- Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Bankruptcy
- Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Yelp
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- Lucky Dragon Las Vegas News
The Lucky Dragon Hotel and Casino is an exciting addition to the Las Vegas Strip with plenty of dining options for guests. Designed to appeal to the city's Asian tourists visiting from many countries, the Asian cuisine at Lucky Dragon is upscale and authentic. Sample the world's street foods, from dim sum to barbecue, with many prepared on order.
The Lucky Dragon saga has taken yet another odd turn. The failed casino was purchased for $36 million by the owner of an equipment rental company, Don Ahern.
The biggest surprise is we didn’t break the story. Ha, ha. We find us hysterical.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports the Lucky Dragon sale closed on April 22, 2019 with Don Ahern, CEO of construction equipment firm Ahern Rentals.
Please try to contain your excitement.
The new owner plans to re-open the Lucky Dragon under a new name (a solid strategy) as a non-gaming hotel (insert sad trombone here).
Ahern says he will turn the Lucky Dragon’s casino space into conference and convention space. The sad trombone player is being put through his paces on this one.
The Asian-themed Lucky Dragon closed in October 2018, probably because the casino had no craps table. And we couldn’t find a slice of pizza to save our life.
Dibs on…nevermind.
While $36 million is more than we expected a buyer to pay (a bankruptcy auction garnered zero bidders), it was considerably less than what was owed on the hotel, about $50 million.
In the Las Vegas Review-Journal article, Enrique Landa of Associate Capital (linked to the Lucky Dragon’s lender, Snow Covered Capital) said, the Lucky Dragon “is a terrific property with a bright future.”
It’s just that kind of extraordinary vision and business acumen that helped the Lucky Dragon trainwreck happen.
Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Bankruptcy
You do not, by the way, want to delve into the financial wheelings and dealings of this whole debacle. About 179 EB-5 investors have been left holding the bag, losing $550,000 each because the casino didn’t stay in operation long enough for the investors to earn their promised green cards.
Lucky Dragon’s challenging location made it a longshot from day one, so it’ll be interesting to see what the new owner might have in mind.
We’re seeing some cross-promotional ideas with Dig This, for starters.
And we just registered ExcavatorDragon.com. Just saying.
The struggling Lucky Dragon resort has closed its casino and restaurants.
We were the first to report Lucky Dragon was recently put up for sale, and while the resort’s hotel continues to take reservations, entrances to the casino have “Casino Temporarily Closed” signs.
“Temporarily” sounds a little optimistic at this point.
Lucky Dragon’s casino and restaurants closed on Jan. 4, 2018.
Lucky Dragon has had a tumultuous history, including ongoing questions about whether the Asian-themed, boutique resort would be financed or completed.
Even a massive dragon couldn’t change Lucky Dragon’s fortune.
Lucky Dragon officially opened Dec. 3, 2016, thanks in great part to EB-5 financing. With EB-5 financing, investors (typically from Asia) contribute funds to projects and get green cards in return. In the case of Lucky Dragon, those investors will henceforth be referred to as “the monumentally screwed.”
Here’s a statement from Lucky Dragon.
Every time a Las Vegas casino closes, an showgirl loses her tassels.
Optimism for the win!
Despite a strong opening, Lucky Dragon failed to attract its intended customers (including snagging local Asian customers who frequent casinos like Gold Coast and Palace Station), and has made a number of changes to its restaurant offerings.
Normally, this would provide some consolition, but not so much.
Lucky Dragon’s challenging location, on Sahara, just off The Strip, near the Bonanza Gift Shop and SLS Las Vegas, made the resort an long shot, but sometimes in Vegas those pay off.
A Lucky Dragon insider says wild swings in baccarat were major factor in the closure of the casino. Whales (however few) would win big, then leave for bigger resorts on The Strip with more amenities. Casinos obviously rely on guests staying on-site for a chance to win some back.
Remember, Las Vegas was built on miracles. We hope that’s what the future holds for Lucky Dragon.
Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Yelp
Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Expedia Deals
We were rooting for Lucky Dragon, but haven’t visited in some time, despite the great rooms (we were quoted a rate of $45 for early February), welcoming casino and top-notch (although limited) cuisine.
We’ve heard Lucky Dragon would need at least $90 million from a buyer to cover its first and second (EB-5) tier investors.
Lucky Dragon Las Vegas News
It’s unknown what’s next for Lucky Dragon, but here’s hoping employees find other options as the resort tries to change its luck.