There are no levers at StarGames but golden nugget poker room louisiana you will still find all the things that make fans of the slot machines happy: Slots in the style of the old fruit machines with 3, 5 or 6 reels, elegant and sophisticated, audacious and adventurous. Just checked their website, they've started taking hotel reservations for December 8th and beyond. Also says the poker room will be running 1/2, 1/3, 2/5 NLHE, and 4/8 LHE, with a $60 minimum/$200 max buy in for what I'm assuming is 1/2, 1/3.
The Lake Charles area of Louisiana has become a haven lately for casinos, taking advantage of its close proximity to the Texas border. In particular, being only two hours drive away from Houston, it brings in a lot of travelers from the region who are looking for a gambling getaway.
The plans for this particular casino resort were first laid in 2006, when Pinnacle Entertainment received a license from the State of Louisiana to build a $300 million gambling resort called Sugarcane Bay on the 242 acre waterfront property.
They ended up not going ahead with it, and in 2011, the license was given to former Pinnacle Chairman Dan Lee, and his new company Creative Casinos, however he was unable to get the financing to build it. He ended up selling Creative Casinos to Ameristar in 2012, which included the license for this property.
Later in 2012, Pinnacle acquired Ameristar, so the project had come full circle now and the license for Sugarcane Bay was back in their hands again. However, due to antitrust concerns, they were forced to sell it to get the Ameristar deal approved by regulators, and Landry’s, who operate the Golden Nugget brand, bought it.
This casino finally got built in 2013, and ended up naming it the Golden Nugget Lake Charles. Landry’s was particularly happy to build it since they had been looking for a casino close to their headquarters in Houston, Texas, for some time, and their brand of restaurants is well known there, and they were looking to feed off of that to get more Texans to come over.
So as things turned out, Landry’s was definitely the company to do it, as they upped the original plan to spend $320 to build it all the way up to $600 million to make this the most impressive resort casino in the area.
This turned out to be a good bet for them, as the Golden Nugget Lake Charles has won numerous awards and is considered by many to be the finest casino in Louisiana.
The Accommodations at the Golden Nugget Lake Charles
Being Louisiana’s newest resort, it is decked out with all of the latest technology, including a state of the art key system. All the rooms in their 25 story, 740 room hotel tower come with such niceties as an in room safe, iron and ironing board, digital music system, iPod docking station, and high speed internet.
Their entry level rooms have a generous 500 square feet of room, with a large soaker tub, dual sinks, king or queen bed, Cuisinart coffee maker, and dining nook, where you can enjoy their 24 hour room service.
There are also several suites you can choose from, all the way up to the Presidential Suite, with 1,500 square feet of living space, along with a host of amenities sure to please.
Rates here start at $179 a night, with packages available, including spa and bed and breakfast deals.
There are 11 restaurants on board, including Vic and Anthony’s, named one of America’s top 10 steakhouses. The Grotto offers authentic Italian cuisine, and Landry’s Seafood House provides the finest in Gulf seafood.
Those who enjoy Asian food will want to visit Lillie’s Asian Cuisine, offering a fusion of Chinese and Japanese dishes. The Saltgrass Steak House offers, certified Angus beef cooked to perfection. The Claim Jumper and the Claim Jumper grill serve up popular homemade dishes.
The Buffet has seven serving stations waiting for you to fill your plate, specializing in seafood as well as Mexican, Italian, Asian, and American dishes. The Cadillac Mexican Kitchen and Tequila Bar offers Mexican food along with barrel aged Margaritas.
You can also grab a meal at the Blue Martini, as well as enjoying their cocktails. The Golden Nugget Country Club also features a restaurant, specializing in Cajun flair, as well as offering some of the best golf in the area. Finally, there’s a Starbucks on site where you can enjoy various coffee beverages.
In addition to the Blue Martini and the Cadillac, the Country Club also has a bar, as well as being able to get drinks and entertainment at the Rush Lounge, the Ice Bar, Bar 46, and at the H20 Pool and Bar. So there’s plenty of variety here as far as restaurants and bars go.
Several of the venues here offer live entertainment, as well as acts being showcased at the Grand Event Center, and often feature big names from the past.
The Golden Nugget Spa and Salon will invigorate and pamper you, and there’s also state of the art fitness equipment on site. You can also get a haircut and a shoeshine here. There’s also a pool, a beach, a marina, golf, tennis, RV facilities, and an arcade.
The Casino At the Golden Nugget Lake Charles
The casino is the centerpiece of this resort and it has been named best overall casino in Louisiana, as well as best video slots, best high end slot promotions, and best slot club promotions.
There are 1600 slot and video poker machines on hand, with stakes ranging from a penny to $500 a spin. There’s also a luxury slot room with almost 100 machines where you will find the high stakes ones, as well as VIP treatment.
Players who are enrolled in their 24K Select players club can insert their cards into their slot machines and redeem their free play right on the spot. They have a great assortment of machines, everything a slot player is looking for.
The Golden Nugget Lake Charles also has 77 table games, offering Blackjack, Craps, Roulette, Three Card Poker, Baccarat, Mississippi Stud, Pai Gow Poker, Let It Ride, Ultimate Texas Holdem, and Blackjack Switch.
Limits start at $10, and you can play all the way up to $10,000 a hand or spin in their High Limit Room, featuring 13 Blackjack tables and a Roulette table. The Rush Lounge and Party Pit also has gaming machines, as well as nightly music.
There’s also a six table poker room, where you can play some low limit Texas Holdem or Omaha.
