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Daytime strip adventure- in search of free drinks

Discussion in 'Las Vegas for the Frugal (not Cheap)' started by travloh, Apr 11, 2013.

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  1. travloh

    travloh Tourist

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    This happened on our most recent March Madness trip-

    My two brothers and I roll into Ballys late tuesday night after an uneventful Spirit flight from Minneapolis. We gamble a little and plan our strategy for the upcoming basketball betting extravaganza. After about 4 Coronas we decide to pack it in early so we can get up wednesday and make our bets.


    Wednesday morning we hit Ballys sportsbook. It's dead. We handicap the games, and before we even make a single bet, a pretty waitress comes up and comps us each a bloody mary with no drink ticket. This is gonna be fun. We bet, stuff our tickets in our pockets and hit the strip.

    We hit Walgreens for a fresh round of tallboys, and walk towards Mandalay Bay.

    As we walk south with our aforementioned beers, we explain to our Vegas virgin brother the finer points of drinking on the strip. His eyes begin to light up as we describe drink-for-free-when-you-gamble.


    We mosey into the Luxor, toss our empty 24oz cans and find the nearest bar. We belly up and all feed 20 into our VP machines. Bartender guy shows up on cue and sets us up. We hang for 45 mins and 3 rounds, playing poker and talking about how this is just the beginning of our Vegas adventure.

    We cash out and tip bartender guy, and the VP was good to us. We all cash out with a slight profit. Thank you, Luxor.

    Vegas Virgin guy is digging this big time. We hit Mandalay Bay and cross the street to MGM. We make out like bandits at both places, losing minimally and refilling our tanks in the process.

    We're all about 9 drinks in now, and we are in full blown Vegas party mode at 1 in the afternoon. Planet Hollywood, Paris, back to Ballys and beyond. He just can't get over how we are drinking for "free".

    We take a short pit stop at Margaritaville and reality sets in. I go to the bar and order 3 of their best Margs- the $36 tab reminds me that not all booze in Vegas flows like wild honey. We down em and bolt.

    Next stop, Harrah's. We stroll up to the bar and bartender guy is suspicious. He saw us jump in from the strip and he can tell we are on a mission. We feed in $20s and he asks us what we need, with a crooked eye.

    " 3 Coronas, good sir."

    " No drinks until I see some betting on max credits first."

    Our first damper. You can't really blame the guy. Drunks like us looking for free drinks are a dime a dozen.
    We all play max credits 3 or 4 times and he lines up our beers. Before he can wipe his hands we are cashed out and gone. My ticket reads $16.75.

    Vegas Virgin is incensed. How dare the casino do this? How dare they demand we gamble and try to get something in return for these drinks? We laugh it up as he pretends to be angry over this.

    Ok, here is where our little scheme gets dicey.

    Wynn.

    We stagger in with the confidence of 3 guys who are going to take this place down. We walk in and its as if we are in slow motion. We all know what we have to do, and we're wiser from just dealing with the crafty bartender at Harrah's.

    We find a bar and size it up. As we walk in, I am distracted. I veer off and engage in some drunk guy talk with someone about something. The other two continue without me. I chatter for 5 mins and rejoin my wingmen. They are both bellied up and drinks are being poured. We all grab our drinks and bartender turns around to wait on someone else. I am still taking in the situation, but the brothers throw a wad of bills ($4) on the bar and leave me for dead. Bartender makes eye contact with me as I sip my drink, and he grabs said pile of ones in disgust.

    "it's $40"

    My compadres are long gone and I am left to handle this.....

    "$40 for three drinks? We're gambling and we assumed they would be comped"

    He tells me that there are no comps at the bars inside the Wynn. In retrospect I assume he means there are no comps for guys just looking for a free drink..

    I set my $13.33 house tequila margarita back on the bar and tell him to keep it.

    "what about them?" he says, referring to my partners in crime.

    "Let me go get them, they'll bring theirs back, too"


    I walk out of the bar and see my guys waiting for me.

    "let's go!"

    They see the urgency in my eyes and we all make for the nearest exit. We walk fast and I tell them what happened. We are now fugitives. We are almost running when we hear "Hey get back here!" The bartender is chasing us....

    Our booze soaked brains begin to calculate the next move, and remarkably, we do the smart thing. We stop and play dumb.

    Vegas Virgin guy goes with bartender back to bar and pays our inflated tab. He walks back out with my bastard margarita and we all feel defeated.

