Royally Flushed

I LOVE that The Mirage Volcano will reopen in December.

UPDATE:  The Mirage Volcano opened December 8th to thunderous applause.  See the Mirage Volcano video here.

I don’t know what I’m more excited about — The Mirage volcano returning to the Las Vegas Strip this December or the $33 a night room rates in my player’s club offer! 

I have to say, we have really missed seeing the volcano explode at The Mirage during our last couple of trips to Las Vegas so reading that it will “thunder back to life” next month is pretty cool.  And, not only is it back, but it sounds like it will be better than ever.  Here, let me just quote from the mailing — (more…)

Into the doom and gloom surrounding the gaming industry’s biggest players — as well as the national economy – come the openings of two Indian casinos this week in the Southwest.

Wednesday, the Navajo Nation, America’s largest Indian tribe, will open their first casino, the $30 million Fire Rock Casino near Gallup, New Mexico.  The 65,000 square-foot space will feature a bingo hall, blackjack and poker tables as well as 400+ slot machines and marks the end of a long road to bring gaming to the Navajo tribe. (more…)

In doing my research this past weekend for some upcoming articles, I came across tons of news items detailing the stock declines of the major players in the gaming industry.  And it’s not just the casino owners/operators who are seeing double-digit stock drops but also the game and technology manufacturers.  Thought it would be interesting to see some of the numbers — all in one spot — so here’s a chart showing just that:  (All prices are as of market close November 14, 2008.) (more…)

It comes as no surprise that Blazing 7s™ from Ballys is a customer slots favorite.

The iconic Bally’s Blazing 7s machine and Vision Gaming‘s old-time favorite, Pot of Gold, were named as two of the games casino slots managers “can’t pull” off their floors due to customer popularity. This question – ”What old school slot or video poker games are so popular with players that you just can’t pull them off your floor?” — is asked and answered at the website belonging to popular industry-insider magazine, “Slot Manager.”

The site has lots of interesting information and categories including “Hot Topics” where you’ll find the question-and-answer forum, a “New Products & Games” section, and great articles and columns by industry pros.  (more…)

Bouchon Las Vegas at The Venetian serves French bistro favorites with quality and precision.

Our favorite restaurant reviewer visits Bouchon at The Venetian –

Bouchon is an odd but worthy bird. Perched far away from the hubbub of The Venetian’s casino and shops, this brain-child of chef Thomas Keller is a shining example of “The Disneyland Effect”. That phenomenon is the re-working of a familiar entity, like New Orleans’s French Quarter, which ends up far grander, glossier and more polished than the real thing ever was.

In this case, the restaurant designer has taken the notion of a Parisian bistro and blown it up into an idealized, sanitized, over-sized and utterly beguiling stage set. Minus the nicotine stained walls and crusty old waiters, Bouchon is all the right stuff writ large — (more…)

Lots of fun things to do this weekend in and around Phoenix casinos.  Enjoy these events and a stop to play your favorite games including live poker and blackjack, lucky slots and more in the Valley of the Sun.

At Fort McDowell, enjoy the Orme Dam Victory Days celebration including a powwow and the All-Indian Rodeo with bull riding, calf roping and more.  East of Fountain Hills off Arizona 87 east of Fort McDowell Road (follow the signs). The carnival starts tonight at 5 p.m. and events continue through Nov. 16.  Complete calendar here. (more…)

Lucky cherries...why not lucky lawyers or smoke monsters? (Photo courtesy of Lisa Brewster, http://sophistechate.com

I think being a slot machine inventor, game developer, whatever you want to call it, would be one of the coolest jobs on the planet.  I want to be the person who decides that the cherry gets to be the lucky fruit.  Sorry apples, pears and pomegranates…move back to the bowl because you just don’t cut it.  Triple diamonds, blazing 7′s, weird Slingo™ dude and even you, Monty Hall -  yep, you’re all in.  But “Chainsaws & Toasters®?”  What kind of weird nightmare did the person have before coming up with that game?

So, if that game made it through the vetting process, why not some of these?

Magic Ex-Wife -- Get five lawyers in a row to go to the bonus round where the machine takes all your credits and your dog.  Sorry, there’s no winning this one. (more…)

Could something like this bring you casino luck?

