Music, Night Clubs & Party Places
Las Vegas Nevada & Sin City Articles

A Pizzazz Magazine Exclusive

Publisher Don Lemmon

House of Blues - READER SUBMISSION: “Located in Mandalay Bay, this is one of my favorite places for a concert. It is small but not too small. Not so small it’s just a bar, nor so big it is an arena however, the club does feature stadium and opera like seating, several accessible bars and great acoustics to boot. If you’re smart, you’ll eat in the restaurant before the show too.”

Holy Cow - Unfortunately the best micro brewery in Vegas is now gone. We sat here one night pretending we had a dead body in our trunk while drinking beer to see how long it took to scare the bartender. We sampled their various beers from shot glasses, joked, tried to be ominous, and ended up just having a good time. The bartender wasn't going for it sot we gave up and all had a good laugh.

This place was a treat because of the sampler beers they sold. You couldn’t get drunk from them, they were only 4 ounce shots, and also because of that, you could really appreciate and savor the taste. If you got bored, you could feign drunk and repeatedly ask the bartender to rattle off all the names of the different beers, again and again and again until they slapped you. Good stuff.

Black Stallions - Have you ever seen Chippendales? If so, you won't want to miss the Black Stallions. We saw them by accident one night and it changed our lives. We didn't even know they existed or were performing at the small bar we were at to pee pee, but once they were announcing the place was transformed from a neighborhood establishment into a bar full of wild-eyed screaming black women and half naked black men dancing on stage right before our very eyes...... Definitely not our element, but it might be yours.

Central Park West - READER SUBMISSION: “This place has nothing but hotties working behind the bar 24-7. One's a showgirl and the others look like playmates or models. They have always been very accommodating with our requests for vast quantities of half and half cream with our coffee and have never made us feel like a burden when we only got coffee. It's a small enough place where they remember your face when you come back, and if you're lucky... your name. Go for the eye candy if nothing else..... But definitely not the omelets, anything but the omeletes. That is the ONE downside to the place. The other food was just fine. You’ll love the burgers.”

Moose Magillycuddy's - At the UNLV Campus is worth a shot. This place serves up a 3 pound vegetarian burrito from out of this world! And Sam's Town Casino on Boulder Hwy just opened up a new buffet. Trust me, it isn't worth the wait in line. I sampled every single meat and vegetable they had and it all tasted the same to me!

Coyote Ugly - Ok, I have been trying to arrange something with these people forever to interview the owner. I got the flu the first time around and then wasn’t in town and… Well, curious, I went by the club to check it out and all I can say is that the doorman needs fired and I haven't ANY interest in going back as long as he is there. The outside attendants weren't any help at all either. I started the task off by smiling and asking for the manager. They panicked. I went to the door man next and then he wouldn’t even shake my hand. I didn’t have a problem until then. I just wanted to introduce myself. Now, I know from dealing with the owner and her assistant that this isn’t the representation they expected but it is what we got. We had a rather large group too, it was early, none of us were drunk nor under dressed and I was extremely let down. How do you make money if employees act like this?

Ra - READER SUBMISSION: “This is the loudest, most cramped, biggest disappointment and over priced club in town.” Editors Note: My head still hurts.

Studio 54 - READER SUBMISSION: “We had a great time here I suppose until my friend peed in the sink. Yeah, all was fine until then. The schmuck. Lots and lots of people packed every inch of this place. The dress code is upscale but they didn’t seem to differentiate between Versace and K-mart so no problems there. But check those shoes and shirts before heading down. If you are going early, be ready to stand in a long line to get in. If you are coming late, go elsewhere as you may not get in until all the tweakers have over run the place. Not much of a tourist spot. It seems like it is mostly locals…”

UNLV College Bar - READER SUBMISSION: “We went here one night to see Copper Pot or whatever they call themselves now performing. It is a nice bar with all you can drink for like $20 or something. The bar tenders are cool except the unusually hot one that has an attitude swinging her giant engagement ring all night long. I was offended and I am a woman! She was rude to everyone in her path… The band wasn’t too bad but the one member’s wife was hanging out in the audience talking smack to everyone she crossed. I think she mentioned she was a hair stylist. I say imbecile.” Editor’s Note: This is funny because I saw the band one night myself and had the EXACT same experience. The member in questions father was there and a nice guy but I never heard back from them on doing an article. It seems once you give that girl alcohol, look out. And yes, she cuts hair.

Las Vegas Airport - READER SUBMISSION: “I personally do not dig how far up you are prevented from going at the airport checkout lines to see your loved ones off now. I cannot see how leaving your family 1 mile from the gate protects the other passengers one bit. But I do dig the 40 ounce brew with a shot of tequila special at the sports bar for sure. I also used to like hanging out at the other half of the port but now I cannot without a ticket. What gives?”

