Question of the Day 2020-05-26

I was in Reno last year for the first time since the mid-90s, and while I didn’t stay there, I was impressed with the Peppermill, which was a first-rate full-service resort hotel. Does it have the same ownership as the Peppermill restaurant/lounge on the Strip? If so, who are the owners, have they ever had ambitions to open a hotel in Las Vegas, and do they have any other significant assets besides the Reno hotel and Las Vegas restaurant?

There are two Peppermills per se, not counting the Peppermill Coffee Shop & Lounge on the Las Vegas Strip, which is a "restricted" gaming location, meaning that it has a slot route, in this case the legal maximum of 15 machines. (Anything more than 15 and you’re a casino.) A block south of where Riviera used to be, this Peppermill is actually better known than its much-bigger siblings, of which more in a minute. Quentin Tarantino has been known to patronize it and Martin Scorcese filmed parts of Casino at the Peppermill. The movie’s first glimpse of Sharon Stone shows her perched aside the fire pit in the ‘Mill’s dark and cozy lounge, which has also been seen in Showgirls and "CSI".

The flagship of the Peppermill chain is in Reno, south of downtown, where 1,635 hotel rooms await you. The casino has 1,915 slots as well as 64 table games. There’s a Fireside Lounge there, too, much as in Vegas. With a couple of exceptions, the fine-dining and casual restaurants uphold the Peppermill tradition of borderline-outrageous interior décor. It’s a world seen through very rose-colored spectacles.

The Wendover incarnation of the Peppermill is, as you might expect, a smaller and more value-oriented version of the Reno property (although it has its own concert hall), sharing some of the same playful outrageousness in its décor. The casino isn’t exactly intimate but is definitely Reno’s little sister: 920 slots and 27 table games. If you can’t find a game of poker there, try the Montego Bay casino-hotel, which is owned by Peppermill sister company Wendover Casinos and shares the same management team. Peppermill also owns the Rainbow Hotel & Casino -- 945 slots and 46 tables -- and is marketed in tandem with the other two casinos.

Closer to Reno, Peppermill also owns the Western Village Inn & Casino, in Sparks (831 slots, nine tables), for those who like a more sedate casino experience and don’t mind hotel rooms that are decidedly plain.

So, you see, the Peppermill brand embraces far more dining, gambling, and hotel product than might seem evident from a casual glance at the iconic Las Vegas Strip coffee shop.

Does the Reno Peppermill have the same ownership as the Peppermill on the Strip?

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rokgpsman May-26-2020

Peppermill in Vegas

The Peppermill restaurant on north part of Las Vegas Blvd is such an iconic place, one of the few retro or old-school places that's endured. We always stop by for something to eat on every vacation trip, might be lunch or late night, it's always a treat to be there. I miss seeing the old Riviera that was nearby, it had such a colorful decor on the upper part of the casino. I hope the Peppermill never goes away, it's a Las Vegas treasure.

Kevin Lewis May-26-2020

Henderson Rainbow?

Is that property owned by the Peppermint? It sure looks the same inside.
Western Village BTW deals $2 3:2 single deck blackjack!!!

Deke Castleman May-26-2020

Rainbow

Very good, Kevin. The Rainbow Club in downtown Henderson looks exactly like a (rainbow-themed) Peppermill because up until late last year, it was one. It was sold by Peppermill Resorts for an undisclosed sum last December to the operators of Emerald Island casino directly across the street.

Question of the Day - 26 May 2020

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