We just got back from our semiannual week in Vegas, this one was two nights at Palace Station, three at South Point and two at Four Queens. Our son and daughter-in-law (Aaron and Arielle) joined us for the PS and SP stays, it was great spending time with them. Lots of good food and company, some good gambling but a few days of very bad gambling; in spite of wins at PS and 4Q, the losses at SP put us in the red. Total loss was $1300 (mostly mine; Linda hit a few jackpots, I didn’t) on $73.3K coin-in, for a 1.8% loss. Better luck next time.
WEDNESDAY
Easy Southwest nonstop from Tampa and an Uber ride to PS, got settled in and started playing. Linda mostly played the dollar 8/5 BP progressive at the casino bar, which was pretty juicy at the time, about $4800. She didn’t hit it but got a lot of premium quads and quad aces, also a straight flush. I didn’t do as well but held my own, played some dollar 9/6 JoB and quarter triple-line BP, got a couple of premium quads on the BP. Dinner was at the Brass Fork, not a great coffee shop but the prime rib was surprisingly adequate and the fried shoestring zucchini appetizer is always nice. Aaron and Arielle showed up after dinner, we played with them for a bit (played some NSUD, didn’t have any luck, but they each eventually caught the quad deuces), also took a shot at Joe Blow Gold, a banking slot, made $6 (plus fun). Early bedtime.
THURSDAY
I played the dollar BP progressive at the bar (still not hit) over coffee, did about as well as I ever do over coffee, hit quad 3s and 10s, cashed out $300 ahead. Up and down the rest of the morning, then Tacos and Tequila for lunch, not bad but kind of expensive and underwhelming (had tacos al pastor). Had a pretty good afternoon, tried Atomic Fever poker and made a few bucks, also a fun but slightly losing Multistrike BP session (Aaron and Arielle both cashed out ahead; hell of a scary ride). Dinner was Bazaar Meat, at the Sahara, I love that place. Had the tasting menu: cotton candy foie gras, modern and traditional olives, bagel and lox cone, smoke and ice oysters, steak tartare, cured meat selection (the jamon iberico was easily the best cured meat I’ve ever eaten), chicken croquettes, Wagyu/Black Angus hybrid ribeye, vaca vieja ribeye (an add-on, from an old working cow; surprisingly tasty), buttered potato puree (Joel Robuchon’s recipe), mushrooms al ajillo, grilled asparagus with romescu, assorted tarts and cookies. Outstanding meal overall. Back to PS, had a good evening, including a dealt quad on the 3-play BP machine and a big vulturing hit on Joe Blow Gold (up $145).
FRIDAY
Move to South Point today; this is becoming my favorite casino, good games and CB and generous comps. Had a decent start, but then everything started to go south. Mostly played either dollar single-line or quarter 3-play JoB, couldn’t catch much of anything, also had a few really shitty STP-BP and Good Times Pay NSUD sessions. The $1.50 Vienna hot dog in the sports book was good, though (although the sauerkraut was lackluster; it makes a difference). Linda did get a dollar SF after lunch, that was good; I also got an annoying natural straight flush on NSUD. Also started noticing that I’d been getting a lot of dead man’s hands (AA88), that was disconcerting. Anyway, not a terrific afternoon. Dinner was at Primarily Prime Rib, had a good solid cup of pea soup and some excellent prime rib; I love this place. Badly underquadded evening.
SATURDAY
The losses continue; I took a shot at UltX Illinois Deuces, that was quick money down the drain. Mediocre morning overall. The kids and I walked down to 2 Scoops of Aloha, a little Hawaiian place in a strip mall a block north of SP. Very good overall; not as good as Aloha Specialties downtown, but a fairly extensive menu and big poke case. I had a Hibiscus combo (kalua pig, laulau, lomilomi salmon, rice, macaroni salad) and a Spam musubi, all very good. Tough afternoon, although I had a few of those claw-back sessions, where you run $200 down to $5 or $0, and then work your way back to $200 with mostly two pairs and trips. Pain in the ass. We did get a commemorative bottle of moonshine, apparently made by a distillery in town that Michael Gaughan owns. Made from “grain and cane,” tastes like a mixture of cheap tequila and piss (maybe it was). But dinner was better, Kaiseki Yuzu in Chinatown, with the kids. Had their September special menu, featuring bluefin tuna cheek and nodoguro (AKA akamutsu, blackthroat sea perch, a real luxury treat) as well as A5 Wagyu beef, uni, lots of other good things. It was a really great meal, quality and preparation was all first-rate and the service was wonderful, although the visual presentation left something to be desired (especially for a kaiseki ryori restaurant) and some dishes didn’t work well. Still, it was a great meal. Back to SP, another $200 to last dollar to $200 dollar JoB session, a 3x wild royal on GTP-NSUD but then a net loss. Then bedtime.
