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A week in Vegas 5/28 - 6/4.

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by hetzmr, Jun 5, 2016.

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  1. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    My Trip Report

    My wife and I made what's becoming our yearly Memorial Day week trip to Las Vegas.
    We have been flying Allegiant out of Appleton WI, it's a short 20 minute drive, which is a big plus to us. This year they changed their flight times to mid day departure out and early (6 ish) coming back. Also we've been missing the Sterling Brunch at Bally's so we decided to fly out of Milwaukee WI on Southwest , including a car from Alamo for the week it was $1040. My wife is diamond with CET so she can get 5 nights free, Paris is our usual choice. We booked late so it's a blue (old) room this time, but its a P room so we have a view of Belligio and down the south strip. A little bigger than the average room, 40" flat screen refrigerator and coffee maker. Diamonds get the resort fee waived. After settling into the room we had a late lunch at Le Cafe, as always good and quick. Then off for some play, slots for the wife, video poker for me, we both lose.
    We have tickets for Andrew Dice Clay at Tropicana so head down there, busy weekend and the roads are packed 30 minutes Paris to Tropicana. Pick up our tickets at will call and the clerk mentions the show won't start at 10:00 since the show before it doesn't end until 10:00. The show starts at 11:00. The show was average, two warm up comidians then the Dice Man. In the 80's he was outrageous, now it's pretty standard stuff. After the show we headed back to Paris and called it a night.
    Day 2 starts early, 9:30 reservations at Bally's Sterling Brunch. Called for reservations Saturday and this was the best we could get, they were sold out but since my wife is diamond they squeezed us in. Its very busy but doesn't feel crowded and the food and staff are@ excellent. My favorite is the jumbo gulf shrimp and the lobster. If you haven't tried it I'd recommend it, it's well worth the price ($85). After dinner was reserved for the Indy 500 and the Coke a cola (?) 600 and my wife went off for some slot time. At 8:00 we had tickets for One at Mandalay Bay, I'm not a Michael Jackson fan but the show was great, really amazing what the performers are able to do. Back to Paris and I called it a night, the Mrs hit the slots for a while.
    More tomorrow. 20160602_002731.jpg 20160602_002445.jpg
     
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  2. bshowell

    bshowell VIP Whale

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    Awesome view from the room!
     
  3. Niteshade

    Niteshade VIP Whale

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    Great view from the room. Sounds like a nice
    trip and you are making me want some lobster at the
    Sterling Brunch LOL. Thanks for sharing.
     
  4. weluvvegas

    weluvvegas Casino Countess

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    Andrew Dice Clay is still around? Geesh, how old is that guy now? Great view!
     
  5. emmas

    emmas VIP Whale

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    Sounds like a nice trip so far. Always wanted to try the Sterling Bunch. Two years ago booked it and then they emailed that they were closing. Haven't considered it since it reopened.
     
    I need all the luck I can get!
  6. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    Back to the report.
    Monday was a lazy day, got up late and headed to Guy Fieri’s Vegas Kitchen & Bar lunch. We got the Ringer burger and the Bacon Mac and Cheese burger, We usually split what we get so we can try more try more on the menu. I thought the Ringer was very good but didn't care for the bacon mac and cheese burger, just didn't have much taste to it, very bland. After lunch we collected the points for the "free" slot tournament at Harrah's, Didn't win but had a good time, the host was fun, made every one laugh.
    For dinner tonight we have reservations at Gordon Ramsay Steak at 6:00. A friend out there with us said you've got to try it, for some reason whenever I thought of Gordon Ramsay, shepherds pie came to mind and never was interested in going. Was I ever wrong. When we were ordering my buddy had them bring the "meat wheel " out, it's a display of the different steak cuts and they explain each one. If you're there I'd recommend having them bring it out for you, fun and interesting. I settled on the American Eye, my wife had the American Rib Cap, my buddy had the 32 oz porterhouse and his lady friend had the American Filet. https://www.caesars.com/content/dam/plv/Dining/Upscale/GordonRamsay/GRS%20Dinner%20Menu.pdf here's the menu if you're curouis. I hate to throw out "the best steak ever" but it truly was,
    cooked to perfection, so tender you could cut it with a fork and the flavor was amazing. who would have though the British knew how to cook, I'd highly recommend it.
    After dinner we went down to Fremont Street , I was curious how the performance zones are working out. http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/buskers-face-new-rules-under-fremont-street-canopy
    From what I saw it looked bad for business, very few people getting pictures taken, not much interest in the buskers and the buskers didn't look to happy being stuck on their chip. It seemed dead so we did one walk around played at Binions and Golden Gate for a while and called it a night.
    I better pick up the pace or it will take a week to finish this report, lol. More tomorrow.
     
