Casino Chip of the Day

State: New York
City: Verona
Casino: Turning Stone Casino Resort

After serving my suspension, returning from Vegas, and finding the top of my desk again, I figure it's time to restart posting chips!

Today's chip of the day comes from the Turning Stone Casino Resort in Verona, NY. Turning Stone is just off the Thruway (I-90), about half way between Utica and Syracuse. It's a world class resort, with a big casino. Casino City lists the casino floor at 125,000 sqft, with 2100 machines and 117 tables. That seems like the right amount of tables to me. Turning Stone has some odd and high-edge games. I'm pretty sure this is the only place I've ever seen someone actually playing casino war - so maybe this is a market with the players to support the carnival games that Turning Stone has.

The casino also has a feature that is quite unique. I'm not sure whether it's better to call it cool or scary. The slots don't take cash. Money must be loaded onto your players club card at an ATM-like machine. Then the players club card is used at whatever machine you want to play. I guess it's like those stored-value cards at Dave and Busters, only with a hell of a lot more stored value. I appreciated the idea of playing without cash or tickets, but I was scared all day that I'd leave my card in a machine (because, really, who hasn't done that?). After a slot/VP session, the player must visit the cashier to convert the stored value on the card back into cash. Even that was pretty handy. I paused on the machines and converted $200 to cash to play some blackjack, then converted the rest of my money to cash at the end of my stay. That nicely eliminates the problem of finishing the day with a pocket full of quarters and nickels.

I visited Turning Stone for the first time during my mostly-business odyssey through the northeast. I actually visited the property twice on that trip - once on the way from Albany to Buffalo, and again on the way from Ottawa to Rochester. You know it's a screwy trip when two drives like that happen within 4 days...
If things go as planned, I'll return this summer for a wedding. I'm looking forward to trying out the hotel and golf course.

According to the MOGH, my chip is a house mold. It's very similar to the Bally's AC chip, only with a different number of edge inserts.

Well, welcome back to the thread, rdw! If you hadn't shown up in the next couple of days, I would be home myself and was going to start posting the chips I have collected on this trip. I picked up three in Las Vegas last week, then six in Cripple Creek on Tuesday, and fourteen more on Wednesday in Central City and Black Hawk.

Edit 9/24/15: I finally got my own Turning Stone chip and posted it here.

Thanks for the continued chip posting. I'm sure it is very much appreciated by all.

Thanks for getting the thread going again rdw4potus. I was at Turning Stone in 2007 and they had some crazy no alcohol policy. Like none allowed on the property at all. When I inquired as to what was up. They explained that they were negotiating with the state of NY to get a full alcohol license. Apparently they had a BYOB policy for years and had run afoul of some state regs. They were trying to get back into the good graces of the state liquor board I guess. Did they ever get their booze situation straightened out? A casino without booze is like a car with no radio. It's just not much fun.

Quote: vendman1

Did they ever get their booze situation straightened out? A casino without booze is like a car with no radio. It's just not much fun.

There is wine on the menu at the steakhouse, and the wedding I hope to attend this summer will not be dry. So, I think they must have at least a modified liquor license. I'm not sure if it's wine & beer only or if it's all spirits (I'm not even sure if NY makes a distinction, but some states do).

I note that the white lettering says, "An Enterprise of the Oneida Indian Nation". Would it be more correct to say, "An Oneida Indian Nation Enterprise"?

In any case, what are the other "Enterprises" of the Oneida Nation?

Quote: Ayecarumba

I note that the white lettering says, "An Enterprise of the Oneida Indian Nation". Would it be more correct to say, "An Oneida Indian Nation Enterprise"?

In any case, what are the other "Enterprises" of the Oneida Nation?

I have to laugh. I went to the tribe's website to try to find an answer to this question. I thought I'd have to dig around, since that's been my experience with other tribal sites, but the Oneida's site features a very handy "enterprises" button, which led to this page.

Apparently, there are also convenience stores, marinas, and a fishing lodge.

Quote: rdw4potus

I have to laugh. I went to the tribe's website to try to find an answer to this question. I thought I'd have to dig around, since that's been my experience with other tribal sites, but the Oneida's site features a very handy "enterprises" button, which led to this page.

Apparently, there are also convenience stores, marinas, and a fishing lodge.

Thanks, rdw. Interesting to note they also have film production and media distribution, "enterprises".

