Call me Royal. But call me. |
Day 12, I guess, and a fairly simple day it was.
Things still looked good on the TV folio readout - no additional asshole charges, no charge for the first two nights, no resort fees, no additional internet fees.
After writing, coffee, and room camping breakfast (thanks to CVS, provider of sandwiches), we went down to the casino at Encore and played some.
The plan was to grab a Lyft to Cosmo, and work our way back to Wynn. But the Lyft was going to take 18 minutes. Then after 5 minutes, 20 minutes. Then after 5 more minutes, 20 minutes.
Fuck it. We bailed and went for Plan E - ship out to Ellis Island.
Ellis Island is a gambling atoll in the seven seas of tight Strip machines and high prices. It's not as good for video poker as it used to be, but there is still a selection of great games to play.
There's also $5 blackjack with 3:2 payback on the BJ, and $5 craps. The dealers are friendly, fun and helpful, too.
Parking? Duh, free. It seems that Ellis Island actually wants your business. They've got a micro-brewery, and make great BBQ. There are tons of great promotions going on there, too.
They have solid coupons in the Las Vegas Advisor book for $10 to $10 freeplay (let's face it, almost everyone gets $10), an a match play. There are free drink coupons, and food deals too.
You never know what the self serve kiosk is going to spit out at you after you've played some.
Hey, you've won a free beer! Hey, you've won $3 off BBQ! Hey, you've won a box of Girl Scout cookies! Hey, you've won a hat! Hey, you've won a t-shirt! Hey, you've won a free steak dinner! Hey, you've won a set of Ellis Island bathtub safety strips! Hey, you've won a Super 8 room upgrade (to Super 9, I presume). Hey, you've won an Ellis Island logo man purse and grooming kit! Hey, you've won a set of Ellis Island Karaoke earplugs!
If you are staying in Bally's or nearby, it's a short walk away.
So, we did all the coupon things and played some.
The Quad Queen played a lot of Shockwave, trying to repeat her $1000 win at the Cal. She had four chances at it but couldn't connect.
I'd never had BBQ at EI before, so that's what we had for dinner.
The baby back ribs were amazing - so juicy and tender, and I really liked their sauce.
After dinner, the Quad Queen took a flyer at 50 cent Double Super Times Pay. The machine was hot, and she made some money!
After an hour of painful blackjack, I was even, and then lost five hands in a row. I gave up, coloring for a $50 loss.
Back at the machines, I got some quads, and failed at a royal draw again. Booo!
After that, though, bad news.
This day turned out to be really simple. We played for most of the day at Ellis Island, during which I tended to keep losing, despite hitting some quads. Nothing much was working for me, and a couple of hundies thrown at dollar Bonus yielded nothing.
Back at Encore, we took stock. I'd used all my budget for the day plus $100. Time to quit?
No, time to take another hundred and some travellers down to the casino!
The Quad Queen flitted from game to game, getting yet another Pick-a-pair quad, and some Boner Deluxe ones as well.
What was I doing all this time? Losing that hundy, mostly on video keno.
What did I do? Take a second extra hundy from the Quad Queen. I was now in really, really deep for the day. Three hundred over budget. Oopsies!
I changed my keno strategy to lower the cost per hand but still have a chance at a decent hit.
I played three four spots for a quarter each, and an overlapping five spot for 50 cents. I hit the four twice, to give me enough quarters to keep going, and sure enough, the solid five came in. Just like that, my day was respectable again, and I cashed out $500.
The final tally was Quad Queen -$160 and Flusher -$400. On the plus side, we'd had a fantastic day and one of the best meals of the trip, and we were up two bellies full of ribs, some cookies, and a hat.
Tomorrow, we move yet again, and the fun continues!
Flusher, great BBQ at EI. A well kept secret. I hope you got your extra discount coupons at the Players Club kiosk after your VP play. If not remember for next time. I really enjoy your reports, keep them coming and good luck.
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