| Mystery
Tourist
New
Jewel in Biloxi
The
Palace adds hotel, completes renovation and continues
a great gambling tradition
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| The
Palace Casino, Biloxi |
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In
some ways, the Gulf Coast is like a mini-Las Vegas.
The mighty casino companies with their fancy resorts
slug it out on Highway 90 for the bulk of the visitor
business, while smaller, less opulent casinos scratch
for the remaining segments by offering better odds,
more generous slot clubs and marketing that appeals
largely to locals. Not many hotel-casinos, even in
Las Vegas, can touch the grandeur and the class of
the Beau Rivage (owned by MGM Mirage) or the Grand
Casinos in Biloxi and Gulfport (owned by Park Place
Entertainment). But even fewer casinos, downtown and
North Las Vegas included, can touch the favorable
gaming options offered at casinos like the Palace
or the Copa.
The
gap between the big and the small is beginning to
narrow. The Copa in Gulfport has announced plans to
add a hotel and replace its dated cruise ship casino
with a traditional Mississippi barge. And the Palace
has just completed a new hotel and casino renovation
that truly rivals the Coast's most impressive properties.
Unfortunately,
it's still a trek to get to the Gulf Coast. Usually,
I fly into New Orleans and drive over to the Coast.
It gives me a day or two in the Crescent City (never
a bad thing) and I can usually get a direct flight
to the New Orleans Airport. This time, however, I
flew directly into the Gulfport-Biloxi Regional Airport
because the ticket was half the price of a New Orleans
flight. It's a compact little airport, but the flight-switch
in Memphis on the way wore me down.
Thirty
minutes later, I was at the Palace. A pleasant valet
parking attendant took my car. Later in the week,
however, I realized that staff is a little slim on
a weekday, and if you have three or four parties ahead
of you, the wait can be 10-15 minutes. At any rate,
a convenient surface lot directly across from the
port-cochere usually has some spaces available.
Upon
arriving at the Palace, I was expecting a nice place,
but I was pleasantly surprised by the elegance of
the new hotel. Built by owner Missouri businessman
Robert Lowe, nothing is left to chance here. The 236
rooms and suites give the 11-story building a comfortable,
sometimes intimate feel. The good service that has
become a tradition in the Palace casino is extended
to the new hotel.
The
culture of the hotel is evident when you step into
the lobby. The three-story atrium features a glass
dome that lets the warm Gulf Coast sunlight stream
in, splashing the Moroccan tiles that line the walls.
A modest waterfall leads gamblers into the casino.
(Watch your step, because as in most Gulf Coast casinos,
the barge upon which the casino is located rises and
falls with the tide.)
A
VIP check-in area is sized and equipped perfectly
for the Palace, with comfortable chairs and drinks
for those waiting for their comps to be approved.
A lobby bar, the Sahara Lounge, is striking, with
overstuffed chairs, deep-pile couches and elegant
wooden paneling, all surrounding a fireplace guarded
by stone mantle-piece elephants. Squint your eyes
and you could be on the African veldt. On Friday,
the place is jumping with Happy Hour specials and
great music.
Check-in
was fast and courteous and the trip to the 11th floor
concierge level quick. Rooms at the Palace are almost
sumptuous. Beautiful furnishings vary from room to
room, with armoires and large dressers. Marbled bathrooms
come complete with Jacuzzis, a variety of toiletries
and hair dryers. Ethernet Internet access and Web-TV
is included in each room. Beds are triple-sheeted.
Towels are thick and absorbent. It's exactly what
you'll find at the big, fancier resorts.
The
best thing at the Palace is that you'll discover very
reasonable rates. Winter-time weekday rates average
$69 for these wonderful rooms, and only $129 for a
weekend. A suite is about $100 more.
Room
service was a must the night I arrived. Quick and
efficient, the menu is adequate for a small hotel,
and thankfully available 24 hours.
The
next day, I got a better feel for the property. "Amenities"
is a word that must have cropped up thousands of times
during the planning. For a hotel of 200-plus rooms,
the Palace caters to a wide range of desires.
The
Stephen Salon off the lobby offers services for both
men and women, with reasonable prices.
The
Spa includes a half-dozen different massage therapies
that start at $35 for a 25-minute neck, back and shoulder
massage and go to $65 for an aromatherapy massage
that lasts 50 minutes. In addition, the Spa includes
hot tubs and a Swedish sauna.
Outside,
a large pool is flanked by cabanas, a putting green
and a sand volleyball court. A marina is planned beyond
the pool, and views from all the rooms take in the
beauty that is the Gulf Coast.
But
I was there to gamble, and the Palace specializes
in gambling.
Like
many of the off-Strip Las Vegas casinos, the Palace
concentrates on catering to locals. On the Gulf Coast,
locals can mean players within a 30-minute drive who
visit at least a dozen times a year, but in the case
of the Palace, many players from the surrounding neighborhoods
walk to their local gambling joint.
I
made a bee-line to the blackjack tables during the
day and found a wide variety of $5 games, dealt by
hand with two decks and a very respectable penetration.
Blackjack heaven!
I
decided to join the first $5 table because the three
players seemed to be having a good time, which is
why we're all here, isn't it? But once the dealer
changed, the game went downhill. I lost three hands
in a row with a count of 19 or more and pushed a blackjack.
I moved on to a head-to-head situation at a $10 table,
and spent about two hours there, going back and forth.
The dealer was friendly and professional, and knew
when to cut the chatter and when to turn on the charm.
I think I toked him more than I won.
A break for dinner in the top-line restaurant, Jazzmin's,
means some of the best dining on the Coast. With a
chef straight from the famous Commanders Palace in
New Orleans, the eclectic menu is enhanced by the
rustic views of the Back Bay in Biloxi.
Other restaurants in the Palace are adequate. A 300-seat
Emerald Courtyard buffet specializes in seafood, and
the Oyster Bar is a rather pedestrian 24-hour coffee
house.
Entertainment
is another Palace amenity, and blues is its specialty.
Acts like Marva Wright, Mem Shannon and Walter "Wolfman"
Washington and the Roadmasters appear in the 500-seat
Palladium Theater.
Back
downstairs, evening still finds a wide selection of
$5 blackjack tables. In addition, a low-limit craps
game allows players to take up to five-times odds.
And don't forget the specialty games like Caribbean
Stud, Let It Ride poker, Spanish 21 and Three Card
Poker.
Slot
machines at the Palace include a high-limit area,
the Diamond Mine, mirrored on two sides of the casinos.
Special food and drink are available to players in
these areas. Upstairs, management has included many
nickel machines of the latest vintage (which we all
know require more than a few nickels to play).
I
headed to the video poker machines for a break from
the tables. Video poker is still an evolving game
on the Gulf Coast. You won't find as many choices
in Mississippi as you'll find in Las Vegas or Atlantic
City. But the basic games are available, and at the
Palace, they include the most favorable pay tables.
Here, I found that my favorite game, Jacks or Better,
was offered with many different pay tables. Around
the atrium of the casino, I saw 7/5 slant-top games.
At the bars, the games are 8/5, while I discovered
some 9/6 dollars tucked in near the Diamond Mine.
No,
the Palace isn't one of the huge Gulf Coast casinos
that have something for everyone. But if you just
want to be comfortable and rub elbows with the locals
who know where to find the best gambling options,
the Palace might be the best choice for you.
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