Dan Chopin

We managed to catch Dan O’Sullivan and opener Dan Chopin this Friday night and I have to say, it was the best $2 we have ever paid.   Can you believe that?  Just two bucks. We even got front row seats.

So what is the deal?  Well, the Tunica Funny Bone is just getting started and as far as I can tell, the word is not out.  So they are offering deals to get in and the small crowd means personal service.  Heck, if either of the Dans see this, they will probably send us a personal email for attending.

My goal now is to find a better way to promote this place. It was the most fun we have had since shooting clays over at the Willows and a lot less dangerous.  Maybe Harrah’s should do some type of joint promotion.   How about bringing the shot guns over to the Funny bone after dark?  You could call it “Funny or Else” night.

The Tunica Funny bone does have a two drink minimum but you get to keep the glasses. Smart marketing move as I have at least one family member that snoops through our cabinets. I bet you do to.

You can see some of Dan O’Sullivan’s video’s at the roof top comedy site.

Or, just click his picture below. For Opener Dan, I included a Youtube video. Click it.

Dan O'Sullivan

On the plus side, I’ve still been able to hit a few casinos. In my last post, I hit Pennsylvania for a quick trip and have since hit a couple casinos in Arizona. The first was Harrah’s AkChin.  This had the extra advantage that Mrs Gambler and I were able to hit three Caesars Casinos for the Total Rewards Great Race competition. While I understand why many of you don’t want the casinos tracking you by using a rewards card, it really is an easy way to pick up some extra perks.

Harrah’s AkChin

Harrah’s AcChin is located south of Phenix and is a great place if you want to get a bit of sun as well as doing a bit of gaming. You can walk out of your room, right to the pool, and then up to the bar (that is IN the pool!)  This is a lot of fun and not something you get in the cold weather states.

I was also happy to find WMS’s latest StarTrek Slot machine. I’ve been a bit depressed since the old version started disappearing (yes, I get attached to these things).

Gila River Wild Horse Pass

Speaking of the WMS’s OLD Star Trek video slots, I did find it at the Gilariver Wild Horse Pass. Some may argue this is actually the better game.  You can play it for less at the Wildhorse, provided you can get a seat… its popular.

Gila River Gaming Enterprises, Inc runs several Casinos in Arizona.
I made it here in November so I wasn’t able to check out the outdoor activities like I did with Harrah’s,  However, this didn’t matter as the Wild Horse Pass Hotel is just the perfect place to say even when it is cold

outside.  I was especially pleased with the quality of the room I got.    I tried to grab a few pictures but I really didn’t do them justice.

There are several places you can eat at the Wild Horse, ranging in price for cheep people like me to a couple nice restaurants.  I actually splurged a bit and got dinner at Ling and Louies (ok, the price was really pretty good for normal people, but I like to go cheap )

So which one is best?  It depends.

The only negative (and this is for those of us that visit other casinos outside of Arizona) is that the alcoholic drinks are not free. They both will bring you out some very nice paid drinks but I’m kind of partial to the free drinks in Vegas, Tunica, and Biloxi. Harrah’s AkChin gets a +1 for their pool (with a bar and palm trees) but the quality of Wild Horse Pass hotel easily makes up for this.

Harrah’s AcChin is less expensive but farther from town.  If you travel a lot like me, its nice to be able to use your Total Rewards card. On the flip side,  if you are local to the area, it may make sense to get the Gila River Card and frequent their casinos since they have several in the region.

I captured a few picks with my iPhone but Harrah’s Chester also has a “Virtual Tour” on their web site that is pretty cool.

I found three things I really liked about Harrah’s Chester. First they have the new Harrah’s drink menu on the slot machines.  This means no long wait to find a server and a chance to try new drinks. This was my favorite “new thing” in Tunica last year and I really missed it in Vegas this summer.

I also liked the promotions they are doing.  There are Kiosks all around for picking the winners for the upcoming NFL games.  The other promotion I’m hoping to finish is Harrah’s Great Race. If you hit enough Caesars properties you can pick up quite a few Total Rewards points.  They actually have a special Kiosk for this on the 3^rd floor (thanks to the nice Harrah’s man supporting the 2^nd floor NFL kiosks for personally escorting me to it )

But my absolute favorite thing about Harrah’s Chester was the somewhat hidden Mien Noodle Bar behind the high roller tables.  I was taken to the bar by a very friendly older Asian gentleman and got some excellent service from Angel (Kayan).  Now she didn’t know I was a blogger (that would defeat the point  :-)  ) and I noted her providing some excellent service to others so I just had to call this out in my blog.  It didn’t hurt that the food was so good too!

Now that I’ve hit a couple Harrah’s Casinos,  Harrah’s Great Race has us thinking we might pick up some  Total Reward Points with a road trip. Maybe Tunica? Biloxi?  New Orleans?  What do you think?

The casino is lucky to be one of the few in the area but has historically had to deal with some unusual rules. Until recently, alcohol could not be served and the state still does not allow live dealers (although this may change). The last one is a bit strange as many (most?) customers would like live dealers and I assume it would mean a few more jobs for the area.

