Best Las Vegas casinos to play Blackjack

[bjren7]

I see a lot of post asking for the best LV casinos to play 21. I can't tell you the best but here are a handful which I find to be among the worse of the worse. Of course I'm just another BJ fanatic but I like to share my opinions with my fellow BJ buddies. Do you guys know of any LV casinos that should be added to the list?

1. All Station casinos (not to be confused with Boyd's Main Street Station)
2. Binions Horseshoe
3. Barbary Cost
4. Fitzgeralds
5. Flamingo Hilton
6. Four Queens
7. Las Vegas Club
8. EL Cortez
9. Plaza
10. Silverton on Blue Diamond

 

[Sonny]

I would have to disagree with a few of your choices:

The Silverton? The last time I was there they had a good $1 shoe game. With $1 minimums, why bother Wonging out? I got no real heat for a $1 to $60 spread (after a few 7&7's) and the dealers were fun. I could even sit out a few hands without any nasty looks. It's a great "last chance" on the way back to Los Angeles, especially once you've seen the nasty games in Jean and Primm.

Fitzgeralds had re-instated their DAS game for a while, but they may have revoked it by now. For a while it was the only decent DD game downtown.

I would like to add the Lady Luck casino to your list too. Not only was the DD game pretty weak, but the critters would swarm my nickel spread, even before I was tossing out the big bets! Now I'm a pretty aggresive player, but when the pit is sweating my 3-4 unit bets, I just have to bail.

Other than that, I'd have to agree with your post. It's sad to see Binion's on the list, but they have really gone downhill this past year. I used to LOVE them. I've NEVER had a losing session there. I guess having your cage robbed when you're already going bankrupt makes you tighen up quite a bit.

And don't forget O'Sheas! How can you argue with 1D H17 D10-11 NDAS 6:5 BJ with 55-65%penn? Where else can you find a single-deck game with over a 2% house edge?! It makes SF21 look FUN!

Anyway, that's just my two cents. I'm sure other will have more to add to the already good list.

-Sonny-

 

[learning to count]

AAAAHHH the worst...you left out the Sahara whew the worst game in town! Six decks with a three deck cut off.....YECH! AS far as the the sweaty spaniard and the LVC I found both places to have playable games. Good places to play well I would say Palms 6 deck, LVC single deck, El Cortez single deck, Western single deck, Flamingo six deck wonging, Mandalay Bay six decks wonging....These are good for a start. If you want to experience a real greasy over reaction paranoid barring go to the bar bar eee coast and spread 1-6. There are a lot of good places to play just stay away from 6/5 single deck, super fun 21, and any bad penetration games.

 

[Big Cowboy]

I would like to add the Xcalibur on the strip. 6 decks, H17, No surrender, No splitting Aces, and worse than usual penetration. That place really does make my skin crawl. The funny thing is I recently just walked through there last August just to see what their rules were. I played a few hands just to find out more and figured out that their rules had not changed since 1996. They stunk then, and they stink now. I have no idea why people even go to a place like that. At the same time, I still wonder why people play 6:5 BJ.
I agree that the Mandalay Bay is a good place to play, and I would also add the Grand is a nice, comfortable place to play.

 

[Panthercounter]

Re: Also Note.

Stay away from CSM's, crowded tables, and any place where they call check play on a $15 bet. Try different places and different times. You can find a place in vegas you like.

 

[Steve Langely]

Slots of Fun used to be: 1D, DAS, Stand17, no heat. Now it's 6-5. I found out when I was paid $60 for my $50 blackjack.

 

[Alexander Mundy]

Take 95 north....

420 miles.

 

[Tom Berg]

El Cortez * * * * * Blackjack

I played at El Cortez and was treated like a Whale. Betting 10 to 100, 25 to 500 and 100 to 1000. No heat from the PIt but they were trying to figure out my strategy. The pit had to teach the dealers how to pay a 1000 bet and do some things but the game was great. Ahead in the morning , even in the afternoon and down a little that night but that was my fault for playing with the same crew all day long, should have moved to a less crowded table but we were having such a good time playing there with 5 guys from California on an Bender.

Robera's restaurant is 4 Star or better, what a surprise. I was comped a $100 meal for Two, I had two lobsters tails( 7" of meat in each and my friend had a great Fillet, good Salad and the biggest shrimp I have ever seen in a shrimp cocktail. The posts I have seen on Ratelasvegas.com confirm what I experinced and that is where I will be playing from now on. Check it out because where else are you going to find Single Deck for $ 3,5,10 bet minimum.

And I hear that their Tower rooms are Large, clean and very nice for the Price

 

[Player]

Are you an AP?

Your post confuses me. About five times in your post you write things that indicate you are not playing with the advantage.

