Atlantic City Marathon returns

The 2011 Atlantic City Marathon begins 10 a.m. Oct. 16 with the starting point at the Dennis Courtyard in front of Bally’s Atlantic City, Park Place and the Boardwalk.
Registration open at 9 a.m.The entry fee is $10 in advance or $15 the day of registration.
The day’s festivities also will include the non-competitive Kids Fun Run for ages 4 to 12 and the runners will not be timed. The top-100 finishers of the Kids Fun Run will receive finisher medals and a runner’s shirt. To join in the run, a parent or guardian must accompany children. Waivers are required and will be available on-site.
Other activities include create your own bib with your name and participant number to pin to your t-shirt; kids prizes; post-race refreshments; face painting; and much more.
There also will be a Kids Zone at the Health and Fitness Expo in the Bally’s Grand Ballroom (restaurant level of the main tower) 1 to 7 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday.
Visit www.acmarathon.org for complete details.

Meeting Sunny Anderson

I had a chance to sit down and chat with Food Network personality Sunny Anderson who is the host of “Cooking for Real” during Saturday’s Sunset Sliders event at Caesars Rooftop Pool. Here is some of our conversation.

What brought you back to Food and Wine Festival?

Sunny: “It’s my backyard. It’s Atlantic City, It’s the Shore and it’s a quick trip down. They have a lot of cool local stuff like the beaches, the tomatoes … I like it and it’s fun. I like to call it Comic-Con for people who love food.”

Are you looking forward to coming back again?

Sunny: “Of course. Anytime they want to come back I am here. I always have a really good time and it’s a really good way to kind of meet everyone … The great equalizer is food. We’re all are going to get hungry if we don’t have food.”

Do you have a favorite event at the festival?

Sunny: “This one right here [Sunset Sliders] is my favorite event. It’s relaxed. It’s by the pool so everyone knows there really is no dress code … It’s outdoors and the weather has held up for us two years in a row. Even though it’s a little sweltering right now we are all like sticking together so it’s cool.”

It’s a pool party, but no one is in the pool?

Sunny:”I keep fighting to get the budget for naked-ish models in the pool. Not naked, but like tight Speedos, girls with cute bikinis. But it’s like a total waste of pool. We need something in there.”

Another success

The Food Network Atlantic City Food and Wine Festival was once again a huge success. I attended numerous events over three days. The Guy Fieri Cheesesteak Battle made its return — this time outdoors in the scenic Dennis Courtyard. The heavy rains that hit the Jersey Shore on Sunday night couldn’t damper this party. I sampled the sandwiches from all of the different vendors and my favorite was the Pinky Special from Sack O’ Subs.
I also went back to school to attend a seminar about champagne hosted by Michael Green. It was more like a crash course as we tasted eight different selections from California to France during the 60-minute session. Green added some laughs and useful knowledge during his one-hour session. He knows his stuff.
The Grand Market – the festival’s marque event – added Robert Mondavi Discover Wines tasting room this year, which I found to be a great addition to the festivities. The only downside is I thought the convention space could have used more food vendors like previous years. I would’ve like to sample some of the menu items from all of the new restaurants opening in A.C. Once Saturday rolled around, people had trouble moving around because of the huge crowd.
I capped off Saturday night at Sunny Anderson’s Sunset Sliders held on the Rooftop Pool at Caesars.
Look forward to next year’s!

Let the eating begin!

By this time next week, I am probably not going to look at food. Spending three days at the Food Network Atlantic City Food and Wine Festival is sure to make for a tasty and refreshing weekend, but how much can one eat?
It’s hard to believe that another year has passed since the last one. For those foodies out there who are heading down to AC, don’t feel that because an event is scheduled for three hours that you have to spend the entire time eating. With so many of the festivities overlapping, its OK to leave one feast early and move on to the next one. Consider taking a shopping break at the Pier or the Walk to burn off some of those calories.
For those heading down on Thursday (July 28), consider stopping at the Chelsea Hotel for the official pre-party from 5 to 9 p.m. as Chelsea ’s Cabana Club is hosting (for $55 a ticket) “Bikinis and Martinis.”
Guests will savor tasty treats from Iron Chef Jose Garces, while mixing and mingling with other Food Network Stars including Darryl Harmon, Ron Duprat and J. Geoffrey Johnson. Complimentary cocktails, including the “Montini”, a signature beer martini hand crafted by award-winning writer and Brew Master, Gary Monterosso, also will be offered. Nicole Miller’s Summer 2011 swimwear collection also will be modeled. “The Chef That Rocks!” Marc Weiss will provide the soundtrack for the evening. The first 100 guests to attend the party will receive an exclusive Chelsea Hotel SWAG bag full of treats.
Visit http://thechelsea-ac.com/bikinis-martinis.php or call 1-800-548-3030.

