Vegas and Laughlin

Reprinted from LVA with the express consent of the author:


Rio: Checked in Monday afternoon, e-mail confirmation in hand, yet was told by the clerk who was told by the computer that we arrived the day we were to depart. Like I said, let’s not let the little matter of my e-mail confirmation stating I’m in the right cut through that 15 minute process whereby I cool my heels standing at the check-in counter. Rio pioneered the huge standard room. Too bad no one bothered to keep the look fresh, current and on par with what’s appeared in recent years, leaving the big boxes in their wake.

Stardust: Who woulda thunk this dinosaur had rooms so tastefully decorated? Standard room, not necessarily large or draped in cool amenities, but the fact that someone thought enough to freshen the look says a lot. Wow, a whole lotta lousy VP in this place. But I found playable BP at a bar serving real Michelob. Kudos to the ‘Dust for realizing that Ultra is not Michelob, whatever the ads say. Thanks for the coupie, LVA.

Flamingo Laughlin: We spent a good hunk of our three days in Laughlin trying to convince yours truly that we really are best served sticking with the PinkBird, and I guess we are. I just wish someone would give some thought to fixing the food lineup. Alta Villa is killer and the Beef Barron is good for the price, but that’s it. Come on, it’s been 14 years since opening and is the Laughlin demographic so unchanging? In a town where truly standard defines the standard accommodation, the small couch and the wall of glass overlooking river and calico-hued mountains, coupled with the rest of the package, still gives this place the edge. IMO Played a lot of VP at the RiverWalk … great ventilation, huge windows and instantaneous cocktail service. Now if only those single-malt names weren’t so hard for the servers to conquer.

Laughlin Lowlights: We ventured down to Harrah’s Laughlin one afternoon – our former home in Rivertown – and were floored by the pall of smoke that permeated the entire place. I’m serious, this isn’t just another standard anti-Harrahtic’s tirade. Think worse-than-El Cortez air quality, and the “nonsmoking†area offered little respite, and even less worth playing. With the Evil Empire set to take over Caesars we thought about going ahead and getting re-established (such as it is with our level of play) at Harrah’s but the conditions within the casino turned both of us away (and we’re not of the anti-smoking persuasion).

Rio Secco Golf Club. Kudos, big time kudos: During several previous plays I was greeted with lousy service and so-so to deplorable course conditions. The new super has now had two-plus years to overcome the previous neglect and the place was immaculate. The greens were like glass yet easy to hold and nice lies abounded everywhere they should. The seventh green will always give them some trouble but like a few landing areas where play is confined, it’s a function of topography more than anything else. And from the bag-drop attendant to the starter, smiles and true hospitality abounded. I played it from the back this time (not Tiger’s way back) and at 7,000 yards even with the slight advantage from altitude that’s a lotta ground to cover. My game was a typical morass of easy trips and easy pars. Fair’s fair: Midweek, shoulder season, late morn starting time, and wind and wind chill respectively up and down … and it took us 4:55 to play. That is wholly inexcusable. Wholly. And after a number of plays at Rio Secco, I’m afraid THAT remains the one constant. That and a potentially phenomenal golf course held back a bit by a few weak holes in the routing.

Center Stage: The Good: Price, but only when using the POV, view, historic/pop cultural value, Terri’s filet, Caesar salad (though it should be noted that it is tossed tableside, not made). The Bad: My shoe leather strip steak (I have come to the conclusion that the more fervent I am when ordering a steak rare the more inclined someone is to ruin it), telephone-pole-width asparagus and nothing approaching a suitable glass for the Silver Oak Cab we brought for the occasion. The Ugly (but nonetheless entertaining): The patron who went nose-first into the carpet right behind Terri’s chair; thinking it was the big one the guy next to us, an EMT, assured us that the guy was totally potted because only drunks auger in without attempting to break the fall. The Indifferent: For a “gourmet†restaurant, this place sure seems to quickly move people through the dining experience, which might not be the fault of management and servers as Americans seem to be very impatient at the table. Also, our server took a long time to get to us, though once on the job he was diligent (if not ready for a gig at Le Cirque) and very friendly. And he forgot to charge us corkage, which had been quoted as $5 and $10 by various restaurant personnel. (But lacking proper stemware we wouldn’t have been inclined to pay it.) All in all, Terri is insistent on going back, if the coupie returns, and I’m game for another try.