Gordon Biersch Micro Brewery - READER SUBMISSION: “This is one of Vegas' micro breweries located near Flamingo’,’ I believe on Paradise. We found their beer to be not all that impressive but the atmosphere was fun. We asked for a sample of all their beers (being used to Holy Cow down the strip offering such a thing) and for our table of three people, the waitress was only willing to give full glass samples. I suppose she was expecting all of us to swap spit or something, we offered to pay for shot glasses of beer but she suddenly stopped speaking English on me. We were not on a date so we fist fought the bartender to deliver 3 empty glasses to divide up the goods. At first we just got 3 straws instead. Um, no, GLASSES… Luckily there was a manager in training from San Francisco who set everyone straight. Like I said, the atmosphere of the restaurant and bar was pretty cool and it was full of people on both sides, obviously a popular hangout spot, but the beer didn't taste like anything out of this world, and wasn’t worth the 30 minute hassle. The PLUS SIDE? We were pleasantly surprised to see that for 6 full glasses of beer, the bill remained under $20 bucks. Can't complain there. Belch…”

Chicago Brewery - READER SUBMISSION: Ok, so we like our beer… Actually do not blame us. Readers submitted what is popular here. We would rather you drink once in a while than blow your loads and family income at a casino so here is the lesser of two evils. One reader has said, “I have taken two dates here for the Irish Ale alone. They manufacture their own beer in a micro brewery at this place and the Irish Ale is the BOMB. Maybe it’s called Scotish Ale, I can’t remember, but this beer goes down like a Coca Cola so watch yourself. It's also 9% alcohol. One date finished half a glass and almost fainted then the other liked it so much they wanted two. Guess which girl I dated twice? The inside of the place is a nice stylish pub like atmosphere and is fairly quiet and reserved. The other part is a quite little restaurant area. Make sure the bartender knows you're there though when you walk in or you may be sitting there for a while waiting to be served. If you come with a friend (two guys) avoid any male bartenders with tight Backstreet Boy haircuts or he will either load your glass with pure foam or hit on your date. Can we mention names? What a jerk!”

Pinkees - From cool to the last place on earth worth hanging out. I wouldn’t go inside here for a drop of water on a 130 degree day.

Blue Note - Jazz club beside the Aladdin, across from the Harley Davidson Café. I have been there a few times and it was a marvelous place to hear good music and be around good people. Too bad it didn’t catch on because now it is a dance club.

Hurricane Harry's - Do you miss Pinkee’s when they were cool? Go to Hurricane Harry’s on Sahara just past Palace Station. Monday’s karaoke with Austin Powers is a hoot and weekends are jammed with singles ready to mingle. Come early sometime and eat there too, good stuff.

Zach Boone - READER SUBMISSION: “Good ole' Zach Boone... If we ever meet the man behind this fine bourbon, we are gonna hog tie him and force the dude to subsist on a diet of his own firewater for a week straight. Trust me, spend the extra $10 and get a half decent bottle of whiskey instead of this hog wash. We polished off a gallon of Zach’s devil juice one night last March, after of course thinking it was cool this stuff was only $10., but you get what you pay for and less. Not only was the hangover vile as anything you can imagine this side of a plague.... But both our immune systems were literally destroyed for the next 2 weeks. Every imaginable type of flu and cold virus came our way and ravaged our systems. The diseases of the world seemed to be attracted to the smell of Zach in our blood I guess. Be forewarned and repeat after me.... “Zach is bad.... Zach Boone is VERY bad.”

A KNOWN STALKER CALLS THE KETTLE BLACK?

Lynette Lee at lynettelee@peoplepc.com makes this claim and has no evidence to stand on, drop her a line.... CLICK HERE I personally would sue if someone invaded my privacy this much...

She says,"I have a video of ***** performing at **** where he is off the stage, "dirty dancing" with a young girl, and interact with a toddler. (I have sent clips of the video as an attachment.) I became aware of this situation purely by chance.

I am a teacher and have no experiences dealing with molesters. After have a conversation with someone who's life has been forever altered by this man, I began talking to other people who know ***** including ********** employees (executives, security, bartenders, and cocktail servers) and past band members. All had their concerns about ***** behavior, both on and off stage, although most where unaware that he is a molester. I contacted ***** Las Vegas entertainment executive by phone in October 2003, and my calls were not returned. I followed this with emails to several ***** executives. I was contacted, though email, by the head of the legal department, *****. He, along with the ***** cooperation, was unaware of ***** criminal background. I was told an investigation would be performed. After three more phone conversations, several emails, and five weeks, ***** concluded their "investigation."

