Linq Lemonade
This week we celebrate fathers. And this Father’s Day is especially important for Ryan Kelly; it’s his first as a dad—he and his wife welcomed a baby girl earlier this year. “I’m excited,” he said, when talking about the holiday. “I love being a dad.” Speaking of fathers, Kelly, who is currently the general manager at Influence, The Pool at The LINQ, followed in his dad’s footsteps when he began his career on the Strip.
“My dad has always worked in the casino industry, so I was always around it,” Kelly said. Kelly’s first job was as a lifeguard at the Flamingo pool. “I’ve been around pools ever since,” he said, including jobs as a cabana host at Planet Hollywood Resort and a pool supervisor and assistant manager for Flamingo’s dayclub, the GO Pool, which he helped launch.
In 2015, after The LINQ’s rebranding, Kelly joined the resort as the pool’s general manager and helped create the 21-and-over pool club. “My main goal was to build a really cool vibe centered around great customer service,” he said. Besides creating a good poolside atmosphere, Kelly is totally hands-on with all aspects of Influence—hiring, training, helping create the cocktail menu and working with marketing and PR, as well as booking the DJs and talent.
“I think what keeps me coming back is this is probably one of the coolest jobs, to be honest,” he said. “You come into work and your job is to throw a party every day, and to make sure that people coming through the doors are having a great time and enjoying themselves. What more could you really ask for?”
LINQ Lemonade
Besides the cool waters of the pool, guests at Influence can enjoy a game of pool, shuffleboard, ping pong and more inside the pool’s air-conditioned Req Room. There are also foosball tables, hammocks that overlook the LINQ Promenade and a second dipping pool and sun deck. There’s also a huge cocktail menu with frozen mojitos, specialty cocktails, beers on tap and several spiked lemonades like the popular LINQ Lemonade. Order the refreshing cocktail—made with Skyy raspberry vodka, freshly muddled raspberries, house-pressed lemonade and topped with Chambord—by the pitcher or in a souvenir cup.
