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Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com
Eva Longoria Parker hosts the grand opening of her Beso restaurant and Eve Nightclub at CityCenter on Dec. 3, 2009.
Published Friday, Dec. 4, 2009 | 9:24 a.m.
Updated Friday, Dec. 4, 2009 | 1:59 p.m.
This wooden tree house structure contains the concierge on the ground level and a dining terrace on the second level for the restaurant Mastro's Ocean Club at Crystals, the retail and entertainment district of CityCenter.
Invited guests use the spiral staircase at Tiffany & Co.'s 10,000-square-foot, two-level store at Crystals in CityCenter.
Invited guests and media walk past a water sculpture titled Halo before the official opening of Crystals, the retail and entertainment district of CityCenter.
The stainless steel exterior of Crystals at CityCenter.
There’s a line from “The Jerk,” in which Navin Johnson (Steve Martin), having tumbled from prosperity after it was discovered his “OptiGrap” spectacle-clutching device rendered customers cross-eyed, tells his bride, Bernadette Peters, “I'm gonna bounce back, and when I do, I'm gonna buy you a diamond so big, it's gonna make you puke!”
Crystals is the place Navin would buy that diamond, probably Tiffany & Co.
I spent a lot of yesterday afternoon and evening at Crystals, touring the space early in the day and attending the opening party at Eva Longoria Parker’s Beso restaurant and Eve nightclub at night.
Consciously attempting to be jaded, I walked into Crystals determined not to be affected by the grandiosity of the place, but stopping, eyebrows arched, as I eyed the 70-foot wooden structure that is the concierge desk and terrace for Mastro’s Ocean Club restaurant. This is called the “tree house,” bringing out the child in all of us if that child could commission David Rockwell to design a tree house.
When you stride into Crystals, you are immediately taken with the wide-open design -- tall as the sky, amoebic where many such retail centers are linear or square-ish. Bright white, too, a look emphasized by the dozens of arriving-in-2010 tenants (only 23 of 60 spaces are taken today). The outside courtyards are set in a way that actually get lost in space in an area -– the Las Vegas Strip –- so very familiar. I walked outside and could get no feel for the direction I was facing, or even where I might be. That’s the point. It’s a place to be spirited away, even if you cannot possibly afford to shop in a style other than “window” regularly at all.
This is the great conundrum of Crystals -- and CityCenter -- is that it is viewed through the prism of a lousy economy. I recall the openings of The Venetian, Bellagio, Wynn, even Encore, and the energy was focused on the great design and scope of these resorts. At CityCenter, this is a given -- the greatest architects in the world have been given carte blanche and full artistic freedom to create an $8.5 billion resort and retail center. That it would blow your mind is a given, but at every turn you think, “Who’s going to be able to afford to come here?”
To be a tenant at Crystals, it seems a requirement to be “only” or “first” or “biggest" or otherwise unique. At a whopping 14,000 square feet, Louis Vuitton presents its largest space anywhere in the U.S. Thirteen of the retailers are in Las Vegas for the first time. Porsche Design, the home of toys for boys, is one. Paul Smith, Tom Ford and Miu Miu are others. At Paul Smith, I spotted a very chic green club shirt splashed with white polka dots: $210. I feared spinning the tags around on the socks, remembering yet another comment by Martin who once boasted of his “$300 pair of socks.” During the opening of Beso, a buddy joked that he was going to buy a shirt at Tom Ford for a friend of his, but in parts. Sleeve first, then maybe the other sleeve …
During the red carpet event at Beso/Eve, Longoria said it was “surreal” to be enmeshed in such a grand moment in Las Vegas history. "When I first saw the renderings, I was blown away. I couldn’t get my mind around this until I saw the project about six months ago, knowing how it would all come together.” Longoria says she plans to be in Vegas monthly to oversee her business, which she says she designed in a way to make guests feel they are walking into her home. Except, probably, her home does not feature a gleaming chandelier fashioned from the curtains used on the Academy Awards stage. When asked about being linked to the project, chef Todd English, said, “It’s daunting, completely daunting. I’m looking at my name on the walls, and it’s unbelievable.”