Boutique casino update

Three companies have expressed an interest in building a boutique-style casino in Atlantic City. The deadline to submit initial application was last week, but it’s just the first phase of the evaluation process for companies to secure one of the two available licenses. The big difference is that companies will not have to worry about forking up billions required to build something like the under-construction Revel. Instead of the 500 room requirement, companies will only need to build 200 rooms.
The one name that didn’t come as a surprise is the Florida-based Seminole Hard Rock Entertainment group which had made its plans public prior to last week’s deadline. The company has even taking the extra step to file the necessary permits required to build.
The one that caught me by surprise was Pinnacle Entertainment Inc., who was scheduled to build a multi-billion-dollar resort on the site of the old Sands. The plans were scrapped when the economy tanked. The company has since put the valuable piece of land up for sale, but has filled up the application to ‘keep its options open.”
The third company, California Avenue Ventures of Northfield, is one I am unfamiliar with.
The companies now have until Aug. 19 to complete a more detailed application with the Casino Control Commission scheduled to make its decision this fall which of the two projects will be granted the licenses.
Stay tuned …

No clowning around

An Atlantic City casino might not seem like an ideal stop for the circus, but the outdoor parking lot at Resorts is being converted into a circus tent complete with seating, air conditioning and heating. Starting July 12, another new entertainment element will be introduced at the New Resorts with two circus — make that Cirque concepts. The Great American Circus is for kids and adults with shows taking place 4:30 p.m. daily, except Mondays and Tuesdays, as well as 1 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are $9 to $16 for children and $18 to $35 for adults.
Cirque Polynesian features daily shows at 7:30 p.m. — minus Mondays — with tickets priced $12-$18 for children and $30-$45 for adults.
Adults 18 and over can check out Cirque Risque – The Naked Circus opens July 17 with nightly shows under the tent at 11 p.m. It’s dark on Mondays. Performers will be wearing minimal clothing. Tickets are $39-$69.
These are just the latest concepts introduced by the new owners of Resorts. Other recent additions include The Gatsby Girls, Torch — Atlantic City’s first and only whiskey bar — and the gay nightclub Prohibition. Something tells me these are just the start of more exciting changes to come.

Visit www.resortsac.com for complete details.

What is the Hilton’s future?

The Atlantic City Hilton has been trying to dig itself out of a financial crisis. The town’s smallest casino/resort and lowest revenue producer needs a new owner badly.
Even worse, word came down this week that its owner Colony Capital LLC can no longer use the Hilton name as a result of its licensing agreement ending. For now, it’s the property known as ACH. But for how long? Will ACH be able to survive? Trump Marina (now the Golden Nugget) and Resorts (purchased by Dennis Gomes) have been rescued and are in the midst of major renovations. Rumors of potential buyers for ACH — if there are any — have been silent in their plans. With the Revel opening next year and the proposed Hard Rock, which would be ACH’s new neighbor, a company needs to come in and make the save.
I’ve always enjoyed good times at the property I know as the Hilton. As much as prefer the other gaming halls in town these days, I would like to see someone come in and bring Steve Wynn’s old Golden Nugget back to its glory days.
But in this economy who knows.

‘Transformers’ to the I-MAX

Need something to do at the Shore besides throwing the dice or trying to hit that progressive jackpot?
Then head over to the IMAX Theater at the Tropicana (located inside The Quarter) to see the highly-anticipated “Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon” in IMAX 3D. The limited engagement will have multiple showtimes daily June 29 through July 14.
All seats are $15/each and can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000.
Visit http://www.imaxtheaterattropicana.com for more information.

Rock on?

Could a Hard Rock Casino/Resort in Atlantic City be a reality?
The process still has a long way to go, but it looks like the ownership group is laying the groundwork for a major project on the Downbeach side of town. AC Gateway LLC., who own the parcel of land, submitted details of the proposed project in its permit application to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Unlike the Revel, which is slated to open in May, the Hard Rock would be a boutique-style resort built in two phases. According to published reports, it would open with 200 hotel rooms and more than 54,000-square-feet of gaming space. A Hard Rock Cafe, upscale restaurants, rock-and-roll museum and a spa are some of the other amenities being discussed.
The second phase would include adding more than 600 rooms and expanding the gaming floor. The starting date for the project is yet to be determined.
It’s just the latest piece of positive news concerning Atlantic City. I expect more great things to be announced soon.

Club Piscopo

Resorts might be Atlantic City’s oldest casino, but Dennis C. Gomes, owner, president and C.E.O., continues to introduce new concepts to draw crowds. The hotel/casino officially unveiled its 1920s theme over Memorial Day Weekend. The new ownership group also opened the doors to Torch – Atlantic City’s first whiskey bar – and Prohibition – the town’s first Gay nightclub.

Later this month, he’ll be welcoming former “Saturday Night Live” star Joe Piscopo to town for an extended stay as the comedian/actor takes up residence at the new Club Piscopo scheduled to open June 30th.

“Joe is truly one of the great talents of our time,” Gomes said in a press release. “It is no wonder he is loved throughout New Jersey and the country, his dynamic stage performances to his charitable work, Joe is a class act and we are elated to partner with him on this venture. Club Piscopo is destined to be a success and will provide Resorts guests with entertainment they can’t get anywhere else in the region.”

Piscopo also is looking forward to opening the new venture.

“New Jersey is my home and Atlantic City my backyard, I love performing for AC audiences and now I can do that weekly at Resorts,” he said. “It’s an added bonus to be working with Dennis as he transforms Resorts and the City with style and a spirit that no one else has yet to do. This club will continue that trend by offering great comedy, bands, and acts that no one in Atlantic City has yet to put together in a show.”

The new venue will feature a variety of acts, comedians and bands that will entertain audiences Thursdays through Sundays. The format will include regular appearances by Piscopo and other well-known entertainers, including jazz artists, musicians and up-and-coming comedians.

Club Piscopo will open at 8 p.m. with shows beginning at 9 p.m. Tickets are priced at $25 for general admission and $35 for stage seating. Special VIP areas also are available. Tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster at 1-800.736-1420 or www.ticketmaster.com.