Venues Ultra Lounge and Grill

Each night at Venues was a different experience for me.  Based on the first two times dining at this lil bar (located across the street from the Beau Rivage), I would of gave Venues 4 stars and urged you to escape the casino and get in there for some Royal Red Shrimp and Crab Claws, but the last couple times were such let downs, that I can no longer do that.  

The first two nights we ate at Venues, we had the same server and she was great (granted, we were pretty much the only people in there eating at the time, and every time after that).  We had some good appetizers, one being the sauteed Crab Claws.  For dinner, our main attraction, the reason we choose to eat at Venues, was the Royal Red Shrimp, which were plump, succulent, & delicious!  They were served with warm butter on the side and some tasty corn on the cob.  Nom nom nom, I love the south!  

Unfortunately, when we returned nights later, excited to put away some more Royal Reds, nothing was as it was before.  Our new server tried to pass off some skimpy shrimp on me as the Royal Reds, not realizing I had already been there twice that week for the same thing.  The corn was lukewarm to touch, and cold to the bite.  Once it was brought to our servers attention that these were most definitely not what we ordered, she claimed she needed to have the ones we wanted defrosted.  Huh? What? Yuck!  I'm literally staying on the Gulf Coast, so why on Earth would I want to eat frozen seafood?  Surprise, surprise, when they finally arrived, they were still not the same.  Her excuse was that it depends who is in the kitchen on a given night, that different cooks prepare and cook the food differently.  Why?  Get it together, or at least take some notes from the first cook.  How could this be the same place I ate 2 nights prior?  Not one thing was up to par.  Then to top it off, the same server/bartender offered me a free drink at the bar, but after I left, she charged a friend for it saying I hadn't paid.

Based on inconsistency, I give Venues 3 stars, and that's being generous, and only because I had great service and food half of the time, and still hope I can peel and taste those succulent shrimp once more.  If you choose Venues, I hope you catch them on a good night, with the right guy in the kitchen.

Came here after playing and drinking at the Hard Rock.

They didn't have any beers on tap which was sort of a disappointment.

We were able to order various shots for our group though.

The food is nothing special. Got the fried calamari, a various fried seafood platter, and soft shell crab claws. Even buzzed, everything tasted bland and there was more batter than actual seafood in all the fried dishes.

It seemed like they did have a good drink selection minus the beer and the atmosphere was really fun and chill.

However, for the price and the quality of the food, I think staying at the casino would have been a lot better and a lot cheaper.

Calamari was good, drinks nice and strong.

Venues is known for after hours spot for casino workers in the area.  Bored late night? Go here.  It's like Taco Bell... you'd feel a bit guilty going there during the day, but late into the night it seems somewhat acceptable.