I was contacted by some members who were asking if I'd post my Chapters on Reaching for the Stars on this Blog. I have been putting them on the Vegas Free For All and the Caesars/Harrahs, but I guess many don't check those. So, I will add them here.
Reaching for the Stars – Chapter 7
I’ve made reference in past chapters at the frustration with the lack of consistency between Caesars properties. Many times this spans between regions, jurisdictions, and even individual properties within the same region. At this point early on in my 7-Star membership I can count on one notion: Don’t expect anything. In the Diamond Lounges in Nevada and New Jersey, drinks are free. In other states the price of drinks varies (Rincon, in California, the cost of a gin and tonic is $4.00. The Horseshoe in Cleveland, the same drink is $1.50). In Nevada the Diamond Lounges offer appetizers (usually chicken wings and egg rolls) during a very limited time window, usually two hours, as their hot food items. In Atlantic City you can have what amounts to complete buffet services and some even offer table service. I suppose what I’m saying here is that you need to learn to be flexible.
I’m in Las Vegas along with Cindy staying at Caesars Palace for four nights. This is the trip that I earned when I made my second tier diamond level (four anytime nights). You might remember when I was in Reno this past summer when I had a problem with a host at Harrah’s, Reno who didn’t get back to me for almost a week about securing the reservations. This trip was from that. I picked these dates so it would coincide with the Great Gift Wrap Giveaway. I am not a big fan of Caesars Palace. Of course, it’s the jewel of the company, and it’s a beautiful property; however, I don’t like the valet parking (it can be a zoo), and it’s so big that to get anywhere is a long hike.
Because this seems to be most high rollers’ choice to stay, the chance of getting a suite are less than other properties. It’s the old would you rather be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond. I prefer the first. We arrived in good time and surprisingly, I-15 was free of traffic and even the Strip was drivable. We checked in and I asked for the best room available (flashing my 7-Stars card). That was to no avail as we were given a basic room in the Augustus Tower. Make no mistake, this is a nice room, but it’s the same room I received as a lower-level Diamond player and was “expecting” something nicer.
When this tower first opened, it was state-of-the-art at the time with a flat screen TV and a beautiful double sink bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub and separate shower. However, by today’s standard, the TV (still the original) is small and outdated. The room is clean and in good shape though the furniture is showing wear. There is no refrigerator except for the mini-bar, which is jammed packed so you can’t get anything in there. The worst addition, which seems to be in most of the Vegas Caesars’ properties, is the Keurig coffee maker that you can only use if you purchase their packets at $12 for two cups. Jeez! We do have a nice view of the northern Strip and the pools.
The first order of business was to get tickets for Veronica at Ballys and Jersey Boys at the Paris. I went to the Host offices and was greeted warmly by the host on duty. He called first to Ballys and it turns out the Veronica is completely sold out all weekend (not a surprise). However, a call to the Paris scored us two tickets to Jersey Boys for tomorrow night at 7PM. The Diamond Lounge in Caesars was about to open and there was a long line of people waiting to get in. We simply walked to the head of the line showing the 7-Stars card and were admitted immediately (it still feels a bit odd taking “cuts” like that—but I’ll get used to it). We had a couple of good drinks and the offerings of hot food were (surprise!) chicken wings and chimichangas.
We walked all through Caesars (it was not very busy and the food court on the lower level was all but empty—I’ve never seen that at dinner time). We walked through the Forum Shops as I was keeping an eye open for things I might want to buy with my $500 shopping spree, which I’ll use on a later trip. The only surprise (other than the usual array of new stores) was that the sports memorabilia shop where Pete Rose would prostitute his signature was gone. Planet Hollywood is now a Carmine’s, with a major renovation, which looks great.
The H & M Clothing Store in the Forum Shops
The front entrance to the Forum Shoppes
Next was a walk over to the Mirage (this is Cindy’s first visit to these properties, so it was sight-seeing time). I thought I might put a point on my MGM card (don’t know why I bother, but you just never know). Lost a $20 in short order at some tight-ass penny game and then I put another $20 into a Carnival game (I had a little luck in Cleveland on this). I was catching nothing and was down to $4 with no bonus and me whining about how tight MGM machines are when I had a big hit for $75. I cashed out immediately—see ma, whining does help, sometimes.
We walked across the street to Harrahs and went into their Diamond Lounge. It was very busy but they had just stopped service of the hot food items, and the place pretty much emptied in short order (note to low-rollers: the high rollers can be some of the cheapest SOBs anywhere). We had a couple of Baileys and coffees and sauntered over to the new Quad. This has been reported before, but I can’t emphasize enough just how DIFFERENT this place is compared to what the Imperial Palace looked like. How they did this major of an architectural change and never closed is the stuff worthy of a reality show. Funny, however, is the site from the room at Caesars, which shows the old Imperial Palace rooms directly behind the new Quad façade.
The front of the Quad, while the back is still the old Imperial Palace
We walked back to Caesars and enjoyed a late dinner at the Michael Richard's Central restaurant in front of the main registration desk. Cindy had the Ahi burger and I had a Chicken Chinese Salad. The place is pricey, but the food was outstanding! I used my reward points to pay for it.
The Ahi Burger at the Central
When we returned to the room, I was a little disappointed that there was no gift basket despite being told at check in to “expect it.” I still thought perhaps because this was booked under the Diamond program that the usual 7-Star treatment wasn’t in effect. However, the next morning when I was getting coffee down at the Starbucks by the Diamond registration, I spoke with the clerk asking if it was an oversight. She looked up on my account and said that there was nothing about receiving a gift basket. She asked who my host was and I told her that my host is at Rincon in San Diego; however, my contact host name was Lisa White (this is a bit of a white (pun intended) lie. I didn’t have a contact host. I only had the name because my friend Ted from Oroville had given me the name of three or four nice hosts at different properties and hers was the name for Caesars Palace. The clerk looked up the name and said she wasn’t currently on property (thank goodness) but she’d take down my name and room number and look into it. I told her that it wasn’t a big deal either way, I was simply curious.
