As they approach their first anniversary of acquiring the property, the owners of Grand Sierra Resort continue a major effort to reposition its restaurant offerings.
Among the additions:
* Charlie Palmer Steak. The Las Vegas celebrity chef takes over the former steakhouse.
* Fin, featuring fresh fish, seafood, and a "raw" bar rather than a sushi bar. Fin replaces Asiana.
* Dolce, an upscale restaurant that opened in mid-October. The third installment in a restaurant group backed by "That 70s Show" pals Ashton Kutcher and Wilmer Valderrama, Dolce is also in West Hollywood and Atlanta.
* Starbucks, which replaces Java Coast.
"We are definitely looking towards branding this place as a namesake," says Heidi Baldwin, the property's marketing coordinator. "When you hear Charlie Palmer, he is the first celebrity chef to come to Reno. Dolce comes straight from Hollywood and is a branded name. Starbucks is a branded name. We want upscale names that people are familiar with and think high class.
"We are 11th in the nation for largest convention hotel, so we are still seeking the convention customer, but we want to be the local hotel for fine dining," Baldwin says.
There are no plans to re-brand the locations of Johnny Rockets upstairs, or the Cable Car Creamery, Round Table Pizza and Port of Subs downstairs.
Among watering spots in the Grand Sierra, The Garage will be remodeled and called 2500 East Second St. The former Aspen bar was expanded and renamed Crystal Lounge and features a more upscale ambiance with nightly entertainment.
"Chevy's is gone, and will either be a brewpub or combo pub/Asian bistro," Baldwin says. "Everything here has actually been going really quickly. June is the first-year anniversary for Grand Sierra resort, so we are trying to have a lot of our projects completed or to break ground so that we can show how much we have done in the year that has gone by."
The interior of the casino has undergone a near-total facelift in the past year.
Top floors of the 26-story building are being converted to 825 condo units ranging in price from $280,000 for 420 square feet to $1.9 million for 1,300-square-foot penthouses.
