ES
Good looking, classy small Strip room. Roughly 12-14 tables, near the sports book, next to the casino floor. Tables are nice, chairs are comfy, at least a couple of games are running most hours, and the room is near full during peak hours. One of the nicer small Strip rooms. However, a big annoyance is the room requirement that every new player be given a lecture on room rules, and every dealer rotating into a table gives a similar lecture on HHJs. Trust me, the 3rd or 4th time you hear this, it is annoying ... by the 15th time, you want to slap someone silly. Also, there is no chopping the blinds, no use of the phone at all at the table (including text messaging or taking notes on a phone), and the rake is taken in $0.50 increments. If you are staying at Luxor or Mandalay Bay (or around the MGM end of the Strip), it is definitely a good room to check out. If you are staying further up the Strip, it probably isn't worth a special trip.
Typical range of locals & tourists, rocks & maniacs, solid players and fish.
Pretty typical for a small Strip room in terms of skill. Most are friendly and good at running the game.
Again, very good for a small room, but not up to the elite standard of the Venetian or Wynn. Service was regular and fairly quick.
I had one bad experience with list management on a prior visit (on a busy night, regulars were being seated ahead of tourists, and I was bumped to the bottom of the list for not responding to a call in a very short time). On this trip, however, I found the managers to be better, and have no complaints. Management overall seems pretty typical compared to similar rooms. Since there is not a waiting area, some kind of paging system would be of great benefit to the room, given the limited number of tables. I did notice the management organized a private two table tourney for a bachelor party group, so management seems willing to meet the special needs of its customers. However, given all the nitty rules one has to wonder how much management truly cares.
None to speak of, although a sign at the front desk indicated that a food comp was being implemented.
