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Great Offer Adventure, CP/Cal/?, 7/22-?, CZR/TLC/Boyd/?, (Semi-Live)

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by Tarpie, Jul 31, 2020.

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  1. BlueBellThunder

    BlueBellThunder VIP Whale

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    A bathroom break is shorter than a dinner break.
     
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  2. AyDee

    AyDee is getting too old for this

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    same, but I've never thought to take a dinner break.

    @Tarpie, can you (or anyone) break continuity and report on the most recent Cal craps hours and flavor you have seen? also if it is still a ghost town / and if weekends are different..

    I'm heading in.

    thanks for the heads up on the prime rib, sigh.. :(
     
  3. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    If I hadn't told them I was going to eat they may have saved my spot. Running to the restroom isn't a problem.
     
  4. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    Every week I stayed there it got a little busier on the floor, but the only time it was truly busy was Labor Day weekend.

    They only open one craps table. There's an afternoon crew and a night crew.

    Mid-week it's common to see the table empty, especially in late afternoon.

    On my last day in town they moved a craps table up to the main pit area so I assume the one open table going forward will be up with the blackjack tables.
     
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  5. KKB

    KKB VIP Whale

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    HA--I doubt I will. I've played VERY occasionally. Poker & video poker are my games.
     
  6. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    Day 44, Sat 9/05, Dupar's Breakfast, VP, Triple George Grill, Craps

    I just can't get enough of Dupar's hotcakes so I drove out to the Suncoast for breakfast. Service was slooow but friendly. Switched it up and got corned beef hash and eggs. Hotcake was delicious as usual. One of these days I need to get something from the pastry display. Bill was $18.98 (pre tax) but I used $11.39 worth of BConnected points to pay. No complaints about that.

    IMG_20200905_074211.jpg IMG_20200905_074914.jpg IMG_20200905_072342.jpg

    After breakfast I swung by Caesars Palace to check the status of their full-pay video poker machines. They had been turned off during the Bicycle Promo but thankfully they are back on. Glad they're back even though they're too high for my bankroll.

    IMG_20200905_084336.jpg IMG_20200905_084457.jpg

    Earlier in the week the Cal and Cox decided it was time to upgrade cable and internet. I didn't take a picture of the flier until Saturday, so the story goes here. I did not look at the flier closely and thought they were turning it off at 3am. I went down to check-in to tell them I needed it working at 4am PDT (7am EDT) so I could work.

    IMG_20200905_104314.jpg

    When I got to the front desk there was a woman freaking out over the internet interruption. Turns out I wasn't the only one working from Vegas while maintaining east coast time. They could not guarantee what time the work would be done. Since it was supposed to be done an hour before I needed it and I could tether my phone if I had to I was satisfied. But the woman was not. It popped in my head that Boyd should have available rooms at the Fremont, so I proposed to the hotel manager that they give her a backup room at the Fremont to work from just in case. He made a quick call to Fremont to make it happen and everyone was happy. And it turns out I had no problem with the wifi at 4am...finally a cable company got a job done on time :)

    Back at the Cal I played $5,000 coin-in of video poker to "pay" for my room. Tonight's room cost $180. :( I guess the variance gods knew it was a holiday Saturday night. Did have one near miss.

    IMG_20200905_131311.jpg

    Heading up to my room I had an odd experience. As I walk up to the elevators a guy who was just standing there decides to press the button as I approach. Just weird enough to get my spidey senses tingling. We both get on the elevator and now he won't press a floor. DANGER! My first instinct was to hop out, but I was quick enough on my feet to press Mezzanine. I popped out and walked over to Ethel M. When I turned around the dude had gotten out and was just standing in front of the elevators again. WTF?!?

    I wandered down the hall to the gift shop and then circled back to the second floor slot area. Dude is still standing in front of the elevators but now a security guard is questioning him. Kudos to the camera guys for noticing the weird behavior! He gets carded and they chat for a minute or two. Security guard is happy with the guy's story, and the guy gets on an elevator and that's the last I saw of him.

    I think he was just stoned out of his ever loving gourd, but if it looks like you're trying to follow me to my room I'm going to freak out a bit.

    Dinner was out-of-pocket at Triple George Grill. I of course had a Bombay Sapphire martini while I perused the menu.

    IMG_20200905_162238.jpg

    I started with the bone marrow. The sweetness of the bacon onion jam paired well with the unctuousness of the marrow. Wedge salad is a classic for a reason. Love the bacon and blue cheese combo.

    IMG_20200905_162945.jpg IMG_20200905_164533.jpg

    The music selection was interesting. Turns out Paul Anka covered Eye of the Tiger. It actually sounded pretty good.

    Screenshot_20200905-170401.jpg

    The rack of lamb was cooked perfectly. I must have been feeling rich, because I added on a scallop and had two sides. I don't have a lasting memory of the creamed spinach or mushrooms, so that means they did not wow or disappoint me. So we'll call them fine.

    IMG_20200905_170447.jpg IMG_20200905_170457.jpg IMG_20200905_170513.jpg

    Total came to $130. That's with an appetizer, salad, two sides, a scallop, and three drinks. As steakhouses go that's a good deal for all that. Next time I will skip the single scallop and one of the sides.

