| Ellis Island Casino & Brewery | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Location | Paradise, Nevada | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Address | 4178 Koval Lane | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opening date | 1967 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. of rooms | 289 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total gaming space | 28,500 sq ft (2,650 m2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable restaurants | Village Pub & Cafe, [1] Ellis Island BBQ, [2] The Front Yard [3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Casino type | Land-based | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Gary Ellis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Previous names | Village Pub | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Renovated in | 1997 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website |
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The Ellis Island Casino & Brewery is located near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The casino offers 350 gaming devices, as well as restaurants, a Karaoke bar and a brewery.
History
The Village Pub was opened in 1967 by Frank Ellis, who eventually passed it on to his son, Gary. [4]
The name was changed to Ellis Island in 1985. [5] On September 19, 1997, Ellis Island opened a large portion of a $12 million renovation and expansion, which doubled its slot machine count to 410 and introduced table games by adding six blackjack tables. [5]
In 1995 Ellis relaunched the Village Pub brand. [6] As of 2020, the family owns and operates 12 Village Pub restaurants in the Las Vegas area.
Ellis agreed in 2004 to manage and take joint ownership of the nearby Tuscany Suites and Casino, which had struggled to attract customers in its first year. [4] The agreement fell apart when Tuscany officials allegedly backed out. [7]
Later that year, Ellis signed on to the planned 46-story Aqua Blue condo-hotel project to replace an adjacent Super 8 motel. Ellis Island would manage the Aqua Blue casino, and would itself be renovated to match the new tower. [8] However, the project was cancelled in June 2005, due in part to rising construction costs. [9]
In 2014 Ellis bought the adjacent Super 8 motel, creating a vertically integrated hotel and casino business. [10] In 2018, the hotel's rooms and facilities were renovated. [11]
Planning for an expansion project began in 2017, with construction work commencing later that year. [12] After some delays, in December 2019 Ellis Island opened the "Front Yard" with a new restaurant, bar and beer garden. [3]
Brewery
In 1993, Ellis established a brewery on the premise and tasked brewmaster Joe Pickett with brewing a variety of beers for the casino's restaurants. [13] Regular brews include Lager, Light Lager, Amber Ale, India Pale Ale, Hefeweizen, Stout and Root Beer, as well as seasonal specials. [14]
With 3345 barrels produced in 2009, Ellis Island Brewery was the largest brewpub in the Mountain West region (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming). [15]
In 2018, the brewhouse capacity was doubled [16] and two new brewmasters, Eddie Leal and Michael Key, were hired to run the brewing business. [17]
In December 2018, Ellis established Silver Reef Brewing Company in St. George, Utah, adding annual capacity of up to 10,000 barrels to the brewing business. [18]
In 2022, the on-site brewery at the Las Vegas casino was dismantled. Beer production continues at Silver Reef Brewing. [19]
See also
References
- ^ "Las Vegas: For Him". Denver Post. 2008-03-16. Retrieved 2008-04-03.
- ^ Roeben, Scott (1 July 2014). "Ellis Island Casino Serves Up Lots of Surprises". Casino.org. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ a b "The Front Yard at Ellis Island casino opens its doors". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2019-12-03. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ a b "Ellis Island, Tuscany in deal". Las Vegas Sun. 12 April 2004. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
- ^ a b Berns, Dave (22 September 1997). "Ellis Island doubles slots, adds blackjack". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on 9 November 1999.
- ^ "Ellis Island's Village Pub empire hits that friendly neighborhood-bar sweet spot - Las Vegas Weekly". lasvegasweekly.com. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ Benston, Liz (26 August 2004). "Ellis Island Plans Condo-Hotel". Casino City Times. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
- ^ Benston, Liz (17 January 2005). "High-Rise Developer Brings Strengths to Vegas". Casino City Times. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
- ^ Smith, Hubble (30 June 2005). "Plans to build 46-story condominium hotel canceled". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
- ^ "Ellis Island starts work on $10M dining, entertainment venue". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2017-07-06. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ "Ellis Island Hotel, Casino and Brewery Taps Agilysys to Upgrade Its Technology Capabilities |". 2018-08-16. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ "Ellis Island Casino gets a makeover". www.gamingtoday.com. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ "Joe Pickett, Brewmaster at Ellis Island Casino and Brewery Las Vegas » Vegas Mavens". vegasmavens.com. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ Evans, Pat (2018-12-10). Nevada Beer: An Intoxicating History. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-6596-1.
- ^ Hieronymus, Stan (May 2010). "Brewpubs: Bucking the Trend" (PDF). Brewers Association. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ "Nevada Beer Nuggets – The Latest News In Nevada Brews". Celebrator Beer News. 2018-12-17. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ "Ellis Island Hotel, Casino And Brewery Announces Two New Brew Masters". Food & Beverage Magazine. 2018-10-16. Retrieved 2020-05-04.[ permanent dead link]
- ^ DeForest, J. J. "From grain to glass: new brewery brings craft beer to St. George". The Spectrum & Daily News. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- ^ Roeben, Scott. "Ellis Island Closes Brewery, More Changes in the Works". Casino.org. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
