Oyo Hotel & Casino | |
---|---|
![]() | |
![]() The Hooters-era property in 2007 | |
Location | Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
Address | 115 East Tropicana Avenue |
Opening date | July 26, 1973 |
No. of rooms | 696 |
Total gaming space | 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m2) |
Permanent shows |
|
Notable restaurants | |
Casino type | Land-based |
Owner | Highgate & Oyo Hotels & Homes |
Operating license holder | Paragon Gaming |
Previous names |
Howard Johnson Hotel (1973–1975) Paradise (1975-1976) 20th Century (1977-1978) Treasury (1978–1985) Pacifica (1985) Polynesian (1985–1989) Hôtel San Rémo (1989–2006) Hooters Casino Hotel (2006–2019) |
Renovated in | 1975-1976, 1977, 1989, 2006, 2012, 2017, 2019 |
Website |
oyolasvegas |
Oyo Hotel & Casino [a] is a casino hotel near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned by Highgate and Oyo Hotels & Homes, and its casino is operated by Paragon Gaming. It is located east of the Strip and next to the Tropicana resort. The hotel has 696 rooms with a 30,000-square-foot (2,800 m2) casino.
The property originally opened on July 26, 1973, as a Howard Johnson's hotel. Since then, it has changed ownership and names several times, most recently operating as the Hotel San Remo [b] (1989–2006) and the Hooters Casino Hotel (2006–2019), the latter in partnership with the Hooters restaurant chain. The hotel includes the original 10-story tower and an 18-story addition added in 1991.
The hotel was originally a Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge. Construction began in September 1972. [1] It was developed at a cost of $8 million, [2] by a group of local businesspersons led by Paul Oesterle. [1] It was built along Tropicana Avenue, just east of the Las Vegas Strip and adjacent to the Tropicana resort. [3] The Howard Johnson Hotel opened on July 26, 1973. [4] [5] A gaming license was issued for the property later that year, allowing the operation of 150 slot machines. [6]
The hotel included 332 rooms, [2] spread across a 10-story tower and two-story bungalows. [7] [8] By 1974, Oesterle had plans to expand the hotel by adding three additional 10-story towers with 544 new rooms. [9] However, his company Oesterle Nevada soon declared bankruptcy as it was unable to pay its debts. [10] Eureka Federal Savings and Loan, holder of the hotel's mortgage, foreclosed on the property and bought it at auction for $7.7 million in March 1975. [11]
In September 1975, Eureka sold the Howard Johnson's to Bernard Nemerov, a former part owner of the Riviera casino, for $10 million. [12] Nemerov renamed it as the Paradise Hotel. [12] [13] He reopened the property's casino on New Year's Day 1976. [12] [13] Five months later, the Paradise was targeted in a credit scam by 54 mobsters associated with the Philadelphia crime family. [14] The scheme left the casino with insufficient cash to operate, and it was forced to close and went bankrupt. [14]
The property was purchased in 1977 by a group led by New York businessman Andrew DeLillo, who then renamed it as the 20th Century. [15] [16] It was later sold to Herb Pastor, owner of the Coin Castle and Golden Goose casinos in Downtown Las Vegas, who renamed the 20th Century as the Treasury Hotel. [17] [18] At that time, the property featured a country western theme. [19]
Former football player Gerry Philbin purchased the Treasury in 1982 for $20 million; the casino closed at that time because Philbin had not obtained a gaming license, though the hotel continued to operate. [20] By the end of the year, Philbin was forced to put the hotel into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. [21]
In 1985, the DeLillo family regained ownership of the Treasury through foreclosure and renamed it as the Pacifica Hotel. [22] It was announced that the Pacifica would be marketed to gay travelers, but this plan proved controversial and was soon abandoned. [23] [24] Later that year, the Pacifica was renamed as the Polynesian Hotel. [22]
In 1989, it was purchased by Sukeaki Izumi, a Japanese industrialist and hotelier, who renovated it with an Italian Riviera ambience and renamed it the Hotel San Remo. [25] [b] He paid a reported $30 million for the purchase and renovation. [25] During its initial years, the San Remo was affiliated with the Ramada hotel chain. [26] [27] It became popular as a bargain property. [28] A second hotel tower, rising 18 stories, was finished in 1991. It brought the total room count to 711, [29] [30] and the San Remo now employed 600 workers. [31]
