Last Thursday, I went with a couple of girlfriends up to Cherokee to visit the casino there. (It is a Harrah's casino.) We arrived about 4:30 and after about 10 minutes waiting in line were able to check in. We stayed in a Mountain Tower room on the 12th floor. Despite being one of the cheapest rooms in the hotel, it was quite nice. The room was clean and the beds comfortable. The bathroom was quite spacious.
We immediately headed down to gamble. The disappointing thing about this casino is that there are very few table games. None of the table games have real cards (I understand that will change by the end of the year), and the only games available were black jack. They do have baccarat tables, but they never seemed to be open. The minimums I saw were $25.00. There was always a crowd of people waiting to play.
So we played slots, all sorts of slots: Hangover; Monopoly Main Event; Star Trek; other Monopoly games; Wheel of Fortune; Wolf Run II, and old-fashioned reel machines. From all accounts, the slots at Cherokee are tight, very tight. I cannot argue with that. Nevertheless, we had great fun. Each of my friends lost about $200.00 but I ended up $20.00 ahead. Woo Hoo -- big winner!
If you have not been to this casino in years, give it another try. It has been over 5 years since I last visited, and the changes are striking. It used to be small, dark and painfully smoky. Now it is lovely and much bigger. The ventilation system is MUCH better. It is still smoky but tolerable. I understand that it is worse on the weekends. With the exception of too many ashtrays that need emptying, it is a very clean place as well.
Cherokee now has alcohol available, but it is not free. When gambling, one can get Pepsi products, coffee and water free, but you have to pay for alcoholic drinks. The drinks are small and mediocre. My vodka cranberry cost me $4. If you are there after 4:00, you can always step into Ruth Chris which is right off the casino and get a drink to go. There drinks are wonderful, expensive ($10 - $14), but wonderful. I think the drinks are worth it because I enjoy good cocktails.
There is a new Italian restaurant, Brio. It is on the 2nd floor above the casino. We ate both dinner there Thursday and lunch the next day. It is a chain restaurant but a good one. We all enjoyed our food. Dinner for three people with one cocktail apiece, one shared appetizer, one salad apiece and three entrées came to a total of $115.00 (including tax but not gratuity).
Friday morning we ate breakfast at Paula Dean’s. I would not go back. My breakfast was just OK. My friend’s breakfast (eggs benedict) was inedible. I have heard that there is a nice pancake house somewhere in the town of Cherokee. I’ll try that next time.
Conclusion: The casino in Cherokee is a nice place to go for a short visit. When they get more table games with real cards, I will definitely be back!
We immediately headed down to gamble. The disappointing thing about this casino is that there are very few table games. None of the table games have real cards (I understand that will change by the end of the year), and the only games available were black jack. They do have baccarat tables, but they never seemed to be open. The minimums I saw were $25.00. There was always a crowd of people waiting to play.
So we played slots, all sorts of slots: Hangover; Monopoly Main Event; Star Trek; other Monopoly games; Wheel of Fortune; Wolf Run II, and old-fashioned reel machines. From all accounts, the slots at Cherokee are tight, very tight. I cannot argue with that. Nevertheless, we had great fun. Each of my friends lost about $200.00 but I ended up $20.00 ahead. Woo Hoo -- big winner!
If you have not been to this casino in years, give it another try. It has been over 5 years since I last visited, and the changes are striking. It used to be small, dark and painfully smoky. Now it is lovely and much bigger. The ventilation system is MUCH better. It is still smoky but tolerable. I understand that it is worse on the weekends. With the exception of too many ashtrays that need emptying, it is a very clean place as well.
Cherokee now has alcohol available, but it is not free. When gambling, one can get Pepsi products, coffee and water free, but you have to pay for alcoholic drinks. The drinks are small and mediocre. My vodka cranberry cost me $4. If you are there after 4:00, you can always step into Ruth Chris which is right off the casino and get a drink to go. There drinks are wonderful, expensive ($10 - $14), but wonderful. I think the drinks are worth it because I enjoy good cocktails.
There is a new Italian restaurant, Brio. It is on the 2nd floor above the casino. We ate both dinner there Thursday and lunch the next day. It is a chain restaurant but a good one. We all enjoyed our food. Dinner for three people with one cocktail apiece, one shared appetizer, one salad apiece and three entrées came to a total of $115.00 (including tax but not gratuity).
Friday morning we ate breakfast at Paula Dean’s. I would not go back. My breakfast was just OK. My friend’s breakfast (eggs benedict) was inedible. I have heard that there is a nice pancake house somewhere in the town of Cherokee. I’ll try that next time.
Conclusion: The casino in Cherokee is a nice place to go for a short visit. When they get more table games with real cards, I will definitely be back!