State: Ontario
City: Gananoque
Casino: 1000 Islands Charity Casino

My original plan for today was to transition from NY to MO, and finish that state off over the next several days. But, it turns out that I don't have my MO photos uploaded to photobucket, and I'm away from home for a couple days. So....Audible! The new plan is to run through the remainder of my chips from Ontario for the next few days. I think I'm one chip short of finishing out the province, but I won't collect that chip any time soon.

Today's chip comes from the 1000 Islands Charity Casino (aka Thousand Island charity casino, aka OLG Casino Thousand Islands). The casino is in Gananoque, ON, in the area where the Saint Lawrence meets Lake Ontario. The area is known for, among other things, the ridiculous number of islands. I'm not sure if there really are a thousand of them, but it's a very high number. The area is also known for high winds and significant lake-effect precipitation. On the day I visited, a storm had just blown through and it was still damp and grey and windy. So windy, in fact, that some of the higher bridges back into the USA were closed. The casino was full of truckers who were apparently waiting to be able to cross on the high-bridge. I couldn't tell, but I guess they're not allowed to cross via the other available routes - maybe there's a height or weight restriction on those roads

I thought Gananoque was a pretty little town. I could see it being a fun place to spend a weekend with a significant other. Probably not in late March, but, you know, in July. The casino itself was pretty small and unassuming inside. I really like the outside of this casino, though. It opened in 2002, but has a very well thought out retro look on the outside of the building (the theme doesn't carry over inside). Like most of the other OLG facilities, it does a good job of not pretending to be anything that it isn't - there are 600 slots, 30 tables, a coffee spot, a restaurant, and 0 wasted square feet. Here's an internet picture of the outside of the casino:



My chip is a Paulson RHC. Like most other chips from Ontario, it is identical on both sides.

What cool architecture! Looks like a bowling alley. Three questions come to mind:
1) What's with "Charity" in the name? Do the proceeds go to the Red Cross or something?
2) Are the inserts supposed to look like salad dressing?
3) Is this the region where mayonaise and ketchup were first mixed together?

And then a fourth question:
4) It doesn't appear that the "1000 Islands" part of the name is displayed on the signage in the exterior photo. Do the other casinos in this chain share the same design? Also, 4a) Do they consistently use the number, "1000" instead of spelling it out as, "One Thousand" on the chips and signage? The seriously illiterate could be deceived.

Quote: Ayecarumba

What cool architecture! Looks like a bowling alley. Three questions come to mind:
1) What's with "Charity" in the name? Do the proceeds go to the Red Cross or something?
2) Are the inserts supposed to look like salad dressing?
3) Is this the region where mayonaise and ketchup were first mixed together?

And then a fourth question:
4) It doesn't appear that the "1000 Islands" part of the name is displayed on the signage in the exterior photo. Do the other casinos in this chain share the same design? Also, 4a) Do they consistently use the number, "1000" instead of spelling it out as, "One Thousand" on the chips and signage? The seriously illiterate could be deceived.

Answers:
0. It does look like a bowling alley! And it reminds me of something you'd see along route 66.
1. This casino is run by the Ontario lottery. Like many state lotteries, the proceeds go to various causes. I'm not sure if environmental conservation and public education should be considered "charities," but that's the situation.
2. This board has some cheeky Canadians, so maybe the chip's designers were also cheeky? Anything's possible, right? :-)
3. Apparently so. Or at least the region that brought the dressing to prominence. wiki
4&4a. The chips say 1000 Island Charity Casino. But I think the property is more properly currently called OLG Casino, Thousand Islands. Several of the OLG casinos in Ontario have this dual naming issue. I'm going to post them according to what is on the chip. The various OLG casinos all have distinct designs, and as far as I can remember, they're all just marked OLG Casino. I guess it's similar to how we talk about Harrah's Las Vegas and Harrah's Laughlin, but the buildings just say Harrah's.

Thanks for the interesting info rdw!

I expect things from Canada to have French on them, but I note that everything is, "en Anglaise". Does the French requirement only pertain to certain areas of the country, certain products, or "national" businesses?

Quote: Ayecarumba

Thanks for the interesting info rdw!

I expect things from Canada to have French on them, but I note that everything is, "en Anglaise". Does the French requirement only pertain to certain areas of the country, certain products, or "national" businesses?

Outside of Quebec, you're less likely to see French. Every other province is chiefly English.

State: Ontario
City: Windsor
Casino: Caesars

Today's chip of the day comes from Caesars in Windsor, Ontario. Caesars opened in 2008, and features 100,000 sqft of gaming space. Casino City says there are 2,500 gaming machines and 84 tables. I have visited this property several times over the past few years, though I never visited prior to 2008 when this license belonged to Casino Windsor.

