Cache Creek Casino Nov 2022

I'm right now at Cache Creek Casino, which is northwest of Davis and Sacramento, California.

Some bullet point thoughts:

I first visited when the Mrs. was just the girlfriend and she brought me, along with her dad, in 2001.

The Mrs. recently visited with her mom and apparently her blackjack play made her worthy of $75 in free play and a free night — which stunningly could be a Friday night, which is why we're here now.

We had never stayed at Cache Creek because it was always way expensive, and they never offered us free rooms until now. Supposedly you can't book a room because the Mrs. asked what's the room rate and was told only invited guests can book.

We arrived at 7pm and got a 5th floor South Tower room, which is the new wing. We were surprised and delighted that the 5th flior rooms include a patio that's about 20x20 feet! Nice room with big shower, robes, coffee maker, fridge, and safe.

We got to-go food downstairs. A chicken burrito and chips&salsa cost an even $15 — no tax! We also got four Asian dishes (pork adobo, bahn mi, curry chicken, and a meat and bok choy dish) that totaled less than $40. Way cheaper than South Bay food! The Mrs. and I and the two kids ate everything!

The pool is open until 10pm and we went down at 9ish. The pool and jacuzzi were both relatively big and the pool area is pretty. Cold winds blew when we got there, but the jacuzzi water was nice and warm. The wind died down a bit after awhile fortunately. Nobody there when we arrived, but another Bay Area family joined us and we chatted a bit until closing.

After showering, I went downstairs to observe the games. (The Mrs. passed out from taking a Benedryl.) I saw craps using cards ($5 min at the Roll to Win table, $10 min at regular table); roulette (using cards I presume); blackjack pays 3-2 at all tables that I saw, including single and double deck; $50 min pai gow tiles (one table); face up pai gow poker; $10 three card poker; Spanish 21; Casino War; and baccarat to name just some of the games i remember.

I got a players card and was told I was still in the system. The young lady said my last visit was 2003, the longest time away she had seen! I said two kids would do that, and she agreed! (The casino is in the middle of nowhere, and aside from the pool, there's nothing around for kids to do.) No promotions for me.

I sat at the main bar and ordered a pinot noir for $7. They pour about 8 ounces of wine! The house band played songs from the '60s to 2000s while a couple dozen people (my daughter would call them "boomers") danced. I played 21 hands of 9-5 JoB at 5x$1 and lost $25. I was dealt trips twice, but lady luck didn't appear on the draw.

Before I went back up, I got a couple big cookies for the kids, which cost $2.25 each. Back in 2001 when Cache Creek was a tiny casino with no hotel, the coffee stand sold similar big cookies for $1 each. Inflation hasn't been too bad in that regard over the past 21 years!

Quote: smoothgrh

After showering, I went downstairs to observe the games. (The Mrs. passed out from taking a Benedryl.) I saw craps using cards ($5 min at the Roll to Win table, $10 min at regular table); roulette (using cards I presume); blackjack pays 3-2 at all tables that I saw, including single and double deck; $50 min pai gow tiles (one table); face up pai gow poker; $10 three card poker; Spanish 21; Casino War; and baccarat to name just some of the games i remember.
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I know Cache Creek used to advertise that all of their tables were 3-2 and dealer stands on soft 17.

Yes, that's card roulette (and thanks to Proposition 26 going down, it's going to stay that way for at least the next two years); I think it uses a wheel without numbers, and two cards from a deck with 0-36 and 00 are placed on red and black spaces - whatever color the ball lands in is the card used.
I didn't know it had a normal (well, normal with cards) craps table; the one time I was there (November 2021), only the Roll To Win table was open, but what do you expect for 9:30 AM on a weekday?

Patio....or balcony? Either way that is huge, 20' x 20'

Yep, I remember those commercials and billboards! Looks like "blackjack pays 3 to 2" on the felts is a remnant of that campaign. They used to tout good video poker odds, too. At the bar, it was 8-5 JoB for quarters and 50 cents, and 9-5 for $1. In the high limit room, $5 JoB was 9-6.

I haven't played roulette since the '90s, so I don't know how the card method works.

Saturday morning, I checked out the games again — pai gow tiles still $50, though I noticed the other table (now closed) was switched to $100 min at some point.

Only the Roll To Win craps table was open and so I tried my luck. I came with the point established as 4. I did a come bet, got a 6 and won it. I did another come bet and the roll was 3 craps. The shooter was doing pretty well, but I wasn't feeling optimistic, so I wasn't betting. And he was shooting the kind of roll I always hope for: lots of 6s and 8s. But I couldn't start betting them NOW, I thought. Eventually I decided to bet a Don't Come and got a 10. I laid the odds, but couldn't remember what the proper odds were. Ultimately I don't think it mattered, because you can bet anything, and the computer figures the odds out down to the penny. He eventually sevened out after about 27 rolls.

My roll was next. One the comeout, I rolled "blue-blue" on the dice, which meant a hardway 4 based on the cards. So bet the odds and placed the 6 and 8. Next roll, I misheard "blue-blue" again, but it was an immediate 7 out! But I screwed up and somehow did lay bets on the 6 and 8, so I actually won a little bit. I somehow did that *again* with the next shooter, so instead of being up $2, I finished ahead $12.40! Either I'm bad at interpreting user interface, or it's bad user interface!

Quote: Johnzimbo

Patio....or balcony? Either way that is huge, 20' x 20'
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It's a patio. It's fully enclosed and sits on top of the main building that juts out. I measured it by lying on the floor inside. The room width is about 13 feet, but the outside width is bigger because of the wall space between rooms — I'd estimate about a yard on each side, so that's about 19-20 feet. And based on the tiling, the depth is longer, so maybe the patio is about 20' by 22'?

Quote: smoothgrh

We had never stayed at Cache Creek because it was always way expensive, and they never offered us free rooms until now. Supposedly you can't book a room because the Mrs. asked what's the room rate and was told only invited guests can book.

That made me curious so I looked on their website. Yep, VERY expensive but I think you can book a room there.

It sounds like a great place to stay.

Yeah we noticed a rate card too, so not sure why front desk person said that.