Drai Honored for opening 3 Las Vegas clubs in 30 days

See Article from KTNV.COM News Drai Honored

CREATED Jul 7, 2014
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Entertainment mogul Victor Drai is set to join the Nightclub Hall of Fame this week after launching three different clubs in Las Vegas in 30 days.

A ceremony set for Tuesday will honor Drai for opening the rooftop Drai’s Beach Club and Nightclub and early-morning venue Drai’s After Hours at The Cromwell in May. He also opened the gay nightclub Liaison inside Bally’s casino in June.

Drai is already well-known for launching the upscale Tryst and XS clubs at the Wynn casino.

The Nightclub Hall of Fame was founded by bar experts Ryan Dahlstrom and Preston Rideout and honors innovators in the nightlife industry throughout the year.

Victor Dai Honored in Nightclub Hall of Fame – Official Nightclub Hall of Fame page

Drai Honored by Nightclub Hall of Fame

Victor Drai Wikipedia

In 1993, after the birth of his first child with second wife Loryn Locklin, Drai made the decision to open a restaurant, which he felt would be a more family-friendly career.^[3] He contracted French chef Claude Segal, who’d replaced Wolfgang Puck at the upscale restaurant Ma Maison in 1985.^[14] With Segal, he opened the restaurant Drai’s in the L’Ermitage Beverly Hills hotel and it quickly became an iconic success.^[9]

In 1995, Drai decided to open a second Drai’s in Las Vegas. A couple years later, he started the afterhours club, “That started everything,” Drai stated.^[15] In December 2013, he opened a steakhouse on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles called Rare by Drai’s.^[16]

Drai owned a now-closed venue in March 2010, Drai’s Hollywood; a rooftop restaurant, pool, and nightclub at the W Hotel in Hollywood.^[17]

In 1997, Drai opened Drai’s restaurant on the Las Vegas Strip.^[18] Two years later, Drai added a nightclub to the restaurant, re-branding it Drai’s After Hours.^[19] In Vegas Seven’s 2012 Nightclub Awards, Drai’s After Hours won “Best Place to Disappear”.^[20] He currently operates Drai’s After Hours nightclub at The Cromwell Las Vegas.^[21]

In 2007, Drai took over La Bete at Wynn Las Vegas and re-branded it Tryst.^[22] It has a 90-foot waterfall and lake in the middle of the club. In 2012, Vegas Seven’s Nightclub Awards awarded Tryst “Best Place to Impress”.^[23] In 2013, Tryst placed #8 in the Top 100 Nightclub & Bar Roster for Nightclub & Bar Magazine.^[24]

Drai opened XS nightclub at Encore Las Vegas in 2008.^[25] In 2010, XS won Nightclub & Bar Awards for “New Club of the Year” and “Mega-Club of the Year.^[26] ” In 2013, Nightclub & Bar Magazine awarded XS the “Mega-Club of the Year.^[27] ” Technomic, the Chicago-based hospitality market research firm that partners with Nightclub & Bar magazine on The Top 100, named XS number one nightclub in the nation for 2010.^[28] In 2010, Drai was bought out of his managing partnership at Steve Wynn’s Tryst and XS to pursue other endeavors.^[29]

Drai’s opened his latest Las Vegas club project Drai’s Beach Club & Nightclub on Memorial Day Weekend 2014 in Las Vegas at The Cromwell Las Vegas.^[30] This 65,000-square-foot venue has a party pool and an indoor/outdoor club spread out over two levels on top of the new Cromwell Hotel.^[31]

One of Sixteen Professionals listed in the Nightclub Hall Of Fame^[32]