Wynn Las Vegas Buffet Suspends Operations Again, Casino Increasing Hotel Rates

Posted on: September 7, 2020, 03:49h. 

Last updated on: September 8, 2020, 07:53h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Wynn Las Vegas is closing its buffet for a second time at the end of service today, Sept 7. Officials with the casino company said the decision is because of customer feedback.

Wynn Las Vegas buffet casino
The “new” Wynn Las Vegas Buffet simply didn’t sit well with Strip guests. The casino said the restaurant is going on hiatus indefinitely. (Image: CBS Las Vegas)

Wynn Resorts said the response to the new buffet, which opened June 18, has been less than enthusiastic. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, the buffet hasn’t been its traditional self. Instead of guests helping themselves to the endless bounty of some 90 delectable offerings the buffet is currently a tableside service operation.

Guests have been making their selections on their smartphones via a Q-code, with a server fetching their food. It’s something that hasn’t resonated with the typical buffet eater.

Based upon guest feedback, we found that many guests prefer a more traditional buffet experience over the served all-you-can-eat format,” Wynn Resorts said in a statement. “We will continue to assess the situation and will make a determination on reopening at the appropriate time.”

Caesars Palace had planned to reopen its Bacchanal Buffet in August but has since announced it will not resume business until some time later this year.

Buffet Bounce Back

The Cosmopolitan’s Wicked Spoon is the only buffet currently in operation on the Las Vegas Strip. The Garden Buffet at South Point is also open. The coronavirus has thrown the future of buffets into peril, but some hospitality experts say their return is inevitable.

“It’s part of the firmament of what makes Las Vegas Las Vegas,” Las Vegas Advisor publisher Anthony Curtis opined to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “They [Wynn Las Vegas] gave it a shot. It sounds to me that it wasn’t the right experience.”

Curtis believes the buffet lost its “do-it-yourself” appeal during Wynn’s tableside incarnation. “If you just want a teaspoon of peas, you get a teaspoon of peas. You can’t tell a server you want a teaspoon of peas.”

In Casino.org’s earlier coverage of Wynn Las Vegas reopening its buffet, some questioned whether the service arrangement voided its classification as a “buffet.” The definition of “buffet” is “food, refreshments, etc., laid out on tables from which guests or customers serve themselves.”

Scott Roeben, Mr. @VitalVegas on Twitter, tweeted, “Fun fact: A ‘buffet’ where servers deliver your food is called a ‘restaurant.'”

Wynn Rate Increase

Las Vegas Locally, another popular social media account on Twitter, this morning spread some inside knowledge regarding Wynn Resorts’ inner workings.

“Wynn insider: ‘Having $109-$150 rooms was a disaster. Starting next week, rates go back up to make us the most expensive on the Strip,” @LasVegasLocally tweeted.

Our regulars will not return with all these thugs in our five-star resort!” an apparent Wynn Las Vegas employee responded to the tweet.

A search of Strip casino hotels for next weekend shows that the insider is on point. A Wynn Resort King for a two-night stay Friday through Sunday averages $309 per night. With taxes and resort fees, the grand total comes to $802.73.

It’s the most expensive standard room on the Strip for next weekend that we could find. By comparison, the same two nights (inclusive of taxes and resort fees) at The Palazzo costs $559.53, and Bellagio $609.98.