This week Anthony and Andrew talk about a possible new law on Resort Fees, a happy Christmas jackpot, NYE Vegas style, and more.
LAS VEGAS ADVISOR WEEKLY UPDATE – EP 160
What’s Good for the Goose
I attended a wedding recently in Las Vegas. I’ve known the groom for about 25 years. We both were successful players at the MGM Grand during the time I was able to make $1 million there during a six-month period.
I was seated at the wedding reception next to a player I’ve known even longer. “Sam” now lives in California and mentioned he has some advantage plays in California, Oregon, and Washington. I asked him if there was anything he could tell me about the plays.
Sam told me he had partners and they were all sworn to secrecy. They believed the plays wouldn’t last if other pros started showing up. I understood.
Sam later asked me if I was still gambling. I told him yes. There were a few casinos who were “giving away the store,” so to speak, and I was managing to get my share of what they were giving away.
He pressed me for details and I gave him approximately the same answer as he had given me, which was that I had a partner and we believe that if too many pros know the exact details, the duration of the promotion would be limited.
But Sam pressed on. He told me that we’ve known each other “forever,” and that should count for something. Again, I demurred, he took the hint, and we began talking about something else.
The thing is, I do have friends with whom I share things. But those friends also share things with me. Currently, three of my best four regular plays came on a tip from somebody else. On one of them, when I got into the play and found out some extra things, I explained the “enhancements” I had found to the friend who told me about the play in the first place.
Is there a possible scenario when Sam and I start sharing with each other? Sure. But I’m going to need some useful information from him before I start sharing my “good stuff.” I’ve given him some hints in the past and so far, it’s not been reciprocated.
Once a player, “Tom,” told me he was willing to share a video poker play with me for single-line quarters where, including mailers and everything, the player had a 1½% advantage.
I thanked him and told him I wasn’t interested. That play might be worth $15 per hour — including the time it took to drive back and forth. There was a time when I would have jumped at that play, but now I want to spend my time on plays that are more lucrative than that. I played a lot for quarters as I was beginning my video poker career, and I certainly don’t mean to put others down who are now in that position, but that’s no longer my thing.
If Tom were actually a quarter player, then my best plays would be beyond his means. But he could easily know players for whom the plays were not beyond their means. I didn’t want to have to give up plays for something that would be worthless to me.
I told Tom that if he found a good play on $5 or higher machines, I’d certainly be interested. I could trade information or give him a finder’s fee, whichever he preferred. But for me to pay, the information had to be useful.
A player recently told me about a play at a casino that was exceptionally lucrative. Unfortunately, it consisted of four-times-a-week drawings — at a casino well over 1,000 miles from Las Vegas. That information wasn’t going to be useful to me personally, but I’m still glad I know about it. That might be information that someday I could barter with someone else in order to obtain knowledge that was potentially profitable to me.
Another player, “Ulrich,” told me about a play that had been good, but the casino changed the promotion a week before I showed up. Ulrich later swore he didn’t know, but I wonder. There are players who will try to trade useless information in the hopes that they will receive something useful in return. Ulrich swore he’d make it up to me. We’ll see. It’s been two years, and I haven’t heard from him since.
LAS VEGAS ADVISOR – YOUTUBE BEER FRIDAY
Anthony and Andrew go live for holiday BEER FRIDAY.
GWAE Podcast — Bob and Richard – What have we been up to?
In this episode Richard Munchkin and Bob Dancer talk about what they have been up to, sports betting, beatable slots, and more.
Podcast – https://www.spreaker.com/episode/bob-and-rwm-what-have-we-been-up-to–63421885
Plaza Trip Report
We had occasion to spend the weekend before Formula 1 downtown at the Plaza. It was a relief to be able to walk everywhere, rather than sitting and sitting and sitting in traffic on and around the Strip; the race might as well have been on a different planet for the lack of impact it had downtown.
As for the Plaza itself, we got a chance to examine it in detail for the first time in a while and we were suitably impressed with the place.
Parking is free for hotel guests, another advantage over the Strip. The garage is easy in and out and it’s a short walk to the elevators that deliver you right to the south end of the casino. If you get a room in the south tower, those elevators are nearby. For the north tower, you have to walk through the casino.
The casino is spacious and well kept, with a William Hill sports book, a whole room full of Wheel of Fortune machines, and the smokeless Brian Christopher-themed slot wing.
