Oscar Goodman opening Steakhouse at Plaza

The newly remodeled Plaza hotel downtown on Fremont Street has announced yet another new restaurant, as former Mayor Oscar Goodman will be opening Oscar's later this fall.

The steakhouse will have a Las Vegas theme, featuring classic Vegas photographs and Goodman's personal memorabilia from his 12 year run as mayor.

In addition to the steakhouse, the area will also feature an Italian restaurant and "speakeasy." There will also be a new cocktail bar and lounge that will serve customers of both restaurants.

Oscar's will be located inside the dome of the Plaza overlooking Fremont Street.

The space was formerly occupied by Firefly - a tapas restaurant which closed late last year. Many people were hoping that Firefly would return once the hotel renovations were complete, but the Plaza owners were reportedly unhappy with the restaurant's performance.

I'm not sure how badly Las Vegas needs another steakhouse, but with Oscar Goodman's name attached to it I'm sure it will do well. I do like the classic Las Vegas theme, so it might be worth a visit to check out some of the photos and memorabilia.

Source: Plaza Press Release.

Lady Luck Reopening?

The Las Vegas economy must be recovering. Plans have been submitted to remodel and reopen Lady Luck. The downtown property near Fremont Street has been closed since 2006. It was only supposed to be closed for 1 year, but has remained closed and many people predicted that it would never reopen. Mayor Oscar Goodman has been pushing for something to be done with the property.

The plans call for putting a pool and deck atop the casino building, replacing 50 rooms with spa, fitness and meeting facilities, and upgrading the remaining 684 rooms. A pedestrian bridge linking hotel towers across Third Street will also be renovated.

A renovated hotel downtown would be very successful in my opinion. There are probably lots of people (myself included) who would like to stay downtown, but don’t want to stay in an ancient hotel room. Golden Nugget has new rooms in their Rush Tower but they might a little overpriced. If Lady Luck opens with nice new rooms, with a new casino they could do very well.

Adding a pool will also be a great asset. I'm not 100% sure, but I don't think many hotels downtown have pools (I know Golden Nugget has a nice one), so a great resort style pool downtown would be a huge draw.



Source: AP via Reno Gazette-Journal.

Camp Vegas

Las Vegas is like a summer camp for adults. This is the premise behind the city's new "Camp Vegas" campaign.

Mayor Oscar Goodman, Holly Madison and Wayne Newton were on hand to "Effectively begin summer in The Entertainment Capital of the World almost two months ahead of the rest of the Northern Hemisphere."

As part of the campaign the famous Las Vegas Sign will be changed to read "Welcome to Fabulous Camp Vegas Nevada" which is sure to confuse many unsuspecting visitors arriving by car. The sign will remain this way for the next 36 hours, or until vandals rip it down, whichever comes first.

To cap off the festivities, traffic along Las Vegas Boulevard was stopped as bikini-clad skydivers descended upon the strip. Plans are in the works to also have skydivers at Wrigley Field and Dodger Stadium inviting fans to start their summer early in Las Vegas.



Source: LVCVA Press Release.
Photo Credit: CelebrityGossip.net