Downtown Poker Rooms

[Falcon_Rob]

I'm getting the itch again to get back to Vegas to satisfy my hold em fix. I'm currently looking at a possible trip 12/20-12/24 (dirt cheap flight and rooms!!).

Here's my quandry. Like a couple of my previous trips, I was thinking about spending 2 days downtown and 2 days on the Strip. However I've never played poker downtown, and I really enjoyed IP's poker room in July, so the safe choice would be just to stay there for all 4 nights since I know I'm comfortable with their poker room.

The poker rooms downtown include:
Golden Nugget
Plaza
Harrashoe
El Cortez

Could everybody whose played in these places give me their thoughts on them? Will I find a comfortable room for 2 days at any of these, or will I be chomping at the bit to get to the Strip after a 1/2 day???

I do consider myself a somewhat tight, slightly above average limit hold em player, but I'm also a frugal low roller, so 2-4 and 3-6 tables are my usual hangout.

Thanks for any insight you can give me!

[Dougie]

Nugget - Great place, good drink service, lots of space. Best downtown.

Plaza - not bad, but attracts idiots and mouthy seniors trying to earn prescription money.

Shoe - OK, but lacks decent dealers and the rake seems high. Also a locals playground. Victim of the rise in poker popularity. Drink service virtually not there.

El Co - never been, but have been warned that getting your melon split open by an oxygen tank is definitely possible.

[CAP]

Heard the GN poker room moved to the old keno lounge. From my memory that would seem to be very crowded. It was really nice when it was near the pool. Not sure why they moved it.

Plaza is decent, nothing special. Probably on par with IP, but I haven't been to the IP's poker room so I can't say for sure.

ElCo is not really even a poker room but 2 poker tables (one hold'em table and one 7 card stud table) mixed in with the BJ and Crap tables. Don't bother with this one. They do deal some good blackjack there though.

[doctor_al]

A plus of the El Co is that Jackie might buy in at your table (baz, didn't you have the honor once?).

Search back for PatekPhils TR's, seems to me he spends some serious time at the Plaza. Only time I played there was in the wee hours, and while there were a lot of locals, they weren't all that tight. And didn't they also come up with a new poker room?

[Gold Member]

I am also a low roller poker player (1/2 2/4 or low entry tourneys)

My last trip (May ’04), I went to the El Co first to get my nervousness out (haven't played live poker for a year, never been to the El) at the 1/2 holdem game and Jackie was there (he left about 10 minutes after I got there, around 10-11 am, I didn’t even know that was him, but confirmed it after he left) I walked away up $20 :) As I remember they only have 2 tables right along the tables pit (next to craps and blackjack tables), I drove and self parked expecting the worst, but didn't see any trouble makers. My table had 1-2 guys playing with their LAST $20 (rent money). I was the youngest person there by 20 years (I’m 30)

GN – didn’t play there just walked by it. It looked pretty busy and it was enclosed by a glass wall. Looked more like a poker room on the strip (room had a younger crowd then the El or Plaza)

In my opinion downtown seems to have more tight and older players, even at the 1/2 or 2/4 tables. Personally I like playing vs drunk 20 somethings at the Luxor or Excalibur.

My goal last trip was to hit a few tournaments (Sahara, Mandalay, Luxor) but downtown, as far as I know, does not have any low buyin daily trounaments. So if this intrests you stay near the strip.

[ November 06, 2004, 12:30 PM: Message edited by: Gold Member ]