The Palace Casino, Biloxi

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.