Today (Friday) was filled with errands. First and foremost was the Great Gift Wrap Giveaway at the Flamingo that opened up at 10 PM. When we headed to the pedestrian bridge between Caesars and the Flamingo, we found police had cordoned it off on both sides as there was something being investigated. We walked over the other bridge to the Bellagio and thought it would be a good time to check out the fall display at the atrium. There was the usual water mill and pumpkins and as always smelled wonderful.
Part of the spring display in the atrium at the Bellagio
The Scarecrow at the Bellagio spring display
On the way back I noticed a new Phantom of the Opera penny game. This was a 3D version with music and characters from the movie. I put in a twenty to check it out playing the minimum 50-cents. I hit quite a few minor bonuses and the main one in short order and walked away with $75. The machine’s music is great. I recommend you check it out.
The new Phantom of the Opera machine
As we walked out of the Bellagio, we noticed the police presence was gone and headed over to the Flamingo. There were no signs where the Gift Wrap was taking place, so we stopped at the Rewards Center to ask. While there, I was able to pick up my monthly two free tickets choosing the Legends Show for tomorrow night as Cindy had never seen it before and the couple of times I have I was very impressed. We were told the Gift Wrap was on the third floor in a convention room.
We followed the signs, got my total point amount (105,000—based on play from the Caesars Southern California properties). This program has been going on for years whereas Caesars has the convention room packed full of gifts such as appliances, jewelry, bicycles, and this year a hover craft golf cart. You’re given a calculator when you enter and there are business cards next to each item with the amount of points it costs. If you want the item, you take one of the cards. When you’ve reached your point limit, you take your cards to the cashier who then confirms the address you want them sent and that’s it. The gifts are absolutely free as is the shipping. Nothing is taken from your rewards account nor are you charged anything. It’s a true giveaway. All are quality and top-of-the-line brand names. Needless to say, the points charged are above retail (if you wanted the golf cart hover craft, it would cost you 16,500,000 points). A new XBOX One would require 230,000 points. However there were many items to choose from under 100,000 and even Shell $10 gas cards were only 3000 points. After spending less than an hour making my selections (I’m not going to share what I got here as I’m using some for Christmas gifts), we headed back downstairs.
It was already almost noon and we were hungry and stopped in at the Flamingo café for breakfast /lunch. We each had the Eggs Ranchero and though the food was good, the service was really slow. We then made a stop at the Flamingo Diamond Lounge for a Bailey’s coffee. The lounge had all the usual furniture removed and about twelve tall tables in the middle along with the booths along the wall. The booths were reserved for 7-Star members and the Diamond members had to stand at the tables (I felt a bit embarrassed sitting in a booth as some older people had to stand at tables—eventually the hostess allowed a few to sit at the tables, which I thought was nice). As we were drinking our coffee, she then came to us and asked if we’d like to go to a party being given by the new Vice President of Casino Operations this afternoon at 4PM. She had been instructed to find and invite any 7-Star members who weren’t staying at the Flamingo. She put some specific colored wristbands on our wrists that would gain us entry. Cindy and I really had no clue what this was about, but it included free drinks and food samplings from their restaurants—okay!
The Dancing with the Stars Trophy Ball on display at the Flamingo
We went back to Caesars to pick up the car as the next errand was to buy some needed toiletries and I wanted to pick up some new slacks for tonight’s Jersey Boys show. I thought we could go to the Target store on Blue Diamond because I had wanted to show Cindy the Silverton. One of the things I want to get done this trip is to visit many of the local casinos and give them my change of address as I moved this month. I no longer live in Pine Valley. I’ve moved closer to San Diego in a town called Santee.
I went to the slot booth to make the address change and the boothling reminded me that I had $25 in free play (like I needed to be reminded—he obviously isn’t familiar with LVA members). I took Cindy over to the high limit room where the only two machines with full pay Bonus Poker exists, the two 5/10/25-cent 100-plays. I chose to play ten-play for dimes to use my $25 free play. That was soon gone and I put in a hundred (the Silverton is one of the casinos that I get regular comp rooms and free play, so I wanted to give them some play to keep those offers coming). After putting on almost 600 points, I told Cindy we’d stop when I reached either $100 or $50, whichever came first. Twice I got up to $98.50 but that wasn’t the agreement. I was soon dealt four-to-the-royal in clubs. On the third game, I got the King of Clubs for a Royal good for $400. I cashed out my ticket that was now $493.50. Very nice—what a year I’m having.
I showed Cindy the sights at the Silverton (the mermaid lounge, the aquarium, and we strolled through the Big Bass Outdoor Center) and then finally made our way to Target where we bought all the needed items and as it was getting late, drove back to Caesars to change for both the cocktail party and the Jersey Boys tonight. When we opened the door to our room, we were surprised to find on our desk a complete layout of fruit, chocolates, fancy nuts, and chocolate covered strawberries. There was also an envelope from Executive Host Michael Georgesom welcoming us to the hotel. Okay—the gift basket question this morning apparently worked out.
A surprise waiting for us when we returned to the room
The box of chocolates turned out to be 30 nuggets from DeSage Chocolatier (I went online and this box retails for $56.00). I fired off a thank you email to the host. We headed across the Strip to the party, which was located at the small pool in the back of the Flamingo Pool complex. We were greeted by hosts as were checked in, greeted by other hosts as we walked up the stairs, even more hosts as we entered the door to the pool room where the party was being held.
