The Pinky Ring: Bruno Mars Reinvents the Vegas Lounge

A 200-person cocktail lounge designed like a private penthouse party. An eight-piece house band in powder pink tuxedos. Cocktails named after every musician on stage. And a no-phone policy that makes the whole room feel alive. This is what nightlife looks like when a world-class entertainer builds exactly what he wants.

This Is What Happens When Bruno Mars Gets Creative Control

Bruno Mars has been one of Las Vegas’s biggest residency draws for nearly a decade at Dolby Live at Park MGM. But performing in someone else’s venue was never going to be enough. In February 2024, The Pinky Ring opened inside the Bellagio Resort and Casino, replacing the former Lily Bar and Lounge with something the Strip had never seen before. Not a nightclub. Not a standard hotel bar. Something in between — a 200-capacity cocktail lounge and live music venue built entirely around Mars’ vision of what a great night in Las Vegas should feel like.

“I’ve been performing in Vegas for years, and I’ve always wanted a place where I could throw glamorous parties when I’m in town,” Mars said at opening. “A place that felt like my personal penthouse suite, with live music and sensational cocktails. The Pinky Ring is that.”

The opening weekend set the tone immediately. Lady Gaga, Janelle Monáe, Victoria Monét, T-Pain, and Gayle King were all in the room. Mars took the stage with his band. Monáe performed “Tightrope” as a duet. The Pinky Ring had arrived, and the city took notice fast.

The Room Will Stop You in Your Tracks

The design was handled by Yabu Pushelberg, the acclaimed Canadian design firm behind some of the most celebrated hospitality interiors in the world, working directly alongside Mars to bring his vision to life. The brief, according to the designers, was clear: retro, chic, Vegas in the 1970s, a private penthouse party. The result is a circular room that feels completely sealed off from the rest of the Bellagio and the world outside it.

Solid walls enclose the entire space for privacy and a sense of exclusivity. The color palette runs in muted gold and earthy tones, punctuated by deep shades of green across the carpet, plush velvet chairs, and leather banquette upholstery that echoes the richly veined stone of the custom tabletops. A sunken conversation pit at the center seats 36 people on crescent-shaped green velvet chairs and a curved leather banquette. A lavish crystal chandelier anchors the eye upward on entry. The main bar’s reflective ceiling casts back the wavy golden curtain walls and the crowd below. Circles appear throughout the design as an abstract nod to the records that define Mars’ career. Lighting was designed to make everyone in the room look and feel their best, drawing inspiration from music video lighting rather than standard venue illumination.

The stage sits at the center of it all, surrounded by the room, not separated from it. When the band plays, the energy moves through the entire space rather than pointing everyone in a single direction. It is an intentional design decision that makes the Pinky Ring feel more like a party and less like a performance.

The Hooligans Are the Real Reason to Come

Mars’ longtime eight-piece band, The Hooligans, serve as the resident house band at the Pinky Ring. They perform multiple sets each night in their powder pink tuxedos, alternating with DJs in 30-minute rotations that keep the energy moving from the moment doors open to last call. The band is world-class by any measure. They play funk, soul, R&B, and pop with a precision and looseness that makes the room feel like a live recording session that got slightly out of hand in the best possible way. Eric “E-Panda” Hernandez, Mars’ brother, holds down the drums. Reviews from guests consistently describe the Hooligans as among the best live performances they have ever seen in an intimate setting.

Bruno Mars himself has been known to appear unannounced. Multiple guests have documented late-night appearances, arriving after midnight to take the stage for 30-minute sets that nobody outside the room will ever have proof of. The no-phone policy ensures it. If you are in that room when it happens, it belongs only to you.

“The band was amazing and played 30 minutes on, 30 minutes off when a DJ took over. Bruno Mars showed up at 1:30am. Fantastic 30-minute show by the man himself. Our only regret was not having proof it happened.” — Verified guest review

The Cocktails Have Their Own Story

The bar program was curated entirely by Mars and each signature cocktail is named after a member of the Hooligans. The Hooligan is a spicy tequila-based margarita with tajin and freshly cut jalapeños. The Skin-E Panda is a coconut rum mojito. The Mars Mocha, The Jam, and several others round out the menu of original builds. All of them are bold in flavor and designed for a room where dancing is inevitable. The cocktail list also includes wine, beer, and non-alcoholic options. The Phil is a zero-proof cocktail priced under $15. There is no kitchen on site but the venue brings complimentary bar snacks to tables, including house-made potato chips and a sushi-flavor mix — a nod to Mars’ Hawaiian upbringing.

How to Do It Right

The Pinky Ring is located inside Bellagio Resort and Casino at 3600 S Las Vegas Blvd. It is open seven nights a week. Sunday through Thursday from 8pm to 2am, Friday and Saturday from 8pm to 3am. Reservations are strongly recommended and available through the Bellagio website. Walk-ins are welcome when space is available but the venue holds only 200 people and fills quickly on weekends.

Tables carry a minimum spend starting at $330, which most groups find easy to reach with cocktails across the evening. A standing bar area is available for guests who prefer to experience the room without a table reservation. Arriving by 9:30pm gives you the best chance of securing a bar position and settling in before the room reaches full capacity. Dress to match the room. The Pinky Ring has a specific energy and the crowd dresses accordingly. Think smart, elevated, occasion-worthy.

One rule above all others: no phones. The Pinky Ring enforces a strict no photography, no video, no social media policy throughout the entire venue. Your phone stays in your pocket. This is the same policy Mars applies at his residency shows at Park MGM and it creates the same effect here — a room where people are actually present, actually dancing, actually talking to each other. Las Vegas Weekly called it the best thing to happen to nightlife. They are right.

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