    We flew too close to the sun on wings of comped drinks.

    As we walk out we feign victory by bragging about the fact that the Wynn will never see these 3 drink glasses again. Take that, Wynn!

    Back to the strip and we chuckle over and over about being chased down by the bartender.

    Vegas adventures.........
     
    Last edited: Apr 11, 2013
  2. BKCallaway83

    BKCallaway83 Tourist

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    One hell of a day!!
     
  3. undathesea

    undathesea Grandissimo

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    Great story until the Wynn. The Wynn hasn't served comped drinks at the bars in maybe 5 years... maybe longer... it's been so long I can't remember.

    Only a Vegas virgin wouldn't know a detail like that though. :)
     
  4. Boosty16

    Boosty16 Low-Roller

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    TIMEOUT! Wait, you walked to Mandalay Bay, made a u-turn and then walked to The Wynn? Holy Shit!
     
  5. C0usineddie

    C0usineddie VIP Whale

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    well done sir, well done.
     
  6. robert m.

    robert m. High-Roller

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    Funny thing about the Wynn -- no drink comps at bar. Period. Expensive drinks.

    However, I have had very nice drink service when playing quarter video poker on the main casino floor.

    Go figure!
     
  7. RiddickBull

    RiddickBull VIP Whale

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    If you want free drinks, put a dollar in a penny slot and play 1 cent per spin every so often. When the CW come by, order a beer and a shot. If you tip well, they come back very quick. If you don't tip, go elsewhere and continue the process.
     
  8. travloh

    travloh Tourist

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    Needless to say, my feets was hurtin' the next day.
     
  9. HoyaHeel

    HoyaHeel Grammar Police & Admin

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    Not necessarily - I don't play VP these days and have never played at Wynn, so I wouldn't know:peace: But I'm far from a virgin.....
     
  10. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    Yeah, Wynn is a weird exception to the rule and shuns bar comps period. I have only been asked to play more than 1 credit at a time once, and I always tip the bartender obviously to help avoid this request. That request happened at Aria (3 credits minimum). I played max bet while drinking my beer, hoped to hit the Royal, so I could sarcastically thank the bartender for making me up my bet. But no Royal, unfortunately. :(
     
    Last edited: Apr 11, 2013
  11. undathesea

    undathesea Grandissimo

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    Interesting. I've been a longtime poster at TA (probably 7 years)... and this has been covered time and time again over there. I just figured longtime VMBers would be well aware of this.

    I just found out about VMB recently and actually prefer this forum to that one now. It's well organized and threads aren't removed, posts deleted, etc on such a frequent basis.

    Thanks for a great forum.
     
  12. HoyaHeel

    HoyaHeel Grammar Police & Admin

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    I admit I'm a biased sample because I don't read VP threads or Wynn threads, so how would I know? If I were interested in playing VP (for the game itself or to get better drink service) I would hope I would know:peace:
     
  13. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    I wouldn't have known either without various internet forums. Fortunately Wynn is way too expensive in terms of everything for me in the first place.
     
  14. undathesea

    undathesea Grandissimo

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    I'm not cheap or poor by any means, but I stay away from the Wynn for that very reason as well. I had a sandwich, a beer, and a drink for my sister at a cafe there and it was more than $50. Brunch out by the pool for the both of us was around $70... the simple eggs and bacon kind without drinks.

    My friends tease me that I'll play $100/hand BJ but I care about paying $25-30 for a sandwich. That's not how I want to spend my Vegas money, though.
     
  15. kel3420

    kel3420 VIP Whale

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    GREAT story!!
     
  16. Mogambi

    Mogambi Tourist

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    That's how you do it!!! :beer:
     
  17. Living_Legend

    Living_Legend Newbie

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    Good Story. :beer:
     
  18. BigRick617

    BigRick617 Tourist

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    :beer: i like to feel out the bartender on my first drink, you can usually get the vibe if there gonna be uptight.
     
  19. James G

    James G Tourist

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    Awesome Story!

    :beer:
     
  20. matguy

    matguy High-Roller

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    The 1 penny 1 line ploy usually works the best. I was at the Sahara once (ok, did this twice, maybe 3 times, things get fuzzy sometimes) and there was a penny game that always had the bonus come up on the same line, the line that you bet on for a single line. I'd hang out there for a couple hours on less than $5 in to the machine getting a Jack & Coke every 15-20 minutes.
     
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