Bad elves get naughty at a holiday pop-up bar in Silverton

Where do good elves go when they quit the shelf? They retire to Las Vegas to be naughty in a bar. At the Silverton.

From Nov. 4 through Jan. 2, the property’s Shady Grove Lounge is once again being transformed into the Bad Elf Pop-Up Bar, featuring dozens of elves suspended from the ceiling.

Some of these pendulous pixies were once shelf elves, the Christmas tradition (mingling holly jolly with the surveillance state) in which elves watch if kids are naughty or nice, travel to the North Pole in the wee hours to snitch (er, report back) to Santa, then return and reappear in new spots in the morning.

After the casino put out a nationwide call, families all over forcibly relocated (sorry, retired) their shelf elves by sending them to the Silverton for rest, pai gow and holiday duty. The retired shelf elves and other elves on property are earning their Christmas keep by turning the bar into a tasteful holiday showcase.

Which means thousands of string lights, engorged Christmas ornaments, a red and green Airstream trailer topped by plastic reindeer, a cozy fireplace and that swarm of frisky fairies swinging overhead (while also spying for the Gaming Control Board).

As the casino puts it, the Bad Elf bar is “home to all rebels without a Claus.”

Sprites at the shaker

Bad elves aren’t sober elves, especially not in Vegas. For this year’s pop-up, they’ve hit the workshop (i.e., the back bar) to create a special cocktail list.

There’s a Candy Cane (white chocolate liqueur, peppermint schnapps), a Grinch shot (Malibu rum, peach schnapps) and Naughty Butter Beer (vanilla vodka, butterscotch), as well as a Poinsettia (sparkling and cranberry), a Shady Graham Central Shot (Baileys, white crème de cacao), and Spicy Apple Cider (spiked with Fireball, the elves’ favorite chaser).

Degrees of naughty

To combine imbibing with insight, the elves are also offering the Bad Elf Puzzle Hunt. Folks who solve four puzzles (while cocktailing) using clues in the bar are entered to win an “elfin’ good” prize that includes dinner for two at the Silverton’s Twin Creeks Steakhouse.

For those who want to plan the naughty, three elfin experiences may be purchased in advance:

— The Bad Elf ($20) features one cocktail from the elf list, the Bad Elf Puzzle Hunt and a Bad Elf souvenir glass.

— The Badder Elf ($30) features two cocktails, a Christmas cookie, puzzle hunt and souvenir glass.

— The Baddest Elf ($40) features one hour of bottomless drinks (tap beer, house wine, well drinks, elf cocktail list), a Christmas cookie, puzzle hunt and souvenir glass.

Purchase experiences at silvertoncasino.com/badelf. Information about booking Bad Elf bar is also on the site. In 2022, the Silverton is celebrating its silver anniversary.

Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ItsJLW on Twitter.