Last week was just the initial grand opening, here is the REAL grand opening!
The skinny: Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Biloxi, one of the Coast’s hottest new destination resorts, celebrates its grand opening with a concert featuring Three Doors Down tonight followed by a performance by Kid Rock Saturday.
Hard luck casino?: On Saturday, which is the lucky date of 7-7-07, the Hard Rock Casino officially will be christened by the franchise’s traditional smashing of guitars underneath the resort’s huge, 112-foot neon Peavey guitar at 3 p.m.
“We have about 40 people that are going to be smashing guitars,” said Kevin O’Sullivan, vice president of operations. “Instead of cutting a ribbon like a normal place does, being Hard Rock we’ve got to smash the guitars.”
Things weren’t always so lucky for the casino, though, as it was originally set to open two days after Hurricane Katrina hit in August 2005.
The storm caused major damage to the building, which cost $235 million to build. The iconic sign survived the storm, but the building had to be rebuilt to the tune of $150 million, and it finally opened its doors on June 30, 678 days behind schedule.
“The first day I believe we had just over 12,000 people,” O’Sullivan said. “It’s funny, the last few days has made it feel like this was the opening that should have been … it really was a fantastic opening with hardly any glitches.”
Features of the resort include a 12-story hotel with 318 rooms and suites; a casino with 1,445 slots, 50 table games and a poker room; the Rock Spa, a full-service spa; a pool; and a 1,200-capacity music venue.
The resort also houses five restaurants, including a Ruth Chris Steak House and the franchise’s bread and butter, the Hard Rock Cafe.
This is the fourth casino in the world Hard Rock has opened, with others in Las Vegas and Florida.
Sold Out Rock: The inaugural live music events at Hard Rock Live, the resort’s music venue, are unfortunately but unsurprisingly sold out.
Fittingly, the first act to perform at the venue will be hometown heroes Three Doors Down, who hail from Escatawpa.
“I believe they requested to be the first band to play here,” O’Sullivan said.
On Saturday’s big 7-7-7 opening Detroit rocker Kid Rock will perform. There may not be any other musician who emobodies Hard Rock Hotel’s spirit better.
Even the third concert Hard Rock has scheduled, ’80s rockers Poison on July 12, is sold out as well.
O’Sullivan said that he’s very happy with the interest in the resort already, and expects the weekend’s festivities to draw even larger crowds.
“It’s making us feel very comfortable considering we didn’t really market the (soft) opening that strong,” he said. “We more directed our marketing push for this weekend.”
- Carey Miller Clarion Ledger
EXPANSION AHOY!
BILOXI – Treasure Bay casino, once known for its pirate ship facade, opened a new casino floor and a buffet on Monday in the hotel across the street that has been its home since Katrina came ashore.
“Biloxi needs to be proud,” said Charlotte McIntire of Gulfport. “We got our treasure back.”
She and her husband, Stanley, joined more than 100 others in line, eager for their first look at the casino.
Treasure Bay reopened onshore in summer 2006 with just slot machines on the hotel’s lower floor. The new main floor has 400 more slots plus table games and is accessible by elevator or staircases that look out toward the water.
Susan Varnes, chief operating officer of Treasure Bay, said the expansion will add about 400 employees, bringing the casino’s total workers to 600. More will be hired soon. “Hotel rooms in the tower are coming online very quickly,” said Varnes.
CQ, an upscale restaurant, the swimming pool and garden hotel rooms will debut in late summer.
Jared and Karey Hill of Gulfport wanted to be the first to try the new Infinity Buffet. Manager Michael Pickich said the staff brought out crab legs, mussels, calamari and fried chicken for the first guests. The buffet is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and seats 192. “It’s the same bread pudding” as the famous dessert served across the street before Katrina, he said.
Art and architecture, stacked stone walls and creative lighting decorate the addition and the casino floor has impressive views of the Mississippi Sound.
“What we created here is different from most casinos,” said Varnes.
The goal was to make visitors feel like the staff is welcoming them into their home. Many who came to the opening were regulars who frequented the original Treasure Bay and greeted the staff with hugs and congratulations.
Fountains in front of the building were operating and Varnes said the flames in two of the five caldrons will be fired up next week. “Labor Day we should have it all done,” she said.
Source: Sun HeraldÂ
The countdown is on for leaders at the Treasure Bay Hotel and Casino. Monday, the casino will open its second floor gaming room. If you were to drive by the Treasure Bay Hotel and Casino right now, you would probably see workers adding the finishing touches to the building.
“Through the last year, we’ve gone through phases where we had 80 machines, we added an additional 200 machines,” says Kathy Santiago.
Santiago is Treasure Bay’s Director of Marketing. She says the first floor now houses 300 slot machines which will stay there. But when guest move to the second floor, they will get more than 500 machines and table games, which the casino has been missing since it reopened after Hurricane Katrina.
Another addition to the casino: Art, or as leaders say, an element of design that’s about more than just blinking lights.
“We wanted to be more of a style and a feeling that one gets when they come into the casino, rather than a theme. They may come in the first time and discover the chandeliers, the plates. But as you sit at the table games you look up and you see the details in the ceiling and little features that you would not typically see as a traditional element of a casino, and you see it, it’s a surprise element,” Santiago said.
The casino also has two story windows, something that’s far from traditional.
“We are going out on a limb and hopefully most of our casino patrons will enjoy that feature,” says Santiago.
Other features include many natural elements, like water features and stacked stone. Once renovations are complete, a buffet will overlook the pool area. All are features that make one of South Mississippi’s smaller casino’s both new and improved.
Treasure Bay will open the doors to its second floor casino Monday at 5 p.m. Leaders say they hope to have the 9th floor fine dining restaurant and lounge complete by the Labor Day Weekend.
