Podcast, Ep. 162: Criss Angel Summit, Nachogate and Magician Mat Franco

By Scott Roeben, on January 29 2024
2 min read 5 comments
Las Vegas Vital Vegas Podcast

Due to lukewarm demand, we’ve cranked out yet another episode of the Vital Vegas Podcast! We’re as shocked and disappointed as you are.

There’s so much to talk about, and we’ve got all the inside scoop you won’t hear anywhere else.

Yes, we had dinner with Criss Angel, one of the signs of the Apocalypse.

Podcasts. Those things people do when they don’t have girlfriends or hobbies.

Beyond regaling you with our Criss Angel “summit” details, we dive into all the latest Las Vegas rumors we started, one of which has already been confirmed (Tropicana closes April 2, 2024).

We also share a juicy rumor the Hard Rock (currently Mirage, owned by the Seminoles) is making a play to buy TI.

There’s also fresh Fontainebleau news, as the newly-opened resort has “quiet fired” its president, naming former Wynn president Maurice Wooden to the position. Wooden’s licensing process could be interesting as he was one of the folks who allegedly helped keep Steve Wynn’s behavior under wraps for so many years. So much juicy drama!

We also provide in-depth coverage of “Nachogate.” In case you missed it, you didn’t miss much. Basically, somebody complained about the nachos at Tavern restaurant, it went viral and we were a smartass about it. We chatted with the General Manager of Tavern at Fontainebleau, Robert Parekh, about the online kerfuffle.

We are incorrigible.

There are also thoughts about “Lady Like” at Virgin, and the Canteen Food Hall at Rio, along with the usual pot-stirring about parking fees going up at MGM Resorts hotels and ATM fees being increased to $11.99 (ouch) at Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts casinos.

We round out this episode with an interview of one of the best magicians in Las Vegas, Mat Franco. Franco recently had hits eighth anniversary on The Strip, an impressive and well-deserved run. Mat Franco is very nice and seems normal, which is weird. Learn more.

All that and the usual incoherent rambling are in store on this installment of the podcast ranked among the best gambling podcasts in the world according to a site we’ve never heard of before. At some point, we should probably talk about gambling.

Shove some Las Vegas into your noise-collecting orifices, which is the new “earholes.”