Shady Grove Lounge

If you're looking for a Christmas vibe that's more "cozy family road trip with a hint of Vegas glitter" than "elegant winter wonderland," look no further than the Shady Grove Lounge at the Silverton. It's like Santa decided to park his sleigh and have a drink before hitting the strip. First off, let's talk decor. Shady Grove leans hard into its quirky, retro charm with an Airstream trailer smack in the middle of the bar. Add some twinkling Christmas lights and holiday garland, and suddenly, you're sipping cocktails in what feels like Clark Griswold's backyard--if he upgraded to neon signs and leather bar stools. And the drinks? Oh, they're festive, all right. Nothing says "Christmas cheer" like a spiked eggnog that could knock the reindeer right off Santa's sleigh. Pair that with a plate of their holiday-themed snacks, and you've got yourself a merry little buzz. Now, if you're into holiday competition, their mini-bowling alley is the perfect place to test your family's patience. What's more fun than a Christmas argument over whether Aunt Carol's gutter ball was really intentional? It's holiday bonding at its finest.

Knowing full well that Christmas was 3 days away, the hubby and I came at this lounge's opening time to experience their holiday theme, Bad Elf. Good thing we came at opening because it was full of guests before the first hour ended. Before opening time, we got to walk around the space, and noticed signage stating beverage service wouldn't be available and guests should visit the lower bar beside Shady Grove for drinks. At opening time, there were already several small groups seated and 2 bartenders/servers were still prepping the space. 10 minutes in, perusing the tabletop menus for Bad Elf, the hubby walks up to the bar top and asks if we order at the bar, but was told that they'd be with us after seeing to the other guests that came in before us. Slightly awkward since there was no hostess to seat us, so we don't know how they're able to track which customers came in when. At least I don't think their current procedure would be accurate all the time. On top of having a special event/theme, the "first-come-first-serve" (or be seated) procedure really doesn't work out for everyone. Last night's experience, being surrounded by guests that purchased specific drink packages that didn't know there was no reserved seating for them or how the experience was supposed to work soured the environment. It made me cringe hearing a guest raise a passive aggressive tone because she was ignored, and thought it was a ticketed event/experience. The staff was nice when we got to talk to them. Decor is definitely cute. As for the menu, I thought there'd be more variety. Got the Old Fashioned that came in a seasonal glass, which was cute. Hubby got a punch bowl drink. Was it in the Christmas-spirit? I wouldn't say so. It's a menu of drinks I could find on a regular day with the name changed for the season. Is it a spot I'd like to return to? Not really.

Dropped by here after a concert at the Silverton, but unfortunately the lounge service was temporarily suspended. From previous reviews and photos, it looks like this lounge was last opened around the Christmas holidays. We still took a look around especially at the old Airstream trailer which was transformed into a couple of bowling lanes. This was quite unique and interesting. Maybe on our next visit service will be available.

This is another fun bar that is transformed during the holidays into what is called The Bad Elf Pop Up Bar.The name is catchy and almost makes you wonder if some of the Elf's on the Shelf have been sent here when they have misbehaved??!! Ha! Ha!I had a good friend in town post Christmas and we wanted to go have a drink someplace festive. We had other friends that had been here so we decided to check it out.I am not super familiar with the Silverton Hotel and Casino, but we found our way to this bar. It is in the middle of the casino and sits back in a corner. There is a big sign so you can't miss it. Once we arrived, we found ourselves a quiet table towards the back of the bar where the pseudo living room was set up complete with a Christmas tree and other decor. There was a specific holiday drink menu which had some interesting drinks listed, but I was in the mood for a brew. My friend selected one of the holiday drinks and I believe it was the Sugar Cookie. Our bartender was very friendly, helpful and just all around great guy. My apologies for forgetting his name but he provided the best service.The bar is so festive and whoever decorates does a fantastic job. There is an airstream trailer onsite that features a cute little two lane bowling alley. Unfortunately, it wasn't working so we could not bowl. We did manage to get in a fun game of Jenga though. There was also a Foosball table. Billiards table and a large Connect 4 game.You can't help but have a great time here with the holiday vibe and the terrific service.

3.5 rounded up. We visited for the Bad Elf Pop up. All the cocktails were very good. The cinnamon cayenne syrup in the Fireside Old Fashioned was fantastic and the Mistletoe Mimosa could easily serve 3. The server was very friendly although it did take a little while to have our order taken. The decor was festive, however all TVs tuned in to sports detracted from the vibe.

Came in for the cider flight event during the late summer/fall season. The bar is on the smaller side. They have mostly bar style seats and tall tops available. One set overlooks the casino.The bartender was also the table service. He was wonderful and efficient. The cider flights were fun, not a lot of variety. The pretzels and cider/pumpkin donuts were awesome... I enjoyed the experience/event

Overall, we had a good time attending the Bad Elf Christmas Pop-up Bar. It seemed a little unorganized and confusing in the beginning. You do have to go find a bartender if you bought tickets ahead of time. We personally decided to order 2 drinks per person immediately because we were unsure when we would get another opportunity. We played Jenga, Connect 4 and Foosball which was a lot of fun. They also had bowling, but we didn't get the opportunity to play that. We went out to the casino floor and played slots for some time before stopping for a midnight snack at Johnny Rockets. We had a good time!

Not sure what I was expecting with this pop up. Truth be told I had never been in to the shady grove lounge. They really put time and effort in to the details. The snacks were so cute and tasty. The drinks were perfectly themed.May have to check out their next pop up. The staff were attentive and kind.

I am so happy we went to this one for the Christmas season because it was very simple, not crowded at all and there were not a lot of people. It was located at Silverton Casino and nicely decorated. The drink I had was so delicious that it was the only drink I wanted and they even put a cute decoration on top of it which was of course edible. There were a lot of photo opps available and it was just nice to do something with Christmas and drinks. No extra fees or anything.

Repeat visit, to enjoy their spring theme: "Alice in Wonderland." It's definitely a mad tea party vibe. The cocktails are all tea based, the decor is wonderland, and the bartender is a Hatter. Fun idea, with service and ambience on par with their other holiday pop-ups.