  7. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    "Sounds like a nice trip so far. Always wanted to try the Sterling Bunch. Two years ago booked it and then they emailed that they were closing. Haven't considered it since it reopened."


    It's actually laid out better since they reopened. I know the price is high but all the food is high end. Think of it as being able to try everything on a high priced steakhouses menu, don't forget to save room for desert.
     
  8. queentata

    queentata VIP Whale

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    I second the Sterling Brunch. OMG. Unlimited Perriet Jouet(sp) lobster tails, filet mignon, caviar,and all the other amazing things you expect. The popovers you get at the beginning are amazing as well. You must try the bananas foster french toast.
     
  9. emmas

    emmas VIP Whale

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    hetzmr & queentata, thanks for the Sterling Brunch recommendation. May book again for September trip.
     
    I need all the luck I can get!
  10. Vegas Tim

    Vegas Tim Tourist

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    Great trip report, I also liked the MJ one show, I was impressed with the hollow gram of him.

    Thanks for posting.

    Tim
     
  11. Sheil813

    Sheil813 High-Roller

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    I'm eating at GR steak next week! Making my mouth water! Thanks for the review.
     
  12. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    We used several MyVegas rewards over the week. Carnegie Deli, 2 for 1 sandwich, had the rueben ($24.99) and a tuna fish($12.99) . Much to my surprize they took the rueben as the free one. We also had the free cheese cake($12.99). Busy place but service was quick and everything was very good, and the portions are huge, we could have fed 4 people. https://www.mirage.com/en/restaurants/carnegie-delicatessen.html

    At Palace Station we used the Charcoal room $30 off. We'll visit this place again, we had the steak and lobster for 2 special . 2 - 8 oz filets and a 24 - 28 oz lobster tail, salad and potato. $99.
    Watch out for the baked potato, it's as big as a football.
    If you are looking for a great meal without all the noise and distraction at a reasonable price this is the place. https://palacestation.sclv.com/Dining/The-Charcoal Room.aspx
    We also got the free t shirt, size m - xxl, grey with Las Vegas across the front. Nothing fancy but good quality.
    Everything was easy to redeem, players club to get the certificates and no questions redeeming them.

    The pool at Paris was not very crowded as usual, which is what I like about it, chaise were plentiful and you could move in or out of the sun as you wished.
    With the temperature in the 90's and 100's we couldn't stay out long but the water was refreshing.

    Wednesday was dinner at Camelot at Excalibur, again MyVegas, $50 off. we've eaten there several times and always enjoyed it. I had the prime rib and my wife had the king crab legs, we also had the fresh artichoke dip. We had a artichoke dip in Pensacola FL and have tried to find one as good, this would be the second best we've had. As always the service was excellent and the food was great. https://www.excalibur.com/en/restaurants/the-steakhouse-at-camelot.html
    After dinner we had tickets for the Million Dollar Quartet at Harrah's, free diamond show on my wife. https://www.caesars.com/harrahs-las-vegas/shows/million-dollar-quartet#.V1xtSbsrKM8
    We really enjoyed the show, live music not lip sync. The performers are very talented and the crowd really got into the show.

