Weekend Rewind: Imagine Dragons, Rick Moonen, Backstreet Boys and more

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Kabik Photo Group

Imagine Dragons performs at the Chelsea on November 7, 2018.

Tue, Nov 13, 2018 (2 a.m.)

One door opens and another closes, all in one weekend on the Las Vegas Strip. We reported for duty at Park MGM Saturday night for the grand opening gala for NoMad Las Vegas, the first real look inside the dramatic, dynamic dining room at the NoMad Restaurant by the team of Will Guidara and chef Daniel Humm. It would be impossible to name all the Vegas movers and shakers spotted in the crowd. In the span of three minutes I chatted with chef Roy Choi, who’s opening his own Park MGM restaurant, Best Friend, next month; MGM Resorts nightlife guru Sean Christie; restaurateur extraordinaire Elizabeth Blau; and Las Vegas Bowl executive director John Saccenti.

But we traded one great new restaurant for two of our favorites. Earlier Saturday we learned celebrity chef and longtime Las Vegan Rick Moonen closed his two Mandalay Bay restaurants, RM Seafood and Rx Boiler Room, after Friday service. Thankfully, Moonen isn’t going anywhere and is planning a new off-Strip restaurant among several upcoming projects, but his aggressive creativity and mercurial personality will certainly be missed on the Strip. “Now is the time for me to imbed myself deeper into the community that has embraced and supported me for 15 years,” Moonen said in a statement. RM was my all-time favorite seafood restaurant in Las Vegas and I’m sad to see it go.

Imagine Dragons captured all the buzz before the weekend could arrive, surprising fans with a secret concert at the Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan to celebrate the release of new album "Origins." The theater was packed with fans from across the world who had entered a contest to win a trip to Las Vegas to meet the band and see the show. The fan event also included a party at 107 SkyLounge and a few turns on the thrill rides at the Stratosphere. The band will be back at the Chelsea for a New Year’s Eve concert.

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Emily Ratajkowski won at the Palms.

The stunning new Wynn Plaza made its debut on Friday, a gorgeous Strip-side promenade featuring retailers including Balmain, Breitling, James Perse, Kiton, Marie France Van Damme, Omega, Rimowa, Stella McCartney, Vitra Eyewear, fitness company SoulCycle and new-to-Vegas restaurants Cipriani and Urth Caffé. As if Wynn Plaza wasn’t already visually captivating, Wynn Resorts also acquired “Arrows and Flower Neon Sign,” a colorful, 9-foot-tall art sculpture created by art and fashion icons Takashi Murakami and Virgil Abloh. “Virgil Abloh and I created this work inspired by the very neon signs in Las Vegas, so it is as if the work is going to its intended home,” said Murakami in a statement. “I hope our work will help enrich the artistic experience available in the incredible, singular city.”

Models, celebrities and fashion figures of all forms flocked to the Palms Friday night for the second annual Revolve Awards celebrating famous folks, influencers and beauty gurus. Kendall Jenner was awarded as Icon of the Year, Emily Ratajkowski won Woman of the Year and Teyana Taylor was named Muse of the Year. Also in attendance and fresh from the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show were models Elsa Hosk, Romee Strijd, Kelly Gale and Lorena Rae, as well as Shay Mitchell, Oliva Culpo, Chanel Iman, Mimi Cuttrell and many more.

Expect the gradual change at SLS Las Vegas to ramp up starting now. The north Strip resort has already dismissed its W Hotel branding since businessman Alex Meruelo acquired the property earlier this year and two new additions to the senior leadership team may pave the way for more creative adjustment. Derek Amundson is in charge of casino operations as vice president after coming from the Excalibur and Anthony Olheiser, most recently executive director for Park MGM, is vice president of food and beverage.

Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood residents the Backstreet Boys had a big weekend, announcing a world tour this spring and the release of their new album “DNA” on January 25. BSBer Howie Dorough spent some time on the High Roller Observation Wheel at the Linq Promenade Sunday as part of a fundraising and awareness event for Lupus LA, a foundation dedicated to finding the causes of and a cure for the disease. The group closes its current run at Zappos Theater this week on November 14, 16 and 17, but they’ll be back in February.

Mandalay Bay’s lobby lounge is under construction as it morphs into new original venue Hazel Coffee & Cocktail. Set to open in early 2019, the “social hub” will serve specialty Lamill espresso drinks with sandwiches and salads in the morning, then shift into a classic cocktail lounge with libations created by MGM Resorts Executive Director of Beverage Craig Schoettler at night.

One last heads-up: Renovations are underway in the Thunder From Down Under Showroom at Excalibur. A theater on the casino floor will be the temporary home for the popular male revue’s nightly shows at 9 and/or 11 p.m. as well as The Australian Bee Gees Show tribute production, which is at 7 p.m. nightly except Friday.

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