hanging out.

Thanks. 

Basically behind (sorta) Ellis Island is Tuscany Suites. The casino there is small but chill and feels much nicer than many spots in town. Also not a bad place to stay. 

[thunderlounge 7642]

7 minutes ago, squib said:

Basically behind (sorta) Ellis Island is Tuscany Suites. The casino there is small but chill and feels much nicer than many spots in town. Also not a bad place to stay. 

I’ve looked at Tuscany a few times. Never pulled the trigger though. Balcony at cosmo keeps winning out. 

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

Basically behind (sorta) Ellis Island is Tuscany Suites. The casino there is small but chill and feels much nicer than many spots in town. Also not a bad place to stay. 

Tuscany is an excellent choice for a budget hotel/casino. They have large rooms and it’s walkable to the Strip. Low limits table games and has sports betting. Decent affordable restaurants on site as well. Not fancy.

[RPM 26098]

[Blotto 23293]

On 4/9/2022 at 4:52 AM, RPM said:

Circa looks great. 

 

 

Quote

Officially at the airport, 0.32 inches of rain was recorded from Thursday night's monsoon storm. But, according to the NWS, a couple of pockets of Las Vegas received more than an inch of rainfall.

I see they did a bang-up job constructing the place to the highest standards. I get it, it doesnt rain a lot in Vegas. But come the fuck on.... when you spend $1.2 billion on the revamp, you would hope it could stand up to an inch of rain. 

PH not faring well either

 

Edited July 29, 2022 by Blotto

[Incredulity 11198]

anything constructed or built from March 20 on is suspect.   

[RPM 26098]

Are the Mavericks going to play there?

[Angry Gorilla 1748]

 

 

[Native Horn 3465]

Just got back from a Fri-Sun trip with some buddies.  

• Was lower temps and more humidity than Austin over the weekend.  Helluva rain late Friday, got soaked because who takes an umbrella to Vegas? So weird.
• Downtown/Fremont is the worst of humanity. Golden Nugget and Binions and the like set up metal detectors for the anticipated crowds for the Soundgarden/Hoobastank double-bill. Blech.
• However, ducked into Circa to check it out, and it is amazing.  Play video poker while overlooking the massive sports book and the most impressive set-up of TVs I've ever seen?  Yes, please.
• Talent on the Strip and in the Strip casinos is still amazing.  
• Three-card poker is a great social game if you're with a group that wants to gambool together. Or commandeer a row of VP at a bartop - that's a blast too.

Got it out of my system until next trip.

 

[Angry Gorilla 1748]

Just got back from a Fri-Sun trip with some buddies.  

• Was lower temps and more humidity than Austin over the weekend.  Helluva rain late Friday, got soaked because who takes an umbrella to Vegas? So weird.
• Downtown/Fremont is the worst of humanity. Golden Nugget and Binions and the like set up metal detectors for the anticipated crowds for the Soundgarden/Hoobastank double-bill. Blech.
• However, ducked into Circa to check it out, and it is amazing.  Play video poker while overlooking the massive sports book and the most impressive set-up of TVs I've ever seen?  Yes, please.
• Talent on the Strip and in the Strip casinos is still amazing.  
• Three-card poker is a great social game if you're with a group that wants to gambool together. Or commandeer a row of VP at a bartop - that's a blast too.

Got it out of my system until next trip.
 

If you like 3 card poker, try Ultimate Hold Em on your next trip.

[Incredulity 11198]

1 hour ago, Native Horn said:

Downtown/Fremont is the worst of humanity.

I don't know if I have gotten Surlier or it has gotten worse down there.  I was in Vegas in December and it was a complete shitshow.  I used to enjoy downtown, but not anymore.

[bigup2dahorns 3340]

I don’t frequent the downtown scene much at all but from what I follow online it certainly has gotten worse over the years with the rough crowd and crime. They are trying to mitigate it recently so will have to see if it’ll work.

[closetojumping 62010]

1 hour ago, Native Horn said:

Just got back from a Fri-Sun trip with some buddies.  

• Was lower temps and more humidity than Austin over the weekend.  Helluva rain late Friday, got soaked because who takes an umbrella to Vegas? So weird.
• Downtown/Fremont is the worst of humanity. Golden Nugget and Binions and the like set up metal detectors for the anticipated crowds for the Soundgarden/Hoobastank double-bill. Blech.
• However, ducked into Circa to check it out, and it is amazing.  Play video poker while overlooking the massive sports book and the most impressive set-up of TVs I've ever seen?  Yes, please.
• Talent on the Strip and in the Strip casinos is still amazing.  
• Three-card poker is a great social game if you're with a group that wants to gambool together. Or commandeer a row of VP at a bartop - that's a blast too.

Got it out of my system until next trip.

 

Regarding Circa, we bought a booth for a Saturday last fall. It was fine, but I didn't think it was worth the trip downtown from the Strip. @SydneyCarton can offer his thoughts if he never did on this thread.

Regarding downtown, it's basically what happened to all of Vegas after the handouts in the waning times of the pandemic. The Strip crowd matched up exactly to what I've seen of downtown. A ton of trash and clouds of weed smoke. Neck and face tattoos everywhere. Giant fat chicks in crop tops. Nope.

[Wally Pryor 5214]

Indeed. 

 

[thunderlounge 7642]

So last week. 🙄

[RPM 26098]

I stayed at GN in April. Everything was just fine. I can see things going downhill rapidly with a Soundgarden/Hoobastank concert there. Circa is awesome.

[SydneyCarton 47486]

I personally enjoyed the sports book at Circa, and generally the casino overall, and would book those seats again in a heartbeat. Not sure that's in the cards this year, but I thought it was worth the time and the trip.