Q: I have experienced better, actually. I mean, just walking this place and you can feel something is missing. It for sure needs renovation. It's really not fair. This place opened in the 50's and you can tell it's iconic and has had many stars and amazing people walk through it's halls. However, time has clearly passed this place over. The carpets are stained and dirty, the casino feels outdated. Even the shows don't seem to call to me. I've made a conscientious decision to plant my ass in the hotel where I'm staying at (that's the whole point, right?) throughout my weekend trips; and so I didn't linger anywhere and stayed put here. Upon check-in, the clerk gave us the wrong room number. We had some girls come with us in a different room and they gave us another horror story of a rude check in clerk. When I tried to watch TV, I kept fiddling around. Found the porn channel and they were charging over $12 to view it. No thanks. Internet porn is free. Thanks. So after roaming the casino, I found a bar that seems to be the reason why I gave this place an extra star. $1 beer. That's truly something special to have. As for everything else. The food court is dismal and one friend told me the service was horrible at the Indian food place. The Banana Leaf Cafe was horrible as well. I didn't even bother with any of the shows because none of them appealed to me, unfortunately. The R Steak restaurant was the only saving grace here as well. The only gem to be found and clearly a reason for you to visit the Riviera. The pool was pretty neat, up until I went by the 3-ft area with the stairs to climb out and found a bunch of debris and a floating Corona cup. Not quite cool. To make matters worse, my final night I ended up taking a walk towards Encore/Wynn, a hotel who clearly over-shadows the Riviera by a long shot. Upon entrance I can spot a difference IMMEDIATELY. There were so many beautiful women walking around and even if you took that away, you had people walking everywhere, it got so full at one point that we almost got lost in the midst of it all. Their nightclub 'Tryst' has more swag than the whole of the Riviera combined. And I HATE the word Swag. Finally going back to my hotel in the wee hours and I just felt deflated. No nightclub to speak of, no night-life. Just old folks gambling. Which brings me back to my original notion. It's not fair that an older establishment like this should be compared to by other more modern casino's. There is a certain charm to this place that should be absorbed. Unfortunately, in this day and age, I don't think that's enough to stay on par or ahead of the competition.

A: negative

Q: Breakfast is ok. Lunch and dinner are horrible. The food is bland in some cases and plain awful in other cases. The Stratosphere does a lot of things well. The Buffett isn't one of them.

A: negative

Q: Took my girlfriend here and I got lucky that night. Fantastic establishment. Everything from the Decor to the menu to the extensive liquor list is thoroughly thought out and perfectly executed. I would recommend this as a date spot and not as a spot to attend with large groups of friends. It works better with parties of 4 or less. The food is phenomenal. I ordered the 5 course dinner with the Inside Out Caprese, The Venison, The Sea Bass and two other things that were phenomenal (I can't remember because at that point the Whiskey kicked in.) I made loud noises every time I took a bite. Also it is important to note that not only is the food outstanding, but they have an impressive wine and liquor list. I think the waitress said they had 70 different kinds of whiskey. I ordered the Commodore which was a mixture of Whiskey Lime & Lemon and it was out of this world. If you are taking your girl on a date go here!

A: positive

Q: By far for me, this is the best Pizza around. I love the sweet sauce, for some it might be to much but for me it is perfect. I would recommend sticking with the thin crust as the tradition is a little to much dough. I have had salads, spaghetti and meatballs, pretty much everything on the menu and not once was anything bad. the only complaint I have is there is not one by me.

A:
positive