By Howard Koplowitz
Resorts World opened the doors of the second floor of its racino Friday that will allow players to dine in style and possibly break the bank.
The second floor, known as the Fifth Avenue Casino, includes 2,500 video lottery terminals and electronic versions of roulette, baccarat, sic bo and craps and is open to Silver Club cardholders and up.
Resorts World spokesman Stefan Friedman said the floor is more upscale and spacious than the first floor’s Times Square Casino.
A high-limit section on the second floor dubbed the Crockfords Club contains 78 VLTs and electronic table games.
One of the machines in the club, Triple Stars, pays out as much as $375,000 on a $50 bet and Wheel of Fortune VLTs feature a $750,000 jackpot on a $75 wager.
Crockfords, named after the private London casino considered to be the oldest in the world, can only be accessed by players who receive an invitation from Resorts World.
The second floor also features Uptown Express for grab-and-go food as well as a steakhouse, RW Prime, and a signature Chinese restaurant, Genting Palace.
In the middle of the space lies the Liberty Bar, where patrons can watch television on the largest screen in Queens while they sip drinks and play video poker.
The bar also gives customers views of an entertainment space below the bar where Resorts World expects to have musical and singing acts.
“It’s sort of a bird’s-eye view for what’s happening with our entertainment,” Friedman said of the Liberty Bar.
State Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach) said the opening of additional space at Resorts World will be a boon to Queens and noted that the racino has other amenities besides gambling.
“Given Genting’s track record … this is just great for the community. When I see a second floor opening like this, I see jobs,” he said. “Now people have a reason to come to Resorts World and they don’t have to gamble.”
Addabbo said the coinciding opening of the Central Park Events Center, billed by Resorts World as the largest event and catering venue in the borough, is another attraction of the racino.
“I think it’s a space that our area has never seen,” the senator said.
State Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder (D-Ozone Park) said the racino is “great for Resorts World but, more importantly, it’s great for the community.
“The jobs, the economic development, the ability to raise revenue for New York state education is unmatched,” he said. “The community is going to see a great benefit.”
City Councilman James Sanders (D-Laurelton) tried his luck at a nickel machine during the opening, which he said was his first gambling experience.
“There’s no question it’s an economic boom,” he said of the racino. “There’s no question it has led to thousands of jobs. The food is fantastic and it has been an economic engine to New York City as a whole and, God willing, to southeast Queens.”
Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4573.
