How to get free Buffet??

Hello all you experts.

I am fairly new to this site - but I read and read many of the post - great valuable information - some funny and some smart-alick comments, but very informative none the less.

I'm a small time gambler usually 150 per trip - unfortunately I am a big time eater - ie buffets

I was wondering how much quarter video-poker do i have to play to get comped into the buffet?

More specifically - the M casino ( studio b ) buffet. Some what my favorite along with Rio buffet.

Can a person insert a hunny ( 100.00 dollar bill ) into a machine - play 1/2 and cash out and still get points towards any buffet??

Help me fulfill my passion of eating. - haha / I know what your thinking - this guy must be 500lbs

believe me - the only time we eat buffet is in los wages.

Thanks

Frank

All casinos vary ......... Talk with a Slot Host and/or a Boothling at the Players Club wherever you play.

They will help you with the specifics for their facility.


Rick

Welcome aboard, Frank. You should check out your MRB - there are two special coupons that seem to be right up your alley. Those are the free-buffet-for-200-points coupons from the Gold Coast and Sam's Town. Both places are a dollar a point, so roughly 15 minutes of quarter single line VP play will get you a place at the chow line. I happen to like the GC buffet, but others feel differently, so YMMV. I haven't been to the one at ST, but some people think it's OK and others less so. YMMV there too. There are also numerous two-for-ones at buffets around town.

I haven't visited the M's buffet, but I've heard wonderful things about it. Certainly you can earn enough points to get one for "free", but my guess is it'll take more bankroll than you're willing to risk. But it's definitely worth asking.

I happen to like the Rio's buffet, and I'm certain that you'll have to play lots more than you want to get a freebie there.

You'll earn points for all your machine play, but how much you'd have to play to have enough for a free buffet varies by casino. Here's an example -- the dinner buffet at Aliante Station is $9.99. That's 10,000 points. And that's equivalent to $3,333 in coin-in. That doesn't mean $3,333 in cash out of your pocket -- it means money circulated through the machine by playing the credits you earn on hands hit along the way.

If it's Senior Wednesday, if you're over 50, and if you go to the buffet before 6 p.m., the dinner buffet will cost you just 5,000 points.

If you've never had a Stations or Fiesta card before, sign up and get 5,000 free points. That's $5 off the cost of your buffet right there.

The numbers may be different at different casinos. You should go to the slot club and ask how points are earned before you play, so you'll know what to aim for. (But don't "play for comps" -- your buffet could end up costing you way more than just paying for it with cash, lol.)

Actually it's $3,333 coin-in for 10,000 at station playing VP. That's about 5 hours play for an "average" quarter player, 3 hours for a fast one. At Stations there are usually coupons for 2 for 1 and multiple point days that make it easier.

M resort has a similar point requirement, prices are $11, $16 and $24 for B/L/D. However M includes free beer and wine and is really quite a bit better than any of the Stations. More importantly M has a promotion on where you get a free buffet without having to use any points at all. Earn 850/1300/1700 for B/L/D and the buffet is yours and you keep the cash/points. Points take a dollar of coin-in so you only need $850 of "action" for a free breakfast buffet. This is about 90 minutes of quarter VP for an "average" player plus at that point you will have just under $3 in cash if needed.

Good luck and happy eating!

Thanks for catching my typo, Kiwiboy! I added the missing "3."

If you like the Rio buffet, I can tell you a little about Total Rewards. Everytime you play on your card at any Harrahs/Caesars property, you earn Total Reward Credits, which are basically $1 for every 100 points you earn, based on coin in. However, one quick way to get Total Rewards credits is to get the Total Rewards credit card. (I know that there are lots of credit cards with rewards for flights, gas, etc, but I am giving a specific example for this question) Right now I have $350 in credits, which I will be taking with me in March to Vegas, and eating lots of buffets, including the Rio. By the way, many will argue, but the Total Rewards program for Harrahs/Caesars properties is the best comp/points program of all, by a long shot. You will find that very often you will receive comped rooms, without using any points at all. Anyway, that is my 2 cents.

I would say that CET is the best program for comped rooms, but that doesn't make it the best rewards program. If you are a $10K a day player or higher you can pretty much get free rooms anywhere. Surely the BEST system would feature the ability to turn points into cash or freeplay. Like Boyd, Station, MGM, Fitz, 4 Queens, M Resort.....

If you were a 10k a day player, then I doubt if you would be asking for a free buffet, lol.

By the way, MGM properties are among the WORST for comps and rewards. So bad that they had to change their system to be more like Total Rewards, but still not as good. For several years I stayed and played exclusively at NYNY, Mirage, MGM, Mandalay Bay, and got nothing but a snobby attitude. When I joined total rewards, I started getting free rooms, and free food. Just my personal experience. Maybe MGM gives comps to 10k/day players, ha ha.