El Cortez Casino Shuffles Executive Line-Up

By Scott Roeben, on March 24 2026
5 min read 0 comments
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Downtown’s El Cortez is one of our favorite casinos in Las Vegas, so we naturally care when there are moves in its leadership ranks.

The casino recently shared some promotions and new additions to its executive team: Adam Wiesberg has been promoted to Vice President and General Manager; Patrick Lazarus is now Vice President and Director of Casino Operations; Nords Malilay is Vice President of Player Development and Casino Marketing; and Bart Mahoney is Vice President of Hospitality.

That’s pretty much the whole story. However, we are not the Las Vegas Review-Journal. We provide value. Let’s delve into this matter further, then, shan’t we?

Yes, it’s sexy, but do not dry hump the neon. You’ll end up in the Black Book.

First, here’s a quote from Kenny Epstein, CEO and Chairman of El Cortez Hotel & Casino: “We are proud to recognize the leadership and dedication of our team while also welcoming new talent to the property. As we approach our 85th anniversary, it’s exciting to have a leadership team with such deep roots in the Las Vegas gaming industry. These gentlemen each bring extensive casino and hospitality experience to our storied property.”

We’ve interviewed Kenny Epstein before, and he’s very likeable and has been involved in the casino business since roughly the Paleolithic Era. Whenever we see Epstein, we say, “Please don’t call your casino a property. That’s an industry term. Call it a hotel or casino or resort, but property takes all the fun out of it.”

Kenny Epstein basically laughs and says, “You just made that up. You are no longer welcome in my property.”

And we typically say, “We made that quote up, too! We just played in your casino last night and thank you for the four deuces and a kicker!”

We will get back to you on whether we are allowed to visit El Cortez after Kenny Epstein sees this.

Oh, before we forget, we have El Cortez-related scoop! We were the first to share Siegel’s 1941 would close for a renovation, and that’s happening starting April 5.

Here’s a photo of the restaurant we took yesterday.

Siegel obviously refers to “Bugsy” Siegel. In 1941, Siegel and his fellow hoods gained an interest in the El Cortez. He was also charged with murdering Harry Greenberg, but was acquitted due to a lack of witness cooperation. Shocker.

To further fluff up our story, let’s share some blurbs about the people who are being promoted or added to the El Cortez executive ranks.

Firstly, “Adam Wiesberg has been promoted to Vice President & General Manager, overseeing all property operations. Since joining El Cortez in 2015, he has held multiple leadership roles, including Table Games Shift Manager, Marketing Director and Assistant General Manager.”

Adam Wiesberg has seen things. It’s downtown.

You may be familiar with Wiesberg due to his appearances in the videos of various gambling influencers. Wiesberg is one of the most approachable casino executives in town and has been a key part of the increased visibility of El Cortez in the last couple of years.

Secondly, “Patrick Lazarus steps into the role of Vice President and Director of Casino Operations, leading day-to-day casino floor management across slots and table games. Lazarus joined El Cortez in 2012 and has advanced through a variety of roles, including Table Games Shift Manager and Casino Manager.”

Lazarus’ headshot didn’t have slot machines in the background originally. No executive headshots without slots in the background is our motto, probably.

Lazarus paid his dues as a casino host at Binion’s, Four Queens and Caesars Entertainment. Patrick Lazarus seems an affable fellow, but we don’t know enough about his sense of humor to be snarky about him yet. Downtown casinos are different, and we don’t want to end up whacked or whatever the kids are calling it now. Unalived? That’s a thing, right?

Thirdly, “Nords Malilay has been appointed Vice President, Player Development and Casino Marketing, where he continues to enhance player engagement through a blend of modern strategy and personalized service. He joined the El Cortez leadership team in 2005 and is known for building strong relationships with high-value players.”

We always wanted to ask Nords about the origin of his name, but we are a well-known coward and would prefer not to be blacklisted by the El Cortez.

We are not a particularly high-value player to El Cortez, but we know and like Malilay. He is just a good-hearted person and has said very nice things about our blog and Twitter account, so we are predisposed to saying nice things about him back. In perpetuity.

Fourthly, “Bart Mahoney joins the El Cortez team as Vice President of Hospitality, bringing over 20 years of experience from roles with Resorts World, Golden Entertainment, and Wynn Resorts. He will oversee all food and beverage operations, with a focus on the anticipated changes to the property’s main restaurant, Siegel’s 1941.”

Yes, Bart Mahoney’s headshot had a plain white background. Please refer to the motto we just invented.

Aha, now we know who can give us the scoop about what’s next for Siegel’s 1941.

Let’s just say it could use a refresh and/or rebrand or menu overhaul. It’s a great value, but the food is all over the place and El Cortez needs a destination restaurant, probably a steakhouse, which is the leading contender for what’s in the works.

Unlike at many Strip casinos, you can actually encounter El Cortez executives on the casino floor pretty reliably.

El Cortez is unpretentious, and you don’t get any of the “suit” vibes from these folks.

El Cortez was packed during our recent visit, and the clientele skewed visibly younger than ever. The bar-hopping crowd has played a big part in the growth of El Cortez, with lots of our fellow youths stopping in while they’re hitting the hot spots in the Fremont East district.

Nobody really predicted El Cortez would draw this crowd, but the casino has embraced them, along with their grinder regulars who are devoted to their coin-operated slots.

Last year, El Cortez debuted a $20 million expansion, and the casino has somehow managed to appeal to a cross-section of hardcore, value-seeking gamblers and kids out socializing.

It’s been fun to watch El Cortez go adult-only (approved!) and putting its money where its mouth is. As the oldest casino in Las Vegas, El Cortez hasn’t dumped its vibe completely (looking at you Ellis Island) to become something completely new. It’s upgrading and refreshing while avoiding alienating the guests who made El Cortez a thing in the first place.

While executive appointments may not be the most exciting Las Vegas news to casual visitors, these individuals set a tone, a direction for the places you visit. Their sensibility trickles down to every part of the business. Good leaders create a culture where employees can shine; bad leaders are all about protecting their fiefdoms and swatting away new ideas.

Good leaders embrace social marketing and streamers/influencers. Bad ones don’t. There are a lot of really bad leaders at Las Vegas casinos. El Cortez isn’t one of those places.

Is El Cortez getting everything right? Of course not. (Step away from the bars for the best pay tables.) If they were, we would have nothing to complain about and what fun would that be?

But overall, El Cortez checks all the boxes for what we love about casinos. El Cortez is a holdover from the era of Las Vegas people often pine for. That Vegas isn’t “dead,” it’s just shifted, and if El Cortez isn’t for you, they don’t really give a shift. That just makes the place even cooler.