When I got there I wasn’t expecting much having heard some negative comments from my twitter peeps and reading some of the reviews. It seems those involved at the Harrah’s Cherokee has heard this too as the casino is in the middle of a large expansion. In fact, if you want to watch the progress, there is a web cam here.  There are a number of new shops coming make this more like the casinos you might find in Vegas.

The casino seemed nice and I even found my favorite game there (Star Trek).  They didn’t have as many of the latest games like you might find in Vegas or even Biloxi and Tunica. I personally think the casinos cycle out the games too quickly so it was nice being able to find some old favorites there.

If you don’t like the spend your whole time at the casino, the positive part of Harrah’s Cherokee is that you are in the middle of some of the most beautiful country in the United States.  This is a good place to learn about some Indian history and culture, hike, raft, ride innertubes and try some new foods.   There is also The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We personally stayed in a cabin not far off (Sorry, no peek at the Harrah’s Hotel this time )   Here’s a link to a map if you want to check it out yourself .

The state of Mississippi has made some significant contributions to our country, especially in music, so I’m sometime frustrated seeing some negative jokes or press on TV. Historically, I understand there are some good reasons for this.   Slavery, discriminatory voter practices in  the 60’s, and the state not repealing  its ban on interracial marriage until 1987 are some good examples.

What I hate about this is that it some times hides away the good things about Mississippi and how much progress has been made. You can make a good argument that Mississippi is the key historical state when it comes to rock and roll, blues, jazz, and country music. Who doesn’t know Elvis Presley or Jimmy Buffett? More blues singers have come from the state of Mississippi than all the other Southern states combined.

So, if you have noticed, I’ve been doing some posts on the new Gateway to the Blues facilities being constructed at the Tunica Visitor’s center.  You can read the first and second post by clicking on the links here:

Gateway to the Blues Part I

Gateway to the blues Part II

Below are some additional slides I have on what they are doing. I hope the next time you are visiting Tunica, you will make a side trip the Tunica Visitor’s Center and thank them for preserving some of the positive things Mississippians have contributed to this country.

First of all, let me say my wife and I like the bonus games, especially those that let you play together. There are a lot of great games out there but since we like to do our gaming side by side, our favorites below kind of lean that way.

Reel ‘em In

One of the top video slot machines for social gaming is Reel ‘em In from WMS.  I can still picture $700 fish swimming around.  Here’s the video to see how it works:

This game has a lot of variations so you want to watch for the four games under two large screens, not one of the smaller machines that also says “Reel em In”.  The game is great because at random times, all four of you play one of several fishing competitions.  You might have to row the fastest or catch the biggest fish.

WMS also added some fun twists like catching a small fish only to have a big fish come along and eat your small fish. Sometimes it leaves the bones and sometimes you land the “whale”.  The only problem I’m having is that it seems to be going out of style. Resorts and Hollywood in Tunica got rid of it and I couldn’t find it anywhere in Biloxi. I did see if in Rio Vegas a couple of months ago.

Star Trek

Star Trek video slots is the game that really got us hooked on the video slots. One of the trends in the gaming industry is to link the game to favorite movies, TV Shows, familiar board games, or anything that gives you some type of personal connection. Living in a house of Star Trek fans, this game was a natural with clips from the original show scattered though out the game.

The bad part is that since it has been out a while, I’ve not seen it at any casinos the last year.  If you have, I’d love a reply on where to find it.  Rumor has it it might be at Harrah’s Cherokee which will be our next casino visit.  Stay tuned for more information.

Rockin Olives

Moving on to something newer, the game Mrs. Gambler got hooked on at Isle of Capri in  Biloxi is Rockin’ Olives (that is the picture for this blog).  I didn’t find a good YouTube video (Dear Aristocrat Technologies, am I missing your Youtube channel? )  but Gaming Guide had a good article.  Or you can check out this video here:

Monopoly

This is one of the better games if you are playing with other people.  Like with Star Trek, it is a familiar game with a lot of variations.  Sometimes you play the Monopoly game, sometimes you take a ride on the railroad, and sometimes you hit the waterworks or electric company bonus game. As with some of my favorite games, they are from WMS (Hey WMS PR folks, how about a blog post on y’all sometime? )

Other Games To Try

I only touched on some of the better games out there but I know there are others.   For example, I hear Lord of the Rings, Sex in the City, The Hangover, and the God Father are all pretty good too. Feel free to leave a comment on some other games you like that we or other readers should try.

Picking the best buffet is actually pretty hard.  Buffets quality varies even at the same place and I’ve had good food at even run down casinos. Mrs. Gambler and I hardly even focus on the buffets anymore but rather certain dishes they serve. For example, the banana pudding at Isle of Capri in Lula is very good, and anything that says “Paula Deen signature dish” at Harrah’s Tunica is a good bet.

So where does, Isle of Capri in Biloxi show up?  Well, I’m going to have to give them the award for  “Best Seafood at a Buffet”.  We headed there on a Tuesday night where I got a huge plate of crab legs to start with. After I got tired of cracking these open, I went back for some shrimp, clams, muscles, crab, and fish.  Being on the beach just made it better.