In 2004, Izumi's company, Eastern and Western Hotel Corp., began looking for opportunities to grow the hotel. The company sought to take advantage of heavy development that had occurred at the nearby Tropicana – Las Vegas Boulevard intersection since 1989. [32] [33] Hooters approached with a redevelopment proposal. [32] Ultimately, a group of nine partners in Hooters of America acquired a two-thirds interest in the property, which was put under control of a joint venture, 155 East Tropicana, LLC. [32] Plans were announced in August 2004 to redevelop the San Remo as a Hooters brand casino and hotel. [32] Hooters of America, owner of the Hooters trademark, would receive 2% of revenue as royalties. [34]
Of the property's many names, San Remo had the longest run. [35] Hooters launched a nine-month, $130 million renovation in 2005, as part of the rebranding effort. The entire property was renovated, including its hotel. [35] [36] The room count was reduced to 696, the result of several units being converted into suites. [37]
Hooters Casino Hotel opened on February 2, 2006, [36] [38] the weekend of Super Bowl XL. The opening was low-key for a Las Vegas debut, with a handful of celebrities in attendance, such as TV personality Brooke Burke. [39] [40]
The casino included an on-site Hooters restaurant. Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino also opened a steak and seafood restaurant known as Dan Marino's Fine Food and Spirits. [36] [41] The hotel-casino employed 1,000 workers, [42] including more than 200 of the restaurant chain's signature Hooters Girls, [43] who worked at the property as waitresses, bartenders, cocktail servers, and casino dealers. [36]
The hotel-casino was promoted at more than 100 Hooters restaurant locations. [44] The property struggled in its early years, but still proved to be more profitable than the San Remo. [44] [45] Roughly 80 percent of its clientele was male. [46] The Hooters brand was found to be a turn-off for female gamblers, [44] [47] [48] as well as wealthy tourists and business travelers. The property also appealed to a younger demographic, whereas casinos generally relied on a middle-age clientele. To increase profits, the property added new slot machines and began marketing to an older demographic. [44] Hooters began to turn a profit in 2007, after taking cost-cutting measures, such as staff reductions. [49] The casino was popular for its $3 minimum blackjack, and its Hooters restaurant was the chain's most profitable location. [3]
During 2007, 155 East Tropicana accepted an unsolicited offer from Hedwigs Las Vegas Top Tier, a joint venture of NTH Advisory Group and Silverleaf Real Estate, to buy the property for $225 million (including assumption of $130 million in debt). [50] Hedwigs planned to redesign and rebrand the casino once again, as a "lifestyle, entertainment-driven boutique hotel". [51] Analysts called the agreement "curious" given Hooters's poor earnings performance. [50] The deal fell through in June 2008 when Hedwigs failed to make a required payment. [52] Profits fell again that year, due to the Great Recession. [45]
With revenue declining, the casino began defaulting on loan payments in April 2009. [53] Canpartners Realty Holding Co., a subsidiary of Canyon Capital, bought up much of the company's debt at a heavy discount and planned to foreclose on the hotel. [54] The owners, seeking to block foreclosure, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 2011, listing only $63 million in assets against liabilities of $163 million. [55] [56] After a planned February 2012 auction attracted no outside bidders, the bankruptcy court approved Canpartner's $60 million credit offer for the property, with the sale expected to close around March 30. [57] The Navegante Group was approved to manage casino operations, while Canyon Capital said it was seeking a major hotel chain to take over and rebrand the property. [58]
In May 2015, Canyon Capital sold the casino to Trinity Hotel Investors, based in New York, for $70 million. [59] [60] At first, Trinity was expected to rename the property and place it under the management of Holiday Inn, [61] but they later decided to retain the Hooters branding. [62] Trinity hired Paragon Gaming to replace Navegante as the property's operator in 2016. [62] [63]