An Evening at the Riv: Saw the Jay White Show. Not worth the nearly $60 face value and a short show at only an hour, but worth seeing with the two-fer. He has Diamond wired. Dead crowd took a lot of the fun out of the program, though our “side†clearly won. Had dinner at Kady’s using the daily coupon. Perfectly Vegas diner food – fried shrimp, hamburger steak, and all washed down with a few brews. As I learned during one of my infamous stays at the Roachera, Kady’s is the real deal.

Other Food: Caveat … this was not a fine-dining tour. Great Turkey Day chow at grandma’s, and she turned us on to a fantastic Mex place in Ft. Mojave (Casa Serrano, part of a river-valley chain, including the restaurant in the newish annex to the Riverside). My carne asada was grilled with jalapenos and pico … I’d never thought to do such a thing. Nice touch. First crack at buffets at the Palms (breakfast) and Fiesta H (lunch, on the way to Laughlin … we wanted Guadalajara at SS but it wasn’t open for lunch). The former gets kudos for build-your-own Eggs Benny and the latter for a representative spread. No matter how many times they remodel the Flamingo L buffet (and it does look a lot better), it will always be so-so, at best. But no matter what, a buffet is still a buffet. Now the Connection Club deals in the diner are killer.

Highlights: #1. Having a week-plus on the road and at home with Terri. #2. Finally meeting the Cat and Rosemarie. Outstanding, funny, vibrant people. #3. Being paired at Rio Secco with the wine guy for Rosemary’s (restaurant, not baby or our LVA bud with her name misspelled). Did we ever have a blast talking Vegas food and trends, overkill, overrated eateries and chefs, and an interesting tale as to why Rosemary’s Part Deux didn’t survive all that long at Rio. #4. Every time I use Frank Sinatra Drive the more I like it. #5. The $50 POV perk at the Palms, which Terri again used at the spa. #6. Pilsner Urquell at the River Palms. #7. Getting the scoop on the latest chapel changes and pending closures to ensure that the coming book is as current as possible.

 

Did Terri get a treatment at the Palms spa or just a massage? I really enjoyed it--especially with that $50 coupon!! That's the sole reason I bought the POV last year--any other coupons were icing on the cake

 

She had her usual treatment, shiatsu.

We had a pretty good LVA/POV coupon run this time, though we didn't necessarily mean it to be a run. We saved:

$50 at the Palms.
$30 on the Diamond tribute show and another $10 on dinner using one of the daily coupies.
$8 or whatever the cost of a Fiesta lunch buffet is.
$6 or whatever the cost of a Palms breakfast buffet is.
$30/$40/$50 or whatever the cost is for a room at the 'Dust this time of year.
$25 at Center Stage.

 

Hey, hoya's just asking a question, no need for name -calling.

Would've never expected to find you at Laugh-in, must be your 'guilty pleasure'.

Looks like I've got to give Kady's a try. I keep wandering into the Riv hoping to find it's redeeming feature and always walk out empty-handed, maybe Kady's is it.

 

Hey, "shiatsu" is Japanese for "wise and all-knowing one."

Ahh, Laugh-land: I discovered the just-opened Harrah's del Rio (how's that for a time warp?) when I returned to CA for grad school. Shortly thereafter the PinkBird made my acquaintance. Till our Vegas affliction took hold in '98 Laughlin was our place, three, four, six times/year. And we had a killer bridal/bachelor weekend there in '97. As Vegas spun out of control our Laughlin trips started drying up. In fact, 'cept for a one-nighter at the Bilgewater, I think we went from summer '00 to summer '04 between visits. I think we'll now find some balance between those extremes.

The Riv's a tough sell, indeed. With Jay White behind us I don't see a return on the horizon.

 

ken,
Short and to the point. Way to get it done.

 

That sounds like great fun, and a fine example of luck outside of a gambling context...

....

[ December 03, 2004, 05:32 AM: Message edited by: LearningVegas ]

 

Actually, I think luck is nothing more than preparation meeting opportunity. And the prep part was me spending thousands eating all over town so the guy just had to know I was a seasoned glutton. LOL

I didn't include it but our third was a retired minister from Tahoe who back in the dark ages performed the ceremony when two friends got married.

Like the first example, the standard "so what do you do?" intros and our respective vocations made all the connections emerge.

Strange stuff.