The Plaza dining situation is recommendable. Oscar’s Steakhouse, of course, is one of a handful of fine-dining establishments downtown; it’s in the second-story dome overlooking Fremont Street. Hash House A Go Go makes for a decent coffee shop, open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and serving big food at good prices with a counter play that beats the line every time. We had breakfast there Monday morning just before checking out: two eggs, bacon, home fries, and toast for just under $14. We couldn’t finish the excellent potatoes and were still good to go till dinner.
The food court has Fresh Mex, Just Rice, Popup Pizza, and a coffee-pastry counter. Pinkbox Donuts right off the main entrance was insanely busy the entire weekend. We never saw the line with any less than a dozen people waiting and at times, it stretched into the hotel lobby. We couldn’t believe how popular a donut place could be.
Sand Dollar Lounge has live music almost every night and a video poker bar and we took in Miss Behave’s Mavericks in the great old Plaza showroom. We can’t remember the last time we saw a show at a casino where, when it was over, all we had to was return to our room — after a late-night snack at the food court. We loved Mavericks and you can read our review here.
We also got to check out the Main Street Station Garden Buffet several times over the weekend, since it’s a six-minute trip from room to room. Ever since we walked right in on a Friday night at 6 p.m., we’ve wanted to check out the line situation, which we did for both brunch and weekend dinner, and we’ll report on that soon.
We found some equipment to work out on in the small gym, though the pool was closed.
And the hotel room? Very cozy, clean, and conducive to doing a little work. The desk area is well set-up, with a surprisingly comfortable chair, lots of room to spread out, and a couple of electrical outlets on the lamp. There’s a mini-fridge (no freezer) in the cabinet under the TV, which kept the leftovers fresh. The couch is a nice touch, we appreciated the never-ending hot water in the shower, and the heater warms up the room in three minutes flat.
In addition, early check-in is complimentary. When we showed up around 1 p.m. on Saturday, the only available rooms were in the front of the north tower, facing Fremont Street Experience. The front-desk agent warned us that it was noisy, but being the Advisor, we wanted to see for ourselves. Turns out, she wasn’t just whistling Dixie.
The first giveaway was the package of earplugs in the drawer of one of the end tables. The second was the relentlessly throbbing bass from the big speakers on the stage right across the street at Main and Fremont; it was like sitting at a red light next to one of those cars with the souped-up sound system — for 18 hours straight. It started around 10 a.m. and didn’t quiet down until 3 a.m. on Saturday and 2 a.m. on Sunday.
Even then, it was worth it to us to check in early and no matter when you arrive, if you snag a west-facing room (away from Fremont Street) in either tower, you’ll be more insulated from the FSE madness.
The price was certainly right. For the two nights over the weekend before F1, using the MRB coupon, we paid a total of $218.09, including resort fees and taxes.
All in all, we’d stay at the Plaza again anytime.
A Christmas Carol, Vegas style
Las Vegas has its very own Ebenezer Scrooge this year and his name is Virgin Las Vegas President Cliff Atkinson. With his Canadian private equity overlords, he going full Ebenezer on the many Bob Cratchits who toil for him. He’s begrudging them their lump of coal by offering paltry raises which would put them in a literally substandard position vis-a-vis their Las Vegas Strip brethren. Small wonder Atkinson talks about repositioning Virgin LV as a locals casino: He wants to spend Sam’s Town money for a Strip-adjacent resort. Perhaps Cliff got knocked on the head and woke up thinking he was operating Casino Royale. He’s certainly in the running to be Margaret Elardi‘s spiritual heir.
Continue reading A Christmas Carol, Vegas styleHockey Knights in Vegas Episode 92 — Let’s Eat!
Coming off a very difficult and successful road trip, the VGK’s next 7 out of 8 games are at the
Fortress. Eddie & Chris look back at the road trip and look forward to the upcoming “Feast at the Fortress!”
Like most episodes, predictions close the show. And this time, Eddie almost hits the nail on the
head!
All this and more, plus a massive tease on the upcoming ticket giveaway!
To listen to Hockey Knights in Vegas on your favorite platforms, follow on Social Media, and all
things VGK on all new platforms around the internet?
