Smooth operator

 

It's been at the heart of the City's buzzing nightlife since it first opened its doors in October 2005 and Aspers at The Gate continues to be one of Newcastle's premier entertainment venues.

 

But have you ever wondered what goes in to keeping one of the busiest nightspots in the North East at the top of its game? Ally Myles, the new face behind the stylish venue, invited us in to take a look behind the scenes to see just what goes in to keeping a 24 hour, seven days a week gaming, food and entertainment venue ticking along.

 

Arriving at the top of the escalator on the way in to Aspers and already it's easy to see that running an operation like Aspers is no mean feat. It's the middle of the morning on a pretty average Monday, but there's nothing sluggish about this place. After all Aspers never sleeps.

 

Since its glitzy opening six years ago, the casino its two bars and restaurant, has remained at the top of destinations to visit on a night out in the city centre and with its success has come a change of perception about the role of a casino in the UK.

 

Ally Myles, who has recently taken up the helm at the venue, suggests that Aspers' success and the way that it has dispelled many a cynics ideas of what a casino is, and with it removed the gender separation normally seen in a casino, is largely down to the company's focus on doing the other things very well.

 

"A night out in Aspers is unlike anything you would come across in any other casino in the UK. Yes, we're a casino and we make sure that we stay at the forefront of that industry in the UK by continually investing in staff training, new games and the luxury feel and comfort that surrounds players when they choose to play at our tables, but we are so much more than a casino.

 

"On an average Saturday we welcome over 3,000 people through our doors, many of which will be coming to us for a meal in our restaurant Freya's, or a chilled out drink in the stylish surroundings of Tanzibar or Lady O's, and they may never actually go near the gaming tables.

 

"This really is a venue for most tastes and making sure that the standards stay extremely high across all parts of the operation for the 24 hours, seven days a week is a real military operation which our team are really proud of."

 

So what exactly goes in to keeping the Aspers glamour sparkling?

 

Over an average of 24 hours on any weekend, over 120 members of staff will clock on at Aspers - each playing their part in the gaming, restaurant and bars at the 45,000 sq ft venue.

 

Included in the 120 are 40 dealers working on the 26 tables and different games available to play, working alongside a further 26 members of staff who specialise in poker. Add on a further 20 bar staff, valets and waiters, eight cleaners, customer service staff, receptionists and staff to help people who play on the electronic games and already there's a lot of hands on deck.

 

And with that many hungry members of staff to feed there's a lot of food to be made to keep the workforce at their best. On a typical Saturday around 50 sandwiches and over 80 hot meals are made by the kitchen for staff lunches alone.

 

Speaking about the work that goes in to making Aspers the 24 hour venue of choice for people socialising in Newcastle, Ally said: "Aspers prides itself on running a smooth operation which enables all of our visitors to come in, relax and enjoy themselves.

 

"But, naturally, being that smooth doesn't come by chance as the logistics are vast. It's down to a considerable amount of hard work and planning from the team behind the scenes, who all work to ensure that all our visitors see is a seamless operation."

 

Aspers facts and figures:

 

Since its opening it's estimated that almost 3million people have visited Aspers at The Gate.

 

Since it's opening in 2005 almost 7million spins of a roulette wheel have taken place over the 10 tables at Aspers The Gate.

 

Playing cards are one of the most iconic images when thinking of a glitzy casino. To make sure that the cards are always at their best Aspers uses in excess of 5,000 new decks of cards a year - that's around 30,000 since it opened. Aspers is now looking into new technology which prolongs the time that cards will remain looking at their best.

 

People in Newcastle certainly like their chips. During an average 24 hours on a weekend, over 75kg of the golden favourites are consumed at Aspers. That's the equivalent of almost 12 stone in weight.

 

It would seem that chicken is top of the quick bites to snack on among visitors at Aspers - with 10 kilos of tasty chicken wings consumed each day. That equates to around 76,500 individual chicken wings consumed by visitors throughout the year which averages about 12,775 servings.