Las Vegas Weekly

December 23, 2008 · 2:05 PM

Photo Gallery: Steve Wynn opens his $2.3 billion Encore on the Strip: ‘Let the games begin’

By Robin Leach

Elaine and Steve Wynn declare Encore open for business.

Photo: TVT

As legendary Frank Sinatra’s song “Luck Be a Lady Tonight” played in the background, hotel tycoon Steve Wynn said, “Gentlemen, place your bets. Let the games begin.”

Hundreds of people lined up four deep and waited at two different entrances for the official 8 p.m. soft opening yesterday of his new, extraordinary, elegant $2.3 billion Encore resort. When I left at midnight, there were still curious crowds lined up waiting to get past security to see the marvel for themselves.

A full-blown red-carpet gala will be held Jan. 24 to coincide with the mogul’s 67th birthday. Among the well-wishers last night were beloved tennis greats Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf and Steve’s longtime friend, infomercial king Ron Popeil. Palms owner George Maloof played the very first hand of blackjack in the lavish and luxurious high-roller lounge and turned over an ace and a king for 21! He netted $15,000 on the transaction (a $25,000 win off a $10,000 bet), and Steve congratulated him, saying, “That’s a good luck omen.”

Steve waded into the crowd to thank people individually for turning up. He shook off his security to go behind the gaming tables to glad-hand players and thank them for their support.

His beautiful wife Elaine told me: “We are completely thrilled by what we realized here. It was four, five years of very hard, difficult work, and it has turned out better than we ever envisioned.

“This is the happiest Steve has ever been for the opening of one of his new resorts. So you know it’s the best work he’s ever achieved.”

Popeil told me: “He is a brilliant man, and he’s built yet another brilliant resort. When you think it’s impossible to top yourself, he does it better than anybody else.

Andre told me: “This is truly spectacular. It will give such a needed boost to our city in these difficult times. The man is a genius builder. He never leaves one thing out or to chance.”

Photo: TVT

Andre Agassi, Ron Popeil, Steffi Graf and Steve Wynn.

Speaking about the recent bitter lawsuit that has erupted with his former longtime partner and manager Perry Rogers, Andre added: “Before you ask me anything, let me just leave it at ‘we’re both OK.’ This, too, will pass and be OK. We just hope, though, that next year is a whole lot better than this one turned out to be.”

Steve and Elaine’s daughter Kevyn used a new Flip-It handheld video camera to record the whole night so her sister and family could watch everything they missed being unable to attend. Cameras from CBS’ 60 Minutes chronicled Steve for the first half-hour of the night for a segment to air next month.

Steve proudly showed his first-night guests the new Sinatra restaurant where Frank’s Oscar, Grammy and Emmy awards were on display discreetly behind bulletproof glass. Members of the Sinatra clan, including Frank Jr. and daughters Nancy and Tina, had dinner with Steve and Elaine two days earlier.

Photo: TVT

Frank Sinatra's Grammy and Emmy awards.

Photo: TVT

Frank Sinatra's Academy Award.

Acclaimed chef Theo Schoenegger, who I have known for 20 years since my days in New York, told me: “Mr. Wynn put the gold statuettes on the table throughout dinner, and security kept hovering and hopping around to ensure nobody got near them who shouldn’t have. They were a group of 15 people, and I served them small bites of 12 different dishes off the menu family style. I did some research, and I made up his favorite Milanese and clams Posilipo.

“Per Mr. Sinatra, there were no anchovies in any meal he took part in, but he liked his tomatoes to add red to the color. I have made a menu of timeless Italian classics but given them a whole new riff and interpretation with the techniques and gadgets available to us chefs today. It’s from what Frank was: timeless, a legend. Mr. Wynn is the innovator always trying new. So my cuisine here reflects the two of them. The trustees of the Sinatra estate who were with the children were overwhelmed by the concept of the restaurant and how beautifully it had been done. They felt his presence there in the room -- with his voice introducing the records. It was a real tribute to the singer. They felt it had all been tastefully done, and they felt him in the room with them. There were a lot of tears.

