TR 10/20 – 10/25 Part I (long)

TR 10/20 – 10/25 Part I (long)

Let me start this trip report by saying that this was the best trip to
Vegas ever…..good food..good friends...good gambling

and thanks to guys who posted their experiences in TRs to help make this trip special

My wife and I are in our early 30s and enjoy traveling when we can. We currently live in NY. The plan was to celebrate my 33rd B-Day in Vegas with friends from medical school, childhood, high school, and college.

The trip was between 10/20 – 10/25


October 20, 2005

I get off work early and head home to finish packing for a 7:40pm
flight. I stop by the bank to get some traveler’s cheques and pocket
money for the trip. I always like to have a little bankroll on my trips
to Vegas. The car service picks us to go to JFK @ 5:00. As the car
starts pulls away, we wife asks, “Do you have everything…do you have
your ID.â€
That was the first lucky break of the trip. My ID was in another wallet
in the apartment. I stop the car and run back up to the
apartment and secure the ID. The drive to JFK is the most professional I have had in a long time. Anyone that is familiar with car services in
NYC knows that a good car service is hard to find. The company was Tri- State Limo.

We arrive in more than enough time for our flight at JFK. Traffic on
the Van Wyk was not as heavy as we had planned. So we had time for an
overpriced meal at one of the restaurants in the JetBlue terminal. We
ended up boarding after a leisurely dinner. We had great seats on this
flight. We had been lucky to snag exit row seating…which I always joke as ‘ghetto first class.’ This is almost a must because I am 6’6†and coach is usually a pain for me to fly, but Jetblue has excellent legroom on all its seating. We settled in and plugged in our headsets and watched a little Television on the seatbacks LCD prepared ourselves for that adventure that was about to begin.

We set down in Vegas at about 11PM. We come down the elevator to baggage claim and the gentleman from Ambassador Limo is waiting for us
(BTW ..for those that do not know..having car service eliminates the
scrum that is the taxi cab stand and the madness in front of the airport)

Our first night is at the Venetian. The receptionist was extremely
friendly and was very profuse with the complements on the beauty of my
wife (she was looking way hot ..even after being on a plane for 6 hours). She asks me if I wanted an upgrade (DUH). She said she would work to keep us at the Venetian for the rest of our stay. She said we would regret leaving to check into the Wynn. She asked me if a hospitality suite be OK because it did not have a view. Now let me
add..I only paid a hundred bucks for this one night. The room was 1500
square feet. It was larger than our apt in Manhattan. It had a bar,
two bathrooms, a large separate living room, a separate dining room,
and a huge Jacuzzi.. But it did not have a view <smile>

I played a little blackjack that night. And I won about a hundred
dollars. We went to bed about 2 that night and felt very good about the
start to our trip.


October 21, 2005

The next morning we made good use of the Jacuzzi and leisurely got
ourselves out of the suite for breakfast. We walked into Bouchon for a
proper breakfast and it did not disappoint. I had the Breakfast
Americaine (eggs over easy, pecan stick roll, apple juice, sausage,
pomme frites, apple juice, coffee) and wifey had the Eggs Florentine.
We ate out on the patio and it was a wonderful breakfast (meal was
under 50 with tip).

We then checked out of the Venetian and made our way to the Wynn for the
rest of our stay. Check-in was painless. The front desk person was not
overly friendly but she gave us a great room. It was on the 23rd floor
facing the strip. We had a great view of the strip.
Even the construction next to the Venetian had me mesmerized.

The rooms at the Wynn have been discussed Ad Nauseum. I will not
reiterate what has already been said, but they are nice. I have stayed
at great hotels all over the world, and the standard rooms at the Wynn
are nothing to complain about.

After putting some thing away, it is time for me to make my way to the
Blackjack tables. Another plus for the Wynn, the casino has some great
tables. The first day I has eaten alive by the Blackjack gods. I played
3 hours and was down $600. Ouch that hurt!!
Wifey and I decided to meet some of friends traveling into town for my
Birthday on the strip. We walked up the strip and window shopped in some of the Forum shops and take in the cheesy animatronics show. My buddies ( T and K) stop in Fat Tuesday and that was there fatal mistake of the early afternoon. We make our way up the strip to on our pilgrimage to Fatburger. On the way, I began to notice that the gigantic portions of 180 octane from Fat Tuesday with an extra shot and the numerous beers are beginning to take effect on my friends. My wife and I start taking bets on who will not make through the rest of the evening. Fatburger
was worth the walk ….Fatburger never disappoints!!!

As we finish up, we realize that it is 5:45 and we have tickets to the
7:30 KA. We decide that we will go pick up our tickets @ MGMGrand then
take the monorail down the strip and walk to the Wynn…change and
taxicab it back. BIG MISTAKE….it took almost an hour and half to make
that journey. The monorail is a big waste of time.


Ka was an amazing show. It is definitely worth the price of admission. The staging is on an operatic scale. And I definitely agree that the best seats are not the ones in the orchestra seating.