Believe it. Crystals, and the opening-in-stages CityCenter project, is all about high stakes. During the midday tour, I spotted a group of well-suited visitors touring Crystals and then Aria. One was Bobby Baldwin, president and CEO of CityCenter. Following close behind, certainly asking questions and making his opinions known, was Steve Wynn. With all the hype and trepidation, there’s no mistake that CityCenter is the center of power in Las Vegas at the close of 2009.
More from Beso/Eve
On the red carpet, Holly Madison said she was planning on taking the entire month of January off from “Peepshow” because the show itself is going dark. She also said she’s looking forward to Harrah’s taking over ownership because she could be marketed at so many more properties. That’s good, because what Mad Maddy needs is a little more exposure. … Trop owner Alex Yemenidjian, incoming President Tom McCartney and New York-New York President Cynthia Kiser Murphey engaged in a lively conversation at the bar at Beso. I firmly expect another significant addition in the executive lineup at Tropicana, soon, as these former MGM Mirage types (such as Yemenidjian and McCartney) move in clusters. But Yemenidjian said he would never be the one to initiate a conversation with an MGM Mirage exec about changing positions, out of principle. … In describing Eve, Longoria said she wanted a “proper” club. What’s a proper club? Have we improper clubs in Las Vegas? “It’s a real club, not a lounge. It’s ‘oonsh-oonsh!,’ ” Longoria said, shimmying and mimicking club music. … English talked up “Eva’s Guacamole” as a preferred dish, and I said, “Eva’s Guacamole -- great band name.” He considered that concept, repeating, “Eva’s Guacamole,” and I said it would be a great all-women vocal group. Sometimes you need to break up the inanity of the red carpet with an out-of-the-dark comment. … Some around-the-party chatter was that Neon Museum is going to halt tours Dec. 24 to properly assemble signs for its permanent display out on Las Vegas Boulevard North. It is expected to be reopen for select tours by the spring, hopefully May. … Fascinating grouping at the back of Eve, just off the dance floor in the VIP area: Mirage President Scott Sibella, Jeff Beacher and longtime Vegas club promoter Steve “Stevie D” Davidovici. Beacher is bringing his “Madhouse” production back to Vegas, to the Hard Rock Hotel, in April.
Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at twitter.com/JohnnyKats.
"That it would blow your mind is a given, but at every turn you think, "Who's going to be able to afford to come here?"
The answer is very simple,less than 1% of vegas visitors can afford this.Yes there are those who can splurge for a purchase or two,but able to sustain those spending sprees are reserved too those few "wealthy" visitors
pricing some jeans,and a shirt along with a lighter shell jacket would have run my cc 1040.00.The posers will say they can afford that no problem,but in reality to be able to afford a simple outfit such as listed,and all things being relative you need to be well above the upper class in earnings.
lets face it,we all live in a dream world,and human nature dictates some materialism,and vegas with its ultra high end stores creates the "eye candy" that we seek,but reality still takes over,and at the end of the day,all most of us can really do is just look.
peace out
I am struck by how much Crystals looks like the set from the cheesy 1970s science fiction movie Logan's Run. I wonder if that was intentional.
Wow! good luck Eva, these types of enterprises are usually a high risk venture for actors. Talk to Bruce Willis, Sly Stallone, and just about every other actor who has tried..
I can only imagine how much $ a night out @ Eve will set you back?????
United_727 : Just imagine how much money a night out WITH Eva would cost ya ! LOL!
Tony Parker is soooo lucky to have her.
If I ever go to her restaurant and Tony would just happen to be there, I would order some liver and cheese and say....
Liver alone, cheese mine !
environ,probably be about the same. Sorry,dear I forgot my wallet,you got me?
celebrities have about a 1% involvement with their businesses. they're just the name and photo to get dumb people to come to their store or restaurant.
do you think jessica simpson REALLY sits down and designs shoes?
they stick their name on something, then have bean counters run it.
although, one time i did see george maloof working in the kitchen at the palms buffet and i always thought that was cool.
I don't mind doing what it takes to get nice things. True, this place will be a ghost town for years but eventually the economy will improve and catch up to it.
I like it.
size 0, what kind of little portions are you going to get for you $39?
She's cute but can she cook?