When it comes to good luck charms, I’ve seen a lot of strange things in casinos in Las Vegas, here in Arizona and, really, all across the country.  I remember one “regular” at a casino here in town who, back in the days when actual coins still poured out of the machines, would accumulate buckets of quarters and carry them from machine to machine.  If he was having a good day, you’d see him perched on his seat in front of a slot machine with three, four or even five completely full buckets of change under his chair.  Watching him move from machine to machine with a stack of change cups sort of piled atop each other “Leaning-Tower-of- Pisa-style” was a pretty interesting sight.  When asked why he carried around all those quarters rather than cashing in for some lightweight bills, he said his method of only going to the cashier at the end of his gambling day brought him luck.  (I’m sure he’s not having near as much fun with the paper tickets spit out by the machines today.) (more…)

Wynn Las Vegas offers a winter getaway for you and your friends.

P.B. and I have always been big fans of heading to Las Vegas before the Christmas holidays.  We get a little shopping done, take in the holiday decorations — especially the winter display at The Bellagio’s Conservatory and Botanical Gardens — and just kick back and enjoy some down-time during what can be a pretty hectic time of year.  We’ve never found December to be particularly busy in Las Vegas and with the economy in such a downturn we look for it to be even quieter this year so here’s your chance to enjoy the city at a much more relaxed pace and at some great prices. (more…)

Beautifully-rendered bunches of colorful spring flowers await at The Bellagio... if you just look up.

What do the Sistine Chapel and Las Vegas have in common?  Well, if you want to see the good stuff at either place, you’re going to have to stop walking (recommended if you don’t want to crash into other people,) throw your head back and look up.

While much is made of the crazy colorful carpeting found in casinos all around the country — and rightfully so – you also need to look UP as well as down to see some of the more remarkable design elements scattered throughout favorite casinos.  Nowhere is this truer than in Las Vegas where over-the-top design is simply commonplace and excess is the norm rather than the exception.  But hey, this is why we love the place! (more…)

Screech.  Thud.  Those are the sounds of casino construction being brought to a halt across the country.  It seems there is news every week about another project being put “on hold” as the downturn in the economy continues to affect all segments of the gaming industry.  Curious, I compiled this list of who is stopping what and where…so far.

MGM Mirage – Announced in its third-quarter earnings release on October 29 that the company is postponing indefinitely its MGM Atlantic City project citing “current economic conditions and the impact of the credit market environment.”   In Las Vegas, MGM Mirage has also halted plans “for the development of a major resort complex on the southwest corner of the Las Vegas Strip and Sahara Avenue in Las Vegas….” 

There’s better news, however, for MGM’s CityCenter Las Vegas development.  In an interview with Market Watch, company officials said the $9 billion resort complex “will get the financing it needs to be completed.”  (more…)

The top spot on our Las Vegas list goes to Mon Ami Gabi at Paris Las Vegas. Grab a table here for primo people-watching plus a great view of the fountain show at The Bellagio.

Without further ado, here are my top five best spots for championship people-watching in Las Vegas.  Rather than counting backwards like we did with yesterday’s five great spots, today we start with number one – my absolute favorite spot for checking out the Las Vegas crowds.

1.  Mon Ami Gabi restaurant at Paris Las Vegas.  Not only does this center-Strip café and its year-round patio offer terrific food – it’s voted #4 out of 1600+ restaurants on Trip Advisor’s Las Vegas forum – it also provides diners with a birds-eye roost for viewing both Strip traffic and The Bellagio’s famous fountain show.   An excellent list of wines-by-the-glass, a sublime chicken liver mousse pate and loaves of warm, crusty French bread complete the experience. 

2.  Trader Vic’s at Planet Hollywood.  Another great Strip-side patio perch – this one offers live music at night as well as a prime spot for watching the steady stream of shoppers entering the Miracle Mile Shops as well as those hoofing it down Las Vegas Boulevard.    A seriously strong Mai-Tai – a Vic’s specialty – makes the night fly by (almost before you know it.)

3.  Parasol Up/Parasol Down at Wynn Las Vegas.  They’re two, two…two bars in one!  Well, not really since one really is up (stairs) and the other is down (the escalator) but both offer prime people-watching complemented by absolutely stunning décor.  ”Down” offers a great view of Wynn’s Lake of Dreams — don’t miss the singing frog — and lots of May/December couples sipping expensive wines.  (more…)