This was a very small gathering of 7-Star members. I would guess perhaps only about 50 to 75 people. We were almost outnumbered by the many hosts walking among the guests introducing themselves. We ordered some drinks and grabbed some of the appetizers. A different host would occasionally come up and introduce themselves with small talk, usually asking about the Gift Wrap and whatnot. This was obviously simply a meet-and-greet where the Vice President wanted the 7-Star card holders to meet the different hosts. There was never any official greeting or speech. We sat down at a table and talked with a couple of other members who joined us—one couple was from Redding and Rincon was their home casino as well. We did manage to get some good suggestions and information from everyone. Finally, the Vice President came up and introduced herself to us, Ilene (I didn’t catch the last name). She stayed and spoke with us a long while. I was impressed that she was the boss of all these stuffy suits and yet she was alarmingly young—I noticed there was no wedding ring—hmm). The food consisted of VERY tasty won-tons (from their Asian restaurant), crab cakes, salmon tasters, many cheeses, and other small bite items.
Things were winding down and we left. It was now getting time to pick up our tickets to the Jersey Boys at the Paris. I had been to the theater before having seen The Producers there starring Tony Danza (yes, that’s right) so I knew just where to go. We went to the Will Call and were shown our seat location, which was up a little too high for my liking and asked if she could find anything closer to the stage. We took two seats about ten rows back from the stage in the center, which were priced at $150 each. She wanted to know if I wanted to charge them to my room and I said that I’d just assume pay them with my points now. There’s no point in charging them to room as the only benefit would be if the host decided to deduct them for your play during your stay. I had no host and I didn’t plan on doing much gambling this trip, so there was no need. I have over $1600 in reward credits, so it was no big deal.
We had 45 minutes before curtain so went into the Paris Diamond Lounge for another Bailey’s coffee (I was going to up past my bedtime tonight and thought the caffeine might be a good idea) I was just a little leery of this show because everyone has just raved and raved about it and many times the over-hype can set you up to be disappointed. Let me to report this: This show deserves all praise you can possibly say about it. The production was slick and fast paced, the music was fantastic (yes, I’m at the age where I could sing along with every song), and the actors were ideally cast. The show was worth every penny! (Okay, I didn’t pay anything, but if I had, it would have been worth it).
We walked back to our hotel to go to our room but not before stopping at the Caesars food court for a small bite. I had a slice of pizza and Cindy had a burger. Even here in the food court there’s a 7-Star and Diamond seating section, which were booths (instead of tables) and plates and plastic ware. Tonight there was turndown service (none last night—not sure if Michael had anything to do with this or not) which had two robes sitting on the bed, slippers on each side, bottles of water on the night stands along with the gold medallion chocolates. Very impressive! I fear I could become quite spoiled.
It’s Saturday and the middle of the three day Veteran’s Day weekend and the hotel is once again full of visitors as you have to make your way around the slow pokes. I see people that are in a hurry get frustrated with those just moseying along and at times even stop suddenly to look at something. We old timers to Vegas sometimes need to take a second and remember that we’re surrounded with some spectacular architecture that’s easy to take for granted having seen it seemingly hundreds of times, but for many coming to Las Vegas for the first time this place is wondrous and they should be allowed to just stop and take it all in.
Today I wanted to go to a few of the casinos where I’m a club member and give them my address change. Yes, I know I could probably do it online…but where’s the fun in that? First up was the Stations casino. We drove to Summerlin to the Red Rock Hotel and Casino. Las Vegas continues to grow and despite the recession of the past few years, there is construction going on everywhere. The Red Rock is many LVAers favorite casino. It has a little something for everyone: the newest games with a spattering of 100%+ games, a 16 screen theater complex, a bowling alley, 14 restaurants and a food court. I’ve never stayed here, but I’ve been told the rooms are terrific. I like the Stations properties, but since I’ve concentrated all my play in getting this 7-Star card, I’ve not played much here. I made the change of address and then we had lunch in their excellent coffee shop. I used what was left of my comp points to pay for most of the breakfast. I’m not sure what my future will be with the Station properties, but if I were to leave Caesars someday, Stations would only make third on my list to play at after South Point and the Boyd properties, who both give much easier comps and rooms.
After making my change of address at the booth, I went over to the cashier and made a deposit towards my Ultimate Poker online account. I was excited to see that poker can once again be played online legally; however, as it’s only legal in Nevada and New Jersey, you can only play while your computer is physically within those two states. That’s okay for now and I’m anxious to play a few games when I’m in Nevada in my spare time. Another plus is that Stations allows you to deposit and withdrawal at any of their casinos your online account. I’m excited to get started.
Time flies when you’re having fun and it was already 2PM. I got a call from LVAdvice member fredo (Fred) who is in town for a few days. We agreed to meet up at South Point for a little bit, so we drove over there. I gave Cindy a short tour of South Point, which is a favorite place of mine simply because they have decent machine schedules, they deal 2/4 live poker, and their very nice rooms are easy to get comped. We walked up to the Rodeo which was in full swing; however, there was an admission charge as was a large gun show going on this weekend (Veteran’s Day—Gun show—makes sense) that also required a $7 admission price. I like to look at horses and guns…but that’s about it—wouldn’t pay to see it.
We met Fred at the Seattle Coffee outlet and had a nice chat. Fred is the person that gave me the very nice room at the Atlantis in Reno this past summer. We had met a few years ago when I was on my National Casino Tour and we took in an Aces game (the Triple-A baseball team) in Reno. We had a nice chat and agreed to meet tomorrow at Caesars so I could return the favor and treat him to a good dinner.
