I visited Valley View casino on Saturday. I never realized how small
it is. I haven't been in an indian casino with a "tent" since Cache
Creek was just a small operation in the middle of nowhere. Looks like
there are some major expansion plans right now and lots of
construction.
I didn't get a chance to verify the VP inventory since I was with
friends and we were there to try out their buffet. I wasn't going to
play, but they had a great promo happening. Every new signup for the
players club got a FREE buffet ($22 value) and if you earned 10 points
on your card ($80 coin-in on VP), you earned $20 in free play.
While the casino is small, the technology is ahead of its time. They
have the same type of touch screens as the Wynn and you can use your
free play right there on the machine. The free play works like the
Wynn where you need to provide the money "capital" and they match your
bet at the end of each hand by refunding your bet, win or lose. If
you earn 800 points, they give you a free beach chair or wine set, you
keep the points.
They also have a Stations-like jackpot that was hit just before I
arrived at around $90,000. I don't believe they guarantee it hits by
a certain amount, but everyone with their card in when it hits gets
$25 in free play.
The buffet was excellent and I didn't mind the wait in a line that
wrapped through the entire casino. Imagine a small casino trying to
make it big with their buffet. The seating area is atrocious - like a
Coco's or Baker's Square-esque. The buffet presentation is excellent
- the food was very fresh. They were serving full steaks and split
crab legs, along with very good Chinese food, excellent deserts (they
had creme brulee - a favorite of our group), hand-scooped Dreyer's,
cheeses, salads, many kinds of potatos, beer-battered onion rings
(probably the best onion rings I've ever had), and a plethora of other
items. While this buffet wasn't as fancy or as big as the Wynn
buffet, you would NEVER guess a buffet of this quality existed inside
a small casino with a tent.
The service in the buffet was excellent as well - our drinks were
never less than half-full, we were brought plates for our discarded
crab legs, and drawn (but not clarified) butter for our crab legs, and
new napkins as needed without waiting.
I would suggest a visit to the casino if you are in the area (Harrah's
Rincon is just up the county road and it has a hotel). The area is
gorgeous, it's near the San Diego Wild Animal Park, and is about 45
minutes to an hour from the beach, only because of its remote
location. According to the vpFREE inventory, the VP is good, but I
didn't get a chance to see.
I saw BJ and Pai Gow with a $500 limit ($15 minimum that night).
Single/double deck BJ pays 6:5, but shoes pay 3:2. The dealers seemed
inexperienced and unprofessional. I saw at least two dealers who were
being lazy and showing their hole cards while placing it under the
up-card. The pit bosses were too busy dealing with player's club
cards to notice any of this.
Don't expect a fancy place - this type of casino can't deal with a
high roller (where would you spend your comps?) and the entire staff
was wearing white t-shifts for a promotion. It was nice seeing
everyone in uniform (you haven't always seen that in Indian casinos),
but it wasn't exactly high-class.
DB in SD