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24 hours to a "different" kind of TR. 11/30-12/3/2018 GGWU and HGS

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by DaiLun, Nov 29, 2018.

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  1. vegasnut

    vegasnut VIP Whale

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    great Tr so far and congrats on the handpay:thumbsup:
     
  2. rooster42000

    rooster42000 Goat of all Goats , My Hero

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    Nice handpay, Congrats
     
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  3. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    Turned $1150 in FP into $1350. Not too bad. I'm gonna "hold" $500 FP for the Aria trip in April.

    Well, I ate dinner at the Silverton buffet, and also won $300, and I put about $200 of it back at MGM.

    It was Polynesian night at Silverton, and although I have pictures, I'm a little too tired to put them up right now.

    I'm ready to sleep. Didn't go to the movie.

    I'm up enough to support my next trip, just gotta keep it "low and slow" tomorrow. Might drive out to Primm tomorrow morning, or just try and sleep in.

    I'm targeting Momofuku for lunch, and China Tang at MGM Grand for dinner.

    See ya tomorrow.
     
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  4. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    OK, slot porn and pictures of dinner
    This contributed to the $1350
    upload_2018-12-2_3-49-1.png
    This was the first dinner serving at Polynesian night at Silverton
    Clockwise from 12:00
    Pork Skins
    Mac and Cheese
    Huli Huli Chicken
    Mint and Chili Chicken wings
    Ahi Poke' (Very good!!)
    upload_2018-12-2_3-50-6.png
    and dessert
    Coconut Cream pie and pudding with fruit
    upload_2018-12-2_3-51-42.png
    All in all, not bad for the price of a tip ($5.00 is what I normally tip at standard buffets). This was a $21.99 meal if I had to pay full price.

    Played Buffalo Max (another version of Buffalo) and Wonder 4 Tall Towers to win my $300

    Had a little insomnia , but I think I'm over it now. Being 275 feet from the elevators is a definite disincentive for me going down to the casino at 4AM.
     
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  5. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    OK, slept "in" until 7AM. Forgot to cash in a ticket from last night, but since I left most of my cash in the safe. This morning, it's time to go downtown to pay off the marker that I took out from QQQQ. I stopped by El Cortez first and there are no blue caps left. I did get oneclear cap, which brought my losses at El Cortez down to $90. Went over to QQQQ, self parked, paid off the marker and got my parking ticket validated. Gee, it's only 9:30. I really didn't want to go over to Cosmopolitan THAT early . . . too much temptation to play (i.e. lose).

    When I'm up a decent number, I really turn into a "P***y", my philosophy is that it's not "the houses money", it's now MY money and I want to keep as much of it to take home as I can.

    So, I got back in the car, and headed anywhere. Sunday morning on Charleston St., not a lot of traffic. Oh hell, I can control myself, I still need to stand in line to get replacement Identity cards.

    Got my Identity cards and it was about 10:30AM. I went up to Momofuku and it's placement belies it's real size. This is a picture of the entrance
    upload_2018-12-2_12-42-58.png
    So, you'd think, just a little hole-in-the wall on the corner . . until you get inside.
    upload_2018-12-2_12-43-44.png
    upload_2018-12-2_12-43-55.png
    Quite a big place.
    Here is the menu, "stitched together" hope that it's readable
    upload_2018-12-2_12-44-59.png
    I chose the Pork Belly Bun, and a bowl of the Shoyu Pork Ramen.
    A WARNING HERE:
    If you're not a fan of pork belly, don't order either of the items. If you REALLY LIKE pork belly, I encourage you to order both of these as a lunch.
    I'm kind of in the middle. I like pork belly, but this was just a shade too much.
    They provided a small bottle of Ssam sauce (Korean Chili sauce) for the pork belly bun.
    15-20 minutes later the pork belly bun came out
    upload_2018-12-2_12-49-32.png
    Opened up, it looked like this
    upload_2018-12-2_12-49-55.png
    The pork belly was DELICIOUS. Not overly fatty tasting, the pork taste really came through well. I ate one bite with no sauce, then added sauce for the remaining bites because the sauce went really well with the bun. It didn't Overpower the pork belly, rather complimented it.
    Then came the ramen . . .
    upload_2018-12-2_12-51-52.png
    A close up picture of the pork belly piece.
    upload_2018-12-2_12-52-25.png
    OK, first the broth. Very rich, and full bodied almost "too much" flavor. I just bought David Chang's cookbook and it has the recipe for this broth, and I'm gonna try it at home.
    It had pork belly, ramen noodles, green onion, and a poached egg along with the pork belly. The noodles were done just the way that I like them, chewy but not rubbery.

    All in all, it was a good lunch, and I could've gone with just the ramen, but I'm not sure when I'm gonna get back here (primarily since I have to pay out of pocket) I wanted to try at least two things.

    Then came the bill.
    upload_2018-12-2_12-57-2.png
    I guess it's reasonable by LV Strip standards, and I could've done without the pork belly bun, but since I'm "up" this trip, and it was on my "bucket list", I shouldn't be complaining.