Of course, you may not want to eat at the buffet every night or pay for an expensive restaurant. In our case, we also hit the Café At The Point on the way home (I think it was the only way I could get my wife out of the room so we could check out ).  They have some good sandwiches here and you can even get a table by the window overlooking the ocean.

What makes the Café the most special is the Chocolate Explosion cake. We caught up with @IsleCasinoBX (AKA Nicole) just as I was tweeting out a pic of this cake.  Seems it is her favorite too and it changes each time you get a slice.  They several kinds of chocolate candy to make it and not every one makes it into each slice.

So, the Isle of Capri was 3 for 3 for us.  I almost wish I had found some negatives about them so you don’t think I’m a shill (that’s an old gambling term).  Let’s hope our next gaming vacation is not this good

One think I did want to do is comment on the rooms. I was reading some reviews of the hotel and someone mentioned it looked like it was decorated by the “Golden Girls”. This was funny as it was kind of true but it had me thinking “out of date”.  It wasn’t and I personally think Betty White is pretty cool (I still love this commercial) . The reviews were also all over the place with “fabulous place” and “Had a Great stay!” right next to “Sad and rundown” . I love reviews from other customers but this time we had no idea what to expect when we got to the room.

It turned out our room was both beautiful and very clean. My wife immediately started moving clothes to the dresser and told me she wasn’t planning on leaving. I (of course  ) got pictures of the room from different angles so you can check out the theme below. Click to view slideshow.I personally get bored with the same neutral hotel theme and really liked the change of pace! Now it could be they knew I was a blogger and made sure I got a good room but I peeked into a few others and they all seemed nice too.

My wife and I are also exercising much more lately – I’m personally hitting the buffets and free drinks a little hard – so we later headed down to the exercise room. This place is well equipped with Precor machines. Mrs Gambler even gave a class to another guest on how to use the elliptical machine (we have the same machines at our gym).

If you would rather swim, they also have a multi-level pool just outside the exercise facilities and the spa along with a small pool bar with soft drinks and beer. From this area, you can also see the gulf and boats right behind you.  So far, the Isle is 2 for 2. Next blog, we’ll talk about the food.

Disclosure:  The Isle comped our room and one meal which I think is partly because I’m a blogger and partly because my wife and I regular casino customers. This is no way affects what I write in my blog.

If you saw my last post, we started our trip to Biloxi in a super cheap hotel. The story I’m telling my wife is that this was to make the next hotel look even better .  It is like the old commercial where the guy stumbles out of the dessert int a bar and asks for potato chips before drinking his soft drink.

We were really surprised by how nice the “Isle” is.  When you first walk in, you see a neon red bar called “Lava” on the lower level along with a smaller “satelite” casino right next to it. Being a car guy, I also loved the 1940 beach hot rod they had at the entrance.  I was  tempted to post a few more pics of this car’s engine but my wife tells me I run on too much about cars

Also on this level is a Starbucks (have you tried the Coconut Mocha? It’s pretty good). We hung out there for part of the day just people watching. You also have a view to the back fo this lower level where the Faraday’s restaurant is.  I’m sure its very good food (they are closed on Tuesday and Wednesday) but the real reason I wanted to go was to check out the wine cave!  It is a small circular room, much of it glass, that exends up to the next level. In side, there are ladders for you to reach the upper level wines.

I have a lot more to say about the Isle of Capri but I haven’t even made it to the second level where we were headed to check in!

So stay tuned.    Right now I have to head out for more gambling.  My wife and I just discovered the new “Rockin’ Olives” game

As you saw from my last post, we headed to Biloxi this week.  We had to be in Tuscaloosa, AL Sunday night so we were going to take two days to get there.  Instead, we were looking forward to getting into town and decided to “gamble” on finding a last minute room Sunday night in Biloxi.

We grabbed one of those coupon books at the road side rest… you know, the ones that offer “Walk in only rates” but when you walk in, they say all those rooms are solid out. We also checked out the last minute deals at the casinos. We probably should have headed on to one of the casino hotels but we got there late and could leave early so the extra cost didn’t seem worth it.  Plus, as you know, I’m cheap

We decided to let fate decide on what to do.  If we got the “walk in” rate, we would stay, otherwise we would head to The Palace that had a room for about $80. The good news?  You can get a hotel room ON THE BEACH for as little as $36 and ended up at the Flamingo Beach Hotel.

I think this Flamingo Beach hotel is right out of 1950… I’ve love to know how old it really is but I think 1950 was the last time it was updated. I couldn’t even find a web page for them! It had a funny odor which I saw others had commented on.  On the flip side, it had a GREAT bed.  My guess is so many people have slept on it over the years that it is broken into near perfection.

Other advantatages:  if you want to keep you car close, you can park it right in front of your door. It also had a pool and free WiFi although I was a bit nervous about bringing my laptop in (no, you won’t find a safe here).

would I go back?  No way!  But what a great deal right on the beach. And I’ll miss the bed.