SUNDAY
Finally got a winning session over coffee, then we went to the brunch buffet. Seemed about the same as their usual breakfast buffet, with mimosas instead of bloody marys, but a good option since the kids would be heading back home in the evening and I didn’t want them to be stuck with airport food. The afternoon was better, got a bunch of quads on the 3-play JoB machines, also probably the most 4-to-royals ever (guess how many 5-to-royals I got). Aaron and Arielle left around 4pm, Linda and I had dinner at the Oyster Bar (fried oysters and a combo pan roast for me; not bad, but it’s no secret why you can walk right in to the SP oyster bar at 6pm but there’s a long wait at the PS oyster bar anytime after 8am). Another up-and-down session after dinner, then bed.
MONDAY
We moved to 4Q this morning. The 9/6 JoB is still there and their quarter 10/7 DB is giving full points again, CB is still generous (over 0.3%), but the place remains kind of threadbare and our offers have been reduced significantly. It’s still a good play, though, and we like it there, in spite of all the Fremont ST hassles. Morning session was up and down; lunch was at American Coney at the D, Linda had a chili cheese dog and I decided to try their gyros for a change (big mistake, mediocre gyro meat, small portion of it, stale pita). I walked down to the El Cortez after lunch and played some FP, then back to 4Q. Good afternoon, played mostly 50c 9/6 JoB (dollar machines are either r8/5 or half points; bastards), got two quads within about 5 hands at one point. I played some quarter DB as well, took a while to remember how to play; first session was a loser, though. Also played some 50c Illinois deuces at the bar; the progressive was about $2700, didn’t get that or the quad deuces, but all of my sessions were breakeven or better. Dinner was quick, at Magnolia’s; had some reasonably edible chicken piccata. Okay evening between JoB and the deuces progressive.
TUESDAY
Had a good start, a quad and a bunch of FHs put me up $60 pretty quickly. Did some wandering around, found another banking slot play at the Cal, made a quick $25 there. Back to 4Q, got a quad on my FP and made a little money, then had a good deuces session at the bar with two quints within 3 minutes. I walked over to the Union Plaza for lunch, they have a new Hawaiian fast food place in the food court, Aloha Hawaiian Grill. Limited menu, but really friendly people and everything was good (again, not Aloha Specialties quality, but it’s great to have a second Hawaiian option downtown). Had kalua pig (really good, just how I like it: all fat), chicken katsu, rice (only one scoop!) and macaroni salad, also some poke. Back to the El Cortez for more FP and a MP (lost), and also wandered down to the Western. It’s looking mighty shabby now, even for the Western; I don’t think they’re reopening. Back to 4Q, had a nice DB session with quad kings. Dinner was at Nacho Daddy, on 4th ST, had some nachos and an enchilada de carnitas, both very American and forgettable. Evening sessions were mostly break-even. Got our CB, and that was that.
WEDNESDAY
Last day. Went to Aloha Specialties for breakfast (Korean chicken plate, with a Spam musubi for dessert), I love that place. Back to 4Q, checked out. Return flight was delayed so we hung out in the room for a while, took an Uber to the airport, left about 2 ½ hours late, but that’s still a lot better than a cancelled flight, so yay!
It was a fun trip as always; winning trips are always at least a little more fun, but we still had plenty of fun, ate well and got to spend a lot of time with the kids. Next trip will be in March. Thanks for reading!
