Las Vegas Weekly

December 4, 2009 · 1:58 PM

From Eva Longoria Parker to a cluster of execs, crowd takes a shine to Crystals

By John Katsilometes

Eva Longoria Parker hosts the grand opening of her Beso restaurant and Eve nightclub at CityCenter on Dec. 3, 2009.

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

There’s a line from The Jerk, in which Navin Johnson (Steve Martin), having tumbled from prosperity after it was discovered his “OptiGrap” spectacle-clutching device rendered customers cross-eyed, tells his bride, Bernadette Peters, “I'm gonna bounce back, and when I do, I'm gonna buy you a diamond so big, it's gonna make you puke!”

Crystals is the place Navin would buy that diamond, probably Tiffany & Co.

I spent a lot of yesterday afternoon and evening at Crystals, touring the space early in the day and attending the opening party at Eva Longoria Parker’s Beso restaurant and Eve nightclub at night.

Consciously attempting to be jaded, I walked into Crystals determined not to be affected by the grandiosity of the place, but stopping, eyebrows arched, as I eyed the 70-foot wooden structure that is the concierge desk and terrace for Mastro’s Ocean Club restaurant. This is called the “tree house,” bringing out the child in all of us if that child could commission David Rockwell to design a tree house.

When you stride into Crystals, you are immediately taken with the wide-open design -- tall as the sky, amoebic where many such retail centers are linear or square-ish. Bright white, too, a look emphasized by the dozens of arriving-in-2010 tenants (only 23 of 60 spaces are taken today). The outside courtyards are set in a way that actually get lost in space in an area -– the Las Vegas Strip –- so very familiar. I walked outside and could get no feel for the direction I was facing, or even where I might be. That’s the point. It’s a place to be spirited away, even if you cannot possibly afford to shop in a style other than “window” regularly at all.

This is the great conundrum of Crystals -- and CityCenter -- is that it is viewed through the prism of a lousy economy. I recall the openings of The Venetian, Bellagio, Wynn, even Encore, and the energy was focused on the great design and scope of these resorts. At CityCenter, this is a given -- the greatest architects in the world have been given carte blanche and full artistic freedom to create an $8.5 billion resort and retail center. That it would blow your mind is a given, but at every turn you think, “Who’s going to be able to afford to come here?”

To be a tenant at Crystals, it seems a requirement to be “only” or “first” or “biggest" or otherwise unique. At a whopping 14,000 square feet, Louis Vuitton presents its largest space anywhere in the U.S. Thirteen of the retailers are in Las Vegas for the first time. Porsche Design, the home of toys for boys, is one. Paul Smith, Tom Ford and Miu Miu are others. At Paul Smith, I spotted a very chic green club shirt splashed with white polka dots: $210. I feared spinning the tags around on the socks, remembering yet another comment by Martin who once boasted of his “$300 pair of socks.” During the opening of Beso, a buddy joked that he was going to buy a shirt at Tom Ford for a friend of his, but in parts. Sleeve first, then maybe the other sleeve …

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

The grand opening media tour of Crystals at City Center on Dec. 3, 2009.

During the red carpet event at Beso/Eve, Longoria said it was “surreal” to be enmeshed in such a grand moment in Las Vegas history. "When I first saw the renderings, I was blown away. I couldn’t get my mind around this until I saw the project about six months ago, knowing how it would all come together.” Longoria says she plans to be in Vegas monthly to oversee her business, which she says she designed in a way to make guests feel they are walking into her home. Except, probably, her home does not feature a gleaming chandelier fashioned from the curtains used on the Academy Awards stage. When asked about being linked to the project, chef Todd English, said, “It’s daunting, completely daunting. I’m looking at my name on the walls, and it’s unbelievable.”

Believe it. Crystals, and the opening-in-stages CityCenter project, is all about high stakes. During the midday tour, I spotted a group of well-suited visitors touring Crystals and then Aria. One was Bobby Baldwin, president and CEO of CityCenter. Following close behind, certainly asking questions and making his opinions known, was Steve Wynn. With all the hype and trepidation, there’s no mistake that CityCenter is the center of power in Las Vegas at the close of 2009.

More from Beso/Eve

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

The grand opening media tour of Crystals at City Center on Dec. 3, 2009.

On the red carpet, Holly Madison said she was planning on taking the entire month of January off from Peepshow because the show itself is going dark. She also said she’s looking forward to Harrah’s taking over ownership because she could be marketed at so many more properties. That’s good, because what Mad Maddy needs is a little more exposure. … Trop owner Alex Yemenidjian, incoming President Tom McCartney and New York-New York President Cynthia Kiser Murphey engaged in a lively conversation at the bar at Beso. I firmly expect another significant addition in the executive lineup at Tropicana, soon, as these former MGM Mirage types (such as Yemenidjian and McCartney) move in clusters. But Yemenidjian said he would never be the one to initiate a conversation with an MGM Mirage exec about changing positions, out of principle. … In describing Eve, Longoria said she wanted a “proper” club. What’s a proper club? Have we improper clubs in Las Vegas? “It’s a real club, not a lounge. It’s ‘oonsh-oonsh!,’ ” Longoria said, shimmying and mimicking club music. … English talked up “Eva’s Guacamole” as a preferred dish, and I said, “Eva’s Guacamole -- great band name.” He considered that concept, repeating, “Eva’s Guacamole,” and I said it would be a great all-women vocal group. Sometimes you need to break up the inanity of the red carpet with an out-of-the-dark comment. … Some around-the-party chatter was that Neon Museum is going to halt tours Dec. 24 to properly assemble signs for its permanent display out on Las Vegas Boulevard North. It is expected to be reopen for select tours by the spring, hopefully May. … Fascinating grouping at the back of Eve, just off the dance floor in the VIP area: Mirage President Scott Sibella, Jeff Beacher and longtime Vegas club promoter Steve “Stevie D” Davidovici. Beacher is bringing his “Madhouse” production back to Vegas, to the Hard Rock Hotel, in April.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at twitter.com/JohnnyKats.

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