Coast casinos carving out Christmas tradition of their own

Monday, Dec. 27, 1999 | 9:28 a.m.

Thousands of people apparently eschewed the traditional holiday meal at home and headed to the casinos. Busloads of out-of-towners joined the customers, whose automobiles jammed the Boomtown parking lot.

In the past, Christmas has not been a big day for casinos. But that might be changing.

"The casino industry is getting better and better on the holidays, especially on Thanksgiving and Christmas," said Phil Gravino, Boomtown's club manager.

While the casino experienced good business on Christmas Day, he said New Year's will be better.

"New Year's is going to be wild. The whole Coast is going to be wild. I haven't seen a slow New Year's in 35 years," Gravino said.

Activity in the Biloxi casino was brisk on Christmas, and there was plenty of holiday cheer and color to go around, including holiday-themed decorations, casino workers decked out in red and green and plenty of Santa Claus-styled caps.

Richard Byrd, Boomtown restaurant manager, donned one of the caps while overseeing the buffet. He expected the buffet would serve 1600 meals. By mid-afternoon, a steady stream of couples and families lined up for the buffet meal, which featured traditional holiday items such as smoked ham and turkey and non-traditional fare like breakfast pizza and grilled tuna.

Those waiting as the line inched toward the buffet came from all over the country, including Krissy Yagash of Omaha, Neb., and Bryan Marlin of Valdez, Alaska. Christmas on the Coast was a totally new experience for both.

It was the first time Yagash and Marlin had visited a casino on Christmas, and Marlin said it was his first time ever in a casino. "We just got here. It's pretty loud - lots of lights," he said, as the bells and whistles of the slots rang and coins clanked into the trays.

The temperature was in the mid-50s and the Alaska resident wore short sleeves and noted how warm it was outside. Yagash agreed. "There's snow on the ground in Omaha. It's so different down here. Everything is green and it's 60 degrees out," she said. "So we're doing things different this year."