MikeE
The Shah's Slightly Hairy Cousin
- Joined
- Nov 5, 2003
- Messages
- 1,596
- Trips to Las Vegas
- 888
Many of you read about my last trip/review of Wynn a month or so ago and I thank you all for the positive responses. I can't figure out how to directly link to it with the new set-up, but it's back a page or 2. When I got home from that trip, all I could do was rave about Wynn Las Vegas to my parents and of course, my dad started dropping hints about how we ought to go together. We’ve done the father/son thing before and I had a blast so I was more than happy to oblige. Now, buying a Father’s Day gift for this man is about the hardest thing in the world so I figured I’d give him his gift early by treating him to a stay at Wynn (sort of reminds me of that Simpson’s episode when Homer buys Marge a bowling ball). Dad gets home from work at about 7:30pm and we’re off.
The drive is uneventful and we’re at the Gold Strike in Jean by about 11. Yeah, that’s right: Gold Strike. If I’m heading out to Vegas so late, I definitely don’t want to pay for a room that I almost immediately go to bed in so I want to go cheapo. Downtown rates were absurd for some reason and I’ve stayed at Gold Strike before—the $20-per-night rooms are clean and comfortable, the gambling is good, and breakfast at their 24-hour café is awesome for the price. Anyway, we gamble for a bit and crash rather early.
We’re both up by 7, repack the few things we have to repack, get ready for breakfast, a bit more gambling, and the rest of the drive to Vegas. We’re out of there by 10 and are at Wynn in about a half hour. The entrance is nowhere near as packed as it was last time and we breeze right over to the valet. I walk over to check-in, but there’s a problem: although they allow me to check-in, the computer was not printing the room keys for some reason so they ask me to come back—no worries. I give my dad the grand tour of the place which happens to be dead at this time of day. His reactions always seem to be of complete indifference, but I know he’s impressed when he can’t stop looking around the place. For those of you who watched the first few episodes of A&E’s reality show “Caesars 24/7â€, the most predominantly featured character was a high-roller host (can’t remember his name) who proclaimed his loyalty to Caesars on the show and even supposedly got married to a dealer there. Well anyway, either he hates Harrah’s and/or Wynn’s offer was too good to pass up because I saw him working Wynn’s high-limit “salonâ€. I haven’t seen the show recently (if it’s even on the air), but I’m curious how that’s affected it. We then checked out the Ferrari dealership which was closed to the public last time I was there. Now you can get in for $10 and you also get a baseball cap. It’s not worth it unless you’re really into cars which fortunately I am. The highlight isn’t the new car showroom, but the used car showroom 4 stories underground. There you see the service area and what has to be one of the world’s nicest garages housing “used†Ferraris, Maseratis, Bentleys, etc. that have something like 200 miles on them.
After the tour we go back to pick up our keys. The receptionist offers me an upgrade to a strip view “panoramic†room on the “55th†(actually 45th) floor for free and guarantees that it’s 2 beds. I’m stoked and we head on up only to find just one king. I called the front desk from the room and the guy told me that there are no double beds that face the strip so I guess it must have been another computer glitch. He’s able to reprogram my key that very instant and moves us up to the next higher floor with a golf course view. Before I leave though, I want to take in one of the best views of the strip I’ve ever seen. I look down to see the villas. There are 36 fairway villas on the golf course, but then there are these 6 super crazy villas in front of the main tower that have got to be the best accommodations available in Vegas. Private pool? Yes, but not the tiny dipping ones like the villas at Mirage or Bellagio—we’re talking damn near olympic-sized with jacuzzis on each side and expansive gardens. If you can’t tell, I’m fascinated with the ultra high-roller life and their insane accommodations… Anyway, we’re up to the right room now and my dad actually likes the view more—to each his own, I guess.
We head down to the Country Club Grill for lunch and are seated outside near the waterfall. This has got to be one of the best restaurant settings in all Las Vegas—pity that the golf course isn’t going to be on the property very long. My dad and I have the same burger I had last time. It’s now a little more expensive at $14, but about twice as big and impossible to eat without a knife and fork. I’m no golfer, but I would imagine that someone who pays $500 for a round of golf is experienced enough to enjoy it—that didn’t seem like the case with one person we observed putting on the 18th green. I just about turned red from laughter after seeing this guy miss his shot about 4 times and then go “Happy Gilmore†and start slamming his club repeatedly on the green. It was hilarious.
After lunch, we head out to the spa and then gamble for a bit. I try Pai Gow Poker for the first time (which for now at least, is never less than a $25 minimum at Wynn). I can finally say that I’ve found my game. I absolutely love Pai Gow! Anxiously watching the outcome of a larger bet for a couple minutes is much more fun than playing 5 hands of $5 blackjack in the same amount of time—there’s just much more suspense involved in Pai Gow. My dad is strictly a slots player which basically means he leaves for half an hour, blows off a wad of cash, and then watches me at the tables. I hate that! Not only do I feel very uncomfortable when my dad sees how much I’m betting, but also I know he’s bored out of his mind and is too stubborn to learn when I try to teach him. I order some drinks for the both of us and while up $50, leave after only an hour on the table since we have a reservation at SW Steakhouse.
SW is one of only 2 restaurants on the main lake and I’d say the terrace is about a fourth the size of the entire restaurant so it’s very hard to get seated there. Even though I made a request to be seated near the water, I didn’t get it unless I wanted to wait another 2 hours—no thanks. I’m pretty chill about outcomes like these, but I couldn’t believe the fuss some other people were causing. When you call for a reservation and make a request to be seated on the patio, they pretty much tell you that they can’t guarantee it right off the bat even if you made the reservation months in advance. Anyway, the service was awesome and my New York steak was insane! Well worth the $45 (and that’s just for the steak and nothing on the side). When the water show started, our waitress told us to follow her to the terrace at a spot with an awesome view. I think it’s a really great show and everyone seemed very impressed. Overall, with a hefty tip, one dessert, glass of wine, cocktail, steak, salmon, and a baked potato, the bill came out to $145 which I thought was very reasonable.
