Last week, Vegas Message Board hosted a lengthy, detailed and impassioned screed from a self-professed Seven Stars member about a recent trip to Las Vegas and stay with Caesars Entertainment. First, the good news: the player host was extremely obliging, guest service was friendly and great, and the food was very good. The bad news was … almost everything else. The guest rooms at Harrah’s Las Vegas (our source’s hotel of choice) “were all recently remodeled, were nice enough, and had a low comp rate.” But mention the magic word “Eldorado” to an employee and, boy, did they spill! This started as soon as the party arrived, being informed that valet parking was closed from noon on Tuesdays until the weekend. The valet parking attendant “told me they are always hiring but that they have plenty of parkers and plenty of business to have valet open 24/7 like it used to be. He said it’s all Eldorado being cheap and not caring about providing the customer the proper service they are entitled to and have come to expect.”
“This became a theme of the trip; mention Eldorado to an employee and they knew YOU knew what was going on and felt they could talk candidly about how far and how quickly Eldorado is bringing the company down and treating not just guests, but also employees, with disdain.” The hits just kept on coming: The Seven Stars/Diamond lounge was closed, ostensibly on a temporary basis. Our source was told it has been defunct since the Great Reopening and they don’t expect it ever to resume hosting players. Upon check-in (understaffed), the visitors witnessed a line like the one seen below—by a friend of S&G—at 4 p.m. on a Sunday over at the Flamingo.
Want to have lunch at the pool? Better be prepared to settle for nachos. “Again, I said the magic word. Yes, Eldorado, they don’t want to pay to open the kitchen or pay for food servers to work.” Oh, and there’s one server for the whole pool area, admittedly on a weekday. “They aren’t short-staffed, they could easily have 3 servers working but Eldorado doesn’t want to pay 3. They use the excuse that one server can make more money working by herself. The servers keep telling them that’s bullshit because they can’t give quality service.” Not surprisingly, customers are inclined to blame the servers, not The Man. Tips supposedly suffer accordingly. It was furthermore alleged that Eldorado, er, Caesars plans to end all live entertainment in the Carnival Court, even though it was designed for that purpose.”Eldorado isn’t in the entertainment business” an employee was told. (Not in room-service business either, apparently, as it has allegedly terminated it at Caesars Palace.)
The indignities continued within the suite, which was (we read) equipped with a grand total of three bath totals. When virtual concierge Ivy was queried about this, the reply was “I am only allowed to provide you one set per registered guest.” Ivy only relented upon being told she was serving Seven Stars guests. “So it seems Eldorado has even reprogrammed Ivy to give shit service.” When a locksmith was needed, he arrived promptly. “Spent a few minutes talking to him. He’s been at Harrah’s 27 years. His assistant left and they won’t let him hire or train a new assistant because that costs money. So yes, he’s the only locksmith on the property … He said with every ownership change, one thing that didn’t change is that the customer comes first, the employees second, and everything else came after those two things. Now, with Eldorado, the bottom line, cost-cutting, money comes first, and everything else is a distant second-thought.”
Concluded our disgruntled guest, “They’re not even in the hotel business. They’re not in the customer service business. They’re not in the people business. They’re not in the employee relations business. Eldorado doesn’t give a shit about anyone but the corporate suits and the almighty dollar … I have never seen or experienced cuts in service come so fast and so deep. The employees bear no fault. They are still nice, friendly, helpful and willing to do what they can … And the employees are still trying, even though they feel frustrated and feel mistreated by Eldorado.” Sayeth our source, “The Vegas strip isn’t Reno. Caesars Palace isn’t the Tropicana Laughlin. Seven Stars isn’t Diamond. No extra towels isn’t acceptable customer service at ANY hotel … We used to love Vegas. For the last 5-10 years, we liked Vegas. Now, we’re not so sure about Vegas.”