I collected this chip in 2010, when I had a 1 day stopover on a flight through Detroit. That trip had a couple interesting low-lights. At some point, my rental car was badly damaged while parked. And I very nearly got denied access to Canada. The guards had a little fight about it right in front of me. Finally, the guy saying "there is no valid reason for denying access" beat out the girl saying "but he's sketchy as hell." That was a pretty surreal experience. I've had much better luck at border crossings with my passport card. Should have renewed and gotten that much sooner, I guess.

On that first visit, I stayed in the hotel at Caesars. My room was pretty spectacular - big, high, view of the Detroit skyline. I stayed again one other time, got a different tower with a much smaller room and no view. I don't think I've ever been to a hotel where there was such a big variance between rooms at the same price point. Both definitely were worth the price, and I'd stay again in a heartbeat, but one room was worth at least twice as much as the other. I've tried to stay two other times. Both times, I left my reservation open and unfilled. Once, I was too tired and stayed in Traverse City instead (yes, that was a 250 mile whiff) and the other I caught an earlier flight home and it was too late to cancel the reservation at Caesars.

The casino, hotel lobby, public halls, and casino lobby area (that's a big room, there's probably a better name for it...) all have a very clean, distinct Roman theme. Like Caesars Las Vegas, but smaller and less grandiose. And without quite so many sculptures, though there are several at Windsor as well. It's probably my favorite themed casino in the Midwest, though River City in Saint Louis is pretty cool, too. I would say this is the middle of the three current Caesars-branded properties, slotting above AC and below Vegas (much closer to Vegas).

Caesar's handled currency conversion in a pretty good way - there's a vig on the purchase of canadian currency, but not on the conversion back to USD. I'm not sure if that's still the case, but I remember thinking it worked well at the time. I returned for each Great Race promotion, and unfortunately did not have any need to convert currency back to USD on those trips.

My chip is a Paulson RHC. It's one of those with an inlay/center-image so large that it partially covers the tophats. Paulson's are great chips, but if i wanted a center image that large, I'd just buy a plastic chip where my whole image fit on the face without the tophats getting in the way.

State: Ontario
City: Sault Sainte Marie
Casino: Casino Sault Sainte Marie

Today's chip of the day comes from Casino Sault Sainte Marie, which is in Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario. The casino, which opened in 1999, is home to 452 gaming machines and 13 table games. Like 1000 Island Charity Casino, this facility is operated by the OLG.

I visited this property on my move from MN to PA last summer. I needed to drive my car to PA, and decided to do that by collecting chips from northern WI, MI, ON, and OH. The crossing into ON was very smooth here. I didn't really think about it, but I had my car completely filled with random crap. At the border, the guy asked what was going on, I explained things to him and showed him a handful of chips, and that was that. I didn't stay long at the property at all. Mostly, because I still thought I might make it to Windsor later that night (wow, did that ever NOT happen - see yesterday's post). I don't even remember what I played to get this chip, though given the games listed at Casino City I suspect that I just played BJ.

I mentioned the other day that the OLG casinos are all at least somewhat themed. This one is in the style of a north woods lodge. The inside has some wood paneling, but most of the theme is on the outside. Here's a picture of this property:


My chip is manufactured by Bud Jones. There's even a "BJ" symbol and everything. It's nice to see a plastic chip where there's no doubt about the manufacturer!

edit: The color correction on these images is interesting - both smaller images have blueish discoloration, both larger images are purplish. I wonder why the resizing of the same image (without re-color-correcting) caused a difference in discoloration.

I doubt I will ever make it to places like Sault Ste. Marie to collect chips or to do anything else. I lose a couple of days just recovering from a WoVCon trip! I finally got around to editing the post #1 directory to include the chips that rdw has recently posted.


Edit 9/24/15: I did finally get my own 1000 Islands Charity Casino chip and posted it here.

Edit 8/11/16: And I finally got my chip from the Hollywood casino in Toledo and posted it here.

Quote: Doc

I doubt I will ever make it to places like Sault Ste. Marie to collect chips or to do anything else. I lose a couple of days just recovering from a WoVCon trip! I finally got around to editing the post #1 directory to include the chips that rdw has recently posted.

Whaaaaat? So my plan of posting my chips from WI and MI and then watching you plan a trip isn't going to pan out? Well, (insert profanity) it! I'll just assume it's the thin mountain air that wore you down on this trip. There's none of that in Michigan, so I'll still try to enact my plan:-)

Quote: rdw4potus

(insert profanity)

Not if you want to keep posting here on a daily basis!    ;-)

Edit: further comments moved to the WoVCon thread.

