The Lowdown on Vegas Strip Club Hosts
Steele Lishnoff
Sapphire Host and VP of Operations
Hosts and bouncers are often one and the same in the best Vegas strip clubs. At one time, hosts were just nice, friendly guys and bouncers were brutes. Now the major Vegas clubs hire nice, friendly brutes.
I published an interview with a Vegas strip club host last year. If you don’t recall that interview, it’s because the title is “Interview with a Vegas Strip Club Bouncer.”
But Brent Kenton Jordan, the subject of that interview, is also a popular host at Palomino Club (club review / club website). If you go to the club, you can’t miss him–he’s the guy who always wears a kilt.
Steele Lishnoff, Executive VP of Operations at Sapphire (club review / club website), says that Sapphire has no employees with the job description of “Bouncer.” If you’re looking for a host at Sapphire, he says, “Just look for any guy in a suit coat.” He told me he often gets out on the floor and acts as a host himself.
“When we interview for the job, we don’t look for tough guys,” Lishnoff said. “We look for guys who are smart and well-spoken. We serve high-end guests – not customers, but guests – and we want them to be comfortable around our staff.”
The Hosts’ Most Important Job is to Serve the Needs of the Guests
Brent Kenton Jordan
Palomino Club Host
Vegas strip club hosts are always out in the crowd, keeping tabs on their tables. If someone in the crowd has too much to drink and gets too noisy, the host can put on his bouncer hat and take care of the situation himself – as quietly and politely as possible.
Jethro, at Floyd Mayweather’s Girl Collection (club review/club website) started out his career as one of Floyd Mayweather’s bodyguards, traveling around the world with him.
“There’s pretty much nothing that would shock me anymore,” Jethro said. “And I’m comfortable with everyone, from movie stars to fans collecting autographs. But my favorite thing about my job at the club is treating everyone like movie stars.”
So hosts aren’t monitoring their tables primarily to look for trouble. Hosts are out there first and foremost to serve the needs of their customers. A lot of Vegas visitors don’t know how this works.
Here’s a recent comment (edited) on TVO from a Sapphire customer who visited the club recently with friends:
“Any tips on getting the girls you want to approach you for dances? I love blondes, but it seemed like all I was getting approached by were dark-haired ladies . . . the hot blondes would walk by and not ask or walk straight by to another guy, or kept getting shuffled around by a host to other tables.”
Another commenter at TVO said that he kept getting approached by dancers with little titties, when he specifically hoped for lap dances from girls with big boobs.
There are many ways to deal with this sort of strip club disappointment, and one of the easiest solutions is to talk with a host. You should never just accept the situation and spend the evening dissatisfied.
Strip Club Hosts in Vegas Are There to Make Introductions
Meet Your Host Jethro at Floyd Mayweather’s Girl Collection
One of the normal functions of strip club hosts in Vegas is steering dancers to the customers who want them. If you tell a host you like blonds, or redheads, or short girls, tall girls, big titties, little titties, big butts, black girls, white girls, Asians, MILFs, nerdy girls in glasses – whatever – the host will do his best to have your “type” approach you for dances.
Andrew Smith, former host, now Marketing Director at Palomino Club, told me that you don’t have to be a VIP guest to ask a host for anything. The host serves all the customers. He’s providing a service for the club’s dancers as well by steering them to prospective customers who like their type.
You can even point out a specific dancer you’re interested in and the host will send her to you if she’s available. He wants to make introductions. (If she’s sitting in some guy’s lap, you may have to wait a bit.)
I asked Andrew if customers were expected to tip hosts who help them find dancers. He said, “They’re not expected to tip hosts and hosts won’t stand there with their hands out. But a twenty-dollar handshake isn’t unheard of and the host appreciates it when it happens.”
Cocktail Waitresses Will Make Introductions as Well
Another tip from Andrew: You can also tell any cocktail waitress what your type of dancer is and the waitress will send over dancers who fit your description. This is especially useful to know if the club is crowded, you’re not in a reserved seat, and you don’t want to lose your seat wandering through the club looking for dancers who appeal to you.
One more piece of advice from Steele: Never be shy about walking up to any dancer and asking her for a dance. Gentlemen’s clubs aren’t like night clubs where girls say no. Gentlemen’s clubs are the one place where the girls always say yes.
