The next time you drive through the grapevine and approach a forest of oil rigs on the outskirts of Bakersfield, look for a six-story guitar.
That would be Hard Rock Casino TEJON, whose opening on Thursday brings Inding-Finer-Finder Endian Gaming – and Hollywood Pizzazz – It is in a better field known better for Cowboy hats, ranch and petroleum.
TEJON Casino is located in the rural community of Mettler, near the intersection of interstate 5 and state 99 – “A stone’s throw” from Los Angeles, suggested the President of Hard Rock Thojon Chris Kelley Chris Kelley Chris Kelley.
Actually, the Casino is a $600 million bet
The property is the premier full-service play and entertainment destination in Kern County.
(Makenzie Been Photography for Hard Rock International)
Carved image at the entrance of the casino.
(Cristian COSTA for Hard Rock International)
A deduction? Most notably, 150,000 square feet of gaming space – including 58 table games and more than 2,000 slot machines – put it among the largest casinos in southern California, Par and more on the strip in Las Vegas.
And of course, because this is a Hard Rock Venture, there are POP musical artifacts on display. Among them: Blue Hooded velvet mini dress sabrina cast hair in her “Please Be Happy” music video, signed gear, beckl and beck’s orangerine high-top orews.
The Casino also features four restaurants serving Asian street food, tacos, pizza and American comfort food (especially Nashville hot chicken) – plus a bonus feature. At select hours, Kelley said, the staff will install a divider to create a deep-cut, “talking restaurant” lover that will emphasize steak and seafood.
“This is not another hard rock cafe that has … a restaurant within a restaurant,” said Kelley, leading a tour in the days leading up to the opening.
Live action table games include blackjack, craps, roulette and baccarat.
(Makenzie Been Photography for Hard Rock International)
Plans for the second phase of the project will include a 400-room hotel and SPA on site, as well as a live hard rock venue designed to accommodate concerts, sporting events and ultimately make Kern County a destination for travelers and lovers. Authorities declined to share a timeline for the next installment.
Although its global Empire began with the London Cafe in 1971, Hard Rock International has ended with the decision of Florida since 2007. The indigenous ownership of the company is “a big influence” on the decision of Tejon Tribal octavio Ectavio EccObedo III. Hard Rock Casino Tejon is owned by the Tejon Tribe and managed by Hard Rock International.
For the Tejon tribe and its 1,523 registered members, casinos are reaching a new chapter in a saga full of challenges. In the 1850s, Tejon was included in the creation of California’s first Indian reservation – which was closed by state officials in the 1860s. More than a century later, in 1979, the nation was omitted from the US Bureau of Affain Activation’s list of officially recognized nations – an apparent mistake that took decades to correct.
When tejon won federal recognition in late 2011, game plans were quickly put into action. In late 2016, the nation had set aside the acquisition of the casino site.
The deep-dish restaurant is billed as an “elevated steakhouse.”
(Makenzie Been Photography for Hard Rock International)
For the nation, Escobedo said, the long-term picture may involve improving the local community — Tejon doesn’t have one for more than a century — as the nation aims for “financial sovereignty.” Although he declined to specify the amount of money it would require, he said “it will take a lot of financial discipline to achieve that.”
So far, things feel promising. ESCOBEDO said 52 members of the tribe have signed on to work on casino projects and “I would like to see that number double in the next year or so.”
Long before the Seminoles bought control of Hard Rock International, the tribe pioneered Indian sports in the US, at the beginning of the Hollywood hall, the tribes of Israel made 3 hundred 40 billion a year.
Besides its opportunities for the Tejon Tribe, the arrival of the casino means 1,100 new jobs for Greater Bakersfield, which lost a beloved entertainment destination in August when Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace closed after 29 years.
Owens, who died in 2006, was a longtime Bakersfield resident and pioneer of the gritty “Bakersfield Sound” in country music. In addition to pop music artifacts, rock ‘n’ roll history and Tejon cultural history, Kelley said, “we’re going to have BETICE SCEMEMS Memobilia.”