Time was just moving along and we had to get back to Caesars to drop off the car at valet and walk over to the Flamingo as our show was going to start in an hour. One of the better perks of being a Diamond and 7-Star member is that you get two free tickets a month to many of their “B-tier” shows such as Vinnie Favorito (filthy, but funny comedian), Mac King (funny magician), Anthony Cools (Hypnotist), as well as the Jubilee show and Penn and Teller among others. Cindy chose the Legends in Concert, which is currently in its 30th season now performing in the Donnie and Marie Theater during the afternoons. I’ve been to this show a few times and I’ve never been disappointed. The show features four celebrity impersonators who sing some of the hits with a live band. Though it sounds tacky on the surface, this show is terrific. They hire the best at what they do. The show is slick and fast paced. The nice twist is that they always change the performers so you never know who you’re going to see with the exception of the final performer who is always the Elvis impersonator. Today’s show opened with Madonna followed by Tom Jones. Then a Michael Jackson impersonator came on and just floored the audience. He was really amazing and the dancing was spot-on. The Elvis was a very young (and rather short) man, but close your eyes and you are listening to Elvis Presley. He was amazing. Once again, this 75 minute show did not disappoint. My 7-Star card got me a booth down center, but after arriving to our assigned booth, there were some older ladies (one disabled) there, so our host gave us a table right in front of the stage. This show is simply good Las Vegas entertainment.
We headed back to Caesars and had dinner once again at the Central café. Cindy had the salmon and I had meatloaf. This is no ordinary café. The food is prepared as if you’re fine dining. Both the meals were excellent.
Sunday—no shows, no errands, just enjoy the final day in Vegas. After getting up we got the car out of valet and drove down to Henderson to get gas at Costco and have breakfast at Sam’s Town. TGIF isn’t known for their breakfasts, but they do a good one here. Driving back to Caesars, we made a stop on Royal St. to take a picture of the still under construction of the Ferris wheel and a couple of the pods about to be attached. This will be the largest Ferris wheel in the world when it’s completed.
The Wheel behind the Quad not far from being finished
The pods waiting to be attached to the wheel.
After dropping the car off once again at the valet at Caesars, we decided to walk the south of the Strip. We walked through the Bellagio once again, stopping to play my new favorite penny machine, the new Phantom of the Opera, and then on to the Cosmopolitan.
The Bellagio and Caesars. The weather today was perfect.
The Eiffel Tower at the Paris
In the Cosmopolitan Cindy and I both took out new slot cards (mine had expired) and were both offered the $100 rebate. Cindy played an Elvis penny game and I played the new Beverly Hillbillies game. She won, I lost. I had the hundred I lost put on my card as free play, which I’ll use during Thanksgiving week when I’ll be back here again.
We walked through Crystals, and as usual, it was dead. All of the premium stores are empty and there are only a few people walking around. The construction between Crystals and New York, New York all but makes the Monte Carlo invisible from the Strip. New York, New York is very busy. It’s Sunday and the bars and sportsbook are packed with people wearing their jerseys and screaming whenever there’s a score. We came here to try a slice of pizza at the Sirricho’s. Cindy was told to try them out as the pizza was great. She had a vegetarian slice and I had a pepperoni…we found both pizzas…ordinary. As we left upstairs on our way to the MGM, we saw the New York Pizza company on the second floor…we now believe we went to the wrong place.
It’s been a while since I’ve last been in the MGM. This place seems to be perpetually under construction and remodeling. What used to be a Yellow Brick Road display at the entrance, then became a center bar, then became rows of slot machines, then became the poker room, and now is simply a carpeted area with a lone video blackjack machine with a couple of TVs on the wall. Many of the stores on Restaurant row have either closed or changed hands. For some reason, this place is not only too big, but lacks any personality.
We took the monorail back to the Flamingo and finally walked back to Caesars. We were going to meet Fred (LVA-fredo) for dinner at 5:00. The original plan was to meet and eat at Central but because Cindy and I had already eaten there twice, we thought we might change it up and try out the newest Gordon Ramsey restaurant the Pub and Grill which took over the Ogden restaurant space. We got in the back of the line (they didn’t have a Diamond/7-Star line) and was seated at a table that was two leather love seats with a small table in the middle.
[img width=800 height=478]https://i266.photobucket.com/albums/ii249/sionow/Reaching%20for%20the%20Stars/Fred1.jpg[/img]
Cindy, Me, and Fred at Gordon Ramsey's Pub and Grill
The waiter approaches and asks if we’d like tap water or bottled water. He’s holding a bottle of water in his hand about to pour. “Tap water is fine.” He begins pouring the bottle water into our glasses. “We fill the bottle with tap water and chill it” he tells us. The menu is surprisingly sparse, about five selections each of fish, pork, and beef. I order the port belly ($30), Fred orders the pork chop ($32), and Cindy orders the Sheppard Pie ($21). Everything is a la cart. Our food arrived. It was good, it wasn’t great. We all agreed it was over-priced and over hyped. I now regret not going back to Central where the food was truly special. Fortunately, I paid the bill with reward points, or I would have been very disappointed.
We then went to the Diamond Lounge for drinks. It was very busy for a Sunday night but tomorrow is a holiday and the hot food items were about to be removed. We had a nice chat for about an hour and then said our goodbyes. We’re leaving early tomorrow, so it was back to the room and the trip was at end.
To sum everything up: I was disappointed that I was given a regular room in the Augustus Tower, but the gifts from the host and the turn down service made up for all of that.
Gambling was very limited. I just played a couple of short sessions, and both of them were losers.
For this trip, the 7-Star benefits consisted mostly of line passes and being approached by floor managers while playing to introduce themselves and of course the 7-Star cocktail meet and greet at Flamingo.
The Jersey Boys was excellent and a show to be remembered. The Legends in Concert was fun and didn’t disappoint.
Food for the trip was a good and the great find was Richard Michael’s Central in the lobby of Caesars which serves as its “café” but is really fine dining.