All Links – https://www.hockeyknightsvegas.com
Instagram – https://hockeyknightsvegas
Hockey Knights in Vegas is brought to you by:
Anthony Curtis’ Las Vegas Advisor – http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com
Dr. John Pierce | Ageless Forever – https://www.agelessforever.net
Marathon Law Group – https://www.marathonlawgroup.com
Stocking stuffers
Finally! November brought some bonafide good news from Louisiana, as casino revenues finally trended upward in a manner in which we can believe. They not only rebounded 11% from last year, they were 2% higher than 2019. New product—Treasure Chest 2.0 and Caesars New Orleans—drove the bus, accounting for most of the upsurge from 2023 and all of the improvement from 2019 (a 3% swing). Treasure Chest exploded to $12 million (+88%) and Caesars leapt 28.5% to $26.5 million. Other New Orleans casinos and racinos were revenue-positive, too: Boomtown New Orleans ($10 million, 5%), Fair Grounds ($3 million, 7.5%) and Amelia Belle ($2.5 million, 6%). The excitement in the Crescent City probably gave Caesars Entertainment a welcome distraction from woebegone Horseshoe Lake Charles, which plunged 12% to $6.5 million. Golden Nugget jumped 11% to $28 million, ahead of still-impressive L’Auberge du Lac ($26 million, 9.5%) and Delta Downs ($14 million, 17%).
Continue reading Stocking stuffersHockey Knights in Vegas Episode 91: Hey! It’s Nic Roy
Eddie & Chris get a chance to chat with VGK center Nic Roy. Of course, we talk VGK hockey, but if you follow the podcast, you know there are some fun not-hockey questions too.
To listen to Hockey Knights in Vegas on your favorite platforms, follow on social media, and all
things VGK on all new platforms around the Internet?
All Links – https://www.hockeyknightsvegas.com
Instagram – https://hockeyknightsvegas
Hockey Knights in Vegas is brought to you by:
Anthony Curtis’ Las Vegas Advisor – http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com
Dr. John Pierce | Ageless Forever – https://www.agelessforever.net
Marathon Law Group – https://www.marathonlawgroup.com
So Damn Cheap
Not long ago I wrote about a time I was in Reno when there was a power outage at the Eldorado, the hotel where I was staying and playing. After calling the Peppermill to make sure they were open, Bonnie and I, along with one other player, took a Lyft to that casino (maybe two miles away) and paid retail for a meal at Café Milano. I commented that it was a novel experience for me to pay for a meal in a casino.
One reader commented: “Does it bother you in the least that you’re so damn cheap that you won’t pay for a meal outside of a casino?”
Another reader came to my “rescue,” if that’s the appropriate term, but I thought the subject was worth exploring a bit. So here we are.
Since I moved to Las Vegas in 1993, I’ve received more than $1 million dollars in “free” food. I put the quotation marks around the word “free” because I always tip on meals, comped or not.
This doesn’t mean I’ve saved $1 million dollars on food. On some of the more expensive meals, the tip was more than I would have paid for a meal that wasn’t comped. Still, I’m sure I’ve saved several hundred thousand dollars over that time period by this practice.
I don’t consider this “cheap.” (Or “damn cheap” or even “damned cheap,” which I believed is better English). I consider this as part of the slot club benefits that result from my decision to gamble at a particular game in a particular casino at a particular time. Food comps are part of the equation when I decide whether a game is positive enough to play.
There are times I pay for food in a casino. If I’m playing at the South Point on a Monday, I’ll often eat there using points because on Mondays, seniors get half price meals if they use their points. That makes their breakfast buffet cost $8 worth of points rather than $16 worth of cash.
I have essentially unlimited food comps at a casino 15 miles away from the South Point, but driving 30 miles roundtrip (and spending more than one extra hour traveling) to save $8 is a stupid type of economy, in my opinion.
Let’s say I have a $40 food comp at a casino. I check to see if the sales tax goes away when you use the comps. If I only want $20 worth of food and it’s a “use it or lose it” comp, I’ll sometimes take food home. Not always, though. If I’ll be driving around Las Vegas in the summertime and don’t have an ice chest in the car, I won’t take food to go because it will spoil before I arrive home.
If I spend more than the comp for a meal, I’ll usually pay with points (if I have them) in those casinos where sales tax disappears when you pay with comps and points.
When I’m playing and all food is free, it’s smart to take advantage of that food — saving both time and money. There are casinos I’ve played at where I don’t take advantage of food comps because the quality of the meals is sub-par.
I play less in casinos than I used to, so Bonnie and I eat at home more than occasionally. I don’t usually have comps at grocery stores.
Near the end of the month, Bonnie and I take inventory of what unused food comps we have that will expire. Sometimes there’s no way we can use up all the comps. Often, we’ll go out to eat at casinos more in the last week of the month than the first week.
The original question asked if it bothers me in the least to be so damn cheap. The simple answer is no, it doesn’t bother me at all. One of the “secrets” of obtaining and keeping a bankroll is not to spend money on things I don’t need. And if I have food for free, I don’t need to pay for a meal somewhere.
But if Bonnie and/or I are hungry and no food comp is available, I pay for meals.