Anyone can renovate a casino bar. The challenge is preserving what made people love it in the first place.
The team at Sunset Station accepted that challenge when they undertook a reboot to the resort’s Gaudi Bar and the surrounding Gaudi Gaming Pit — a longtime centerpiece of the Henderson resort’s casino floor. And they’ve succeeded in both respects.
Lee Torres, vice president and general manager of Sunset Station, understands the challenges of remaining relevant to new generations of Henderson residents.
“Some of the properties, in the past, have just stayed who they were for maybe too long. And I think that’s what they realize here at Sunset: there’s an opportunity. With how this area is growing, out in Cadence and out towards Lake Las Vegas, a lot of people are looking for different entertainment experiences.”
The reopened lounge will entice customers throughout the week with an evolving calendar of DJs, industry nights, ladies’ nights and Sangria Sundays. The bar staff is armed with a brand-new signature cocktail program, inspired by Spanish flavors and the architect who inspired the venue’s design. But the venue’s most recognizable design elements have been refreshed rather than replaced.
Visitors familiar with the space will notice updated finishes, new lighting and a refreshed cocktail program. But the most dramatic feature remains, just overhead.
A sprawling stained-glass installation stretches above the Gaudi Pit, surrounding the central lounge and creating a colorful gateway into the property’s most distinctive gathering place. The sweeping canopy of reds, blues and golds has long been one of Sunset Station’s defining visual elements, making its preservation a central focus of the renovation.
“The stained glass has been in for a long time, and it was a critical piece of this renovation,” Torres told the Food and Loathing podcast. “It was painstakingly taken down. It was cleaned and repaired. And then, just as much careful reinstallation of the glass itself.”
Standing beneath it, it’s easy to understand why.
The stained glass doesn’t simply decorate the bar. It defines the experience of moving through the Gaudi Pit itself, framing gaming tables and the entrance to the bar area, drawing visitors toward the circular lounge at its center.
“When I saw it all, out of the space, you realize that, wow, this is a significant amount [of stained glass],” Torres says. “It’s such a key piece of what this space has always been. It would have been easy for us to say, we’re going to renovate, let’s take it all down and rebuild something new. No — this is the heart of Sunset Station. Let’s keep it there.”
Hear our full interview with Lee Torres on the May 25 episode of the Food and Loathing podcast.