Joystixx, a 21-and-over video game lounge, had opened in 2011, [64] [65] but it saw minimal success and was replaced a year later by the Saloon, featuring live music. [66] [67] The Saloon was added as part of a property-wide remodel. [66] Another renovation, costing $18 million, was underway in 2017. The project included makeovers of the casino floor and hotel rooms. [68] [69] The world's largest Steak 'n Shake restaurant, with seating for 200 people, opened inside the Hooters casino in 2018. [70] [71]
In August 2019, Oyo Hotels & Homes partnered with New York-based investment and management company Highgate to purchase the property for $135 million. They announced plans to rename it as Oyo Hotel & Casino Las Vegas, [a] while retaining the Hooters restaurant. [72] [73] The Oyo rebranding process began on September 16, 2019, [74] and included restaurant upgrades as part of a $20 million renovation. [75] The casino floor is 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m2). [73]
The San Remo featured budget-priced entertainment in the 1990s. [76] [77] Among its offerings was Showgirls of Magic, which ran from 1996 to 2005, [78] [79] in the 180-seat Parisian Cabaret. [80] The show included dancing and comedy. It was produced, directed and choreographed by Bonnie Saxe, mother of magician Melinda Saxe. [76] [81] [82] In 1999, the show was renamed Les Trix, capitalizing on the Strip's opening of the Paris Las Vegas resort. [83] [84] By 2001, the name had been changed back to Showgirls of Magic, [85] and the show was revamped. [86] It initially featured a family friendly edition, followed by a topless version later in the evening; the former was eliminated in 2003, in favor of another topless performance. [87]
Broadway Cabaret, another show in the 1990s, featured songs from various Broadway musicals. [77] [88] [89] In 1999, the San Remo debuted Night Madness, a music and magic show starring Julie McCullough and Corinna Harney. [90] [91] Comedian Bobby Slayton performed at Hooters from 2007 to 2009. [92] [93] Comedian Geechy Guy created The Dirty Joke Show a year later. [94] [95]
Purple Reign, a tribute show to the musician Prince, opened at Hooters in 2009. [96] Men of X, a male stripper revue, also opened that year. [97] [98] Raack N Roll, a show featuring topless female dancers, debuted in 2011. [99] The three shows closed in 2012, allowing renovation work to commence on the property's performance venue. [100]
A dinner and magic show, featuring the duo Jarrett & Raja, opened at Hooters in 2017. [101] Other entertainment included singer Gordie Brown and the show Cons of Comedy. [102] [103] [104] Cherry Boom Boom, a show featuring female dancers and rock and roll music, opened in 2019. [105] That year, Hooters also debuted Hilarious 7, featuring a rotating lineup of seven comedians, each giving a 10-minute performance. [106]
The Las Vegas hotel, completed in June of last year at a cost of about $8 million, contains 332 rooms, a cocktail lounge and restaurant with 150 slot machines.
Others granted licenses were: ... Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge at 115 E. Tropicana Ave. to operate 150 slot machines in the 332-room hotel.
Oyo Hotel & Casino | |
---|---|
![]() | |
![]() The Hooters-era property in 2007 | |
Location | Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
Address | 115 East Tropicana Avenue |
Opening date | July 26, 1973 |
No. of rooms | 696 |
Total gaming space | 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m2) |
Permanent shows |
|
Notable restaurants | |
Casino type | Land-based |
Owner | Highgate & Oyo Hotels & Homes |
Operating license holder | Paragon Gaming |
Previous names |
Howard Johnson Hotel (1973–1975) Paradise (1975-1976) 20th Century (1977-1978) Treasury (1978–1985) Pacifica (1985) Polynesian (1985–1989) Hôtel San Rémo (1989–2006) Hooters Casino Hotel (2006–2019) |
Renovated in | 1975-1976, 1977, 1989, 2006, 2012, 2017, 2019 |
Website |
oyolasvegas |
Oyo Hotel & Casino [a] is a casino hotel near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned by Highgate and Oyo Hotels & Homes, and its casino is operated by Paragon Gaming. It is located east of the Strip and next to the Tropicana resort. The hotel has 696 rooms with a 30,000-square-foot (2,800 m2) casino.
The property originally opened on July 26, 1973, as a Howard Johnson's hotel. Since then, it has changed ownership and names several times, most recently operating as the Hotel San Remo [b] (1989–2006) and the Hooters Casino Hotel (2006–2019), the latter in partnership with the Hooters restaurant chain. The hotel includes the original 10-story tower and an 18-story addition added in 1991.