Back last October while I was on a cruise, rdw4potus was posting the chip of the day and posted one from the Alamo Casino in Las Vegas. I had never realized that the place had table games. I went by there when I was in town for WoVCon ]I[ and picked up my souvenir chip. I posted images as an edit to the first post I made in this thread after I got home from that cruise. Check it out if you like. I even asked a question that no one is likely to see unless they follow the link from this post.

I thought about burying the answer to Doc's question in a post from 8 months ago, but decided against it:-)

Question: Is the Alamo casino in Sparks depicted on the chip from the Alamo casino in Las Vegas?

Answer: Yes, the picture is of the Alamo in Sparks. Which is odd, because - at least on my chip from the Sparks Alamo - that image is not on their own chips!

State: Ontario
City: Scugog Island
Casino: Great Blue Heron Charity Casino

Today's chip of the day comes from the Great Blue Heron Charity Casino in Ontario. The casino is on Scugog Island, which is in Lake Scugog and is currently not an island at all - it's connected to the mainland at the southern end. The lake was created by a dam in 1847, and the flooding apparently initially created an island in the middle of the lake. Since then, the lake has shifted somewhat and the "island" has become a peninsula. The casino is in Scogog township, of which Port Perry is the largest Municipality. Given the proximity of Port Perrry to the entryway to the "island," I would probably have listed the casino as being "in" Port Perry if it were my choice.

The Great Blue Heron opened in 1997, and is home to 545 gaming machines and 70 table and poker games. The casino has a wide variety of table games, including mini and midi bacc, 4 card poker, pai gow poker, Let it Ride, and Spanish 21. That's not exactly what I expected walking in, but I guess it's close enough to Toronto to have an urban draw.

This casino is operated by the OLG, and has a distinct theme. But, I have to say that I have no idea what the theme of this casino is supposed to be. It's big and blue, so maybe it's supposed to look like a Heron? I don't know...here are two pictures:




My chip is attributed to Bud Jones in the MOGH catalog, but I think this is a Matsui chip. It looks a lot like this chip that Doc shared when I posted my Akwesasne chip a couple weeks ago.

I agree that this chip looks like the designs that Matsui is offering. I suppose it is possible that there is some connection between Matsui and Bud Jones, but I've never heard of one. I think the folks at MOGH just claim that every plastic chip they can't identify must have come from Bud Jones. Recently, we even had that chip from the Stellaris casino in Aruba that had a BG logo on it and MOGH still said was from Bud Jones. Probably a similar situation with this Great Blue Heron chip.

In contrast to Sault Sainte Marie, Port Perry is a place that I can see visiting as part of a Niagara Falls, Ottawa, and Montreal trip, and the Great Blue Heron Casino is on my list of chips to collect some day. If/when I get it, I'll sneak back to edit this post and slip the image into the thread!


Edit (6/15/14): Well, I finally made it to Niagara Falls and made an excursion to pick up a souvenir chip from the casino that rdw4potus covered above. I posted my photos here. My chip is indeed from Bud Jones, with a BJ logo that shows up under UV light, but it is not the same pattern as rdw's chip.

Quote: Doc

Port Perry is a place that I can see visiting as part of a Niagara Falls, Ottawa, and Montreal trip, and the Great Blue Heron Casino is on my list of chips to collect some day. If/when I get it, I'll sneak back to edit this post and slip the image into the thread!

That's the trip I started out trying to make, but the weather was so bad on the first day, I only made it from Buffalo to Brantford (via Salamanca) and that forced me to remove Montreal from that trip. So my revised plan is to add Montreal to a trip to NH and Maine. I suppose the Maritimes will be a part of that trip as well. And, honestly, probably Massachusetts as well - it'll be that long before I get to go, I think.

And I just don't understand the Bud Jones thing. There's a BJ on every Bud Jones chip. The MOGH could at least pick Matsui or Icon as the default manufacturer for situations when there's no G or CI or BG or BJ on the plastic chip...

Quote: rdw4potus

State: Ontario
City: Sault Sainte Marie
Casino: Casino Sault Sainte Marie

What is depicted in the image? It appears to be a reenactment of the "Titanic" sinking, but instead of a massive steamship, you have four guys in a canoe.

Quote: Ayecarumba

Quote: rdw4potus

State: Ontario
City: Sault Sainte Marie
Casino: Casino Sault Sainte Marie

What is depicted in the image? It appears to be a reenactment of the "Titanic" sinking, but instead of a massive steamship, you have four guys in a canoe.

