Going Against the Grain: Red Rock Casino...Not So Much

Most of the time I agree with the average rating of the Yelpers but this time...something was amiss. 4 1/2 stars? Maybe it's bc we didn't stay there but I think after having come to Vegas about a gajillion times in my life, I can give a decent review of a place just based on first impression.

About 20 minutes away from the strip, Red Rock opened mid-April 2006 and is owned by Station Casinos, the company that owns Palace Station among others.

Here's a general shot of the inside:

A restaurant:

Their club:

Their pool:

The bar in the center of the casino is pretty impressive. A nice place to chill out with some friends:

So here's my brutally honest assessment...I just didn't really like this place.

First, the good. From Wikipedia: Station casino executives, Frank Fertitta III and his brother, Lorenzo, hope to add "a touch of elegance to the property" by including numerous Swarovski crystal chandeliers of all shapes, sizes and varieties in the casino containing more than three million pieces of crystal. Growing up in Vegas, they remembered the "contemporary elegance" displayed in bygone Las Vegas casinos, such as the Desert Inn. They seek to include a taste of the past in their new hotel with these chandeliers. In all, the total cost for all the chandeliers and other Swarovski crystal features throughout Red Rock cost over $6 million.

Now, mind you, the chandeliers were probably one of the only saving graces of this place. They were beautiful, if not a little excessive. There were huge chandeliers everywhere you looked...and if you went inside the bar in the middle of the casino..all you saw were these crystals. But if that's your only saving grace, you may have a problem.

We get it...you are "Red" Rock...you can have red colored lights and red themed throughout the casino but but be careful bc you start looking like Red Mango.

Guess I started going into the bad there. I know they are trying to go for modern but I just don't think it was done very well. It was like someone took a cheaper version of Wynn and mixed it with a wannabe Palms.

Most of the crowd was older...and I'm not talking 40s...I'm talking grandpa, let me help you with that cane. I didn't feel the energy I get from walking into a Hard Rock or Palms and I didn't get that open, airy feeling I get from walking through the Palazzo.

The highlight of our little excursion? A casino dealer told me about a nice drive touring the area. Rock on, man!

So overall, sorry, but this place I can't recommend. I hear the spa is nice, though!

Red Rock Casino (Yelp)
11011 W Charleston Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89135
(702) 797-7777