| rev:text
| - I have a list of all the renovated places I went to that I'm reviewing and last week saw a few places that I was at just a couple of weeks ago that are now CLOSED. So, unfortunately, the next few reviews may be bummers as I tried to get out of reviews being obits.
The reason why I review closed places is a reminder of what these places did right and out of all the businesses closing, why these were undeservedly so. And it's also to all those newer companies claim they use focus groups and test marketing when the results are things we apparently want, like the way we were fed brussel sprouts as children.
Looking back, I think I rediscovered the refurbished Gold Spike (siegel version) after the downstairs café closed at Binion's. It was a busy weekend downtown and I wanted to get away from the hubub while I nursed a drunk enough to start to remember the incidents of a few hours before.
The trap is they put such a delicious island cove of a bar before the 24 hour café, and you know the sun isn't anywhere near to being up yet, and it's my Friday (Saturday) so why don't we just stop in for one more beer? (I'll have to do a separate café review, hm.)
Gold Spike became something of a last stop before going home. Okay, the last stop before we went to another area with a cluster of bars.
We used to make a joke that the renovations turned the wonky beat up 60's dive casino into a state of the art circa 1980's designed casino. And if you've ever been to Spike in those early days, you know it's definitely the Bellagio of what it used to be. But there was comfort in the simplicity of the design, and they used lighter colors. It's tough downtown away from the canopy for a business to pull off a dark look and also not appear shady.
This time Spike was bought out by a financially more stable bidder. I never got to take part in the Sexy blackjack when they had it. Can Gold Spike do well as a boutique business with no gaming? The only business I can think to compare it to than I've been to before is Platinum.
It's odd for a business to close a place right out from buying it, not maintaining an income, with no major plans they made aware. If there's no gaming, will the anchor tenant be another restaurant? A nightclub?
There are empty plots of land that haven't been developed in decades, downtown. There are businesses that are dying to be refurbished- lookin at you, Ice House. Why close a running place?
The replies some people have of any development questions when they decide to speak for developers oblivious to such individuals goes like "what have you built? What have you done?"
Businesses struggled and closed in waves with the economy tanking. We rallied together to go to our favorite spots to give them our business and went to events to support the scene. I vote with every dollar I spend is what I do. We're going to hang out the bars that charge less than $10 for a bottle of beer. (I'm being generous, I really mean $5.) Businesses charging Strip prices...
VIP isn't some place you buy your way in. It's when the bartender (or cocktailers) remember your name and knows what you're drinking before you order. And small downtown bars know and do this and have been around longer than the new downtown shoe-opoly players.
Too many abandoned strip malls in the valley from companies that expanded faster than their openings and quarterly profits. Change can be good, when it doesn't alienate what could be weekly repeat business for tourists that visit a few times before going to the next big opening and not come back.
Good luck Fremont Street and Downtown, I remain a loyal fan!
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)