Double down with the dancing dealers
By Kiko Miyasato
There are two big parties happening downtown on Fremont Street—and everyone 21 and over is invited. The D and Golden Gate have elevated the fun of playing table games to a whole new level.
Over the past few years, it’s become increasingly popular for casinos on the Las Vegas Strip and downtown to have some sort of small pit off to the side of the main table-games area that creates a more festive gaming environment. But over at The D and Golden Gate, “We’ve made the entire gaming pit the party pit,” said Michael Storm, vice president of operations for The D and Golden Gate. “You come into our places around 8, 9 o’clock on a Friday or Saturday night and it’s just one big party.”
The main attraction of the party pits are the dancing dealers; the lovely ladies are the ones keeping the party popping and players happy. Between the two properties, about 120 women can deal you a hand of blackjack and then 20 minutes later climb up on the mini platforms in the gaming pit and shake and gyrate some ace moves to top-40 hits. Added bonus: They’re also all really friendly and personable. “They have great personalities; they’re your girls next door,” Storm said.
The Golden Gate was the first of the two casinos to have dancing dealers, and when The D was completed it also received a dancing dealers party pit, but bigger in size. “The D was based off the success of Golden Gate … but it’s like we gave it steroids. It’s 10 times bigger,” Storm said.
From about 6 p.m. into the morning hours, you can catch the dancing dealers; on the weekends, expect tables to be three deep with people waiting to grab a seat. “I have people waiting to play at the tables, and that’s just something that you don’t see very often,” Storm said. “Certainly not downtown. It’s great.”