The results shocked me. In a letter, ***** explains that the stage is 15 feet from the nearest table and the performers never leave the stage. I was also told that children are not allowed to be anywhere in the casino unattended and were safe because ***** performed in a public place. Although these facts are "legally" true, anyone who has patronized a casino has seen unattended children. ***** has an arcade filled with unattended children whose parents may or may not be in the casino. Food is sold within the performance area and includes a ****. I called the legal executive and question if any employees were questioned and if any of the so-called investigators actually attended the show. The executive did not know and informed me that no complains had be filled concerning the performer. When I begged to differ, he corrected himself to say that he was unaware of any complains. I have told ***** I have the video, but have not shown them.

I feel they will only make excuses and reason away ***** behavior. I have contacted ***** probation officer and she has concerns, but explained that legally he is allowed to be in a public place as long as it is not solely for children. ***** considers this matter closed. My hope is that they will rethink allowing this child molester continues to perform and interact with children once the public is told of this man sexual deviance. But I am unfamiliar with how to spread the word and protect innocent patrons. Can you advise me as to how proceed from here? I have exhausted all avenues through ***** management.

UPDATE: On Friday, April 23, 2004 a concerned citizen wrote a comment on the ***** comment card about the letter I wrote questioning why ***** continues to allow this molester to perform. Security immediately locked down the Courtyard so that people could only come and go through a severally restricted and heavily guarded area. After the performance, the manager (guitar player in the band) ran off the stage, grabbed the citizen and demanded where she got her information. After insisted he let go of her, she approached ***** security asking for help. The band manager continued yelling and security started questioning her, asking her name in front of this band member who had just physically grabbed her. When she asked to go elsewhere to talk, she was told to stay put and not to leave. Next, after several walkie-talkie conversations, the citizen was read a statement saying that she was band (forbidden) from the casino from that point forward. and escorted off the the property by several armed security. Yeah, shoot the messenger. And as everyone is staring at the brain matter, maybe no one will notice that the lead singer is having sex with young girls!

Also a few corrections:
-molester's name is *****
-there is a famous ice cream restaurant adjacent to the ***, not ***

EDITOR's NOTE: If the person submitting this was really a teacher, they would have spelled BANNED correctly, not as BAND.... So if anyone else has input, let us know.... She replied saying teacher's aren't perfect and when I asked about getting more info on her personal interest she replied:

"What are you talking about? I did back up my letter with the case # for the trial transcripts and the 800 number you can call (but you must be over 18) . I'm wondering how old you are. I'm thinking high school, although some of your questions and assumptions are more a long the lines of a middle schooler. You are obviously not a parent with you statement about the worries for my daughter. And I did not miss spell band, but did use the wrong word for the context. If you decided to take journalism in college, you'll learn not to offend you source."

(Um.... Yeah... She has all this info but no personal interest? Right.... She also sent me a few temper tantrums... She sounds like a stalker.... Enjoy... )

MORE LAS VEGAS MUSIC TID BITS

MARS Music - READER SUBMISSION: “Anyone who was unfortunate enough to fall for the Mars "going out of business" clearance sale got suckered, as we did, big time. We had decided to go buy a couple of electric guitars and an amp since we thought we would be getting a great deal but WRONG! The one guitar, which was sold with an amp and bag as a complete package, didn't have all the parts included once we got it home and tore the cellophane off. And the amp itself didn't even work! What the hell? When I went back to the store to rectify the situation, I was blocked by a geriatric security guard who wouldn't let me in to try and find help. He wouldn't even send for a manager to come speak with me either. When I went back alone again the next day, I finally got to speak to a manager who promptly informed me I was basically SOL. Nice scam guys. Sell off all of your broken and crappy merchandise, reopen the store under a different name and start all over again. As the saying goes, once bitten... I do not know how it is in this circumstance for sure but I am serious… In many cases, when one company closes and files for bankruptcy and another similar business moves in, it is actually the same company under a different name picking up where they left off. DO NOT FALL FOR SUCH GAMES!”

Warehouse Records - I have spent hours at this store near Decatur on Charleston looking at old, used and new CDs for reasonable prices. Some of my favorite CDs here at the office came from this gem of a music store. They have everything but a public restroom no matter how much you buy. One of the employees. I know hasn’t showered in days and yet they wouldn’t let us use the head no matter how much we begged. Pee before you enter and you’ll be fine. (Editor’s Note: I was just here last week and the place is going out of business. Try the place in the southwest corner plaza at Maryland and Flamingo.)