Next is Laughlin this weekend followed by another stay here in Las Vegas during Thanksgiving week.
Reaching for the Stars – Chapter 7
I’ve made reference in past chapters at the frustration with the lack of consistency between Caesars properties. Many times this spans between regions, jurisdictions, and even individual properties within the same region. At this point early on in my 7-Star membership I can count on one notion: Don’t expect anything. In the Diamond Lounges in Nevada and New Jersey, drinks are free. In other states the price of drinks varies (Rincon, in California, the cost of a gin and tonic is $4.00. The Horseshoe in Cleveland, the same drink is $1.50). In Nevada the Diamond Lounges offer appetizers (usually chicken wings and egg rolls) during a very limited time window, usually two hours, as their hot food items. In Atlantic City you can have what amounts to complete buffet services and some even offer table service. I suppose what I’m saying here is that you need to learn to be flexible.
I’m in Las Vegas along with Cindy staying at Caesars Palace for four nights. This is the trip that I earned when I made my second tier diamond level (four anytime nights). You might remember when I was in Reno this past summer when I had a problem with a host at Harrah’s, Reno who didn’t get back to me for almost a week about securing the reservations. This trip was from that. I picked these dates so it would coincide with the Great Gift Wrap Giveaway. I am not a big fan of Caesars Palace. Of course, it’s the jewel of the company, and it’s a beautiful property; however, I don’t like the valet parking (it can be a zoo), and it’s so big that to get anywhere is a long hike.
Because this seems to be most high rollers’ choice to stay, the chance of getting a suite are less than other properties. It’s the old would you rather be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond. I prefer the first. We arrived in good time and surprisingly, I-15 was free of traffic and even the Strip was drivable. We checked in and I asked for the best room available (flashing my 7-Stars card). That was to no avail as we were given a basic room in the Augustus Tower. Make no mistake, this is a nice room, but it’s the same room I received as a lower-level Diamond player and was “expecting” something nicer.
When this tower first opened, it was state-of-the-art at the time with a flat screen TV and a beautiful double sink bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub and separate shower. However, by today’s standard, the TV (still the original) is small and outdated. The room is clean and in good shape though the furniture is showing wear. There is no refrigerator except for the mini-bar, which is jammed packed so you can’t get anything in there. The worst addition, which seems to be in most of the Vegas Caesars’ properties, is the Keurig coffee maker that you can only use if you purchase their packets at $12 for two cups. Jeez! We do have a nice view of the northern Strip and the pools.
The first order of business was to get tickets for Veronica at Ballys and Jersey Boys at the Paris. I went to the Host offices and was greeted warmly by the host on duty. He called first to Ballys and it turns out the Veronica is completely sold out all weekend (not a surprise). However, a call to the Paris scored us two tickets to Jersey Boys for tomorrow night at 7PM. The Diamond Lounge in Caesars was about to open and there was a long line of people waiting to get in. We simply walked to the head of the line showing the 7-Stars card and were admitted immediately (it still feels a bit odd taking “cuts” like that—but I’ll get used to it). We had a couple of good drinks and the offerings of hot food were (surprise!) chicken wings and chimichangas.
We walked all through Caesars (it was not very busy and the food court on the lower level was all but empty—I’ve never seen that at dinner time). We walked through the Forum Shops as I was keeping an eye open for things I might want to buy with my $500 shopping spree, which I’ll use on a later trip. The only surprise (other than the usual array of new stores) was that the sports memorabilia shop where Pete Rose would prostitute his signature was gone. Planet Hollywood is now a Carmine’s, with a major renovation, which looks great.
The H & M Clothing Store in the Forum Shops
The front entrance to the Forum Shoppes
Next was a walk over to the Mirage (this is Cindy’s first visit to these properties, so it was sight-seeing time). I thought I might put a point on my MGM card (don’t know why I bother, but you just never know). Lost a $20 in short order at some tight-ass penny game and then I put another $20 into a Carnival game (I had a little luck in Cleveland on this). I was catching nothing and was down to $4 with no bonus and me whining about how tight MGM machines are when I had a big hit for $75. I cashed out immediately—see ma, whining does help, sometimes.
We walked across the street to Harrahs and went into their Diamond Lounge. It was very busy but they had just stopped service of the hot food items, and the place pretty much emptied in short order (note to low-rollers: the high rollers can be some of the cheapest SOBs anywhere). We had a couple of Baileys and coffees and sauntered over to the new Quad. This has been reported before, but I can’t emphasize enough just how DIFFERENT this place is compared to what the Imperial Palace looked like. How they did this major of an architectural change and never closed is the stuff worthy of a reality show. Funny, however, is the site from the room at Caesars, which shows the old Imperial Palace rooms directly behind the new Quad façade.
The front of the Quad, while the back is still the old Imperial Palace
We walked back to Caesars and enjoyed a late dinner at the Michael Richard's Central restaurant in front of the main registration desk. Cindy had the Ahi burger and I had a Chicken Chinese Salad. The place is pricey, but the food was outstanding! I used my reward points to pay for it.
The Ahi Burger at the Central
When we returned to the room, I was a little disappointed that there was no gift basket despite being told at check in to “expect it.” I still thought perhaps because this was booked under the Diamond program that the usual 7-Star treatment wasn’t in effect. However, the next morning when I was getting coffee down at the Starbucks by the Diamond registration, I spoke with the clerk asking if it was an oversight. She looked up on my account and said that there was nothing about receiving a gift basket. She asked who my host was and I told her that my host is at Rincon in San Diego; however, my contact host name was Lisa White (this is a bit of a white (pun intended) lie. I didn’t have a contact host. I only had the name because my friend Ted from Oroville had given me the name of three or four nice hosts at different properties and hers was the name for Caesars Palace. The clerk looked up the name and said she wasn’t currently on property (thank goodness) but she’d take down my name and room number and look into it. I told her that it wasn’t a big deal either way, I was simply curious.
