Luxe Life Blog
MGM CityCenter Part 4: The luxurious Aria, Mandarin Oriental and Vdara
A profile of the Aria at CityCenter.
Photo: Kirvin Doak Communications
Today is Part 4 of our five-part series on MGM’s CityCenter, opening next month on the Strip. The links to Parts 1, 2 and 3 are at the end of this story.
The new show Viva Elvis at CityCenter has announced that tickets will go on sale Dec. 15, which is when I get a sneak peek at the new Cirque du Soleil spectacular. Previews will start Dec. 18 and run through Jan. 28, with 25 percent off tickets before the Jan. 29 premiere.
When the new nonsmoking, nongaming Vdara Hotel opens in just 12 days, the sprawling new MGM CityCenter officially comes to life. It’s followed on Dec. 3 with the gala opening of the shopping palace Crystals, 24 hours later by the Mandarin Oriental first-day celebrations and finally the Aria resort casino on Dec. 16.
A few weeks ago, I had a privileged tour through Aria and Vdara. Now as our five-part series on the new wonder of the world continues, we’ll peek inside the lavish and luxurious hotels and look at their restaurants and spas that will redefine the arts of fine dining and rich relaxation.
ARIA
The best and brightest chefs and restaurateurs from across the country make up one of the most incredible line-ups ever assembled. Las Vegas veterans Michael Mina, Julian Serrano, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Sirio Maccioni, Jean-Philippe Maury and The Light Group are joining with two top talented newcomers: Masayoshi Takayama and Chicago chef Shawn McLain. All of the star chefs are promising concepts totally new to their repertoire.
Masa, who has the reputation of being the world’s most expensive Japanese chef, has two unique spaces in one: his Bar Masa is more casual with his modern Japanese cuisine, but Shaboo will be an exclusive -- and expensive -- dining experience for a limited number of guests as if they were dining alone. Each table will have its own induction cooking and will be adorned with vessels brought from the private cobalt blue concrete vault. The ceilings soar 42 feet high!
I met with Shawn this year on his visit to Las Vegas as he began planning his first restaurant outside Chicago, where he has the top three rated eateries. The James Beard Award winner scored with the Spring seafood-centric menu, which won him Chef of the Year. His vegetable-focused Green Zebra won more awards when it opened in 2004, and a year later, his Custom House steak-focused restaurant grabbed even more honors. His Sage restaurant here will carry the influences from all three award winners as he spotlights farm to table produce, artisan meats and sustainable seafood. My longtime friend and Top Chef Hubert Keller’s former manager Tobias Peach will run Sage.
Michael Mina’s new restaurant will be titled American Fish; Jean Georges Steakhouse will redefine the traditional steakhouse with high energy and sex appeal; Le Cirque owner Sirio Maccioni introduces Italian favorites at Sirio; and Julian Serrano at Aria will be the first restaurant in America designed by the Spanish group Gente de Valor. Julian promises to stretch the boundaries of traditional and innovative Spanish fare.
The Light Group will unveil the Union Restaurant and Lounge serving a playful menu of contemporary American cuisine under the watchful eye of executive chef Brian Massie, already esteemed here for his eclectic dishes at Stack and Fix in the nearby Mirage and Bellagio, respectively. Although an inside restaurant, it’s open to the casino floor but strategically positioned behind floor-to-ceiling architectural trees, providing a sense of seclusion and intimacy but still right in the heart of the casino action.
The walkway to Aria and Mandarin Oriental at CityCenter.
Jean Philippe’s Patisserie at Aria will have the world’s largest chocolate fountain with 2,100 pounds of liquid chocolate flowing constantly. Aria also will be home to modern Thai restaurant Lemongrass and Blossom, a classic Chinese restaurant.
The entire structure of striking architecture produces energy, inspiration and vision. Designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli, Aria’s two steel-and-glass towers are a 21st century building gleaming in desert light throughout soaring open spaces in the three-story lobby atrium.
There are 4,004 guest accommodations, including 568 suites, with panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows providing magnificent views of Las Vegas. MGM says they are the most technologically advanced guestrooms in the country.
Daylight will stream onto the 150,000-square-foot gaming floor -- now that’s putting a whole new natural light on things! For high-end players, exclusive salons will offer high-limit slot and table games in private environments, and never-before-seen technologies throughout the casino provide unmatched service.
In Aria’s 80,000-square-foot spa, salt, stone, earth, fire and water all join to create a meditative experience .The two-level Spa features 62 treatment rooms, a full-service salon, an advanced fitness center and our city’s first co-ed spa balcony featuring an outdoor therapy pool. It features shiatsu, couples’ massage, Thai massage, hydrotherapy and vichy rooms, as well as three exclusive spa suites.
The pool at Aria.
