Last night I visited my thrid casino in the greater Phoenix area. The Gila River Casino at Wild Horse Pass (WHP) is another large Indian casino from the same mold as the Arizona Casino and Fort McDowell Casino reviewed above.
Unlike the others, WHP does not emphisize poker as much. They have a total of 17 tables. Last night (Wednesday) they only had 12 of these tables in operation. They had 3 to 12 people waiting for each level which kept the available tables full. WHP spread a single table of $2-4 limit holdem with other tables at $3-6, $4-8, and $8-16, all with a full kill. I wonder if having kill games is some kind of state law? I played the low limit game.
Another difference at WHP is one that will keep me from returning. Smoking in the poker area is allowed. I don't mind them allowing smoking and I didn't check because I will usually go to a casino once even with the smoking, but now I've been there and done that. I'd rather play smoke free.
They also allow food at the tables. The food was good and half-priced for players. I got a hamburger , fries, and a soft drink for $2.50. Some of the stir-fry looked better, but I am tired of asian food on this trip.
The tables were not as segregated as I've found in most casinos. They were next to the blackjack tables and very accessable to the rest of the casino. The area had some casino pass-through traffic, but not enough to be disturbing. The game that I played was loose, but not nearly as loose as the Fort Mcdowell donkeys.
The staff was a mix of real nice managers and board stiff dealers. Iesha (sp?) who went by Ike loosened up a bit when I asked if her given name is the same as Stevie Wonder's daughter (that is the kind of stupid trivia that I remember). She said that it was. Otherwise, the dealers seemed stressed and not a whole lot of fun. But that is OK with me as I'm real quiet at the table anyway.
My play was much better last night. I was getting good reads on the players and found some good cards to finish up $50 on the night.
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