Today (Friday) was filled with errands. First and foremost was the Great Gift Wrap Giveaway at the Flamingo that opened up at 10 PM. When we headed to the pedestrian bridge between Caesars and the Flamingo, we found police had cordoned it off on both sides as there was something being investigated. We walked over the other bridge to the Bellagio and thought it would be a good time to check out the fall display at the atrium. There was the usual water mill and pumpkins and as always smelled wonderful.
Part of the spring display in the atrium at the Bellagio
The Scarecrow at the Bellagio spring display
On the way back I noticed a new Phantom of the Opera penny game. This was a 3D version with music and characters from the movie. I put in a twenty to check it out playing the minimum 50-cents. I hit quite a few minor bonuses and the main one in short order and walked away with $75. The machine’s music is great. I recommend you check it out.
The new Phantom of the Opera machine
As we walked out of the Bellagio, we noticed the police presence was gone and headed over to the Flamingo. There were no signs where the Gift Wrap was taking place, so we stopped at the Rewards Center to ask. While there, I was able to pick up my monthly two free tickets choosing the Legends Show for tomorrow night as Cindy had never seen it before and the couple of times I have I was very impressed. We were told the Gift Wrap was on the third floor in a convention room.
We followed the signs, got my total point amount (105,000—based on play from the Caesars Southern California properties). This program has been going on for years whereas Caesars has the convention room packed full of gifts such as appliances, jewelry, bicycles, and this year a hover craft golf cart. You’re given a calculator when you enter and there are business cards next to each item with the amount of points it costs. If you want the item, you take one of the cards. When you’ve reached your point limit, you take your cards to the cashier who then confirms the address you want them sent and that’s it. The gifts are absolutely free as is the shipping. Nothing is taken from your rewards account nor are you charged anything. It’s a true giveaway. All are quality and top-of-the-line brand names. Needless to say, the points charged are above retail (if you wanted the golf cart hover craft, it would cost you 16,500,000 points). A new XBOX One would require 230,000 points. However there were many items to choose from under 100,000 and even Shell $10 gas cards were only 3000 points. After spending less than an hour making my selections (I’m not going to share what I got here as I’m using some for Christmas gifts), we headed back downstairs.
It was already almost noon and we were hungry and stopped in at the Flamingo café for breakfast /lunch. We each had the Eggs Ranchero and though the food was good, the service was really slow. We then made a stop at the Flamingo Diamond Lounge for a Bailey’s coffee. The lounge had all the usual furniture removed and about twelve tall tables in the middle along with the booths along the wall. The booths were reserved for 7-Star members and the Diamond members had to stand at the tables (I felt a bit embarrassed sitting in a booth as some older people had to stand at tables—eventually the hostess allowed a few to sit at the tables, which I thought was nice). As we were drinking our coffee, she then came to us and asked if we’d like to go to a party being given by the new Vice President of Casino Operations this afternoon at 4PM. She had been instructed to find and invite any 7-Star members who weren’t staying at the Flamingo. She put some specific colored wristbands on our wrists that would gain us entry. Cindy and I really had no clue what this was about, but it included free drinks and food samplings from their restaurants—okay!
The Dancing with the Stars Trophy Ball on display at the Flamingo
We went back to Caesars to pick up the car as the next errand was to buy some needed toiletries and I wanted to pick up some new slacks for tonight’s Jersey Boys show. I thought we could go to the Target store on Blue Diamond because I had wanted to show Cindy the Silverton. One of the things I want to get done this trip is to visit many of the local casinos and give them my change of address as I moved this month. I no longer live in Pine Valley. I’ve moved closer to San Diego in a town called Santee.
I went to the slot booth to make the address change and the boothling reminded me that I had $25 in free play (like I needed to be reminded—he obviously isn’t familiar with LVA members). I took Cindy over to the high limit room where the only two machines with full pay Bonus Poker exists, the two 5/10/25-cent 100-plays. I chose to play ten-play for dimes to use my $25 free play. That was soon gone and I put in a hundred (the Silverton is one of the casinos that I get regular comp rooms and free play, so I wanted to give them some play to keep those offers coming). After putting on almost 600 points, I told Cindy we’d stop when I reached either $100 or $50, whichever came first. Twice I got up to $98.50 but that wasn’t the agreement. I was soon dealt four-to-the-royal in clubs. On the third game, I got the King of Clubs for a Royal good for $400. I cashed out my ticket that was now $493.50. Very nice—what a year I’m having.
I showed Cindy the sights at the Silverton (the mermaid lounge, the aquarium, and we strolled through the Big Bass Outdoor Center) and then finally made our way to Target where we bought all the needed items and as it was getting late, drove back to Caesars to change for both the cocktail party and the Jersey Boys tonight. When we opened the door to our room, we were surprised to find on our desk a complete layout of fruit, chocolates, fancy nuts, and chocolate covered strawberries. There was also an envelope from Executive Host Michael Georgesom welcoming us to the hotel. Okay—the gift basket question this morning apparently worked out.
A surprise waiting for us when we returned to the room
The box of chocolates turned out to be 30 nuggets from DeSage Chocolatier (I went online and this box retails for $56.00). I fired off a thank you email to the host. We headed across the Strip to the party, which was located at the small pool in the back of the Flamingo Pool complex. We were greeted by hosts as were checked in, greeted by other hosts as we walked up the stairs, even more hosts as we entered the door to the pool room where the party was being held.
