Fiesta Henderson

The second of the local Fiesta casinos, now part of the Station Casinos chain. It's extremely easy to get to, right at the intersection of I-215 and I-515. When driving east on I-215, stay on it as the "Freeway Ends", and the casino is immediately on your right.

Games
Limit hold 'em: 2/4, and 3/6, and sometimes 4/8. The locals here also particularly like to play 3/3/6/9 limit with a half kill that goes to 4/4/8/12.

No-limit hold 'em: 1/2 blinds. Only spread occasionally.

Game Character: Mostly regular locals, the players are somewhat practiced, and the 3/3/6/9 game can get pretty wild.

Rake: Standard Vegas rake: 10% rake, max $4. Plus an extra dollar for jackpot rake. No flop, no drop.

Posting: New players need not post.

Shuffling: All tables shuffled by standard Shufflemaster machines.

Wait Time: Can be anywhere from 0 to 30 minutes or more for a seat.

Tournaments

 * Mon-Thu, 12 noon NLHE $20+5, 1x$5 addon.
 * Mon-Thu, 4 pm NLHE $20+5, 1x$5 addon.
 * Sat-Sun, 12 noon NLHE $42+8 buyin.

First three levels are twenty minutes, then 15 minute levels. Players start with $1500 (addon is $500 add'l). Initial blinds are 25-50. Prizes paid to top four places (only top three if tourney starts with 10 or fewer).

Jackpots and Promotions
Standard fixed high hand jackpots found at all the Station Casinos. The standard Station "Jumbo Holdem" Progressive Bad Beat Jackpot also plays (quad 9's or better beaten).

Atmosphere
Completely remodeled in late 2006, the poker room at the Fiesta Henderson is on the second floor. It's not particularly easy to find, since the second floor is kind of a small balcony-type of place overlooking one of the seas of slots, but once you take the escalator up, it's quite pleasant. Despite a panoramic view of the main casino floor, the noise and general cacophony of the slots is nicely removed, providing some decent ambience for the poker room.

The poker room itself is not a separate room; it's a railed-off area. However, there is nothing else near it, really - it's kind of a decent area "along the extra-wide hallway" up on the second floor, and despite its location does not feel at all cramped; indeed, it feels spacious and pleasant.

A vaguely tropical theme permeates the entire casino - fake bamboo railings, darkened ceilings to simulate jungle night, etc. There are four 42" plasma TV's hung on the wall, and the entire room is done in understated but very nice decor. Nice lighting.  Pleasant floor staff.

Since Fiesta is part of the Station Casinos chain, they have the same cool advanced poker-table setup that all the Station Casinos have: each table has a built-in card reader next to the autoshuffler, and when you sit down, the dealer asks you for your player card, and swipes it into the reader, indicating with a button which seat you are in. The table then has a little LCD display built into it, telling the dealer which player is sitting in which seat, so the dealer can call you by name. The dealer also swipes their own card when they start or finish their down, and the display shows who's dealing too. This helps the Stations track poker hours played with tremendous accuracy, gives the dealer some convenient extra information, and helps them track things like who is seated at a table when a jackpot is hit. Quite nifty.

Parking: Plenty of parking.

Tables and Chairs: Standard Vegas 10-player tables in sparkling new condition. Rich ruby red felt with good padding and a commit line. Brown vinyl armrests with inset cupholders, and faux marble staging ring. Player chairs are newish metal-frame fixed leg chairs with thick, bright red padding. Reminded me of chairs from a 50's diner.

Smoking: Used to be allowed, but is now banned (as of Dec 1 2006). Smokers can leave the area to smoke, if they like, and it's not too far away -- but the smoke doesn't drift into the poker area much.

Service and Comps
Relatively frequent cocktail service and full meal service by pretty waitresses. They can bring a menu from which you can order. Prices are reasonable but not fabulous. Drinks are on the small side.

Standard Station Casino comp system - swipe your player's card at the table to earn points for your play.

Notes and Links

 * Visited by MarkT in Nov 2006.