The Lava at Turning Stone Casino

My friends call me a degenerate gambler, but I prefer to refer to myself as a degenerate poker player. There is something about playing against other people and not the house that gives the false security that it's not gambling. While there is a great deal of luck involved, there is some level of skill and this is what keeps me playing. I can't sit and spend any amount of money on a game I can't statistically beat. But mix a game with a certain amount of skill used against other players of varying skill, with a large dose of luck, and it can be a deadly cocktail.

So on any given weekend you can find me playing at the small no-limit tables in the Turning Stone Poker room. I'm usually ahead, although I haven't kept exact records of my winnings. More than likely I'm dead even. Anyhow the game keeps my mind sharp, and I enjoy the grind, at least for a few hours a week.

This last weekend I finally got to check out Turning Stone's new night club, The Lava. It was a friend's birthday and a large group of us managed to secure a VIP box. The club is something that the casino has invested a lot of resources into and you'll notice immediately upon entering the many layers of security. Aside from getting wanded and then led through several gates, our friends with backpacks had to have them all searched and checked. I wonder how much of the security precautions stem from the incidents on New Year's.

After a short wait we were strapped with wrist bands and led down a twisting tunnel covered in red velvet, which felt a bit like being in a Willy Wonka movie. After promptly losing my sense of direction the tunnel opened up into the club, with what I counted as at least three levels high and a huge dance floor in the center. This was surrounded by different booths and VIP boxes layered outwards, much like a coliseum.

We were led to our box which consisted of a long red-velvet couch (pretty much everything, from the floor to the ceiling, was red-velvet), and various other tables and sofas. Because the casino has no liquor license, they have a BYOB policy, which I thought was going to bring down the classiness of the club. But everything was extremely professional. Ice and mixers were brought out in beaker-like glasses that somewhat resembled lava lamps.

Standing around were many security and casino staff. On the second floor overlooking the casino were some employees, and a friend pointed out some of the more public casino faces overlooking the dance floor. It didn't take long to feel like I had fallen straight into Goodfella's.

It only took three Captain and Cokes before I was ready to play poker. This, of course, is a major reason why the casino spends so many resources on The Lava. A liquored-up gambler will make poor decisions and spend beyond their limits.

Getting back into the casino was relatively easy. In fact, it looked like they had 2-3 employees dedicated to smoothly moving people back into the casino. What was a series of gates and checkpoints getting in was a brisk walk back out.

I located some friends and played poker periodically through the night, heading back in for a drink several times. At some point the security guys must have confused me being at a VIP booth as me actually being a VIP and having money (hah!), as they moved an entire crowd out of my way saying "Right this way, sir." Oh, to be rich.

And yes, I won some money. My speech may have been slurred and vision blurred but luck was on my side.