    After dinner I thought I would pop my head into Downtown Grand for the first time ever. There were doors right across from Triple George Grill that it turns out do not open. One had an arrow to the real door. The real door was also closed. At that point I gave up and walked towards Fremont. Maybe some other time Downtown Grand. As I was approaching Fremont I could hear loud and very well organized protest chants. Discretion being the better part of valor, I turned around and walked back to the Cal.

    Back at the Cal I played $10 craps for 4.5 hours, coming out $50 and 189 tier credits ahead. I also was "stuck" drinking Sam Adams after running them out of Goose Island (again) the night before.

    IMG_20200905_225353.jpg

    The Market Street Cafe was hopping at 11pm on Labor Day Saturday!

    IMG_20200905_225840.jpg

    Status: Up $17,100 cash on vp. Two quarter royals. Four dollar royals.
    Up next: Binion's Cafe Breakfast, VP, Chicago Brewing Dinner, Craps
     
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  7. WWGB

    WWGB High-Roller

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    I have really enjoyed reading your report so far, but this might be the highlight. Thanks for suggesting a solution to her problem!
     
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  8. AyDee

    AyDee is getting too old for this

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    The epic TR continues, :clap:
    Can't keep up, I know you are catching up on the updates, but has your trip concluded, or are you still currently in Vegas?

    Blowing my mind that we're coming in for our third trip, while you never left.. :headbang::nworthy:
    (short pops out excepted)
     
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  9. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    I got home a week ago. But don't worry, I'm heading back in two weeks. Hope I can finish the last 17 days of this report before I have to start another :)
     
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  10. AyDee

    AyDee is getting too old for this

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    Darn, thought I might be able to throw some craps w. you.
    might just miss ya, leaving SP Tue 13.
     
  11. AyDee

    AyDee is getting too old for this

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    Was your chance to flex that Emerald line pass:p, guess you had already eaten..

    Is there a 4Q Oct. promo? can't seem to find one.
     
  12. BlueBellThunder

    BlueBellThunder VIP Whale

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    So you were on the road for 2 months, wow. I hope you’ll include the trip home. Are you flying back to Vegas?
     
  13. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    Day 45, Sun 9/06, Binion's Cafe Breakfast, VP, Chicago Brewing Dinner, Craps

    Woke up and was playing video poker just after 6am. It was an 11x point multiplier day so it was better to knock it out before there was competition for the machines. Got 4 to a royal dealt right away. Was I about to start another streak of Sundays with W2s?
    IMG_20200906_060919.jpg IMG_20200906_061351.jpg




    nope, and I threw away $5.

    IMG_20200906_061356.jpg


    But the gambling gods were at least warming up with near misses and silly 4OAKs.

    IMG_20200906_061441.jpg IMG_20200906_064057.jpg


    Then I got dealt another 4 to a royal. Was I going to get to eat ribeye for breakfast?
    IMG_20200906_072230.jpg





    nope. But I did go to breakfast up $90 after 1,000 hands of video poker.

    IMG_20200906_072234.jpg

    I ended up with a ton of Binion's comp dollars from the Jul/Aug promo so I decided to try breakfast at the Cafe. There is zero ambiance at the cafe but I did have wonderfully friendly service. Unfortunately the country fried steak (ribeye is for royal closers!) was the worst of the trip. It was tough and chewy. It tasted fine, and it and coffee cost only $12.98 so can't complain too much.

    IMG_20200906_074500.jpg


    After breakfast I strolled around Fremont St. If you thought I was mad about the Cal's entrance requirements, guess how happy I was to have to show ID to get into the D at 8:30am (they will also take a D room key). They actually take your license and scan the barcode with some kind of device. The best case scenario is that the information is being stored in a firewalled database for COVID contact tracing. I am not optimistic that is what the scan is for. Did I trigger a gaming day just by entering the property? They know I was there.

    This and the (now rescinded) policy of banning people with face/neck tattoos gives me a bad impression of the D. Is Derek Stevens going to try to pull this at Circa too? Doesn't seem practical. There was a line full of impatient people to get in at 8:30am.
    IMG_20200906_083825.jpg

    The not very socially distanced line to get into the pool at Golden Nugget 10 minutes before it opened.
    IMG_20200906_084952.jpg


    The Garage Mahal does look nice, and it is easy to envision the outside of Circa being done by Oct 28.

    IMG_20200906_090548.jpg IMG_20200906_090846.jpg

    I spent the rest of the day writing trip reports and planning my next stops on the trip. I definitely didn't gamble until after dinner.

    Dinner was at Chicago Brewing. I just love the cowboy corn bites (corn fritters held together with zesty cheese). And the prime rib sliders are always good (or great when come out med-rare...this day they did not). Prices actually seem a little high here (by downtown standards), but since I earn comp dollars so easily at 4Qs it's moot. Two beers, fries, fritters, and sliders came to $43 of comps. Oh, and their ranch dressing is amazing.

