Kimo’s Vegas

Miss Hawaii USA Brianna Acosta. Photo from Kimo Akane

WELCOME TO Kimo’s Vegas … The Player’s Edge!

INSTANT REPLAY … If you thought your significant other travels with more luggage than the UH Warrior football team, consider Miss Hawaii USA Brianna Acosta. Last week here in MidWeek she said she’ll be in Vegas for 16 days (competing for Miss USA) and that means 32 complete outfits … PORTER!

IN A RECENT post, columnist Rick Garmen wrote about the Top 10 Ways to Get Ripped Off in Vegas (And How to Avoid Them). Some of these are really obvious, like (No. 1) the cabbies long-haulin’ visitors … Try the RTC – like DaBus, they have a mobile app that tells you where the closest bus stop is, when the next bus is coming and, for the folks Sigmund Freud called “anal retentive,” there’s even an online trip planner. Hotel Resort and Other Fees are the next biggest Vegas rip … Save yourself some stress and some watercress – check on it before you check in. His No. 3 is the Hotel Mini-Bars and Room Service … Alas, you get what you pay for, and you pay through the nose for the ultimate convenience. At No. 5: Did you know a Big Mac costs more on the Strip than in Palolo? Makes sense if you think about it, but who thinks about that when you’re craving an Xtra-Large No 1? Check out his complete list at Vegas4Locals.com.

IRON CHEF Masaharu Morimoto is opening his first Vegas eatery at the Mirage next year.

ANYONE WHO’S been to Vegas has sampled the dish that Italo Ghelfi is credited with bringing from San Francisco. In 1959, the co-owner of the Golden Gate offered a tulip-shaped glass of chilled tasty crustaceans with a wedge of lemon and cocktail sauce for 50 cents. After 50 years and 40 million served, the price really hasn’t risen that much … The famous shrimp cocktail is only $2.99.

IF I HAD a nickel for every anonymous millionaire … At the Wynn, the Wheel of Fortune Double Diamond video slot bestowed its $1,194,269 bounty on an unknown player.

CAL NEWS … Grant Oshiro won $2,500 playing KENO; Beverly Ikemura, Lorriane Uehara and Delilah Miranda hit $4,000 at video poker; and the slots were good to Nancy Koyama ($6,000) and Ken Kamada ($7,800).

OJ SIMPSON IS trying to get a Nevada judge to grant him a retrial. His argument is that he received bad legal representation the last time he was in court … That’s what they all say when the jury says guilty as charged. To date he’s done four of the nine to 33 years of his sentence for armed robbery.

JACKPOT … Last week Las Vegas hit its first triple-digit temp of the year: 102 degrees … wait for it … “But it’s a dry heat.”

JUST SO YOU’RE not disappointed … The Gold Spike has reopened as a hip bar and restaurant downtown, but without its old-school casino.

FOLLOW US on Twitter, like us on Facebook and get the latest Vegas news online at KimosVegas.com and every week here in MidWeek. Send me your Vegas questions, mana’o, photos and reunions to Kimo@KimosVegas.com.