Sands unveils four new restaurants, VIP suites

PONTO FINAL: " Date: Aug 23, 2004 - 05:13 AM Venetian Macau Limited, owner of the Sands, opened the doors of four new restaurants on the casino's third floor August 23, and also invited the press to a 'sneak preview' of its luxurious VIP suites. The four restaurants are the Copa, an American-style steak house, Perola, featuring Macanese specialties, Cantonese restaurant Golden Court, and the Ruby Room, serving Shanghainese dishes. The 100-meter long 888 buffet, which has been operating since the Sands' opening in May, serves international cuisine on the second floor, overlooking the gaming tables. Dan Raviv, special consultant to Venetian's Chairman of the Board, flew in from Las Vegas to introduce the new restaurants and key staff members to the press, but declined to comment on the company's future business plans, pending its IPO announcement, expected in October of this year. He said that Venetian Las Vegas is known as the 'capital of gourmet food in the U.S.,' with 17 restaurants under one roof, and that if Macau Sands were placed among the casinos in Las Vegas, it would be 'the nicest of them all.' He also pointed out the huge window on the casino floor, an unusual feature, considering casinos don't normally have windows at all, explaining that it was designed to make the Sands 'part of the whole community of Macau.' Several of the lushly-appointed VIP suites were made available for viewing, although according to Sands spokesperson Alpha Padilla, they will not be ready for guests until September, with more coming on line in the following months to make a total of 51. The high-rolling customers who will be invited to stay in the capacious suites, which include steam rooms, Jacuzzis, and wide screen video systems, make up a carefully guarded, exclusive list known only to high-level Sands executives, she said. "