Two Way Hard Three | Las Vegas Casino & Design Blog

Observations from two days at the new Red Rock Resort on Charleston at the 215.
Details and photos follow the jump.

I checked into Red Rock on Tuesday, June 13 for two nights. I arrived at 11 AM, so I left my bag in the car because I thought it would be too early to get into my room. I mistakenly walked into the VIP registration area which is across the lobby from the front desk. The representative politely told me I was scheduled to register at the front desk, but since I was there, she would be glad to help me. She asked whether I wanted a Strip View or a Pool and Mountain View. I chose Pool/Mountain. She said the room wasn�t ready, but she�d ask Housekeeping to put a rush on cleaning it. One hour later, I walked into my 17th floor room. So far, so good.

Many of the rooms don�t open off the main corridor. There is a small alcove/hall which serves two rooms. I didn�t care for the arrangement because the closeness of the neighboring room�s door meant I could hear conversations and the slamming of doors more than I would have otherwise. (Why do people think they have to slam hotel doors?)

The room was very contemporary but not too large. It�s more in the spirit of W Hotel or the Delano. As the photos show, there is a desk and dresser on one wall. On the opposite wall was the King bed with a bench at its foot. I realized how narrow the space was between the bench and the dresser/desk when I tripped over the bench at 3 AM�I was sober, I swear.

There are two modern chairs sitting in front of the windows which made it a little awkward trying to get to the drapery pull handle. Weirdly, in my opinion, there were little pillows on each chair that were covered in fake (I hope) fur.

There was a two door closet, similar to Wynn. The bath had a separate tub but no whirlpool. The separate stall shower seemed small compared to the shower in Wynn�s standard rooms, and there were two sinks. All in white marble.

Both nights, until about 3 AM, I could hear the boom-boom-boom of bass coming from somewhere. I think it was from Cherry Nightclub which was 17 floors below, but I could never pin it down. It was noticeable but not bad enough to ask for a different room. If I return, I�ll ask for a Strip View room.

The first morning, I found out the hair dryer didn�t work. I pushed the �A3� button on the phone which stands for Anytime, Anywhere, Anything, the service hotline. I asked to have a different hair dryer delivered any time that day. Late in the afternoon, when I returned to the room, there was a voicemail message from Housekeeping: �I�m sorry, but we don�t have any extra hair dryers. Have a nice day.� I�m sure she meant well, encouraging me to have a nice day, but so much for �A3�.

I ate dinner outside the hotel with friends for dinner, but I tried both the barbecue place and Tides Oyster Bar for lunch. Both are very casual, and I especially liked Tides. It�s more of a lunch counter space, but the food was very good.

On both Tuesday and Wednesday, the high limit room which overlooks the pool and has both tables and a few slots, was almost always empty. The dealers stood over their tables for hours with nothing to do. I played a $5 slot, but it was uncomfortable. I felt like I was the entertainment for the dealers. They may have to rethink the space. There is another high limit slot/vp area beyond the main cage which treated me very well. The staff was friendly and accommodating.

I didn�t eat at T-Bone. I�m sure it�s good, but I don�t know how it could be better than, or even equal to, Hank�s at Green Valley Ranch. That�s the best steakhouse in Vegas, in my opinion.

The pool area was not overcrowded (mid-week) and very enjoyable.

Even Red Rock is getting in on the condo/hotel business. There is a sales office over by the Bingo Room with preliminary information but no prices. There will be a guard-gated entrance to the condos which I�m guessing will be in the $700,000+ range. Architecture will be similar to the hotel. Station Casinos is also planning to build its new corporate headquarters building on the property.

I liked the high, wood ceilings, but as someone else pointed out, it�s still a smoky locals casino. It was good planning to have the hotel and casino entrances and garages separate. One could check into the hotel, attend a conference on the hotel�s second level and not have to set foot into the casino.

When I checked out Thursday morning, the front desk clerk asked how I enjoyed my stay. I told him I did, but I was disappointed in the response to my request for a hair dryer, and I told him about the late night noise. He checked his computer and said Cherry Nightclub wasn�t open my first night, so that probably wasn�t the cause. I told him I never could definitely identify the source, but it was no big deal. I already had the casino comp my two nights� room charges, so there were only the daily internet charges and a few incidentals. This is where Station showed its emphasis on customer satisfaction. Without my asking, and without his asking a supervisor, he volunteered to remove all charges from my bill except for tips which are never comped. I told him I wasn�t looking for anything free, but he insisted. That is superior customer service. Interestingly, when I stepped away to leave, an external marketing opinion representative stopped me to conduct a survey on my satisfaction as a guest. Station is trying hard, and I was impressed.

Would I return? Yes, if I were not alone as I was on these two days. I missed the Strip where there is more activity, and it�s easy to walk to another property for a change of pace. If I were looking for a weekend getaway with friends, I�d certainly consider Red Rock. That area of Summerlin is very nice. My friends live down Charleston a mile, and we went to a great, casual wine bar for dinner one night. It�s new, Nora�s Wine Bar next to Williams Sonoma at Charleston and Rampart, across from Boca Park. It�s owned by the same family which operates the original Nora�s on Flamingo. An interesting feature is the 48 bottle Enomatic. It�s an Italian device which permits storing opened wine bottles for up to 30 days. They sell wine by 1 oz, 3 oz or 6 oz glasses, so it�s a good way to sample wines you wouldn�t otherwise. It�s casual and a lot of fun.

Photos:
Red Rock Resort