All of your play here gets rewarded through their 24K Select membership, and it always pays to get a frequent player card at any casino, and this one is good at any Golden Nugget casino.
This is certainly one of the better casino resorts in the Lake Charles area, or in the state of Louisiana for that matter. There’s lots to do here, especially at their award winning casino.
More land casinos:
Golden Nugget is the only major poker room left in Downtown Las Vegas.
This decade has seen the demise of poker rooms at El Cortez, The D, and Plaza. The Binion’s poker room traffic collapsed to the point that the casino abandoned its poker room and tournament area and moved a few tables to its table game pit. This left Golden Nugget as the only relevant poker room on Fremont Street.
The Golden Nugget is best known for its no-cap no-limit Hold’em games. These can be wild tables, especially on weekends.
It spreads the Grand Poker Series every summer with a variety of games on the schedule. This is held in convention space, as the normal 13 poker tables hosted by Golden Nugget cannot handle the capacity of the Grand Poker Series.
Golden Nugget tables offer automatic shufflers, phone chargers, and free Wi-Fi. Golden Nugget validates parking for players.
Best and Worst Features of Golden Nugget Poker Room
There is no cap on its cash game buy-ins. This includes no-limit tables. This makes the games play deep. The tables can be full of action because of this. The Golden Nugget poker room is well managed. The dealers are all experienced.
The room can feel a bit cramped when it is busy. The bathrooms and sportsbook are not convenient.
There are only two cash games spread with any regularity at Golden Nugget’s poker room. One is a 2/4 fixed-limit Hold’em game. The other is 1/2 no-limit Hold’em with a $100 minimum buy-in. There is no maximum.
Players sometimes buy into these games with $1,000 or more. Be prepared for that when considering whether to play and how many chips to buy. The deep tables explain why there are no regular games above the $1 and $2 blinds.
Golden Nugget rakes 10% up to $4. There is also a $1 jackpot drop.
Golden Nugget gives cash game players $2 an hour in comps when clocked in with the casino’s 24 Karat players club card. This may be used for hotel bills or any restaurant owned by Landry’s in the world.
There are four poker tournaments held daily. There is a $51+$19 at 11 am (except Sunday) and 7 pm. It starts with 10,000 in chips and has 20-minute levels. There is a $33+$17 daily at 3 pm and 10 pm. This tournament starts with 5,000 in chips and has 20-minute levels.
The major weekly tournament is on Sunday at 11 am. It has a $100+$25 event with a $5,000 guaranteed prize pool. Players start with 15,000 in chips. Levels go up every 20 minutes for the first eight levels and every 30 minutes after that.
Golden Nugget Louisiana Poker Room
Golden Nugget hosts a tournament series every summer. It is called the Grand Series of Poker. Each day has at least two tournaments. One is always no-limit Texas Hold’em. The other may be as well. However, there is often a non-Hold’em game.
These include mixed games, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo, pot-limit Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, and draw games. The Grand Series of Poker buy-ins run from $150 up to $1,100. Most are one-day events.
The Golden Nugget poker room is not large enough to accommodate the Grand Poker Series. It is held in the Grand Ballroom by the Rush Tower.
Golden Nugget offers progressive high hand promotions. There are separate prize pools for royal flushes and straight flushes by suit. Every four of a kind has its own progressive payout.
There is a bad beat jackpot that triggers when a player loses four of a kind or better. Both the winning and losing hand must use both hole cards. The progressive jackpot starts at $10,000.
Things to Do at Golden Nugget Besides Playing Poker
Golden Nugget offers a large casino. Many of the games have a $5 minimum bet. There are plenty of blackjack tables that pay 3 to 2. Make sure to avoid the 6 to 5 ones.
We recommend avoiding the video poker there, as it is well below average for Downtown Las Vegas.
Golden Nugget operates an independent sportsbook. For video poker, walk to Plaza, El Cortez, or Main Street Station. Each of these casinos spread games that return over 100%.
Golden Nugget Room Pictures
If you are looking for something to do besides gambling, Golden Nugget hosts several great restaurants. Chart House is our favorite. Vic & Anthony’s Steakhouse is another good option. Grotto is a great casual Italian joint.
Golden Nugget has the best pool in Downtown Las Vegas. You can swim with the sharks there. It also has a waterslide and other amenities.
Golden Nugget Poker Room Louisiana Capital
The Fremont Street Experience is just outside Golden Nugget. It has bars in the street. There are nightly musical acts. The Viva Vision screen has a light show at the top of every hour during the evening hours.
Golden Nugget is the best poker option in Downtown Las Vegas. Its 13-table room is full of action 24 hours a day. If you need a break from it, you can check out the poker room at Binion’s across Fremont Street.
Unfortunately, the Binion’s poker room has seen better days. It got so slow over there that the poker tables were moved to the rear of the table game pit. There are six cash game tables, though they typically do not need more than one. The only game spread is 1/2 no-limit Texas Hold’em.
Golden Nugget Poker Tournaments
Most daily tournaments at Binion’s only draw one or two tables, if they get off the ground at all. The summer poker tournament season gets more action. This is when you may find five to ten tables. This series, known as the Dog Days of Summer, spreads a variety of games.
About half of the tournaments are no-limit Hold’em. There is a variety of non-Hold’em games throughout the summer. Those include pot-limit Omaha, fixed-limit Omaha Hi/Lo, as well as some stud and draw games.
Golden Nugget Ac Poker
Golden Nugget and Binion’s are the only two poker rooms still operating in Downtown Las Vegas. The next closest is at Stratosphere. It is about as slow as Binion’s these days and probably not worth the trip.