Rivers Casino, Pittsburgh, PA
Had some time to kill on Wednesday and the Rivers Casino, just outside of Pittsburgh's downtown, seemed inviting.
At 11:30 on a Wednesday morning, they had two tables of 1-3 NL running. One was short, so I got a seat immediately. The other table was doing shots, and the scuttlebutt was that they'd been going at it all night.
The players seem chummy, and there was a lot of limping. I won very few pots in the first hour, but two stick out:
One of the big winners raised UTG to $6 to-go. There were several callers, so I popped it from late position to $40. UTG called, and everyone else folded. I had AxQh and liked the A-high flop with three hearts. IIRC, he checked and I jammed; he said I didn't have an ace, and called. He showed KK, neither of which was Kh. At the end of the hand, my pair of aces was still good and I took it down.
Later, if I recall this correctly, I limped UTG with 87h. I never do that, but this game was such an inexplicable limpfest, I couldn't help myself. Three or four other limpers came along until the BB raised to $15. I called, as did three others. Flop: Q5h6h, giving me an open-ended straight-flush draw. BB bet something like $40, and I raised to $110; he called for less. I raised to try and make my flush draw good, but it was probably the wrong play; anyway, the Qh came on the river, and I cracked aces.
I left after a little under two hours with a $220 profit.
The room is very close to the self-park garage. The casino stinks of smoke, although the poker room is non-smoking and not too bad. Sodas are free, but I forgot to ask about the alcohol. The room serves food.
The room itself is about 30 tables. It's open to the casino, but very dimly lit. The room is bland, but the dark lighting and walls make it a poker cave. The dealers and floor seemed fine, for what little I played. The cocktail waitress was walking around with a tray of diet sodas for immediate service. I probably should have tipped more than I did.
When I left at about 1:30, they had three games running and a two-table tournament.
The casino is sort of a bland mix of pretty Vegas-style decorations. A few tables had electronic betting systems, but still dealt paper cards for the blackjack game. Most of the casino is slots. The restaurants had some nice views of the local scenery, and there was a little natural light in the casino.
The worst knock on the place is that it is impossible to get to it. Rivers is just adjacent to the Carnegie Science Center, PNC Park, and Heinz Field. On game day it must be an incredible disaster. I accidentally crossed the Ft. Pitt bridge trying to get from some random location on the North Side into there; I would have stuck to the freeway, except I was coming from breakfast at Primanti Brothers in the Strip District.
Breakfast at Primanti Brothers is a good idea, by the way.
At 11:30 on a Wednesday morning, they had two tables of 1-3 NL running. One was short, so I got a seat immediately. The other table was doing shots, and the scuttlebutt was that they'd been going at it all night.
The players seem chummy, and there was a lot of limping. I won very few pots in the first hour, but two stick out:
One of the big winners raised UTG to $6 to-go. There were several callers, so I popped it from late position to $40. UTG called, and everyone else folded. I had AxQh and liked the A-high flop with three hearts. IIRC, he checked and I jammed; he said I didn't have an ace, and called. He showed KK, neither of which was Kh. At the end of the hand, my pair of aces was still good and I took it down.
Later, if I recall this correctly, I limped UTG with 87h. I never do that, but this game was such an inexplicable limpfest, I couldn't help myself. Three or four other limpers came along until the BB raised to $15. I called, as did three others. Flop: Q5h6h, giving me an open-ended straight-flush draw. BB bet something like $40, and I raised to $110; he called for less. I raised to try and make my flush draw good, but it was probably the wrong play; anyway, the Qh came on the river, and I cracked aces.
I left after a little under two hours with a $220 profit.
The room is very close to the self-park garage. The casino stinks of smoke, although the poker room is non-smoking and not too bad. Sodas are free, but I forgot to ask about the alcohol. The room serves food.
The room itself is about 30 tables. It's open to the casino, but very dimly lit. The room is bland, but the dark lighting and walls make it a poker cave. The dealers and floor seemed fine, for what little I played. The cocktail waitress was walking around with a tray of diet sodas for immediate service. I probably should have tipped more than I did.
When I left at about 1:30, they had three games running and a two-table tournament.
The casino is sort of a bland mix of pretty Vegas-style decorations. A few tables had electronic betting systems, but still dealt paper cards for the blackjack game. Most of the casino is slots. The restaurants had some nice views of the local scenery, and there was a little natural light in the casino.
The worst knock on the place is that it is impossible to get to it. Rivers is just adjacent to the Carnegie Science Center, PNC Park, and Heinz Field. On game day it must be an incredible disaster. I accidentally crossed the Ft. Pitt bridge trying to get from some random location on the North Side into there; I would have stuck to the freeway, except I was coming from breakfast at Primanti Brothers in the Strip District.
Breakfast at Primanti Brothers is a good idea, by the way.