After the show, we had dinner reservations at Drais @ Barbary Coast. Wifey,PK, and I were the last men standing after K and T where knocked out early by frozen girlie drinks. Barbary Coast..I am sorry is a dump…but Drais was an OK restaurant. I had the escargot (a tad rubbery) and the filet mignon and foie gras(seared perfectly). We sat in the lounge drank coffee, shared a soufflé, and smoked a cigar. It was a good way to end a good dinner. Dinner was about ~450 for three of us(apps, entrees, desserts, and two medium priced bottles of pinot).

Wifey was tired and ready to go back to Wynn and get some sleep. I decided to get some sleep to hit the Blackjack tables early.


October 22, 2005

We got up pretty early. We made our way to the Buffet at the Wynn. We opted for the champagne brunch (which is actually a New Zealand Sparkler Brunch…but lets not be nit picky). The buffet was pretty good as buffet goes. A good selection of fruits, meats, and an omelet station. For a buffet, it was pretty expensive >60 bucks for both of us. We did however drink a lot of the sparkling wine during our brunch.

After breakfast, I sat down at the tables and went on a roll. I brought in for 400 and when my time at the table was over a couple of hours later I colored up with three 500 buck chips.

PK was going to met me and wifey at Saks in the Fashion Mall. He was on the hunt on for a winter coat and figured he could get a ‘deal’ in the desert. Well, he found an Armani lamb-lined jacket and got a great deal (less than at the flagship in Manhattan).

Wifey needed to get a manicure and pedicure back at the Wynn. So PK and I decided to go Downtown Las Vegas for the first time. We stopped in Binions and played $3 BJ. We lost $75 bucks and watch Alabama beat Tenn.(then for the official record we sat down and subsequently lost $4050...you never know who reads these forums and gets the wrong idea about this trip )....and left. I love cheapovegas.com and I was determined to see and gamble at the luxury establishment that is the Western.
K and I make our way to the Western. We stop on the way at the El Cortez….we walk through…@#$#...hell this looks like its been renovated to a reputable casino. We walk thorugh and this place looks like an OK casino. We continue our quest to the Western. It is everything that has been promised in trip reports and cheapovegas.com.

First of all, all the dealers are students of some gambling school. The Pit boss is actually some kind of instructor. The other people at the table are cool locals and love it the place for the same reason we sought out the casino. First of all, the casino is a couple of blocks always from the confines of Freemont and the area around it is a little ‘suspect.’ A couple of young ladies outside of the establishment offered some of their valuable time for a much discounted rate. Some of the slot machines in the establishment had garbage bags on top of them to denote they where out of order. Tiles were missing on a lot of the floor and cocktail service was basically non-exixtent. The tables where dirty and the cigarette burns were deep into the felt. It was a beautiful experience.

At the western you handle the cards, which is something I am not used too. They also had a thing called a ‘Royal†Bet. If you placed this bet, and you got two cards of the same suite you received 3 to 1. Basically, your typical sucker bet. The Polynesian gentleman at the table was adamant that this was the way to make money. My friend and I proceeded to lose 200 bucks following his strategy. It was “all good†because we had an incredible time playing at the Western and planned to go back to the Western the next day.

We had to get back to the Wynn for our reservation at SW steakhouse. Mind you this was my second day in a row eating steak. I go back and changed and waited for my wife to get back from the spa/salon. We both got changed and …damn…I marrled well.

We got great a great table at SW…PK, T, S, Wifey me…seated at a table in the patio. One thing I love about the Wynn…like NYC..the chefs are in the restaurants and come and greet the tables. Eric Klein actually takes his time at each table…a great touch.

I had the sweetbreads(yum...the best I have had in awhile) and the rib eye. We had about four bottles of wine. I can remember a Joel Gott Zin, Seghesio Zin, and not the names of two pinots. It was an incredible meal minus the corny waterfall show. The meal total was ~600 for five people.
More than reasonable if you ask me.

At this point it is time for Purple reign…I am a HUGE Prince fan. We load up and travel to the Boardwalk. Crappy casino and hotel, but so is the boardwalk in Atlantic City. There is standing room only. I laugh my A$$ off at the impersonator. Now I understand why Elvis fans love impersonators. I thoroughly enjoy myself.

After the show, wifey is tired and her feet are killing her. She loves the way Jimmy Choo looks, but not how they make her feet feel. So I escort my wife back to the Wynn and make my way with PK back to Freemont. Its 1 in the morning, so we decide to go to Palimino’s. It was classic…C-section scars, Cigarette burns, and bullet holes…cured my strip club fix for the trip. I go back to the Wynn and take my rightful place 3rd base on the BJ tables. I proceed over the next 3 hours to turn the Wynn into my personal ATM.
At about 5 O’clock ..I color up about 3 more 500 buck chips with a three hundred buy in.

I go to the cashier window and say a refrain that the cashiers will hear very often the rest of the weekend …â€Hello, how are you doing…can I please have some of Steve Wynn’s money†I go to my room catch a couple of hours of sleep with a beautiful woman waiting.


Part II ...learning Keno, "mo' money mo' money", Bartolotta, "Sir, I think you need to speak with a Casino Host", and the Panerai

 

Excellent! And I thought Jer & I were the only ones insane enough that weekend to get in a cab at Wynn and tell them "El Cortez please!" Terrific trip report.