[ SUNDAY TRAVEL ]
Vegas eatery A new heavy-duty restaurant has recently opened on the strip, and that's not only because the co-owner is John Tunney III, who happens to be a nephew of former heavyweight champion Gene Tunney.
has screening room,
Internet access
[VIVA LAS VEGAS]
Star-Bulletin staff
The restaurant is at the venerable MGM Grand, you see, and is being touted as -- caution: press release lingo coming -- "redefining an indefinable dining experience." As that description is a bit on the indefinable side itself, let's try to simplify things. Executive chef John Cahill is specializing in neo-Italian cuisine, which in this case means a 40-foot-long antipasto table and an eclectic menu.
The prefix "neo" doesn't merely refer to the food, by the way. Being a restaurant on the cutting edge these days means having Internet access at certain tables (which Olio! possesses) and a private screening room so you and 35 friends can have your cake and watch it, too. Gee, must be like having your own dinner theater.
This place will not be a drag, that's for sure
The land of last-minute weddings is uniting an unlikely couple of sorts: gambling and cross-dressing.At least we think it's an unlikely couple.
Planned for downtown is a new 22,000-square-foot venue with the tentative title of The Birdcage.
Co-investors Rick Rodrigues and Eldon Garrett, who got the idea from Robin Williams' hit 1996 film of the same name, will be bringing female impersonators to the stage and drag waiters to the bar, along with 15 gaming machines whose sartorial habits could not be determined at press time.
Incidentally, Rodrigues and Garrett also own a Vegas boutique specializing in intimate apparel by the name of Bare Essentials, which may or may not be an antitrust violation. Enjoy, but be careful where you put that tip!
Strait's music festival has powerhouse lineup
Today's the day for the -- hold your breath now -- fourth annual George Strait Chevy Truck Country Music Festival, which is expected to draw hordes of Strait people to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.The concert attracted 37,000 last year and is becoming a must-see event. You might not be able to make it to this year's show (next year, we'll remind you earlier!), but with a roster that includes George, of course, but also Alan Jackson, Lonestar, Lee Ann Womack, Brad Paisley, Sara Evans, Warren Brothers, BR5-49 and Asleep at the Wheel -- there are plenty of reasons to drop the dice for a while.
Neon-lit electric cars are available to rent
Perhaps you associate Vegas with fast times and fast cars, but there's a growing movement to slow the pace down a bit without sacrificing the fun.A company known as Heartland EV is now showcasing a fleet of electric cars, each outfitted with funky neon light accessories.
Traveling about 100 miles before needing a charge, the five-passenger cars, known as HX480s, only make it up to 35 mph. And they don't come cheap -- at $129 for a 24-hour rental, knowing that you won't have to buy gas is small consolation.
But it's fitting that a city touted for its celebration of neon and electricity should find a way to outfit its cars in a similar fashion. Available at Star Car Rental and La Concha Hotel on the Strip.
35.8 million visited Las Vegas last year
How many travelers visited Las Vegas last year? Be prepared to gasp, as 35.8 million people ventured to the gambling mecca in the year 2000, which was a 6 percent increase over the year before. The news comes courtesy the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the official entity in charge of tracking such things as hotel room occupancy and visitor habits.On average, just over 89 percent of all hotel/motel rooms in Vegas were inhabited by eager gamers at any given time, and by the end of the year, the city had 124,270 rooms, a 3 percent increase over the previous year.