Piero’s – Why We’re into It!

A number of people have asked us why, of all the places in Las Vegas where we could hold  the reception for our upcoming Domestic Partnership, Jacob and I chose Piero’s.  And while there is no single answer, there was never really any question.

Freddie and Evan Glusman at Piero’s (Photo: Tomas Muscionico)

First of all, it’s the place is just so damned Vegas-y.  I remember dining there one night, and seated in the various banquettes along the wall of the “A-Room” were Ann-Margret and Roger Smith with their family; Palms proprietor George Maloof and some friends (of the blonde and buxom variety); my friend Chad and me; some alter kockers, straight outta central-casting; and DJ Skribble.

Then there’s the little jazz trio that performs in the “Monkey Bar” and sings such a deliciously retro version of “Baubles, Bangles, and Beads” that you half expect them to announce an upcoming residency, playing for four-nights each week, on the mezzanine of Tim Poster’s Park Tower penthouse!

Evan Glusman, Michael Cristalli, Marc Sugese, and writer/producer Kevin Kennedy at Piero's

Of course, there’s the whole Hollywood-thing.  This was reinforced recently, when Las Vegas attorneys Michael Cristalli and Marc Saggese hosted the premiere party for The Defenders, the new CBS drama based loosely on their lives and law-practice.

The party was a hoot, the spread was gorgeous, and the booze (courtesy of Champagne Perrier-Jouët and Absolut Vodka in the Limited Edition “Glimmer” bottles) flowed freely.

Scene from CASINO shot at Piero’s

And lest I (or the brochures at the maître d’ stand) failed to remind you, Piero’s was the setting used by director Martin Scorsese as the location for the scenes inside the dining room, in the parking lot, in the upstairs office, and down the back-stairs of “The Leaning Tower” (the restaurant owned by ‘Nicky Santoro’ – the character portrayed by Joe Pesci, based on Tony Spilotro), in Casino, his spectacularly-filmed chef d'œuvre about Las Vegas mob-life in the ‘70s. 

And Piero’s was the ideal locale for the Casino shoot because of its old-school atmosphere and its long-standing ties to what I’ll euphemistically refer to with a wink, a nod, and an arched-brow as “The Outfit.” 

When Piero’s received the Las Vegas Life Epicurean Award for Best Off-Strip Restaurant for 2004-2005, proprietor Freddie Glusman thanked “Barbara Greenspun,” for her many years of patronage, “and the Federal Bureau of Investigation…” whose not-at-all secret wiretaps in its quest to indict a longtime pal of Glusman’s had resulted in tons of free press for the restaurant.

Cindy Crawford and Amy Sacco at Piero's (2005)

I once wrote of the restaurant (for BlackBook) that interspersed between the members of the Las Vegas demimonde (Phyllis McGuire, Kirk Kirkorian, Jerry Lewis, Steve & Eydie), super-jocks (Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, LeBron James), and A-list celebs (Keith Richards, Justin Timberlake, and Cindy Crawford), one was always guaranteed to spot a few guys with the middle-name “The” (i.e. Jimmy the Fish, Johnny the Squirrel, Kermit the Frog…).

Proving my point were “Mafia Cops” Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa, the two NYPD detectives who were suspected of having committed felonies, up to and including murder-for-hire, while on the payroll of New York’s Luchese crime-family.  Those two showed-up for their 6:30pm reservation in March 2005, and were promptly arrested by heavily-armed Federal agents who were undercover, at the bar.  Ever the salesman, Freddie (in his de rigueur Brioni “aloha” shirt) coyly asked the two cuffed former cops if they didn’t want to take something to go.  

New Year's Eve (2006)

Add all of this together, sprinkle-in the fact that it’s the Las Vegas social equivalent of Switzerland, and stir-in a hearty dose of some consistently damned fine cooking; and you’ve got a pretty good idea why we’ve picked Piero’s to host our reception.

Piero’s
355 Convention Center Drive (off Paradise Road)
Las Vegas, Nevada
(702) 369-2305
www.PierosCuisine.com

Get into it!