Pennsylvania’s newest casino is getting closer to coming alive.
Live! Casino Philadelphia, a $700 million project, will open on January 19, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. with a series of reservation-only preview days for Live! Rewards Club members. Following the preview days and pending approval from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, Live! Casino Philadelphia will open to the general public on Feb. 11 at 8:00 p.m.
Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia is managed by Stadium Casino RE, an affiliate of The Cordish Companies. It will be the second casino in Philadelphia and the only one with a hotel.
PlayLive! – Live! Casino Philadelphia’s online casino – made iGaming history by launching ahead of its retail counterpart in August.
Preview days at Live! Philadelphia
Existing Live! Rewards Club members can make reservations now for the preview days scheduled for January 19-February 11 at LivePhillyRSVP.com. If you are not a Live! Rewards member, you can still get in on the sneak peak action by signing up at PhillyLiveRewards.com. However, after February 11 at 8:00 p.m., reservations will no longer be required for any guests.
With the addition of Live! Casino Philadelphia, there will be 13 casinos and one mini-casino in Pennsylvania. Live! Casino Pittsburgh at Westmoreland Mall, a 100,000-square-foot Category 4 mini-casino, opened on Nov. 24. However, of the current casinos in PA, only four (Mohegan Sun, Valley Forge Casino, Mount Airy, and Wind Creek) have hotels.
Live! Casino Philadelphia features a 12-story, 208-room hotel. Guests can book reservations at Live! Hotel by calling (267) 682-7300, Toll Free at 833-4PA-LIVE or online at www.LiveCasinoHotelPhilly.com.
Joe Billhimer, Executive Vice President, Cordish Gaming Group said in a press release:
“We are beyond excited to go Live! in Philadelphia and bring this world-class gaming and entertainment destination to the heart of the Stadium District. What we have created here is unrivaled anywhere in the country. Sports fans, foodies, gaming enthusiasts, and anyone looking for a night of fun and excitement only has to make one stop to experience it all.”
PGCB talks testing
Live! Casino Philadelphia will host two invitation-only charity nights on January 16-17 with all proceeds donated to Philadelphia area non-profit organizations.
At Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board’s meeting on Jan. 13, Executive Director Kevin O’Toole said the casino compliance team are on site this week at Live! in South Philadelphia to ensure all facets of the gaming operations meet regulatory requirements.
Live! Casino Philadelphia will also open its retail sportsbook in partnership with retail operator FanDuel. All aspects of the sportsbook will be tested by board personnel this weekend. A poker room will open soon after the test period concludes.
PGCB Chairman David M. Barasch said to O’Toole:
“I have to say, it’s a remarkable accomplishment in the face of what we have been dealing with that we are actually starting a casino in South Philadelphia. Kudos to you and your staff for making sure this happened on a remarkably quick schedule considering all the limitations.”
“A casino built for Philadelphia”
Live! Senior vice president of marketing Mario Maesano commented to Playin Pennsylvania:
“This casino is built for Philadelphia. The competitors took the products they use in other markets and copy and pasted it here. We are building this specifically for the Philadelphia market, from the restaurants we are choosing to the games, decor and amenities.”
Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia is touting a “new standard” for gaming, dining, entertainment, hotel and special event accommodations.
The 510,000 square-foot property features:
- More than 2,100 slots and electronic table games
- 150 table games
- 29-table poker room
- A variety of dining and entertainment options
- State-of-the-art, industry-leading FanDuel Sportsbook
- Six-room Event Center featuring 15,000-square-feet of customizable meeting space to accommodate groups of 12 to 1,000 guests
- Convenient access to parking with an attached multi-level structured parking facility and adjacent surface parking
Dining at Live! Casino Philadelphia
Commented Maesano on dining at Live! Casino Philadelphia:
“We don’t do traditional casino dining. Everything we do from a food and beverage standpoint in this company is a step above everything in the market. When you put that philosophy of being a foodie company in a town that prides itself on being a foodie town, it’s a perfect marriage. We don’t feel our competitors can or do offer the quality or variety of food that we are going to have at Live!”
Dining and entertainment at Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia
- The Prime Rib – The top Zagat-rated steakhouse previously located in Center City Philadelphia for more than 20 years now has a new home.
- Sports & Social Philly – The venue will feature a FanDuel Sportsbook and Lounge retail location and state-of-the-art AV system, including a giant 52-foot LED display and 24 televisions for ultimate sports viewing. An American Grill menu with game day favorites, including a short rib cheese steak, local beers, and specialty cocktails.
- Luk Fu – Authentic flavors of Southeast Asia, a private dining room and private Karaoke rooms.
- 10th Street Market – A food hall inspired by the great food markets in Philadelphia where guests will be able to enjoy a wide variety of food, as well as a bar open 24/7.
- Lorenzo and Sons Pizza – A South Philadelphia staple since 1970 and one of the 101 best pizzas in America as rated by The Daily Meal.
- Sang Kee Noodle Bar & Kitchen – A traditional noodle bar featuring classic noodles and dim sum selections.
- Termini Brothers Bakery– A South Philadelphia bakery serving cannolis, cookies and more for nearly a century.
- Two new venues from Emmy award-winning Chef and TV personality Guy Fieri – Guy’s Burger Join and Guy Fieri’s Taco Joint.
Other Market options include:
- Morty’s Deli
- Luckie’s Liquor – a 24-hour bar
- Center Bar – located in the heart of the casino floor, offering 360° views of the gaming action, giant LED TV screens for sports viewing, communal tables, plush lounge seating and live music.
- R Bar – a unique, interactive bar, featuring electronic table games and a 40-foot long video screen.
Health and Safety and Live!
The City of Philadelphia ordered Rivers Casino Philadelphia to close on Nov. 20 due to rising coronavirus cases. Gov. Tom Wolf ordered all casinos in PA to close on Dec. 12 until Jan. 4.
Casinos in Pennsylvania are required to follow COVID-19 Casino Reopening Protocols, which detail the minimum safety and health-related requirements that are mandatory before reopening.
According to a press release, Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia developed a comprehensive Play It Safe plan, which is an enhanced health and sanitation program that allows for increased cleaning frequency, physical distancing, reduced occupancies, new technology and vigorous hygiene and health measures.
Key components of the Play It Safe plan include:
- Installation of the state-of-the-art Atmos Air Bi-Polar Air Purification System within the HVAC system to treat and clean the air in the facility, including any virus particulates. The system is designed to perform 12 air changes per hour throughout the casino floor, which is more than twice the frequency of most commercial buildings.
- One-of-a-kind Reel Clear slot management system guarantees every customer who plays a slot machine is sitting down at a freshly sanitized machine and also has the capability to automatically social distance the customer from the nearest guest. The newly-developed system can automatically shut down a slot after it has been played and can only be reactivated by an attendant after it has been sanitized.
Live! is dedicated to not just meeting, but exceeding the virus safety requirements in PA.
“Our top priority is to provide a safe environment for our team members and guests,” Billhimer said. “We’ve gone through extraordinary measures to meet and exceed Pennsylvania’s COVID-19 guidelines to ensure all of our guests have fun and feel safe.”
Complete Live! Philadelphia preview series
Playin Pennsylvania recently published a three-part lead-up series highlighting all you can expect from the newest Philadelphia casino. Catch up here:
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