Hard Rock Casino Tejon Breaks Ground on $725M Hotel Expansion
The Hard Rock property in Tejon has just announced an expansion. It will cost over $725 million, and will be renamed officially to Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tejon when it's done in mid-2028.
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Hard Rock Casino Tejon is less than a year old, and it’s already getting bigger. On October 21, the Tejon Indian Tribe and Hard Rock International broke ground on an expansion costing more than $725 million. When it’s done, the property will become Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tejon. The opening is planned for summer 2028. Construction started right after the ceremony.
What the Expansion Adds
The centerpiece is a 406-room Hard Rock Hotel, 119 of which are suites. Here’s the rest of the list:
- 900 more slot machines, taking the casino to 3,000 slots
- Council Oak Steaks & Seafood
- Two new dining outlets in The Marketplace and a new Center Bar
- Convention and event space, including three meeting rooms and an outdoor event lawn
- Two resort-style pools with cabanas and daybeds
- A Rock Spa with 13 treatment rooms
Right now, the casino has 150,000 square feet of gaming space, 2,100 slot machines and more than 60 table games. Its restaurants include a Hard Rock Cafe, The Marketplace, Deep Cut Steak | Seafood and YouYu.
Jobs and the Local Economy
Hard Rock expects the project to create more than 1,500 construction jobs. It will also add 350 permanent positions, bringing the property to more than 1,700 permanent jobs.
“Today marks another historic milestone for the Tejon Indian Tribe and the vision we have worked generations to achieve,” said Octavio Escobedo III, chairman of the Tejon Indian Tribe. He said the casino has already brought “jobs, opportunity and economic benefits” to the tribe and the surrounding community.
Mike Bean, who was named property president in September, said the casino has made its name fast. “In less than a year, this property has established itself as a premier gaming and entertainment destination in California,” he said.
A Fast First Year
Hard Rock Casino Tejon opened on November 13, 2025. It sits on Tejon tribal land in Mettler, less than 15 miles south of Bakersfield. Hard Rock describes the spot as about 90 minutes north of Los Angeles, along the I-5 corridor.
That location is a big part of the pitch. Former property president Chris Kelley put the market at about 6.5 million people within a two-hour drive, SFGATE reported. Hard Rock COO Jeff Hook told SFGATE the partnership has exceeded expectations, especially with visitors from the LA Basin. “We had every single one of those slots full,” he said.
Hook also gave a sense of timing. He said a casino usually takes 12 to 18 months to build, while a hotel takes a couple of years. He put Hard Rock’s projects in development at around $17 billion to $18 billion.
How the Tribe Got Here
The road to this point was a long one. Because of an administrative error, the Bureau of Indian Affairs left the Tejon Indian Tribe off its list of recognized tribes. In January 2012, the federal government reaffirmed its relationship with the tribe.
Then in June 2022, the tribe signed a gaming compact with California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Later that year, the Bureau of Indian Affairs agreed to take about 320 acres in Mettler into federal trust per reports. That cleared the way for the casino, which was then billed as a $600 million project. It was planned for 52 of those acres.
What Comes Next
The first phase took about 3 years from federal approval to opening day, while the second phase has a summer 2028 target.
Hard Rock says it will share construction milestones and a firmer opening timeline as work moves along.
