Seeing double: second travel center to open

When Joe DeSimone opened the Railroad Pass Travel Center in 2018, he never anticipated having déjà vu five years later.

Later this summer the Eldorado Travel Center will open its door to those traveling on U.S. 95 and Interstate 11 and is within eyeshot of the Railroad Pass Casino, which he bought a decade ago.

“I had no inkling, I took a shot in the dark,” he said of opening the second center. “We did a market study that showed that the first travel center would work and we’ve far exceeded that. It’s a matter of trying to meet the demand for parking and fuel.”

But, it wasn’t a traditional purchase as he had no real plan at the time.

“It was a defensive move,” he said. “After I bought it (land) I wasn’t even sure I was going to build another travel center. The demand became so high here that I did another market study and it showed we could do very well with a second one.”

The defensive move came after getting word that a large company had planned its own travel center/truck stop on the land he would later buy. The land was owned by a longtime friend of DeSimone’s. So, a quick phone call revealed that a contract had yet to be signed. DeSimone offered more for the property and promised he could close the deal in a timelier manner.

The new travel center will offer 130 spaces for semis and dozens more for vehicles and recreational vehicles. The current center offers 210 spaces. While the new one may be smaller in terms of parking, the convenience store will be larger at 12,000 square feet. It will feature a store, showers for the truck drivers as well as a Sonic restaurant and Dunkin’ Donuts.

DeSimone said they are considering a shuttle or vans to drive the overnight patrons back and forth between the new center and the casino/Holiday Inn Express.

“I’m tickled,” he said of the progress of the travel center. “It’s going to look really nice and consistent to how the Railroad Pass Travel Center looks.”

At the same time the travel center is being built, work on a family-style restaurant is under way just steps from Railroad Pass’ front doors. Bullet Train Grill, which is slated to be completed by the end of the year, will be the size of an Outback Steakhouse. It will be nonsmoking and will have a wider menu than anything offered in the casino.

“I think Boulder City needs a place like that,” he said. “The demand from the Holiday Inn Express has increased as more families are staying with us. There’s also a large demand from those playing in the casino for something different and quieter, and truckers staying overnight.”

Bullet Train Grill will feature a wide-ranging menu, several televisions throughout and a very modern architectural look.

“There are some really good people with good restaurants in Boulder City but there’s nothing really like this,” he said.