First, LOL!! Second, I don't know. I do think the area has a lot of canoeing, and Sault Sainte Marie is a historic trading hub. Maybe they're trappers or traders navigating the Saint Mary's River (connecting Lake Superior to Lake Huron)?

Quote: rdw4potus

There's a BJ on every Bud Jones chip. The MOGH could at least pick Matsui or Icon as the default manufacturer for situations when there's no G or CI or BG or BJ on the plastic chip...

Well, I don't know that I would go quite that far. Early in this thread, I pointed out each time that I found a "BJ" on a Bud Jones chip, but I also accepted the MOGH declaration of that source when there was no logo. Now, I've become more skeptical as I have seen more varieties of chips, but I don't think I'm prepared to say that a chip is not from Bud Jones unless I find a BJ logo on it.

Also, I think I can tell a "ceramic" chip from a "plastic injection molded" chip even if it doesn't have a logo on it. I'm not likely to confuse a non-logo Chipco chip with a non-logo Bud Jones chip, but I might confuse a B&G chip with a Bud Jones chip if they didn't have logos and I didn't recognize some other pattern of their markings. After browsing the Gemaco and Matsui catalogs I became more suspicious of some of the MOGH identifications.

Quote: rdw4potus

State: Ontario
City: Scugog Island
Casino: Great Blue Heron Charity Casino

...This casino is operated by the OLG, and has a distinct theme. But, I have to say that I have no idea what the theme of this casino is supposed to be. It's big and blue, so maybe it's supposed to look like a Heron? I don't know...here are two pictures:

Does it look like that all the time? Maybe they were getting the place fumigated. hehe.

Alternately, is there a "Boise State" connection in the management or architectural firm? Those appear to be their school colors:
photo credit: "thestadiumshoppe.com"

State: Ontario
City: Brantford
Casino: OLG Casino Brantford

Today's chip of the day comes from the OLG Casino Brantford, which is in Brantford, ON. The property is also known as the Brantford Charity Casino. The property opened in 1999 and is home to 540 gaming machines and 70 table and poker games. Brantford is known as the telephone city, which is a hat-tip to Aleander Graham Bell's first distant telephone call from Brantford to Paris, ON in 1876. It's also the hometown of Phil Hartman and Wayne Gretzky. The city is apparently quite proud of all three things, as there were numerous references to the comedian, the hockey player, and the telephone throughout town.

I visited the property in the middle of a terrible storm. This was easily the worst weather I've ever been out in (including hurricane Sandy in Philadelphia). I wound up spending several hours at the casino (oh, darn!) before finally giving up on driving farther and getting a hotel room up the street. The girl at the hotel looked at me like I was crazy for having been out, and sort of started scolding me. It should have been pretty obvious that I was actively trying to find shelter, but that wasn't registering for her. The next morning, several pieces of a patio set were wedged next to and under my rental car.

I spent my time at the casino playing Pai Gow Poker. I banked when allowed, and generally broke even until the end of the session. On my second-to-last banked hand, a player made a very large bet to try to intimidate me into not banking. I did anyway and won, so I left up most of his bet on that hand. At one point, the same guy had a full house with a pair up(JJJ4466), and insisted that there's a term for this - "the house is full" - is that true? I hadn't heard that before or since.

The OLG Casino Brantford is, I think, themed to look like an industrial facility. Certainly, it looks like this:

But I'm not exactly sure what that is supposed to be.

My chip from the OLG Casino Brantford is a Paulson RHC. Oddly, the MOGH does not show my chip, or the new styles of $25, $100, or $500 chips. They do show the older Brantford Charity Casino chips in the $5 and $25 denominations.



Here's a pic of this whole series (minus the $500 chip) from Chiptalk:

Quote: rdw4potus

State: Ontario
City: Windsor
Casino: Caesars

On that first visit, I stayed in the hotel at Caesars. My room was pretty spectacular - big, high, view of the Detroit skyline. I stayed again one other time, got a different tower with a much smaller room and no view. I don't think I've ever been to a hotel where there was such a big variance between rooms at the same price point. Both definitely were worth the price, and I'd stay again in a heartbeat, but one room was worth at least twice as much as the other. I've tried to stay two other times. Both times, I left my reservation open and unfilled. Once, I was too tired and stayed in Traverse City instead (yes, that was a 250 mile whiff) and the other I caught an earlier flight home and it was too late to cancel the reservation at Caesars.