    Next time, I'll come back with a group (hopefully with someone who has comps at Cosmopolitan) and try the family style meal. Of course, I will reciprocate at Mr. Chow's or Beijing Noodle No. 9.

    On my way out of Cosmopolitan, I sat down at Wonder 4 Boost and hit this small one. Brought me back to just about under $100 for the morning.
    upload_2018-12-2_13-2-27.png

    Oh yeah, and since I haven't played at Cosmo in awhile, I am a lowly Velvet level and had to pay $7.00 for parking . . .

    So, now that the lunch was over, fortunately, I had this update to write, so I came back to the room. The TV went completely out last night, so I called Hotel Engineering to get it fixed. Just another thing to note on my satisfaction survey.

    I still have about $20 of resort credit with mLife. I was thinking of China Tang, but will probably stick to a buffet, either MGM Grand or Excalibur or Luxor if I'm out and about.
     
    Last edited: Dec 2, 2018
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  6. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    Well, time to reinstate old habits and commitments. I had a handpay this trip, so I'm off to Goorin Bros. to see if they have any hats that I like. It's taking Engineering FOREVER to get here, so I'm going out.
     
  7. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    OK, I think I'm really done. Decided not to drive, and $13.00 for a 24 hour monorail ticket was worth it.

    So I went downstairs and played off $200 of my remaining $500 FP, and got $150.00 out of it.

    Took the monorail to Flamingo and got off to go to Goorin Bros. on the LINQ Promenade. Make a note that Flamingo isn't the stop with the shortest walk. It is actually the next stop at Harrahs/The LINQ.

    Anyway, they didn't have any hats "on sale", but I was committed since it is one of my superstitions to buy a new hat after a LV hand pay. The only style I was missing (since I lost the one that I had lost on my trip in March) was a flatcap. They had one for $50.00 and I bought it.
    upload_2018-12-2_16-9-6.png
    It fits well and keeps my head warm.

    Walked through the LINQ and reboarded the monorail when I realized that I didn't have my phone. I rode the monorail all the way down to the end (SLS), and then back to MGM Grand.

    I took the opportunity to get some soaps from Nectar Bath treats for my female friends.

    I decided that April was a little too far off to be holding $500 in FP, so I played it off, and because "that's why they call it gambling", got beaten out of that plus $350 out of pocket.

    Just as I was getting ready to get up, having taken my beating, and go back to the room, I hit this:
    upload_2018-12-2_16-13-0.png
    So I made $540 back just like that . . cashed out and came back to the room. Got ice, since the ice machine is in a different hallway and I am at the end of mine.

    Waiting for dinner. My original plan was to eat at the MGM Grand buffet and then wander on down to Andiamo's at the D and get a Prime Rib to go with my $35 food benefit, but that plan would be a little unwieldy.

    So, I may go down for an early dinner and then go out and catch a movie. I do need to take the car out and get gas before tomorrow morning.
     
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  8. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    OK, except for the flight home, I'm done. Had dinner at the MGM Grand buffet. Was completely underwhelmed. The variety and selection was good, all except for the crab legs and clams, which were only served at a "manned" station of "cooked to order seafood". Otherwise, it was "life sustaining +". Now to be honest, my rating may have been affected by my choice of a movie at South Point Cinemark and I was cutting it "kind of close". I chose the 6:10 PM showing of "Ralph Breaks the Internet", which, all in all was a pretty good movie.

    I put $20 into a slot machine on the way out of South Point, and I got the bonus, which paid a "whopping" $4.00. Cashed out for $17.50. That was the end of my slot play.

    Gassed up the car, drove back to MGM Grand and going to crash In about an hour.

    So, in summary, I was up this trip, ate at a David Chang restaurant, got Christmas presents and made a new "FGF".

    For the next two trips I will have $1200 and $875 in free play/promo chips, so cash is just an afterthought.

    Thanks for following along. My next trip is in two weeks to Lake Tahoe (weather permitting), and following that, early in the New Year for my birthday.
     
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  9. dankyone

    dankyone VIP Whale

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    Great report! I agree, MGMs HGS at Bellagio feels much classier than the GGWU.
     
  10. rvallez6

    rvallez6 MIA

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    That pork belly Ramen looks great! I thought about going here when i was in town last week and didn't end up doing it. If i would have seen that ramen, i definitely would have went.
     
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  11. DiamondJim21

    DiamondJim21 High-Roller

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    I really enjoyed reading your report. I'm impressed with your in depth knowledge of and success you have with the different programs offered by CET and Mlife. Thank you for writing. I look forward to your next report.
     
  12. pebbles

    pebbles Micro Roller.

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    Thanks for the TR. I enjoyed following along. Good info and photos on the food.
     
  13. shokhead

    shokhead No big spender unless eating drinking having fun!

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    What is Great Gift Wrap and how does it work?
     
  14. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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