This was a very small gathering of 7-Star members. I would guess perhaps only about 50 to 75 people. We were almost outnumbered by the many hosts walking among the guests introducing themselves. We ordered some drinks and grabbed some of the appetizers. A different host would occasionally come up and introduce themselves with small talk, usually asking about the Gift Wrap and whatnot. This was obviously simply a meet-and-greet where the Vice President wanted the 7-Star card holders to meet the different hosts. There was never any official greeting or speech. We sat down at a table and talked with a couple of other members who joined us—one couple was from Redding and Rincon was their home casino as well. We did manage to get some good suggestions and information from everyone. Finally, the Vice President came up and introduced herself to us, Ilene (I didn’t catch the last name). She stayed and spoke with us a long while. I was impressed that she was the boss of all these stuffy suits and yet she was alarmingly young—I noticed there was no wedding ring—hmm). The food consisted of VERY tasty won-tons (from their Asian restaurant), crab cakes, salmon tasters, many cheeses, and other small bite items.
Things were winding down and we left. It was now getting time to pick up our tickets to the Jersey Boys at the Paris. I had been to the theater before having seen The Producers there starring Tony Danza (yes, that’s right) so I knew just where to go. We went to the Will Call and were shown our seat location, which was up a little too high for my liking and asked if she could find anything closer to the stage. We took two seats about ten rows back from the stage in the center, which were priced at $150 each. She wanted to know if I wanted to charge them to my room and I said that I’d just assume pay them with my points now. There’s no point in charging them to room as the only benefit would be if the host decided to deduct them for your play during your stay. I had no host and I didn’t plan on doing much gambling this trip, so there was no need. I have over $1600 in reward credits, so it was no big deal.
We had 45 minutes before curtain so went into the Paris Diamond Lounge for another Bailey’s coffee (I was going to up past my bedtime tonight and thought the caffeine might be a good idea) I was just a little leery of this show because everyone has just raved and raved about it and many times the over-hype can set you up to be disappointed. Let me to report this: This show deserves all praise you can possibly say about it. The production was slick and fast paced, the music was fantastic (yes, I’m at the age where I could sing along with every song), and the actors were ideally cast. The show was worth every penny! (Okay, I didn’t pay anything, but if I had, it would have been worth it).
We walked back to our hotel to go to our room but not before stopping at the Caesars food court for a small bite. I had a slice of pizza and Cindy had a burger. Even here in the food court there’s a 7-Star and Diamond seating section, which were booths (instead of tables) and plates and plastic ware. Tonight there was turndown service (none last night—not sure if Michael had anything to do with this or not) which had two robes sitting on the bed, slippers on each side, bottles of water on the night stands along with the gold medallion chocolates. Very impressive! I fear I could become quite spoiled.
It’s Saturday and the middle of the three day Veteran’s Day weekend and the hotel is once again full of visitors as you have to make your way around the slow pokes. I see people that are in a hurry get frustrated with those just moseying along and at times even stop suddenly to look at something. We old timers to Vegas sometimes need to take a second and remember that we’re surrounded with some spectacular architecture that’s easy to take for granted having seen it seemingly hundreds of times, but for many coming to Las Vegas for the first time this place is wondrous and they should be allowed to just stop and take it all in.
Today I wanted to go to a few of the casinos where I’m a club member and give them my address change. Yes, I know I could probably do it online…but where’s the fun in that? First up was the Stations casino. We drove to Summerlin to the Red Rock Hotel and Casino. Las Vegas continues to grow and despite the recession of the past few years, there is construction going on everywhere. The Red Rock is many LVAers favorite casino. It has a little something for everyone: the newest games with a spattering of 100%+ games, a 16 screen theater complex, a bowling alley, 14 restaurants and a food court. I’ve never stayed here, but I’ve been told the rooms are terrific. I like the Stations properties, but since I’ve concentrated all my play in getting this 7-Star card, I’ve not played much here. I made the change of address and then we had lunch in their excellent coffee shop. I used what was left of my comp points to pay for most of the breakfast. I’m not sure what my future will be with the Station properties, but if I were to leave Caesars someday, Stations would only make third on my list to play at after South Point and the Boyd properties, who both give much easier comps and rooms.
After making my change of address at the booth, I went over to the cashier and made a deposit towards my Ultimate Poker online account. I was excited to see that poker can once again be played online legally; however, as it’s only legal in Nevada and New Jersey, you can only play while your computer is physically within those two states. That’s okay for now and I’m anxious to play a few games when I’m in Nevada in my spare time. Another plus is that Stations allows you to deposit and withdrawal at any of their casinos your online account. I’m excited to get started.
Time flies when you’re having fun and it was already 2PM. I got a call from LVAdvice member fredo (Fred) who is in town for a few days. We agreed to meet up at South Point for a little bit, so we drove over there. I gave Cindy a short tour of South Point, which is a favorite place of mine simply because they have decent machine schedules, they deal 2/4 live poker, and their very nice rooms are easy to get comped. We walked up to the Rodeo which was in full swing; however, there was an admission charge as was a large gun show going on this weekend (Veteran’s Day—Gun show—makes sense) that also required a $7 admission price. I like to look at horses and guns…but that’s about it—wouldn’t pay to see it.
We met Fred at the Seattle Coffee outlet and had a nice chat. Fred is the person that gave me the very nice room at the Atlantis in Reno this past summer. We had met a few years ago when I was on my National Casino Tour and we took in an Aces game (the Triple-A baseball team) in Reno. We had a nice chat and agreed to meet tomorrow at Caesars so I could return the favor and treat him to a good dinner.