You stayed in the Augustus tower the first time and the Casino tower the second time. I've stayed at CW probably too many times too count (literally; I can't remember how many times I stayed). Border crossing was almost always a pain (on the American side; never on the Canadian side). As an American, I always found Canada relaxing and laid-back, even though the city was pretty crummy. So it was nice to get away at CW for a while. I remember doing a lot of studying up there...(and then hitting the casino, obviously :))

The Augustus tower is newer with better views and bigger rooms and hallways, and is almost always the one I requested. It was also most convenient to the valet, and for a while they had a cafe in the lobby (Augustus Cafe) where you could grab breakfast on the way out (comped, of course :)). The Casino tower is the original Casino Windsor hotel and not all the rooms have the view of Detroit that is so great. (Great cityscape, I don't care what else you have to say about Detroit). The Casino tower also has the pool. Otherwise you have to walk through the casino and lobby to get to the pool, and it is a looong walk. Nevertheless, usually I would get the Augustus tower unless they were all booked up for a convention, or I wanted to use the pool/exercise room that trip for some reason.

Damn, I miss CW.

Quote: rdw4potus

... which is in Brantford, ON.

My sister-in-law (from New Jersey) lived in Brantford for about a year while she was in high school. I don't think she has had anything good to say about the place, but that could have more to do with a bad period in her life rather the place itself.

Of course, I have this casino on my list of chips to get. I just don't know when I will be able to get back to Niagara Falls (which I love) and make it around the bend.

Edit (6/15/14): Well, I finally made it to Niagara Falls and made an excursion to pick up a souvenir chip from the casino that rdw4potus covered above. I posted my photos here.

State: Ontario
City: Point Edward
Casino: Point Edward Charity Casino

Today's chip of the day comes from the Point Edward Charity Casino. The casino is not surprisingly located in Point Edward Ontario, on the Michigan border between Lake Huron and Lake Saint Clair. It opened in 2000 and has about 480 gaming machines and 38 table games.

I visited the casino on my journey from MN to PA last summer, on the day after spending the night in Traverse City. I arrived at the border crossing at about 5pm, and made it into Canada by about 6:30. There was a very long line at the bridge, and I was exposed to significant scrutiny based on my mostly-full SUV. I'm probably very lucky to have had a fist full of casino chips and the records from a very brief trip to Sault Ste Marie the day before. I also probably didn't do myself any favors by truthfully answering the border guard's question when I was asked if there were any weapons in my vehicle. I had my toolbox in the trunk area, and the box contained several knives and blades. So when he asked if there were any weapons in the car, I said "there are several knives in the toolbox in the back." Turns out that's a good way to get searched. And they were thorough. But it seemed wrong somehow - they had me do the inside interview part during the vehicle search. I'd have thought they'd want me to be in the vicinity of the car for the search. Anyway, they were wrapping up as I exited with my clearance paperwork from the interview. Mostly, they were admiring my tools and laughing about my honesty. GD Canadians.........:-) The americans on the way back to the US just waved me through. Barely took the time to look at my passport card. But I suppose a fully loaded SUV driven by an American citizen is a lot less alarming to the US border guards than it is to the Canadians.

I played blackjack at the casino, and broke even over the course of one shoe. This is the OLG facility that I visited last, and it wasn't until I was at this one that I realized that there's very little food available at any of them. I'm pretty sure that Brantford had a restaurant and a separate coffee bar, but the others all just have one cafe-style restaurant. That's on the light side for a casino this size. For comparison, Valley Forge in PA is about the same size as these OLG facilities (albeit with a huge hotel attached), and there are 8 restaurants there.

There's not as much of a theme to the Point Edward casino as there is to some of the other OLG casinos, but it does have one distinct feature. The casino is right on the water, right next to the bridge from the USA, and there's a very large lighted "casino" sign at the property. The sign was very handy in providing a landmark as my GPS tried it's hardest to make the 180 degree turn off of the bridge and back toward the water as hard as possible. The sign is pretty unique:


My chip from the Point Edward Charity Casino is a Paulson RHC. It's another example of a chip with a center image/inlay that that extends out to and partially covers the tophats. I still think a clay Paulson chip is an odd way to go when a graphic that large is wanted. I'd say that's what ceramic chips are for. A larger printable surface is one of the primary benefits of that medium.

Is there a reasonable Canadian road between Point Edward and Windsor, or would someone from the US wanting to visit casinos in both places need to cross the border four times? (Not that I would ever consider such an outing.)

;-)


Edit 8/11/16: Well, I finally got my chip from the Point Edward Charity Casino and posted it here. And yes, we did cross the border four times on that trip.

