Legends Bay Casino opens in Sparks
$6,000 Welcome Bonus
Legends Bay Casino, the newest gambling establishment to open in Northern Nevada in more than 20 years, finally opened its doors last night on August 30 after 16 years in the making.
Located a stone’s throw away from the Outlets at Legends, Hampton Inn, and Residence Inn by Marriott, Legends Bay is a fresh new casino built from the ground up, appealing to gamblers of all ages and backgrounds.
Olympia Gaming bought the land in 2006 but when the Great Recession took place in 2008, progress stopped on developing it. Despite the covid pandemic and a few supply chain issues, the timing seemed right to relaunch the project.
“This has been in the works for 16 years, and thought has gone into every detail from the bright flooring to comfortable chairs, acoustics, and ceiling tile,” says Regional President of Olympia Gaming Court Cardinal.
Walking into the brightly lit contemporary entertainment venue, I first notice big arched 3D slot machines with flashing lights, sounds, and featuring present-day movie themes such as Dune and Crazy Rich Asians. There are more than 660 slot machines on the casino floor, including favorites such as Buffalo and Lightning Link.
Super lofty ceilings matched with its ultramodern HVAC filtration system make any cigarette smoke unnoticeable, glistening glass chandeliers add a touch of sophistication, the carpet is colorful and bright, and 10 table games including craps, roulette, and blackjack fill the center of the room. In the back, a Circa Sports sports book was specially designed to fit the space, and near the eastern entrance Legends Bay has the only fully arched Buffalo machine in Northern Nevada.
“We listen to the guests and what they want in everything we do, from the slot machines they want to see to the menu in Duke’s Steakhouse,” says Cardinal. Next to the big Buffalo arch, a High Limits area holds 30 slot machines with a five-dollar minimum. Cardinal says that they look at the math on their machines daily and weekly, switching out themes accordingly to stay fresh and relevant.
Cardinal points out the Cashiers counter and mentions that one of the things that sets Legends Bay apart from the other casinos is that it is extremely giving in its points system within the Players Club. He also says that hiring the right people who provide excellent customer service is their “secret sauce”. Legends Bay pays a minimum of $12/hr. for tipped positions, and it goes up from there.
“We were lucky that our reputation proceeded us,” Cardinal says about the staff that it has at its Casino Fandango in Carson City. “At the Fandango, we have more than 100 employees who’ve been there for 10 years, and at least 35 employees who’ve been there for at least 15 years. That kind of retention is unheard of in the casino business. We had 70 spots open for our management positions and we had 400 people apply who wanted to come work here,” he adds.
Legends Bay Casino also has Duke’s Steakhouse (with an award-winning sister restaurant in Carson), that has a floor-to-ceiling wine case keeping 146 selections including “Duke’s Exclusives” that can’t be found anywhere else.
For those that want something simpler, the LB Grill with booth-style seating and a full bar is open 24 hours a day, and the Food Truck Hall serves a variety of food including: the Craft 55 bar; Red 88 serving American food and salads; the Loco Bueno taco truck; and Pizza Genius. There’s even a flatbed truck that’s been converted into a stage called The Bandwagon that hosts live music on Friday and Saturday nights.
The Circa Sports sports book is also the first of its kind in Northern Nevada, known for providing great odds, huge payouts, and its Million football contest.
“We’ve been wanting to come to Northern Nevada for a while now and thought this was the right fit,” says Circa Sports CEO Derek Stevens. He added that they accept up to $100,000 bets for NFL games, which is perfect timing considering the football season starts in a few days.
“It’s good for novice bettors because the odds are better, and anyone can shop the lines. And our app works anywhere in Nevada. And we loved the fact that this is a brand-new build and could be a part of the design in advance. There’s space for a lot of activations; we want this to be a busy vibrant setting for making bets and have good food and drinks,” Stevens says, gesturing to the sports book area.
“It’s huge being partnered with Derek, being able to take larger bets and have better odds than anyone else in Northern Nevada,” Cardinal adds.
“It’s fun and nice to see the excitement of the community; we’ve received so many emails from locals wanting this to be open.
“We want people to walk in and think, ‘wow, this is a beautiful, elegant casino that’s comfortable and welcoming’,” Cardinal says.