I am happy you got down some 1k bets at the EC, but if the EC allowed you to play all day, I am sure you are playing a losing game. You might seriously consider some of your issues and try again with your post.

 

[LV Bear]

This post appears to be a joke, or an ad for the El Cortez

I played at El Cortez and was treated like a Whale. Betting 10 to 100, 25 to 500 and 100 to 1000.

Which betting level was it? It makes no sense that you would play at three different levels.

How did you get the EC to raise its table limit to $1000? It has been only $500 for as long as I can recall, though I must confess to not having been there in a long time, having been asked to never come back many times. However, Current Blackjack News still shows it as only $500.

Check it out because where else are you going to find Single Deck for $ 3,5,10 bet minimum.

If you are playing with a max bet of $1000, why would you notice or care about the <u>minimum</u>?

Sorry, but this post appears to be a joke, or an ad for the El Cortez. The Cortez pit critters would have a heart attack over anyone spreading $25 to $500. Betting $100 to $1000 at the Cortez is highly unlikely.

 

[Boomer]

my first El Cortez experience

I am very new to the whole world of advantage play, but I have been doing a great deal of research on the topic for a while. After my trip to the El Cortez on Feb 13th, I highly doubt anyone would be able to use that kind of spread. My spread of $5-25 was generating a great deal of attention at my table, with two pit bosses looking over each shoulder of the dealer once I had won a $25 bet. I could tell that they were not thrilled with my play, so I bailed out with my winnings. Based on my one experience there, and never noticing anything like that anywhere else, I think it would be highly unlikely to be able to play such a large spread at the El Cortez.

 

[stainless steel rat]

never been there

myself, I was warned off by counting friends and have never tried to play there as a result. They gave me horror stories about backoffs and barrings for minimal spreads. Of course the BC I have tried, and ran afoul of quickly with a 1-1 bet spread. So anything can happen...

 

[zengrifter]

EC has good comp value...

... for red-chippers, but the best value I've found at red-chip level is the Sun Coast. zg

 

[KennilworthKid]

My El Cortez experience

I've been there 3 times, playing red, but only for 20 minutes each time, and have a net win of $60 for the three times, 2 out of 3 sessions win. Just going into the place seems a little dicey, as it is not in a nice area, but once inside I had no fears. The first time I went there I was a little overdressed, and was stared at by the pit boss. The other times, jeans and an old shirt and no special attention, until I started winning...then the dealer was changed withshortly thereafter. I quit then, I am very suspect of things like that.

The game offered is the classic downtown single deck, 50% pen with double on any two and hit a soft 17. But betting $25 or more results in a "checks play" call, or for that matter, buying in for $25 or more results in a "changing $xx" call. So betting anything much will draw attention. Minimums are usually $5 or more on weekend nights, and finding an uncrowded table then is not easy. Mornings and weekdays would probably be a better time.

Anyway, my special tip is anyone going there is to count your chips before cashing out. Two times out of the three I was there the cashier tried to short me $5...and I was only cashing out for $60-$90 each time!

 

[SonOfBeve]

How does the Western compare

another low limit single deck game, but the dealers shuffle rather than the machines. Anything better about the Western's game over the EC?

 

[SammyBoy]

ZG?

Do you think I earned any comps during the 90 minutes I played there?

 

[KennilworthKid]

Western has better game if....

you can stand the smoke & can brave the environment.

I been in there only once, but drove by a few times. The Western has the same rules as El Cortez, but they deal a few cards deeper.

However, the area is a couple of blocks farther into the skid row area, and I would not feel comfortable parking my car anywhere near...indeed, on my only visit I say LV Police busting a couple of guys in the parking lot across from the casino. Even though I was there at 7:30 am on a weekday, and when the Freemont Street casinos were slow, every table at the Western had 3-4 persons playing, and just about all were smoking. Security is highly visible there...and that's a good thing I think. If you go, where you rattiest clothes, don't shower that morning as well as pass on shaving, leave your girlfriend/spouse behind and you will fit in. Limits are low and its a good place to get some cheap experience.

 

[zengrifter]

The EC's game is better ... *PIC*

... on days and grave (when you can get an uncrowded game) because the shuffle machines increase the number of hands and the dealers deal deeper and faster. On the other hand, the Western dealers are prone to more mistakes that can favor a savy player. Dealer mistakes at the Western probably add an additional 20% to your EV. zg

 

[Dali-lama]

the big W

now, now... you must follow the dali-lama here ...the big W is nirvana.
Well, at least it was untill the carpeting and mind play games came in....

 

[LV Bear]

Mindplay at Big W?

I hope you're joking. Since I am unwelcome there at present, I can't go see for myself. Surely you jest. $20,000 tables at a place that probabaly doens't make $20,000 on a table in a week? And gives no worthwhile comps?