Getting Lucky at the Downtown Grand

The trip has being going pretty well so far - up until today... this morning we were up a combined ~$2K but Mrs. Flusher had kind of an 'off' day and was down about $700 by mid-afternoon.

We were excited as hell that the Downtown Grand was having its soft opening this afternoon and we planned to head over there - maybe that would be the change in luck she needed...

I had a pretty good day having some great runs on quarters - played an hour and a quarter on $20, and on another occasion hit two quads for $100 each in ten minutes on Bonus Deluxe at the Fremont. So I was up a little on the day.

Never mind that though, this is about the Downtown Grand.

I've been waiting and waiting for this property to re-open as a sign that the Downtown Vegas that I love would be growing and flourishing - and the day has finally come.

We strolled over and headed inside.

The casino is really nicely done. It feels comfy and modern, with touches of stylized turn-of-the-previous-century factory industrial, if that makes any sense. In any case, it works.

We were greeted warmly by so many different staff members and they had a system set up where folks with handheld units could set up your player's card account without you having to wait in line at the slot club.

Once we got our cards set up we did what any degenerate video poker junkie would do - slid up to the bar and slipped some dough into the machines.

The bar staff was great - shout out to Guy who kept us laughing and kept the Maker's and the Jameson's flowing appropriately.

We hammered at the dollar VP for about three hours and I managed to pull to almost even on the session thanks to a couple of quads. The Quad Queen managed only one and dropped about $420. OWIE!!!

Really, we did not get the statistical number of quads we should have gotten for that amount of play - five or six would have been average.

But we did qualify for drawings, free play, Original Member tokens, and free hats!!!

They have a very sophisticated slot club system that is fully integrated into the gorgeous looking flat-screen machines, although it can be a little unnerving when the video poker display gets 'squashed' by an incoming notification, such as when you earn a drawing ticket.

We met a few of the staff including the Beverage manager, Monica - always important to make sure the beverages are covered!

When it was time to roll, I called for a host to come over and we had a nice chat with Melli, who set us up with a dinner comp for later in the week. We also talked about future stays and honestly, I can't wait.

The place looks fantastic. The music is great, no grating too-loud crap like at the D, or grating too-loud American Idol meets Real World soundtrack crap like at the Smug Nugget. And no 'hits of the 60s all day every day' like at the Cal. ;)

No, the music is modern, edging more towards urban pop beat-driven club techno dance with a touch of hip hop. I'm sure there's a channel for that on Sirius.

And actually, the first song I heard upon entering the Downtown Grand was from my favorite album of this year, Daft Punk's "Get Lucky".

Seemed appropriate given the opening and given the heritage of the Downtown Grand, once upon a time, the Lady Luck.

Now to go and get my free hat $420 hat!!!

Yes, Mrs. Flusher set a personal best today, having her largest Vegas loss ever ever ever at $1020. I'm sure I can top that record though...

Ladder to the Top Shelf liquor - literally.

Lobby - can't wait to stay here.

Very cool Art Bar. Look up!

Outdoor gambling will presumably be in this mini pit/patio.