The drive is uneventful and we’re at the Gold Strike in Jean by about 11. Yeah, that’s right: Gold Strike. If I’m heading out to Vegas so late, I definitely don’t want to pay for a room that I almost immediately go to bed in so I want to go cheapo. Downtown rates were absurd for some reason and I’ve stayed at Gold Strike before—the $20-per-night rooms are clean and comfortable, the gambling is good, and breakfast at their 24-hour café is awesome for the price. Anyway, we gamble for a bit and crash rather early.
We’re both up by 7, repack the few things we have to repack, get ready for breakfast, a bit more gambling, and the rest of the drive to Vegas. We’re out of there by 10 and are at Wynn in about a half hour. The entrance is nowhere near as packed as it was last time and we breeze right over to the valet. I walk over to check-in, but there’s a problem: although they allow me to check-in, the computer was not printing the room keys for some reason so they ask me to come back—no worries. I give my dad the grand tour of the place which happens to be dead at this time of day. His reactions always seem to be of complete indifference, but I know he’s impressed when he can’t stop looking around the place. For those of you who watched the first few episodes of A&E’s reality show “Caesars 24/7â€, the most predominantly featured character was a high-roller host (can’t remember his name) who proclaimed his loyalty to Caesars on the show and even supposedly got married to a dealer there. Well anyway, either he hates Harrah’s and/or Wynn’s offer was too good to pass up because I saw him working Wynn’s high-limit “salonâ€. I haven’t seen the show recently (if it’s even on the air), but I’m curious how that’s affected it. We then checked out the Ferrari dealership which was closed to the public last time I was there. Now you can get in for $10 and you also get a baseball cap. It’s not worth it unless you’re really into cars which fortunately I am. The highlight isn’t the new car showroom, but the used car showroom 4 stories underground. There you see the service area and what has to be one of the world’s nicest garages housing “used†Ferraris, Maseratis, Bentleys, etc. that have something like 200 miles on them.
After the tour we go back to pick up our keys. The receptionist offers me an upgrade to a strip view “panoramic†room on the “55th†(actually 45th) floor for free and guarantees that it’s 2 beds. I’m stoked and we head on up only to find just one king. I called the front desk from the room and the guy told me that there are no double beds that face the strip so I guess it must have been another computer glitch. He’s able to reprogram my key that very instant and moves us up to the next higher floor with a golf course view. Before I leave though, I want to take in one of the best views of the strip I’ve ever seen. I look down to see the villas. There are 36 fairway villas on the golf course, but then there are these 6 super crazy villas in front of the main tower that have got to be the best accommodations available in Vegas. Private pool? Yes, but not the tiny dipping ones like the villas at Mirage or Bellagio—we’re talking damn near olympic-sized with jacuzzis on each side and expansive gardens. If you can’t tell, I’m fascinated with the ultra high-roller life and their insane accommodations… Anyway, we’re up to the right room now and my dad actually likes the view more—to each his own, I guess.
We head down to the Country Club Grill for lunch and are seated outside near the waterfall. This has got to be one of the best restaurant settings in all Las Vegas—pity that the golf course isn’t going to be on the property very long. My dad and I have the same burger I had last time. It’s now a little more expensive at $14, but about twice as big and impossible to eat without a knife and fork. I’m no golfer, but I would imagine that someone who pays $500 for a round of golf is experienced enough to enjoy it—that didn’t seem like the case with one person we observed putting on the 18th green. I just about turned red from laughter after seeing this guy miss his shot about 4 times and then go “Happy Gilmore†and start slamming his club repeatedly on the green. It was hilarious.
After lunch, we head out to the spa and then gamble for a bit. I try Pai Gow Poker for the first time (which for now at least, is never less than a $25 minimum at Wynn). I can finally say that I’ve found my game. I absolutely love Pai Gow! Anxiously watching the outcome of a larger bet for a couple minutes is much more fun than playing 5 hands of $5 blackjack in the same amount of time—there’s just much more suspense involved in Pai Gow. My dad is strictly a slots player which basically means he leaves for half an hour, blows off a wad of cash, and then watches me at the tables. I hate that! Not only do I feel very uncomfortable when my dad sees how much I’m betting, but also I know he’s bored out of his mind and is too stubborn to learn when I try to teach him. I order some drinks for the both of us and while up $50, leave after only an hour on the table since we have a reservation at SW Steakhouse.
SW is one of only 2 restaurants on the main lake and I’d say the terrace is about a fourth the size of the entire restaurant so it’s very hard to get seated there. Even though I made a request to be seated near the water, I didn’t get it unless I wanted to wait another 2 hours—no thanks. I’m pretty chill about outcomes like these, but I couldn’t believe the fuss some other people were causing. When you call for a reservation and make a request to be seated on the patio, they pretty much tell you that they can’t guarantee it right off the bat even if you made the reservation months in advance. Anyway, the service was awesome and my New York steak was insane! Well worth the $45 (and that’s just for the steak and nothing on the side). When the water show started, our waitress told us to follow her to the terrace at a spot with an awesome view. I think it’s a really great show and everyone seemed very impressed. Overall, with a hefty tip, one dessert, glass of wine, cocktail, steak, salmon, and a baked potato, the bill came out to $145 which I thought was very reasonable.