    IMG_20200906_155336.jpg IMG_20200906_155639.jpg

    From my photographic records, it looks like I got to the craps table at 4:40. And had to rebuy just after 5:00 :( And empty out my wallet at 5:40! And was done at 6:20. That > $500 loss in < 2 hours cured me off my craps habit...for a day. Quick pictures of buy-ins and chip stacks make it possible to figure out losses/wins and length of play. 1h40m of $10 craps earned 72 tier credits.

    IMG_20200906_163931.jpg
    IMG_20200906_170319.jpg
    IMG_20200906_173929.jpg
    IMG_20200906_182109.jpg

    At least I had the discipline to run up to room and stay there after that debacle. Stay away from craps kids!


    Status: Up $17,200 cash on vp. Two quarter royals. Four dollar royals.
    Up next: VP, Paradise Cafe Breakfast, Leaving Las Vegas
     
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  14. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    I was on my way up to bed...I had been up since 4am. Also I am old and lame.

    In September you got a 4Q coffee mug if you hit 4-of-a-kind queens. Binion's was the same but with jacks. Not sure if that is still running.

    Nov/Dec has a decent promo (nothing like Jun-Aug though). 400 pts in a day gets you a bonus $10 comps and $30 FP on top of the normal earnings.
     
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  15. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    The trip home did not happen as originally intended. I never got around to planning anything and the calendar got away from me. It just ended up being three straight days of driving with no interesting stops.

    I am leaning towards driving out again in two weeks. It costs more than flying, but I want to be out there for at least three weeks and having a car is nice for laundry/grocery store runs. I will be packing a lot lighter this time...two laptops instead of a desktop with monitor and laptop.

    A buddy is trying to convince me to fly with him...but I think he can fly without me...he just won't get my free checked baggage benefit.
     
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  16. ffejry

    ffejry #1 Bears Fan

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    Loving this
     
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  17. BKD1972

    BKD1972 Tourist

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    Wow. My FIRST day on VMB and I come across this EPIC Odyssey. Thank you so much for the vicarious exhibitionism! Your writing style and detail is freakin perfect for those of us who love beating-the-odds VP, energy of Vegas, unpretentious foodiness, good dranx, fair comps, riff-raff avoidance, pleasant hospitality, and sharing it all with like-minded folx.
     
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  18. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    Day 46, Mon 9/07, VP, Paradise Cafe Breakfast, Leaving Las Vegas

    Woke up early again and made it to the machines just after 5:30am. BConnected was running an 11x multiplier promo for Labor Day and I needed to "pay" for my room anyway. I got dealt 4 to a royal yet again. Was I going to get ribeye for breakfast today?
    IMG_20200907_054315.jpg




    nope. At least this one improved to a flush.
    IMG_20200907_054322.jpg


    And another 4 to a royal! There's still hope for ribeye.
    IMG_20200907_055441.jpg




    nope, but again it improved to a flush.
    IMG_20200907_055447.jpg


    Running $5,000 coin-in cost $100. Overall, my 7 night stay at the Cal cost me -$200 VP wise. Yup, they paid me to stay there...ignoring craps. If only I had stayed away from the craps tables!

    I slowly made my way over to the Fremont for breakfast, but still had to wait for Paradise Cafe to open at 7. I decided to give their country fried steak a try and had biscuits and gravy as the side. So much gravy! Steak was an improvement from Binion's Cafe, but I think Magnolia's remains in first place. Bill came to $15.28 or $9.16 of BConnected comps. Cannot complain about the price.

    IMG_20200907_071317.jpg IMG_20200907_071323.jpg

    After breakfast it was time to load up the truck and hit the road to Tahoe. As you can see I travel light.

    IMG_20200907_085850.jpg

    I got on the road at 9. I was just west of I-15 on US 95 when I noticed my softopper flapping in the wind. This wasn't good because with the sides open the topper acts as a parachute and will tear itself apart. It also meant someone had gone through the back of the truck :mad:. On the shoulder of a highway is not where I wanted to be. As I re-snapped the topper it was evident that someone had opened the totes in the bed of the truck looking for anything valuable to steal. Over twenty nights in that parking spot with no problems. But Labor Day brought a big crowd and one jerk. Lame.

    After doing inventory it looks like the only thing stolen was my REI hiking backpack that also had a camelbak in it. That is something a meth head could pawn or a homeless person could use. I hope it was a homeless person who will actually use it. And thankfully nothing was vandalized.

    This part of the trip report is going on hiatus. The next two weeks were spent in Tahoe/Reno, but I did return to Vegas after that so this thread isn't over yet.

    Continued: https://www.vegasmessageboard.com/forums/index.php?threads/great-offer-adventure-harveys-sands-regency-el-dorado-7-22-9-22-tahoe-reno-chapter.178325/
     
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  19. AyDee

    AyDee is getting too old for this

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    This was at Cal self park? bummer.
     
  20. Tarpie

    Tarpie VIP Whale

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    Live update: I'm currently in Grand Junction, CO and will be back in Vegas tomorrow. I will try to complete this trip report (and the last of the Reno/Tahoe portion) this week before I get too far behind on the new trip's report. :)
     
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