Siegels 1941 El Cortez, was it always this bad?

After a visit to El Cortez they sent free play offers and dining credit. Looking at the menu online you would think they know what they are doing. Who is cooking back there ? Larry, curly and moe ? Fast food would have been better.

 

Plenty of poor reviews of the place around here. It's a far cry from the Flame (RIP).

 

It’s weird - figure something would change after almost everything I’ve heard about that place since I’ve been on VMB has been underwhelming or worse The prime rib special can’t be that good

 

I have to say while being there solo in February and staying at El cortez I ate at Siegel's twice and had two decent meals, no complaints. With that said, it was off hours, say 3am with most other places around closed. Also, I was maybe 1 of 3 tables at the time for what it's worth.

 

The food is usually decent, though not consistent.
The service is consistent (ly) horrible.

 

Why does every nice casino have a steak house? So high rollers can have a free meal and feel better about their losses. Why does El Cortez have Siegel”s? So low rollers can do the same. Expectations when it opened seemed to be ‘achieve mediocrity’ and it took years to dial that in. Management is deaf to complaints and I can’t imagine what a day in the life of an employee is like. I’ve resigned myself to an occasional breakfast there, anything else is a waste of time.

 

I think every hotel/casino needs to have a restaurant, and “steak house” is the default in terms of what will appeal to people. One may be able to argue that no, every joint does NOT need to have a restaurant, but I can see the reasoning.

Otherwise, I don’t get it either. I have never eaten at Siegel’s, probably mostly because I have never heard anything good about it. Seems like there are many superior options at the same priceline within a ten minute radius on foot. The head scratcher is that there is so much turnover in Vegas, so why is a place with such a bad reputation still around? (There is probably less turnover downtown, but still...)

I’m guessing part of it is the lure of the food and drink credit. I’ve been offered them there before but never accepted — $25 or whatever it is probably doesn’t go that far at Siegel’s but it might be enough to get someone to stick around and have dinner. That doesn’t answer why the place is lousy though, other than making improvements means spending money they don’t want to spend. I’d love to go to a good restaurant with a 1940s theme, and who knows, maybe some day they’ll turn it around. What is now Oscar’s at the Plaza has had its ups and downs over the years, and last time I went there a couple of years ago it was quite good.

 

THIS!

 

It's really bad food. The owners most not care because it's been that way for years.

 

Yes, miss the Flame (Robertas).

 

I still wonder what they were thinking a few years ago when they closed down a good steakhouse and excellent, very busy coffee shop, replacing them with a mediocre at best restaurant....

 

This was going to be my response

 

I've had one really good breakfast there... and the prime rib is OK...just the prime rib...nothing that comes with it...and, yeah - the service is unbelievably bad.

 

About 2 years ago we had breakfast there and this was their idea of hashbrowns.