The hotel was originally a Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge. Construction began in September 1972. [1] It was developed at a cost of $8 million, [2] by a group of local businesspersons led by Paul Oesterle. [1] It was built along Tropicana Avenue, just east of the Las Vegas Strip and adjacent to the Tropicana resort. [3] The Howard Johnson Hotel opened on July 26, 1973. [4] [5] A gaming license was issued for the property later that year, allowing the operation of 150 slot machines. [6]
The hotel included 332 rooms, [2] spread across a 10-story tower and two-story bungalows. [7] [8] By 1974, Oesterle had plans to expand the hotel by adding three additional 10-story towers with 544 new rooms. [9] However, his company Oesterle Nevada soon declared bankruptcy as it was unable to pay its debts. [10] Eureka Federal Savings and Loan, holder of the hotel's mortgage, foreclosed on the property and bought it at auction for $7.7 million in March 1975. [11]
In September 1975, Eureka sold the Howard Johnson's to Bernard Nemerov, a former part owner of the Riviera casino, for $10 million. [12] Nemerov renamed it as the Paradise Hotel. [12] [13] He reopened the property's casino on New Year's Day 1976. [12] [13] Five months later, the Paradise was targeted in a credit scam by 54 mobsters associated with the Philadelphia crime family. [14] The scheme left the casino with insufficient cash to operate, and it was forced to close and went bankrupt. [14]
The property was purchased in 1977 by a group led by New York businessman Andrew DeLillo, who then renamed it as the 20th Century. [15] [16] It was later sold to Herb Pastor, owner of the Coin Castle and Golden Goose casinos in Downtown Las Vegas, who renamed the 20th Century as the Treasury Hotel. [17] [18] At that time, the property featured a country western theme. [19]
Former football player Gerry Philbin purchased the Treasury in 1982 for $20 million; the casino closed at that time because Philbin had not obtained a gaming license, though the hotel continued to operate. [20] By the end of the year, Philbin was forced to put the hotel into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. [21]
In 1985, the DeLillo family regained ownership of the Treasury through foreclosure and renamed it as the Pacifica Hotel. [22] It was announced that the Pacifica would be marketed to gay travelers, but this plan proved controversial and was soon abandoned. [23] [24] Later that year, the Pacifica was renamed as the Polynesian Hotel. [22]
In 1989, it was purchased by Sukeaki Izumi, a Japanese industrialist and hotelier, who renovated it with an Italian Riviera ambience and renamed it the Hotel San Remo. [25] [b] He paid a reported $30 million for the purchase and renovation. [25] During its initial years, the San Remo was affiliated with the Ramada hotel chain. [26] [27] It became popular as a bargain property. [28] A second hotel tower, rising 18 stories, was finished in 1991. It brought the total room count to 711, [29] [30] and the San Remo now employed 600 workers. [31]
In 2004, Izumi's company, Eastern and Western Hotel Corp., began looking for opportunities to grow the hotel. The company sought to take advantage of heavy development that had occurred at the nearby Tropicana – Las Vegas Boulevard intersection since 1989. [32] [33] Hooters approached with a redevelopment proposal. [32] Ultimately, a group of nine partners in Hooters of America acquired a two-thirds interest in the property, which was put under control of a joint venture, 155 East Tropicana, LLC. [32] Plans were announced in August 2004 to redevelop the San Remo as a Hooters brand casino and hotel. [32] Hooters of America, owner of the Hooters trademark, would receive 2% of revenue as royalties. [34]
Of the property's many names, San Remo had the longest run. [35] Hooters launched a nine-month, $130 million renovation in 2005, as part of the rebranding effort. The entire property was renovated, including its hotel. [35] [36] The room count was reduced to 696, the result of several units being converted into suites. [37]
Hooters Casino Hotel opened on February 2, 2006, [36] [38] the weekend of Super Bowl XL. The opening was low-key for a Las Vegas debut, with a handful of celebrities in attendance, such as TV personality Brooke Burke. [39] [40]
The casino included an on-site Hooters restaurant. Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino also opened a steak and seafood restaurant known as Dan Marino's Fine Food and Spirits. [36] [41] The hotel-casino employed 1,000 workers, [42] including more than 200 of the restaurant chain's signature Hooters Girls, [43] who worked at the property as waitresses, bartenders, cocktail servers, and casino dealers. [36]
The hotel-casino was promoted at more than 100 Hooters restaurant locations. [44] The property struggled in its early years, but still proved to be more profitable than the San Remo. [44] [45] Roughly 80 percent of its clientele was male. [46] The Hooters brand was found to be a turn-off for female gamblers, [44] [47] [48] as well as wealthy tourists and business travelers. The property also appealed to a younger demographic, whereas casinos generally relied on a middle-age clientele. To increase profits, the property added new slot machines and began marketing to an older demographic. [44] Hooters began to turn a profit in 2007, after taking cost-cutting measures, such as staff reductions. [49] The casino was popular for its $3 minimum blackjack, and its Hooters restaurant was the chain's most profitable location. [3]
