While Las Vegas Sleeps…

Tonight I was showing a friend that recently moved to the Las Vegas Valley around town and we ventured downtown for a bit while I was helping him learn the major streets. We decided to go into the Nugget and walk around for a little while. The last time I was in the Golden Nugget they were in the middle of the renovations. I could see work progressing in the pool area and could tell it would be really nice once completed, but the whole place was a mess. I recall it taking twenty minutes just to find a restroom which was hidden upstairs near the buffet.

Today my visit was much different. Walking from the parking garage into the pool area entrance I could tell right away that the makeover was either complete or very nearly so. The new pool area is, to me at least, the centerpiece of the new design. They’ve added multiple decks for lounging above a bar and water slide, which arcs down and through a huge, multi-story saltwater tank full of tropical fish, including various types and sizes of sharks. The shark tank dips down and through the middle of the pool area and at the pool level the slide drops you into the pool itself… which separates itself from the shark tank by some clear material that makes it look like you are swimming with sharks. Awesome! This is something akin to what Landry’s organization did with The Aquarium in downtown Houston, where there is a tunnel you can go through that has fish swimming all around you…. except swimming with and around them is just the ultimate! The rest of the pool area is much more modernized and got a shot of “hip” in the proverbial arm. It should be a great place to hang this Spring and Summer, provided they bring in some good house dj’s and make for a welcoming clubby vibe…

Inside the casino they have made a lot of design changes with new, elegant lighting fixtures and paneling. There’s an area near the craps pit that the ceiling seems to have been “lifted” somehow giving the effect that it was actually taken up several many feet around the entrance to the buffet’s escalator. I couldn’t decide it if was actually higher there or if it was the great lighting design that gave it the effect, but either way it works wonders because of how the older style casinos downtown have always suffered with low-slung ceilings, making them feel a bit too closed-in for comfort. Aside from the overall look that has been greatly improved inside the resort, they’ve added some first rate restaurants from their chain, including The Grotto and Vic and Anthony’s, Landry’s signature steakhouse, as well as a nice bar and lounge called Rush. The new race and sportsbook looked really slick and comfortable and I’m sure will be getting tons of action this coming weekend for the Superbowl.

In all, I have to say the new design and layout gives the venerable Golden Nugget the feeling of all but a new property downtown. I was impressed!

Tags: bars, cheap Las Vegas, Downtown Las Vegas, Entertainment, gambling, gaming, Houston, Restaurants, Southern Nevada, summer, Superbowl, Texas

…Empire just kills ‘em!

An old friend of mine Nick the Good has finally bitten the bullet and made the move from the midwest to fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada. After a 1910 mile long trek two thirds of the way across the country and after unloading most of his unique belongings and after getting a Nevada driver’s license and becoming an almost official Nevada citizen (the process to be completed upon registering to vote in this state, county, and district,) a night on the town was not only in order, but I think required by Clark County ordinance…

It’s been a minute since we’ve been over to 54. We met up with Christopher, Christina, and Mimi at Tabu after having a drink over at Rouge, which I still hadn’t made it in to see yet. (Good cosmopolitans over there at Rouge. Not the best, but solid.) The GM at 54 loves Christopher and we hadn’t been in 2 minutes before we’d been offered a free bottle. Cheers, 54!! It was slow in the club but it was slow in every club we hit tonight so it wasn’t their doing. …completely grateful for the awesome management, personnel, and bottle service .

After 54 we hit Empire and saw some friends, danced… had a great time as usual. The club’s got Vegas after hours pretty much on lock. Just like 54, it was slow at Empire. They never opened the upstairs and the crowd was thin, but even though all that’s true, it was still a great time. If you visit Vegas, when you’re wondering where to go at 5am, hit Empire. ‘Nuff said.

Yep, even on slow nights Vegas is hard to beat.

Tags: bottle service, cheap Las Vegas, drinking, Empire Ballroom, Entertainment, news, Southern Nevada, table service

The Miss America Pageant is currently underway at the Aladdin Resort and Casino (being remodeled and soon to be Planet Hollywood Las Vegas.) This has me thinking about beauty pageants in light of the recent “scandals” involving pageant organizations and their participants.

