Legendary Trader Vic's Redefined for Las Vegas

With a rich and event-filled history dating back to 1934, Trader Vic’s is one of the pioneers of American culinary folklore. As the inventor of the Mai Tai and the first to import Polynesian dishes and décor to the United States, Trader Vic’s defined an era with libations and cuisine that “transported its customers to the tropics” – an experience that placated generation after generation of customers.
Scheduled to open in early October at the Miracle Mile Shops inside Planet Hollywood, the storied brand, which is currently experiencing a global resurgence, will be re-invented for Las Vegas with new restaurant design elements and new island-inspired, Euro-Asian-Polynesian cuisine to go along with its featured award-winning dishes and its world-famous “shared” cocktails.

"There are very few culinary icons like Trader Vic’s — its legacy in the restaurant world is unmatched," said Doc Wiener, founder of DW Enterprises, the developer of Trader Vic’s Las Vegas and other top Las Vegas nightclubs and restaurants.

Spread over 15,000 sq. ft., Trader Vic’s Las Vegas will be unlike any of the other Trader Vic’s found in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Instead, the Las Vegas location will include three separate dining and entertainment venues featuring a ground-level restaurant and Strip-side patio that opens onto Las Vegas Boulevard and a second-level Tiki Club-ultra lounge, both providing customers with panoramic views of the Bellagio Fountains, the Eiffel Tower, and City Center.

Although inspired by Trader Vic’s famed tropical island motif, Trader Vic’s Las Vegas will build upon the signature Polynesian décor of towering wooden tikis and amplify the tropical theme with two separate DJ booths, a 20-foot outdoor bar and lanai surrounded by palms, thatch, a sweeping shingled roof, and an upstairs Tiki Club-ultra lounge.

Over the years, Trader Vic’s garnered international acclaim as a food and hospitality pioneer by introducing new audiences to unique foods, careful preparations, and welcoming service. By expanding internationally, Trader Vic’s became perhaps the first upscale American restaurant concept to go overseas with its first location abroad over 43 years ago

“We believe Trader Vic’s reputation as a sophisticated yet fun and affordable dining experience perfectly suits tourists and Las Vegas locals, both of whom we believe will appreciate the world-renowned cuisine that features dishes from Europe, Polynesia, Asia, and the Americas and the original libations that you can only find at Trader Vic’s,” Wiener added.

"We are seeing a great resurgence in the Trade Vic's brand, not only around the world, but here in the United States,” said Robert L. Davies, President of the Trader Vic’s Restaurant Group. “Many of our loyal guests grew up with Trader Vic's and have fond memories of our restaurant and the Las Vegas location can carry on the legacy of the Trader as we share it with new and old friends alike from around the world,” Davies added. In recent years, nostalgic brands such as the Playboy Club, the House of Blues, and Studio 54, to name a few, have reached new markets and have proven to transcend their original brand position in Las Vegas.

“Part of the magic of Trader Vic’s is its ability to temporarily transport our customers to far distant and imaginary shores,” said Bill Tremper, Vice President of Operations of DW Enterprises. “If you’re visiting Las Vegas, you can take a vacation within a vacation and indulge upon the food, service, escapist ambience that is uniquely Trader Vic’s,” added Tremper.

Construction of Trader Vic’s Las Vegas is currently underway at the north side of Planet Hollywood and is scheduled to open in early October 2007.

About Trader Vic's Las Vegas

Owned and operated by DW Enterprises, a Las Vegas-based development group led by entrepreneur Doc Wiener, Trader Vic’s Las Vegas is positioned to be the franchise’s premier restaurant. Steeped in a rich history as one of the world’s most recognized culinary experiences, Trader Vic’s Las Vegas builds upon a tradition that dates back to 1934 when Vic "The Trader" Bergeron, a San Francisco Bay Area cuisine pioneer, founded his first restaurant. Mr. Bergeron based his original Trader Vic’s on the simple premise: “an escape from ordinary life.” He went on to create an illusion that one had fled to a tropical island. From then on it became a tropical restaurant and bar, which specializes in serving world-famous island cuisine and tropical cocktails inside a refined exotic atmosphere. Trader Vic's Restaurant Group now includes an expanding collection of upscale, company-owned and franchised restaurants steeped in island-style service and atmosphere, stretching from the United States to Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Incorporating different cultures from around the world, Trader Vic's brand of hospitality has garnered international acclaim for introducing unique foods, careful preparations and welcoming service, as well as for inventing exotic, crowd-pleasing drinks such as the world-famous Mai Tai. Today, Trader Vic’s has become a world-renowned corporation in the restaurant business with over 30 restaurants in 22 cities around the globe. For more information, visit www.tradervicslv.com.