December put a bit of a chill on the Atlantic City casino economy, down 2% for the month, with an overall gross of $186 million. Over by the fireplace, Internet gambling was nice 
and warm, up 13%. Slot revenues were flat on 1% higher coin-in but casinos took a bit of a hurt at tables, where revenues fell 8% despite 2% more wagering. Overall, Borgata was 1% up, at $58 million, while Golden Nugget handily outpaced the online competition with 29% of market share. For someone who once mulled pulling out of Atlantic City, Tilman Fertitta is certainly cleaning up in it. Volatility was once again the downfall of Caesars Atlantic City, where most of the table-game wipeout probably hit. Winnings plummeted 20% (extreme even for Atlantic City) on a $24 million gross. Harrah’s Resort was flat ($29 million) while the grind-joint strategy is finally paying off atBally’s, up 5% with $16 million. Resorts Atlantic City slipped 2% to $14 million while the Tropicana Atlantic City was flat ($27 million). As for terrestrial play at the Nugget, it generated $18.5 million, a 6% improvement.
When new Revel owner Bruce Deifik takes over, hopefully he will keep President Mark Juliano at the reins. The respected Juliano has been quietly working with Glenn Straub 
since last summer, planning toward an eventual reopening. This would seem to be a clear case of ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,’ especially since Juliano is a veteran of the Atlantic City market. The mercurial Straub isn’t going away, at least in a non-gaming sense, have amassed 60 parcels of A.C. real estate, toward a purpose known only to himself. But he’s got a lot of ideas — sometimes almost too many — so hopefully something will come out of his big real estate play.
* Congratulations to state Sen. Becky Harris, new chairwoman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Excepting a brief tenure by Patty Becker, the NGCB has been an all-male province, so Harris brings a wind of positive change with her. She’ll have a baptism of fire, as “acts of fraudulence” alleged against Kazuo Okada are coming before the NGCB, which could put Universal Entertainment, Aruze America and Aruze Gaming‘s Nevada licenses at risk.
* Caesars Entertainment has gone to the Gordon Ramsay well five times, and will no doubt continue to do so after Hell’s Kitchen generated 12,000 bookings in a 10-day period. Ramsay called the demand for the Caesars Palace eatery “unprecedented.” Ramsay says he had been hoping for a “quiet opening” but it appears that such a thing is impossible when you’re on TV in 132 nations. If you’re willing to plunk down $125 for an aged Porterhouse steak (for two), Hell’s Kitchen is going to be your kind of place.
* The perils of casino “cruises to nowhere” were illustrated starkly last weekend in Florida‘s Port Richey when a shuttle boat caught fire, forcing the passengers to precipitately abandon ship, off aptly named Bayonet Point, with one fatality. Good samaritan Larry Santangelo took 30 of the passengers into his nearby garage to warm up, fearing hypothermia. The fire “looked pretty dramatic because the shuttle boat burned really fast,” said local Police Chief Gerard DeCanio. The cause of death for the woman who perished was not disclosed.
* Correction: A smash-and-grab theft of casino chips last week took place at Harrah’s Las Vegas, not The Cromwell as reported here. We can add Harrah’s to the growing list of soft targets on the Strip.
