Sahara2535 Las Vegas Boulevard SouthLas Vegas, Nevada 89109 Owner: Bill Bennett A Little About Sahara Sahara used to have the best low-stakes action in Las Vegas, and may yet have it again if the economy stays bad! Large yet cozy, classy yet affordable, tastefully decorated yet filled with drunk people and rednecks, the Sahara has the kind of atmosphere that every casino should have, in my opinion. (Maybe we should leave Paris and Rio they way they are, just to keep the snobby people and the obnoxious trust-fund kiddies from invading our space...) Unfortunately, the boom times of the late nineties have driven the table limits up somewhat, but Sahara still has the only $2 blackjack pit (that's right, an entire pit!) on the Strip. Sahara has 1,715 guest rooms, which are reasonably sized and attractively priced. The casino floor is advertised at 75,000 square feet, but doesn't really feel that big. The cocktail service is among the best in the city, particularly during slow times. Sahara is privately owned by Bill Bennett, who is from all accounts a stand-up guy. The one drawback to Sahara, if there is one, is that some of their pit bosses have a reputation for being mean and arbitrary. I've seen blackjack dealers get yelled at by some bosses for dealing a player's double-down card face down for fun, while other bosses don't care. Some of the bosses also don't take kindly to players who play conservatively while soaking up a lot of free drinks. (Which, if you can manage it, is the best way I know of to gamble!) And if you were thinking of sharpening your card counting skills at Sahara, I strongly suggest you go somewhere else. Here is my personal recipe for a great afternoon in Las Vegas: (1) Have lunch at the Big Kitchen Buffet at Bally's; (2) Take a cab to the Hilton and head back to Quark's Bar at the Star Trek Experience. Order Warp Core Breaches until you've had one for every two people in your group; (3) Stumble across the Hilton parking lot to Sahara, lash yourself to a $2 blackjack table, and enjoy the hospitality until dinner time. Guaranteed to be a great time! Submit your own comment on Sahara. |