One of the many benefits of holding a meeting in a gaming destination is the food, and top casino resorts are tapping into the celebrity chef-inspired cuisine craze by opening a feast of venues fronted by the biggest names in the business.
Rise of the Celebrity Chefs
If you’ve ever watched the Food Network you have likely heard of the more popular celebrity chefs, such as Emeril Lagasse or the stars on cooking competition shows like Iron Chef America, including Bobby Flay, Mario Batali and Masaharu Morimoto.
“People are so much more knowledgeable about food and dining today than even just a few years ago, and chefs are like rock stars,” says Amy Allen, director of marketing at Caesars Entertainment Corporation.
Once a chef hits celebrity status, the next step is opening a restaurant in one of the many popular gaming cities, such as Las Vegas or Atlantic City.
“When you go to a restaurant like Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill at Caesars Palace, you’re going to have an experience created by a world-renowned chef that you’ve watched on television,” Allen says. “For a meeting planner, it can be a real draw if you’re trying to attract attendees.”
Caesars recently partnered with New York-based Gansevoort Hotel Group to create a new boutique casino resort, Gansevoort Las Vegas, which is expected to be completed in early 2014.
The resort will contain celebrity chef, author and television personality Giada De Laurentiis’ first restaurant—which will open alongside the hotel and casino—and feature her signature dishes made popular on the Food Network, along with views of the Las Vegas Strip and Bellagio fountains.PageBreak
Cooking in Style
Every celebrity chef has his or her own style, which makes eating at their restaurant an exciting experience. With his large build, tattoos and strong South Philly accent, Steve Martorano is no exception.
After his humble beginnings running a sandwich delivery shop out of his apartment and takeout restaurant in a strip mall, Martorano took a risk opening Cafe Martorano on Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.’s Oakland Park Boulevard, but the move quickly paid off as word spread about his signature Italian dishes.
The chef eventually opened Martorano’s Italian-American Kitchen at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., and Martorano’s at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The Vegas restaurant seats 150 people and the Florida location seats 300, and both offer special group rates and reservations.
Martorano said the casino resort properties draw a lot of group business, including customers who are in town for meetings or conventions.
“I think people like the idea that they will be able to run into and dine with a celebrity that they would not ordinarily meet,” Martorano says. “As for my joints, they like to come and take pictures and meet the person behind the brand and they like the excitement of seeing me cooking on the line of whichever location I’m at.”
Martorano sees plenty of celebrity clients, including Al Pacino, who said his penne with tomato basil sauce “tastes better than in Italy!” on a recent visit. Other celebrity fans include Tom Brady, Jimmy Kimmel and Sylvester Stallone.
When asked if he ever gets nervous serving celebrity customers Martorano responded, “No and why should I? They are coming to my house and they’re all my favorites.”PageBreak
A Fine Dining Experience
While getting a chance to catch a glimpse of celebrity chefs in action can be fun, it’s the actual fine-dining experience gaming resort restaurants provide that keeps groups coming back for more.
No one knows this better than Andre Rochat, who is recognized as Las Vegas’ original celebrity chef and proprietor of Andre’s Monte Carlo and Alize at the Palms Casino Resort.
Andre’s can create customizable seven-course tasting menus for up to 64 people, while its Cigar Lounge allows guests to sample Scotch, cognac and bourbon flights paired with cigars and narrated by Beverage Director Patrick Trundle.
Chef David Burke of David Burke’s Primehouse at Foxwoods Resort Casino thinks it is the trust and connection he builds through his media reputation that translates to a great group dining experience.
“Being in the spotlight allows people to know you better and they form a connection to you—they like your style or approach you take to food,” Burke says.
The chef, whose signature dishes include angry lobster and pretzel-crusted crabcake, says he looks forward to working with individuals and groups to put something creative together.
“I think that food is a vehicle. For me it is a way to express my creativity and my artistic side. For someone else, it may be about sitting down with family or co-workers and connecting over a great meal,” Burke says.
