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A viral video of Gov. Steve Sisolak dining at Pizzeria Monzú on Saturday night while live entertainment performs just steps away has stirred up anger from entertainers and threats against the restaurant.
The video shows a band with three people playing instruments and a singer performing near Sisolak and his wife Kathy.
Hope this prick had a nice night.
Posted by Shon McKee on Sunday, August 30, 2020
Pizzeria Monzú owner Giovanni Mauro says he received “threatening and harassing phone calls from people upset by the video,” KTNV reports.
Sisolak, who extended a moratorium on residential evictions by 45 days, told reporters during the press conference on Monday that the restaurant performed temperature checks when diners arrived, offered socially distanced tables, and performed extra cleaning while everyone wore face masks.
“Ambient music, as it is called, where people to not go buy tickets to go to them, where people do not pay admission, where that’s not the purpose of the visit is allowed in a restaurant,” he says. “That’s what happened. We went for dinner, we finished up our dinner, and music played for a moment. We left. That’s allowed.”
The video comes on the heels of several bars and restaurants receiving fines for promoting live entertainment. Saddle N Spurs Saloon and E-String Poker Bar in Henderson were told by city officials that they could not offer live performances.
Saddle N Spurs owner Bobby Kingston tells the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he received a notification from a City of Las Vegas business licensing official noting, “Live entertainment which includes karaoke at this point is prohibited with a few allowances. You can have a singer, piano player, guitar player or small piece band that is there playing music at an ambiance level. There can’t be any ticket sales, admission fee or headliner advertisement for the entertainment & no dancing.”
E-String in Henderson promoted acoustic shows, which were also live-streamed, and charged a cover at the door, the RJ reports.
The rules seem to apply to charging cover at the door. For example, Don’t Tell Mama at Neonopolis still offers karaoke in Downtown Las Vegas, while Clark County told Ellis Island to stop karaoke. The Mayfair Supper Club at the Bellagio and Rose. Rabbit. Lie. at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas both offer live performances, as do lounges at Bally’s, Paris and Harrah’s, where they sell food and offer soloists or duos performing in the background.
• Nevada Gov. Sisolak responds to viral video of him at dinner with live entertainment [KTNV]
• Las Vegas business owners, performers complain of COVID enforcement [LVRJ]
• How Coronavirus Is Affecting Las Vegas Food and Restaurants [ELV]