You get the idea. Given the enormous debt burden under which Caesars is laboring, something like this was all too predictable, although perhaps not so cheap and terrible as customer reports (and those on Vital Vegas) would lead us to believe. Nevada gaming regulators should and could have seen this coming but were all too eager to consummate the deal. Oh, and did we mention that ElDiablo (as players call it) is planning to demolish the Caesars Palace foyer, porte cochere and even the storied table-game dome that dates back to Jay Sarno? Not even Gary Loveman at his worst contemplated that. Worse than Loveman? We never thought it possible but it sounds like it is. Caesars employees have our heartfelt sympathy.
At least in Atlantic City, the Caesars lineup of entertainers lives up to its “star-studded” billing, even if it has a somewhat retro feel (Engelbert Humperdinck, anyone?). But hey, if Caesars can dish up Vanessa Williams (August 21), Patti LaBelle (Sept. 18), Lindsey Buckingham (ditto) and Pat Benatar (Sept. 25) … well, we’d buy tickets if we lived out that way.
Solons in the Massachusetts House of Representatives want sports betting, almost to a man. The lower house approved a sports-wagering bill 156-3. That’s what we call bipartisanship. Sentiment in the state Senate, however, is much dicier. In particular, collegiate sports betting is a sticking point, with House Speaker Ronald Mariano calling it “a dealbreaker.” He explained, “I find myself having a tough time trying to justify going through all of this to not include probably the main driver of betting in the commonwealth.” His allies estimate that, with college sports, state revenue would be $60 million a year, as little as $25 million without.
As currently proposed, sports wagers would be under the remit of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, not the state lottery, and would be available at the commonwealth’s three casinos and two simulcast OTBs. Multiple skins would permitted, at $5 million apiece. “We estimate if all those licenses go out, the commonwealth could get $70 to $80 million just in licensing fees,” enthused state Rep. Jerald Parisella. Walk-up revenue would be taxed at 12.5%, mobile wagering at 15%. The House bill would also legalize limited slot routes, a possible poison pill. Also, the Senate is larded with gambling opponents, period, still another obstacle. As for Gov. Charlie Baker (R), not only does he favor sports betting but he’s baked $35 million in revenue into his next budget. Even if the state Senate goes along, forget about wagering on Boston Red Sox games: The earliest inception would be the end of the year.
A batting order of gaming’s heaviest hitters is teaming up in Georgia to push casino gambling across the transom (and over Gov. Brian Kemp‘s dead body). Who’s in? Caesars, for one. Also Wynn Resorts, Gaming & Leisure Properties, Hard Rock International, Bally’s Corp., Penn National Gaming, Foxwoods Resort Casino, etc. Except for the Atlanta Motor Speedway, dibbed by Foxwoods, they’re eyeing downtown Atlanta, with proposed locations that include the CNN Center and in-progress Centennial Yards. One thing that strikes the visitor to Atlanta (aside from the homeless problem) is the amount of money being made and spent there. Casino gambling seems the logical next step, were it not for the ineptitude of the Lege and the hostility of the governor.
Also on the wish list are Savannah, Midway, Augusta, Hartwell, Kingsland and Liberty County. Of the all-star coalition, Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli said, I wouldn’t say it makes a material difference, but it’s not atypical for the industry to put that time and effort to what is one of the larger states in the U.S,” aiming for the big enchilada of casino resorts, not merely sports betting. However, in spite of all evidence to the contrary, anti-gaming grumblers claim that jobs and tax dollars won’t be forthcoming. (Paging the American Gaming Association … ) Given recent Georgia history, we’re hopeful but not optimistic.
The El Doradoization of Caesars is fully underway. This Diamond Elite member has had it. Metropolis IL and New Orleans are exceptions but the rest of the company has completely abandoned all customer service standards.
Conventioneer’s come once a year to Las Vegas, it’s as if El Dorado figures the vast majority of customers will be satisfied with average to lousy. Dazzling needs to be the standard, if Steve Wynn was an El Dorado lackey, we would not have a volcano, we would not have a fountain show that never gets old… Steve Wynn ended up being a toxic dirty old man to women, but he was a genius at building up hype and brand. The only brand you build by shorting people is resentment. I can directly measure my own desires to visit Las Vegas, I still want to go badly, I am cultish about Las Vegas, but I am measurably tempered knowing I will have to be like Lloyd Bridges on Sea Hunt hunting around for decent odds and games, it gets tiring.