We did indeed make that reference and wondered if anyone would inquire further. Then, briefly, we thought we were losing our mind, as we could find no trace online of what we were pretty sure we’d seen with our own eyes...
A quick reference to a back issue of the LVA newsletter (April 2010), followed up by a call to the manager of said mystery venue, thankfully confirmed our recollection and saved us from the straightjacket (at least, for the time being).
The surprise "mystery venue" was/is in fact the Metro Pizza location at Decatur and Flamingo, which we noted back in 2010 had one of those white weatherproof banners hanging outside that usually proclaim something like "Las Vegas Review Journal ’Best of Vegas’ 1973". (Okay, we exaggerate, but it seems pretty much every restaurant/bar has, at some point in the past couple of centuries, been an R-J pick for "Best of" something, and the majority seem to have no qualms about leaving said signage up well past its relevancy date. (If our bar hadn’t been picked since 1987, we’d consider first removing the sign, and then rectifying whatever had caused us to fall from favor. But we digress...)
The banner above the entrance to this Metro did proclaim, as the manager yesterday confirmed, "World’s Smallest Video Poker Bar." When we asked her if they knew it to be at least the smallest video poker bar in Las Vegas, she confessed that she had no idea. With just five bartop machines, located on two different bar areas (with two and three machines, respectively), it most likely does have fewer video poker terminals than any other gambling venue in town (let us know if you know otherwise, and likewise if you know of some obscure venue elsewhere in this state that boasts a lone machine, or at least less than five).
Not only is Metro's claim evidently unconfirmed, but it’s something of a misnomer to call this joint a "bar" at all. Decked out, as it is, with pink walls and booths and black-and-white-checkered floor tile, it really looks more like a ’50s diner than either a bar or a pizza restaurant, and we recall that when we played there once, there was no service at the "video poker bar," which is really just a few out-of-the-way machines placed to divert bored solo customers while they're waiting for their take-out order. Still, in this city that constantly emphasizes extravagance and excess, it's somewhat endearing to have a place take pride in being diminutive (even though we seem to recall that the pay schedules sucked!)