“Frank was born in 1915 and his father sailed here from Sicily, so we have a boat from that time hung over our bar as a subtle salute. We will have his grandchildren here from time to time to work at the restaurant and help out. We’re going to have a bottle of Sambuca on the tables because that was his favorite drink. Sinatra would never drink from a closed bottle. He always drank first from a previously opened bottle, so we, too, will have individual bourbon shots to follow his lead. We will have Amaretto cookies served before dessert because Sinatra always wanted to wrap up the paper in a tube and set them alight to see how far they’d fly in the air.”

Theo, who shares the same birth date as Sinatra by incredible coincidence, added: “Mr. Wynn and Mr. Sinatra are two of a very unique kind when you think about it. This is a serious food restaurant and not a museum to the great singer. We have the perfect balance. I won my Michelin star in Los Angeles, and I am determined to do it here next year, too.”

There are three other absolute knockouts in the new resort casino: XS nightclub, The Switch restaurant and the Encore Spa:

Photo: TVT

Victor Drai at XS during the day.

*XS, operated by Victor Drai and managing partners Cy and Jesse Waits, will open on New Year’s Eve. This lavish, over-the-top entertainment complex is extraordinary with its pools, double-decked cabanas, the Botero-themed restaurant and dance floors to keep the party going from noon through the night until 5 a.m. daily in the warmer weather. Steve and Victor have said the party atmosphere of St. Tropez inspired them. Truth be told, St. Tropez and the French Riviera wish they had anything close to this in terms of excess of riches! Victor told me: “There is no other club anywhere on the globe that is like this or comes close to it. It is unique and unbelievable and yet real and right here in Vegas.”

Photo: TVT

Golden women in fabric line the entryway to XS.

The whole space is inspired by the sexy curves of the human body. The dance poles even look like lanterns and the blow-your-mind chandeliers sparkle their 10,000 lights softly with a shimmering shine on the gold crocodile-embossed leather, black laminates and brushed brass and gold bar tops. It probably couldn’t get any sexier than this. Check out the nude mosaic tiles in the bathrooms -- they embody the attention to detail. It redefines beauty and brilliance. It is majestic and overwhelming and still maintaining all the intimate fun. XS will be the new ultimate club in Vegas, and a number of old timers will shudder about fighting to stay alive in the New Year!

*The Switch: The dinner hours have become theater in its own right. They are merged in the world’s first ever-changing restaurant. The ceilings and walls will change five times nightly while my old pal, former Le Cirque chef from New York Marc Poidevin, serves up his French-inspired seafood and post-modern steaks. I’ve made reservations for Monday night and will report the entire experience for you then. But suffice to say having taken a quick glimpse at the rotations of the spinning surroundings, I can tell you it is unique and there’s not another restaurant even like it anywhere in the world.

*Finally, the Encore Spa. As Victor told me, “It’s stunning and beautiful beyond words. I’d love to run it as an after-hours club!” It reeks of elegance and luxury throughout its massive 61,000-sqare-foot palace of personal pleasure. The entranceway to the combined treatment rooms -- (14 garden suites, three oversized couples suites and 37 individual treatment rooms) -- is a “hallowed hallway to heaven” with two movement studios for yoga, Pilates, spinning, meditation and conditioning along with an organic juice and smoothie bar! Taking care of yourself after one visit here will become a regular ritual -- or, if you can strive to afford it, a necessary comfort treat for every day of the year forever more!

Photo: Encore

Two of hotel tycoon Steve Wynn's most-prized possessions: the Encore and the Wynn.

No wonder Steve Wynn, the mogul who single-handedly carved the skyline of this city, said: “It’s the best I’ve ever built. I don’t know if we can beat this one -- but we’ll go on trying. We always have to be out in the forefront, ahead of everyone else who even starts to try and catch up with us.”

— From Vegas Deluxe

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