Quote: Doc

Is there a reasonable Canadian road between Point Edward and Windsor, or would someone from the US wanting to visit casinos in both places need to cross the border four times? (Not that I would ever consider such an outing.)

;-)

It is an easy drive on the canadian side, but it's longer. Probably longer-enough to make crossing the border a better option. The problem is that Lake Saint Clair is not small, and is in Canada directly between the two casinos.

You might consider a loop - Niagara to Windsor, cross to USA, detroit casinos, drive to Port Huron, cross to Canada, Point Edward, drive to Brantford...

Sounds like a plan. For someday.

My wife hated the Port Huron to Niagara Falls drive the one time we did that.

Quote: Doc

Sounds like a plan. For someday.

My wife hated the Port Huron to Niagara Falls drive the one time we did that.

Scared to ask, but...that drive puts you within half a mile of this casino, with Brantford in-path as well...did you make that drive in your pre-collection days?

Quote: rdw4potus

...did you make that drive in your pre-collection days?

Yep. Can't remember just when it was, but I think sometime in the '90s. That trip doesn't seem to be on my digital calendar, so either I failed to record it, or it was pre-1999.

Quote: Doc

Yep. Can't remember just when it was, but I think sometime in the '90s. That trip doesn't seem to be on my digital calendar, so either I failed to record it, or if was pre-1999.

Well, on the plus side, its only 2 hours of all-highway driving from Port Huron to Brantford. So it's not the worst trip in the world to reenact.

Quote: Doc

Category: Europe
City: Funchal, Madiera, Portugal
Casino: Casino da Madeira

This green plastic €2,5 jetton from Funchal was made by Bourgogne-et-Grasset, which might justify the French spelling of the currency name, and the BG logo appears at about the 4 o'clock position. It has three pink edge inserts, if that's the proper term on a jetton, and it has a non-uniform thickness, as is evident in the second image.

The Gaming Partners International web site says that their "B&G plaques and jetons are the industry standard for European gaming currency because they combine aesthetic appeal, reliability, and security." Among the several security options that they list is serialization, and my chip does have its own engraved serial number on the perimeter, directly below the denomination mark. Though I'm not sure you can read the number completely in the photo, if you click on the small image to get the larger one, you should at least be able to see that there are figures engraved there.

I played with very similar chips in a casino in Vienna, Austria. They were kinda hard to stack, to be honest. I didn't like them.

State: Kansas
City: Dodge City
Casino: Boot Hill

Today's chip of the day comes from the Boot Hill casino in Dodge City Kansas. Boot Hill opened in December of 2009, and is operated by the Kansas Lottery. The casino has 800 machines, 18 table games, and a 5 table poker room. There's also a small hotel, 2 restaurants, and an arena & convention center at the complex.

I visited Boot Hill as an offshoot of a work trip to Topeka and Kansas City. On that trip, I visited all of the then-operating casinos in Kansas. Since then, 2 have opened and I've added those chips, and 1 has re-re-added tables. I haven't returned there yet.

I thought Boot Hill was a well done casino. The layout was good, materials were high-quality and there was an impressive selection of both table and slot games. But, it seemed small, and there was no hotel. They've since added a hotel, although that is also small with barely 100 rooms. I don't know what the utilization rate is at the arena and convention center, but I doubt that either the casino or hotel (or the restaurants) could handle the traffic from the arena following any significant event. That seems odd for a newly constructed facility with no constraints on land or design. I think there's exactly 800 slots, so maybe there's a licensing issue where there can't be more games so more space would just be moot.

Here's an image of the property, taken from the casino's website. The image shows the arena/convention space, the casino, and the hotel. It's a beautiful complex, but small:


My chip from Boot Hill is a Paulson RHC. The casino hadn't even been open for a year when I picked up this chip, so I'm really not sure how/why it got this beat up. But they were all pretty much like this - I look for the best one I can find to collect and this was it.

Quote: rdw4potus

Boot Hill opened in December of 2009, and is operated by the Kansas Lottery.

Technically yes. In reality, not really. The lottery passed off most operating duties to major gaming companies; therefore, casinos such as "Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway". In my opinion, the lottery commission also acts as state gaming commission, but the casinos approved by the state are mostly run by gaming companies such as Penn Gaming.

Quote: AcesAndEights

I played with very similar chips in a casino in Vienna, Austria. They were kinda hard to stack, to be honest. I didn't like them.

I thought they looked kinda junky. They seem like something that should be stored loose in bags rather than in stacks or racks.

Quote: tringlomane

Technically yes. In reality, not really. The lottery passed off most operating duties to major gaming companies; therefore, casinos such as "Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway". In my opinion, the lottery commission also acts as state gaming commission, but the casinos approved by the state are mostly run by gaming companies such as Penn Gaming.

