2018 brings new looks to local casino scene

The new year is shaping up to be a big one on the region’s casino scene as two additions will significantly alter the gaming-hall landscape.

Parx, the fun-and-games behemoth in Bensalem, Pa. (it’s perennially among the state’s revenue leaders), is greeting 2018 with the January opening of a 45,000-square-foot, $50 million expansion project.

The additions include two restaurants and a new poker room located in the main casino building (the current card parlor is part of the property’s separate horse-racing complex). But the real game-changer is a multi-purpose event venue dubbed the Xcite Center. It seats up to 1,500 for performances by a roster of talent that, at least initially, matches up with those boasted by Atlantic City casinos.

As this was being written, the winter lineup features six headliner events: Recent Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Chicago (Jan. 13); “Blue Collar” comedian Bill Engvall (Jan. 14); classic-rock legend (and former Bad Company frontman) Paul Rodgers (Jan. 20); “Let’s Make A Deal” host/improv-comedy star Wayne Brady (Jan. 26); standup comic Gabriel Iglesias (Jan. 27); rocker Eddie Money (Feb. 24) and country favorites Rascal Flatts (March 3).

According to Parx CEO Tony Ricci, the Xcite Center is a must if his gambling den is going to grow its market. The venue, he offered, will “expand our reach” beyond those who gamble, and make Parx more of a regional -- rather than local -- destination.

The venue, he continued, boasts state-of-the-art technology and acoustic design, and provides visitors a chance to see headline-level acts in a relatively intimate setting. It can also be used for trade shows, private parties and similar activities.

Perhaps the Xcite Center’s most significant feature is geographic in nature: It’s the first such facility in the Lower Bucks County/Northeast Philadelphia region, an area that is home to hundreds of thousands of people who will likely appreciate not having to drive to Center City or Atlantic City to see big-time entertainers.

When guests arrive for the shows, they can avail themselves of two new eateries: The first outpost outside of Little Italy of Lombardi’s pizzeria, a New York City institution for more than a century; and the high-end Liberty Bell Gastropub, which will offer a “farm-to-fork” menu emphasizing locally sourced food.

The poker room, noted Ricci, is designed not only to make players feel more a part of the Parx action, but to enhance the casino’s reputation among devotees of the game. Using the lavish card room at Wynn Las Vegas as a reference point, Ricci pledged the new, chandelier-bedecked space “will be the best poker room on the East Coast.”

For more information, go to www.parxcasino.com.