ONLINE GAMBLING AND CASINO GUIDE

While the tourism focus has been on City Center lately and Fremont Street and the Venetian have gotten their moments of seasonal love … one small development on The Strip has flown almost completely under the radar.

At the end of last year, Casino Royale remodeled many of their guest rooms, added a new neon sign to the exterior of the building, and a week ago they opened an improvement/extension to their casino floor.

Even though this isn’t exactly an earth-shattering development, I still think it’s notable.

While most older properties are scaling back and looking for ways to cut costs, Casino Royale is actively putting money into the casino in an attempt to spruce the place up a bit.  This is even more impressive given its low-roller, redheaded stepchild reputation.

Although I’ve always known the place as Casino Royale, the property used to be known as the Nob Hill Casino, and before that it was Frank and Musso’s restaurant.  When it finally became known by its current name in the early 90’s, this joint used an adjacent Travelodge to house its guests.  This means that, even in the early 90’s, Casino Royale accommodations were already superior to those in Aria.

I kid, I kid.

Sort of.

Anyway, I stopped by the casino on two occasions last week in order to get some updated photographs of the property, and to drop a few bills at the craps table.

The location of the expanded area is directly behind the existing gaming pit.  Enter through the middle entrance from the Boulevard, go straight back, and there it is.

At the time of my arrival, the new pit looked like it was ready to go, although the slot area was still being prepped.  The Subway and Noble Roman’s Pizza appear as if they will be moved to the expanded location, and they are also adding a Cinnabon and a brand new hot dog joint.  Certainly not fine dining, but sometimes when you’re gaming … food is food.  On most days, I could get down with a footlong BMT followed by a Cinnabon and be fully satisfied.

Casino Royale is still very much a Downtown casino on the Las Vegas Strip.  It’s dark, narrow, cramped, and the limits are low … all while being a stone’s throw from both the Mirage and Venetian.  $3 Craps with 100x odds is still the Royale’s claim to fame, as well as $1 bottles of Michelob and dollar margaritas.

Unfortunately, Royale has taken a page out of The Strip playbook and routinely offers 6:5 Blackjack, although they do offer a version of “Blackjack Switch” with favorable rules which supposedly only have a house edge of .16%.

I’m not a huge “Switch” player, but the cheap Craps is enough to get me onto the Royale gaming floor on a reasonably regular basis.

The one true gripe I have about the place is the “free slot play” machines out front. They cause pedestrian traffic jams, they are a sucker trap, and I’m not convinced that these things engender good will or cause people to reach for their wallets and drop money in the casinos once the “free” play runs out.

Nonetheless, I’m still a fan of Casino Royale.  It’s still an unpretentious, cheap, non-duopoly casino in a sea of corporate sameness, and for these reasons, I hope it sticks around for a good long time.

Even though it’s not known as a “service oriented” property, my experiences with dealers and cocktail waitresses here have been as good as I’ve had elsewhere.  If anything, the dealers trend to the more friendly and competent side.

If it’s been awhile since you visited the Royale, it may be time to give it another shot.

The changes to the property are far from dramatic, but in this economy, I find it heartening to see an owner putting profits back into a property.

Stay away from the “free play”, though.  It could take up the better part of your day.

Don’t ask me how I know.

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