A tranquil stone and water garden adorned with sacred Japanese Aji stones, blessed in Japan to inspire calmness and tranquility, welcomes guests. Treatment room walls have been made from earthy soil, and a unique salt meditation room (shio) features a wall of illuminated salt bricks that encourages the healing of skin irritations and upper respiratory problems. A second meditation room will be the only in America to offer Japanese stone sauna (ganbanyoku) beds. During a ganbanyoku treatment, guests will relax upon a bed of heated black mineral stone that emits negative ions and far-infrared rays. In addition to relaxing muscles, the treatment helps improve circulation, increase metabolism and eliminate toxins.
There also are three private spa suites, each serving as a personal “spa within a spa” serving up to eight people. The co-ed outdoor therapy pool is akin to a Japanese open-air hot bath (rotenburo) The salon will feature 16 stylist stations, six color stations, four makeup stations, 12 manicure stations, 15 pedicure stations, one barber station and one waxing station.
The 16,000-square-foot fitness center includes 44 cardio pieces, 20 treadmills, 10 full-body cross-trainers, three lower-body cross trainers, five recumbent bikes, three upright bikes, two espresso bikes and one body ergo meter, all which will have Direct Channel Access and iPod connections.
VDARA
My culinary genius friend Martin Heierling, innovator at the Bellagio’s Sensi, serves as executive chef for Vdara. He has created the stunning Silk Road restaurant inspired by the ancient trade route spanning from Venice to the Far East. He’s incorporating subtle spices and exotic ingredients to create modern, trans-ethnic cuisine. Silk Road transforms as the day ticks on from lively at daybreak to chic and sexy at nightfall.
An all-suite hotel of 1,495 rooms, it is physically connected to the adjoining Bellagio and directly adjacent to Aria. Vdara, which also is part condo tower with two- bedroom residences and penthouses, has a distinctive crescent shape soaring 57 stories. Its unique skin of patterned glass creates one of the most striking design statements through its sleek, shimmering structure.
The Vdara health and beauty center is an 18,000-square-foot, two-level spa, salon and advanced fitness facility with a spotlight on holistic health and well being. There are 11 treatment rooms and three relaxation lounges with signature treatments using ingredients derived from organic herbs, flowers, fruits, vegetables and essential oils. Vdara Health & Beauty is the first Las Vegas spa recognized by the Green Spa Network for its commitment to the environment.
MANDARIN ORIENTAL
Welcome to the only freestanding, nongaming luxury property on the Strip with its very own sophisticated sanctuary. Award-winning Chef Pierre Gagnaire will put a modern spin on the simplicity of classic French cuisine. Twist will be located in the 23rd floor Sky Lobby and will seat 72 guests enjoying dazzling Strip and valley views through massive floor-to-ceiling windows. Pierre is a world-renowned three-star Michelin chef who is hailed as one of the top three chefs in the world. Vegas DeLuxe was the first to break news of his arrival to our dining scene and also first to reveal that he’s ordered $1,000 dinner dishes carved from jade!
Additionally, there is Mozen Bistro, an all-day contemporary kitchen featuring authentic Asian dishes and multi-national fare. A Tea Lounge serves as an intimate visual meeting place with an extensive menu of teas and rituals. The boutique Mandarin Bar seats 82 and comes with a team of molecular mixologists to build customized concoctions.
Kohn Pedersen Fox designed the 47-story, nongaming hotel --and residences -- with contemporary interiors by Adam D. Tihany. It has a sky bridge connecting to Crystals, and the 7,650-square-foot Oriental Ballroom is the only one in the city offering views of the Strip.
Mandarin Oriental serves as the gateway to CityCenter with interlocking glass and metal elements on the facade from Chinese motifs. It is the ultimate luxurious boutique hotel with 392 rooms and suites, in addition to 227 residential condos. There are three presidential suites each measuring more than 3,200 square feet.
The two-level Spa is a 27,000-square-foot oasis for serenity and rejuvenation, with a 1930s Shanghai design reflecting the glamour and elegance from that era. It features treatments based on Eastern methodologies with Western applications. There are 17 treatment rooms, including seven Couple’s Suites, multiple relaxation and water experiences, a Rhassoul for women and a co-ed Hammam. An expansive Fitness Center with a Yoga and Pilates Studio and Technogym cardiovascular and strength equipment also is available.
I have omitted coverage of the leaning Veer Towers, as they are condo residences and thus more private than public. However, I will tell you that every guestroom in CityCenter is networked with fiber optics providing Wi-Fi eight times faster than any other U.S. hotel guestroom! MGM officials have provided more than 2,900 wireless access points with more than 6,500 antennas, so anywhere you go over its 70 acres, you’ll always stay connected.
You have no idea how important that is for journalists like us. It also means when I set up camp there for New Year’s Eve, we’ll be able to transmit Eva Longoria Parker’s Dec. 31 through Jan. 1 party in real time!
We’ll be back to wrap our advance look at City Center tomorrow with Part 5, and early next week, we’ll have our chat with Eva Longoria as she gets ready for her Dec. 3 opening of Beso the restaurant and Eve the nightclub.
Click HERE for Part 1, click HERE for Part 2, and click HERE for Part 3 of our five-part series posted Monday, Tuesday and yesterday, respectively.
Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.
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