Kansas Star is a Boyd property, Hollywood is a Penn National property. I can't see anything on Boot Hill's website about who runs that casino. Do you know who the operator is?

Quote: rdw4potus

Today's chip of the day comes from the Boot Hill casino in Dodge City Kansas.

I'm not even completely sure whether I have ever been in the state of Kansas. The only possible time would have been in connection with a conference I attended in Kansas City, MO back in the 1980's. If the shuttle bus from the airport to the hotel took a route that cut through a corner of Kansas City, KA KS, then that would have been my only time in the state. I think such a route would be possible, but the plausibility seems like a stretch.

Some day maybe I'll get to the casinos in western Missouri to collect chips, and maybe I would wander out to the Hollywood on the west side of the river, but I don't foresee my future as including a tour of Kansas.




Edit: By the way, I did try to bring the post #1 directory up to date. If my abbreviation of the Canadian casino names bothers anyone, then let me know what I should have said, and I'll try to fix it.

Quote: AcesAndEights

Quote: Doc

Category: Europe
City: Funchal, Madiera, Portugal
Casino: Casino da Madeira

This green plastic €2,5 jetton from Funchal was made by Bourgogne-et-Grasset, which might justify the French spelling of the currency name, and the BG logo appears at about the 4 o'clock position. It has three pink edge inserts, if that's the proper term on a jetton, and it has a non-uniform thickness, as is evident in the second image.

The Gaming Partners International web site says that their "B&G plaques and jetons are the industry standard for European gaming currency because they combine aesthetic appeal, reliability, and security." Among the several security options that they list is serialization, and my chip does have its own engraved serial number on the perimeter, directly below the denomination mark. Though I'm not sure you can read the number completely in the photo, if you click on the small image to get the larger one, you should at least be able to see that there are figures engraved there.

I played with very similar chips in a casino in Vienna, Austria. They were kinda hard to stack, to be honest. I didn't like them.

I have a chip very much like your Casino de Madeira chip from Portugal...from the main casino in Monte Carlo. It's a five euro chip and is the same weird design it's flat on one side and convex on the other. So they are very hard to stack I'd imagine. I will get it out of my display and take a photo soon if I can.

Quote: Doc

If my abbreviation of the Canadian casino names bothers anyone, then let me know what I should have said, and I'll try to fix it.

I'm bothered by your abbreviation of Kansas :-)

Try KS

Quote: Doc

Edit: By the way, I did try to bring the post #1 directory up to date. If my abbreviation of the Canadian casino names bothers anyone, then let me know what I should have said, and I'll try to fix it.

It's actually Point Edward, ON that is across the river from Port Huron, MI.

Quote: rdw4potus

State: Ontario
City: Point Edward
Casino: Point Edward Charity Casino

What's the significance of the "Charity" in the name of this casino?

Quote: AcesAndEights

Quote: rdw4potus

State: Ontario
City: Point Edward
Casino: Point Edward Charity Casino

What's the significance of the "Charity" in the name of this casino?

It's run by the Ontario Lottery. Like most lottery commissions, the OLG's proceeds fund environmental and educational causes. Ontario apparently considers this to be "charitable." The naming of the casinos in Ontario is a bit odd. Some of the OLG facilities are "OLG ___" or "___ OLG" while others have the "charity casino" name. I think this one and the one in Thunder Bay (which I have not yet visited) are the only ones that do not actually say "OLG" on the building.

Quote: rdw4potus

Kansas Star is a Boyd property, Hollywood is a Penn National property. I can't see anything on Boot Hill's website about who runs that casino. Do you know who the operator is?

"Boot Hill Gaming", so it's an independent.

And probably responding to this thread last night gave me this weird dream watching guys playing "Cyberball" (no idea where that came from) and their team name was "The Kansas Star". The dream got rudely interrupted by one of the worst charley horses in my life...grrr

Quote: chickenman

I'm bothered by your abbreviation of Kansas :-)

Try KS

Ooops! Would you believe I was just being creative? Didn't think so. Anyway, I fixed it.

Don't know why I typed that wrong. Maybe just the proximity of A and S on the keyboard. Usually my state abbreviation errors are with the A states: AR for Arizona or AL for Alaska, that sort of thing, which only puts me off by thousands of miles.

Quote: rdw4potus

It's actually Point Edward, ON that is across the river from Port Huron, MI.

I'll just attribute that to either a brain glitch or ignorance. Fixed that one, too.