‘I grew up here:’ Longtime bartender reflects on time working at the Tropicana

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - Tropicana will officially close its doors on Tuesday, April 2 when guests check out at 11 a.m.

FOX5 spent Friday at the iconic hotel as some workers were preparing to come in for their last shift. Built in 1967 the Tropicana carries a rich history. From their stained-glass ceiling to their intimate casino floor, the hotel has lots of memories that many workers will take away with them.

No one knows that better than bartender Charlie Granado

“I got choked up the other day leaving, and I looked back,’ Granado said, reflecting on 38 years of working at the Tropicana as a bartender.

He first started working at the hotel when he was 22 years old.

“They said go home, get a tie, and put me to work,” Granado said.

At that young age, he was working and told FOX5 he was mesmerized by the show girls.

“You see the girls coming down gently, with the stiletto heels carrying 60 pounds of feather, " he said.

Granado spent nearly four decades serving high rollers who would only request to be served by him. Granado did not disclose any names.

“He gambled big money, but he liked me, I don’t know why, and he kind of dressed like me, nice suit, nice fedora,” Granado said.

He tells FOX5 he even met a couple of mob bosses.

“People like that, when you know what they are drinking, like how’s your wife, how’s this, how’s that, you make them feel at home, they want to come back, they come to see us,” Granado said,

Despite having other job opportunities, Granado said he was dedicated to Tropicana.

“This was the tiffany of Las Vegas, the Tropicana, that’s what they called it, because people would come,” Granado said.

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