During 2007, 155 East Tropicana accepted an unsolicited offer from Hedwigs Las Vegas Top Tier, a joint venture of NTH Advisory Group and Silverleaf Real Estate, to buy the property for $225 million (including assumption of $130 million in debt). [50] Hedwigs planned to redesign and rebrand the casino once again, as a "lifestyle, entertainment-driven boutique hotel". [51] Analysts called the agreement "curious" given Hooters's poor earnings performance. [50] The deal fell through in June 2008 when Hedwigs failed to make a required payment. [52] Profits fell again that year, due to the Great Recession. [45]
With revenue declining, the casino began defaulting on loan payments in April 2009. [53] Canpartners Realty Holding Co., a subsidiary of Canyon Capital, bought up much of the company's debt at a heavy discount and planned to foreclose on the hotel. [54] The owners, seeking to block foreclosure, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 2011, listing only $63 million in assets against liabilities of $163 million. [55] [56] After a planned February 2012 auction attracted no outside bidders, the bankruptcy court approved Canpartner's $60 million credit offer for the property, with the sale expected to close around March 30. [57] The Navegante Group was approved to manage casino operations, while Canyon Capital said it was seeking a major hotel chain to take over and rebrand the property. [58]
In May 2015, Canyon Capital sold the casino to Trinity Hotel Investors, based in New York, for $70 million. [59] [60] At first, Trinity was expected to rename the property and place it under the management of Holiday Inn, [61] but they later decided to retain the Hooters branding. [62] Trinity hired Paragon Gaming to replace Navegante as the property's operator in 2016. [62] [63]
Joystixx, a 21-and-over video game lounge, had opened in 2011, [64] [65] but it saw minimal success and was replaced a year later by the Saloon, featuring live music. [66] [67] The Saloon was added as part of a property-wide remodel. [66] Another renovation, costing $18 million, was underway in 2017. The project included makeovers of the casino floor and hotel rooms. [68] [69] The world's largest Steak 'n Shake restaurant, with seating for 200 people, opened inside the Hooters casino in 2018. [70] [71]
In August 2019, Oyo Hotels & Homes partnered with New York-based investment and management company Highgate to purchase the property for $135 million. They announced plans to rename it as Oyo Hotel & Casino Las Vegas, [a] while retaining the Hooters restaurant. [72] [73] The Oyo rebranding process began on September 16, 2019, [74] and included restaurant upgrades as part of a $20 million renovation. [75] The casino floor is 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m2). [73]
The San Remo featured budget-priced entertainment in the 1990s. [76] [77] Among its offerings was Showgirls of Magic, which ran from 1996 to 2005, [78] [79] in the 180-seat Parisian Cabaret. [80] The show included dancing and comedy. It was produced, directed and choreographed by Bonnie Saxe, mother of magician Melinda Saxe. [76] [81] [82] In 1999, the show was renamed Les Trix, capitalizing on the Strip's opening of the Paris Las Vegas resort. [83] [84] By 2001, the name had been changed back to Showgirls of Magic, [85] and the show was revamped. [86] It initially featured a family friendly edition, followed by a topless version later in the evening; the former was eliminated in 2003, in favor of another topless performance. [87]
Broadway Cabaret, another show in the 1990s, featured songs from various Broadway musicals. [77] [88] [89] In 1999, the San Remo debuted Night Madness, a music and magic show starring Julie McCullough and Corinna Harney. [90] [91] Comedian Bobby Slayton performed at Hooters from 2007 to 2009. [92] [93] Comedian Geechy Guy created The Dirty Joke Show a year later. [94] [95]
Purple Reign, a tribute show to the musician Prince, opened at Hooters in 2009. [96] Men of X, a male stripper revue, also opened that year. [97] [98] Raack N Roll, a show featuring topless female dancers, debuted in 2011. [99] The three shows closed in 2012, allowing renovation work to commence on the property's performance venue. [100]
A dinner and magic show, featuring the duo Jarrett & Raja, opened at Hooters in 2017. [101] Other entertainment included singer Gordie Brown and the show Cons of Comedy. [102] [103] [104] Cherry Boom Boom, a show featuring female dancers and rock and roll music, opened in 2019. [105] That year, Hooters also debuted Hilarious 7, featuring a rotating lineup of seven comedians, each giving a 10-minute performance. [106]
The Las Vegas hotel, completed in June of last year at a cost of about $8 million, contains 332 rooms, a cocktail lounge and restaurant with 150 slot machines.
Others granted licenses were: ... Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge at 115 E. Tropicana Ave. to operate 150 slot machines in the 332-room hotel.