on the floor,but it’s discreet and well-venti- lated. Plus,most of all the games are not thrust down the guest’s throat.You can go to the casino floor here. It doesn’t grab you up and swallow you.
My room is on 7 – top floor. It’s clean (I’d give it an 8.6 out of a 10),very tasteful and warmed by the same terra-tones that perme- ate through the public areas. I gaze out at hilly vistas from my window,catch up on a few emails and then I throw on a suit jacket and head downstairs for some lunch.
When you exit the elevator and head into the main level,you’ll never not find the restaurant of your choosing; they’re all ringed along the circular concourse where there’s lots to pass by – the refined yet casu- al Bar Louis,Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, sleek and tempting Pearl Sushi Bar,Timbers Buffet,and Johnny Rockets for breakfast,a burger,or a late-night club sandwich and a coffee.
There also are scads of distinctive retail shops,outfitters, fine jewelers,a techie store; even an award-winning PA wine (Crossing Vineyards) and cheese shop.
The Rustic Kitchen Bistro and Bar is,as its name suggests,an earthen-hued,Tuscan- inspired enclave juxtaposed with super-cool blown glass pin lights,and with walls adorned with framed Euro-café culture
posters.The 200-seat restaurant holds sever- al sections, including the Bar Café,a casual- ly-luxuriant respite with,maybe,a glass from the copious wine list,and a bite or two of wood-fired flatbread pizza from the nearby stone
oven.There’s also the wine room (per- fect for board dinners). I’m seated in the main dining room.
This attractive space is festooned with more of those delicate glass spindles of lights. ‘Neath them I enjoy a big bowl of arancini – puffy, toothsome and perfectly fried rice and cheese balls; three crispy plumpers a-swim in a pool of tangy marinara. I also try a satis- fying mushroom pizza – and I try it again the next morning for a fungi and cheesy breakfast eye opener!
70 March April 2016
After washing up in my room I go back downstairs for a tour of the property.Spa Sapphire beckons.“Maybe a nice massage before you leave us tomorrow?”one of the personable technicians inquires while showing me around the innovative and revi- talizing top-rated
spa.Massage, facials, mani’s,pedi’s,hair and make-up services; waxing,couples massage,a blissful whirlpool; steam and saunas – here, sap- phire is the gemstone of choice. This casino property is geared toward the meeting planner,as geometrically-illustrated by its wow-inducing number of rooms, potential event layouts and dining-related
flexibilities.There’s certainly no shortage of space in which to convene – inside and out. I walk through an exit door and behold a terrace with a fire pit for further alfresco group opportunities...
As the day turns into night I get the urge to play. I enter the vast gaming floor like some James Bond,duck into the luxurious high limit room, saunter up to the poker table and lay down my first $20,000 bet.With steely glances and steelier nerves, I quickly turn my decisive gamble into a cool $300,000 by dinnertime. I flip my dealer a chip (5K),and depart.
Okay,none of that last part ever happened. I was just seeing if you were paying attention (thanks for sticking with me!).
I’m actually not much of a gambler but I do love a great day at the racetrack. I am, though,a world-class eater…
I enter Pearl sushi bar and take a seat at the white hot back lit
bar.The vibe exudes an “order a martini”mandate. I’m not a martini kind of guy - anymore,but the bar menu is tailored toward vodka laced libations that splash across the spectrum, from sweet and fruity cocktails to bracing, jet fuel-like astrin- gencies.
When the bartender greets me,out of nowhere I say,“I’d like a Belevedere martini, up,with a splash of Bombay Sapphire gin and a twist,please.”
So much for being a beer guy.
The subtle dynamics of Pearl are especially designed with couples in mind; this is not a restaurant, it’s a lounge with cozy tables, mostly for two - an intimate grove of low slung chairs and coffee tables,where chop- sticks click like pincers spearing toward lac- quered seaweed-wrapped maki rolls and pristine slivers of sashimi. I order a tempura coated cooked eel with avocado roll,and follow it up with a sizeable salmon roll.
“Another martini sir?”
What happens at the Mohegan Sun Pocono stays at the Mohegan Sun Pocono, right…?
“I’m getting sleepy”I think to myself.“Maybe I should go up to my room and get into b – Wait! Is that a Ben & Jerry’s??”I just can’t help myself. I beeline to my favorite ice cream concession and order a couple scoops of mint chocolate chip as a creamy nightcap.
I finally finish every last scoop and alight (again,Bondlike) toward the elevator and up to my room. I pass by the Rustic Kitchen and suddenly swear that I’m catching a still- lingering whiff of Kim McLendon’s Mediterranean seafood scampi in the air. Alas, the demo kitchen is quiet, its bright lights are now subdued…
Though not for long – I head upstairs and begin mak-
ing plans to introduce this trend- setting casino, resort and spa to as many of my clients as possi-
ble. This is one of the few casino properties I’ve been to that isn’t only for gamers - and I’ll bet big on that one.
Ken Alan is a corporate concierge for CBRE.He is the
founding member of the Philadelphia Area Concierge Association and serves as the organization’s events
director.Ken is also a contributor to several regional publications.
ken.alan@
cbre.com
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