Time was just moving along and we had to get back to Caesars to drop off the car at valet and walk over to the Flamingo as our show was going to start in an hour. One of the better perks of being a Diamond and 7-Star member is that you get two free tickets a month to many of their “B-tier” shows such as Vinnie Favorito (filthy, but funny comedian), Mac King (funny magician), Anthony Cools (Hypnotist), as well as the Jubilee show and Penn and Teller among others. Cindy chose the Legends in Concert, which is currently in its 30th season now performing in the Donnie and Marie Theater during the afternoons. I’ve been to this show a few times and I’ve never been disappointed. The show features four celebrity impersonators who sing some of the hits with a live band. Though it sounds tacky on the surface, this show is terrific. They hire the best at what they do. The show is slick and fast paced. The nice twist is that they always change the performers so you never know who you’re going to see with the exception of the final performer who is always the Elvis impersonator. Today’s show opened with Madonna followed by Tom Jones. Then a Michael Jackson impersonator came on and just floored the audience. He was really amazing and the dancing was spot-on. The Elvis was a very young (and rather short) man, but close your eyes and you are listening to Elvis Presley. He was amazing. Once again, this 75 minute show did not disappoint. My 7-Star card got me a booth down center, but after arriving to our assigned booth, there were some older ladies (one disabled) there, so our host gave us a table right in front of the stage. This show is simply good Las Vegas entertainment.
We headed back to Caesars and had dinner once again at the Central café. Cindy had the salmon and I had meatloaf. This is no ordinary café. The food is prepared as if you’re fine dining. Both the meals were excellent.
Sunday—no shows, no errands, just enjoy the final day in Vegas. After getting up we got the car out of valet and drove down to Henderson to get gas at Costco and have breakfast at Sam’s Town. TGIF isn’t known for their breakfasts, but they do a good one here. Driving back to Caesars, we made a stop on Royal St. to take a picture of the still under construction of the Ferris wheel and a couple of the pods about to be attached. This will be the largest Ferris wheel in the world when it’s completed.
The Wheel behind the Quad not far from being finished
The pods waiting to be attached to the wheel.
After dropping the car off once again at the valet at Caesars, we decided to walk the south of the Strip. We walked through the Bellagio once again, stopping to play my new favorite penny machine, the new Phantom of the Opera, and then on to the Cosmopolitan.
The Bellagio and Caesars. The weather today was perfect.
The Eiffel Tower at the Paris
In the Cosmopolitan Cindy and I both took out new slot cards (mine had expired) and were both offered the $100 rebate. Cindy played an Elvis penny game and I played the new Beverly Hillbillies game. She won, I lost. I had the hundred I lost put on my card as free play, which I’ll use during Thanksgiving week when I’ll be back here again.
We walked through Crystals, and as usual, it was dead. All of the premium stores are empty and there are only a few people walking around. The construction between Crystals and New York, New York all but makes the Monte Carlo invisible from the Strip. New York, New York is very busy. It’s Sunday and the bars and sportsbook are packed with people wearing their jerseys and screaming whenever there’s a score. We came here to try a slice of pizza at the Sirricho’s. Cindy was told to try them out as the pizza was great. She had a vegetarian slice and I had a pepperoni…we found both pizzas…ordinary. As we left upstairs on our way to the MGM, we saw the New York Pizza company on the second floor…we now believe we went to the wrong place.
It’s been a while since I’ve last been in the MGM. This place seems to be perpetually under construction and remodeling. What used to be a Yellow Brick Road display at the entrance, then became a center bar, then became rows of slot machines, then became the poker room, and now is simply a carpeted area with a lone video blackjack machine with a couple of TVs on the wall. Many of the stores on Restaurant row have either closed or changed hands. For some reason, this place is not only too big, but lacks any personality.
We took the monorail back to the Flamingo and finally walked back to Caesars. We were going to meet Fred (LVA-fredo) for dinner at 5:00. The original plan was to meet and eat at Central but because Cindy and I had already eaten there twice, we thought we might change it up and try out the newest Gordon Ramsey restaurant the Pub and Grill which took over the Ogden restaurant space. We got in the back of the line (they didn’t have a Diamond/7-Star line) and was seated at a table that was two leather love seats with a small table in the middle.
[img width=800 height=478]https://i266.photobucket.com/albums/ii249/sionow/Reaching%20for%20the%20Stars/Fred1.jpg[/img]
Cindy, Me, and Fred at Gordon Ramsey's Pub and Grill
The waiter approaches and asks if we’d like tap water or bottled water. He’s holding a bottle of water in his hand about to pour. “Tap water is fine.” He begins pouring the bottle water into our glasses. “We fill the bottle with tap water and chill it” he tells us. The menu is surprisingly sparse, about five selections each of fish, pork, and beef. I order the port belly ($30), Fred orders the pork chop ($32), and Cindy orders the Sheppard Pie ($21). Everything is a la cart. Our food arrived. It was good, it wasn’t great. We all agreed it was over-priced and over hyped. I now regret not going back to Central where the food was truly special. Fortunately, I paid the bill with reward points, or I would have been very disappointed.
We then went to the Diamond Lounge for drinks. It was very busy for a Sunday night but tomorrow is a holiday and the hot food items were about to be removed. We had a nice chat for about an hour and then said our goodbyes. We’re leaving early tomorrow, so it was back to the room and the trip was at end.
To sum everything up: I was disappointed that I was given a regular room in the Augustus Tower, but the gifts from the host and the turn down service made up for all of that.
Gambling was very limited. I just played a couple of short sessions, and both of them were losers.
For this trip, the 7-Star benefits consisted mostly of line passes and being approached by floor managers while playing to introduce themselves and of course the 7-Star cocktail meet and greet at Flamingo.
The Jersey Boys was excellent and a show to be remembered. The Legends in Concert was fun and didn’t disappoint.
Food for the trip was a good and the great find was Richard Michael’s Central in the lobby of Caesars which serves as its “café” but is really fine dining.
Next is Laughlin this weekend followed by another stay here in Las Vegas during Thanksgiving week.