It’s been yet another controversial year for the Donald Trump-owned beauty pageant, with The Donald getting hated on (even called a “pimp” by Rosie O’Donnell) for removing the tiaras of a couple of contest winners, including Nevada’s own Katie Rees, and his ownership and style of managing his pageants.

Miss Rees’ crown was revoked when some photos (link below) were posted on the Internet predating her competition in the Miss Nevada-USA Pageant, the state championship that sends its winner to the Miss USA competition. She was photographed in some naughty situations while playing and partying with some friends in Florida. During the time of the competitions she was being a good little Nevada girl and staying out of the camera, as far as this sort of thing goes.

She won Miss Nevada and was on her way to compete for the Miss USA title but then some time later she had her title yanked from her based on things in her past. If your past counts against you it sure seems like they ought to do some screening and stress to these ladies that all their time and money might be for nothing - but why would they truly discourage these girls and their families from spending tens of thousands of dollars to compete? These pageants exist to make money… lots of money. Ultimately, the pageant owners are the real “winners.”

I personally think it’s all so ridiculous. Katie Rees seems like she’d be a lot of fun as a person - she’s a real American girl that likes to have a good time - okay maybe a little too good of a time occasionally - just like me. Real people want to root for real people. She’s not a Barbie Doll with a false set of pretensions who live to hide their real selves from cameras in an effort to secure their “victory.” Only a small number of people in our age group even watch these things and take it seriously now because it’s an archaic institution trying to impose it’s old values on modern individuals with real lives. Guess what? Katie Rees’ career is taking off like a rocket. Good for you, Katie! I think you were robbed..

Here’s a link to some of the photos.

Tags: Entertainment, Katie Rees, Miss America, Miss Nevada, naked, photos, pics, Southern Nevada

Our mayor, Oscar Goodman, is a man with both a colorful past and a colorful present. Goodman became widely known for representing mafia enforcer Tony “The Ant” Spilotro back in the day (Joe Pesci played the screen version of Tony Spilotro in “Casino” with not much but the name changed.) More recently he was given national attention for telling a class of fourth grade students if he were lost on a deserted island he’d like to have his favorite bottle of gin with him, because he really enjoys drinking, apparently, as he listed to the same group of kids “drinking” among his hobbies. He says he’s the George Washington of mayors, in that he can not tell a lie. Hell, I have to say - honesty is something refreshing in any politician, even if he might not be accused of speaking to his audience with the greatest sense of appropriateness.

Mayor Goodman went into office in the last term with what can not truly be described as a “landslide” - avalanche might be a more appropriate description. He won with 86% of the vote. After such an incredible win, you can imagine that there aren’t a lot of folks really excited about running against him (though at least two have filed thus far and are not being considered serious challengers.) It was with that in mind that he decided to not only file for re-election but to take a campaign approach that would have him running essentially against himself. He actually wants to get more than his previous 86% of the vote. “I’m more effective showing I have the support of the people. There’s no question about it,” Goodman says. He’s right.

For all of the controversy that he’s knowingly gotten himself into, Mayor Goodman does a fine job. I disagree very strongly with his approach to “dealing” with the homeless issue, but what would Las Vegas be without him at the helm? There are people who are trying to homogenize, to dilute the nature of our fair city. Our uniqueness is our greatest resource. There are too many other places to simply go gambling all over this country for us to not differentiate ourselves - as we always have in the past, mind you - from other tourist and convention destinations. Goodman is just about the only choice to lead the city in that capacity. If not him, who else? He says that the next four years will be the term in which he brings a national sports team to Las Vegas. That’s not much of a selling point for me, but, I’m in the minority on that one. A national sports team would be great for the city and state, no doubt, and a lot of people are really hoping that comes to fruition soon. So let’s see if he can pull it off. Cheers, Oscar… I’d tell you “good luck” but competing against yourself isn’t much of a race

Tags: convention, Downtown Las Vegas, gambling, gaming, homeless, legal, Nevada politics, news, Southern Nevada