    Thursday was moving day, on to the Luxor. 2 nights free, $100 resort credit and $75 free play on my wife's offer.
    I've always wanted to stay in a pyramid room, last year we had 2 nights on MyVegas but got upgraded to a tower room.
    We got a Pyramid Deluxe King Room facing east (the airport), very hot in the room and the AC couldn't keep up, we ran the vent fan in the bathroom to pull the air thru the room and this made it livable in the room. We both had MyVegas $25 freeplay with a 2 night stay but were told it was a one time use and could not redeem it.
    We also had 2 free for the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, we've been there before and it's always enjoyable. https://www.mandalaybay.com/en/entertainment/shark-reef-aquarium.html
    Dinner was also on MyVegas at the Bayside Buffet. I been unimpressed with the other MGM buffets and thought this was the best by far, everything was fresh and the hot stuff was hot and the cold stuff was cold. The asian section was especially good. https://www.mandalaybay.com/en/restaurants/bayside-buffet.html

    Friday we took a trip down to Fremont street for breakfast at DuPar's at the Golden Gate. I'm a big fan and try to get here at least once a trip. Ham and swiss omelet for me and 2 eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast for my wife. Used our comp points so breakfast just cost us the tip.
    My favorite slot machine is here, Cleopatra wild tiles, there's something hypnotizing about the falling tiles and this is the only one I know of. I also play a lot of blackjack here.
     
  13. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    Friday continued.

    After GG we headed down to Binion's, its become my favorite downtown, just like the vibe, table games attract a fun crowd, comps are descent it doesn't take long to get enough for a free dinner at Binion's steak house. Most of all the employees make you feel like they want you there. Spent some time at Four Queens playing full pay video poker, where can you say that in Vegas any more. and a visit to The D. All told in three hours downtown I left with $300 more than when I got down there. I usually valet at GG and give the guy a $5 in and out and they treat you like gold.

    Dinner tonight is at the Public House, you guessed it, MyVegas $20 off. https://www.luxor.com/en/restaurants/public-house.html#/Menu
    Spinach & Artichoke dip, we've got to try it its a rule. Bland, chips were from a large bag and we got the busted up ones in the bottom of the bag and had to ask for new chips.
    We had the Public House burger, ok nothing special and the Cuban, again bland the roast pork and ham just didn't have much flavor. The fries and chips were good.
    Wouldn't go there again, not terrible but there are so many better places in Vegas. With MyVegas and resort credit still only cost us a tip.

    That night we had tickets for Dwight Yoakam at the Venetian Theater.
    The bad news was there would be a opening act, Leaving Austin. New country band, sounded like every other new country band, same tone and melody for every song.
    Dwight came on and gave us the show we came to see, some old some new, played some Merle Haggard, Elvis and at the end Peaceful Easy Feeling.
    It was a fast paced show with a little banter in between songs but mostly just great music.

    Back to the Luxor for some gambling but the music in the casino was loud and geared to the LAX crowd so I called it a night.

    Saturday, time to head home. Breakfast at the Pyramid Cafe so we can use the rest of the resort credits.
    Decent food, good service no complaints. https://www.luxor.com/en/restaurants/pyramid-cafe.html

    Checkout went smooth, we able to use the resort credit and express comps to clear the bill and owed nothing.
    All in all I don't think we'd stay at the Luxor again, we're not their target crowd and there are other places I'd rather stay.

    Headed back to the airport dropping the car off at Alamo, no surprises.
    Moved right through check in and security and had 3 hours to kill.
    Never fails, get there early no lines, get there late and there backed up out the door.
    Uneventful flight home, Southwest rocks.

    Final tally.
    Playing mostly .25 video poker nothing higher than a straight flush and $5 & $10 blackjack.
    I took $720 cash and got home with $340 cash.
    I'll take a trip like this any time.
    My wife keeps her own records so I'm not sure what her win / lose was.
     
  14. kkinwi

    kkinwi VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the report! Sounds like gambling went just fine for you.
    I finally booked the Appleton Allegiant flight for November....even with all the nickel/diming came in under $300.
    Glad your wife is doing well with CET....I could never get past Platinum, and just got fed up with the resort fees. The other places I stay comp them with the comped rooms no matter my status.
     
  15. TomTWI

    TomTWI Custom Title

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    Thanks for the TR. Is that Appleton to Vegas a non stop?

    TomTWI
     
  16. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    Southwest isn't the bargain it use to be and the convenience of flying out of Appleton has made worth flying Allegiant. Parking at Appleton is about half the price of Milwaukee.
     
  17. hetzmr

    hetzmr Tourist

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    Yes the Allegiant out of Appleton is non stop.
     
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