M Resort Opening

Last night we attended M Resort's opening. It is the first of three casinos to open this year. We were pretty excited, because we weren't sure what to expect. We never experienced the Rio under Marnell's ownership, we only heard tales of how they treated the locals. We're not big fans of Boyd or Stations so we had hoped Marnell would offer us a new home.

We arrived at the resort about an hour before the firework display. No one, but VIP guests were allowed to park on property until the resort opened. We found that very strange. Alternatively, we met friends' at Dotty's casino down the street. With time to kill, we decided to go in and grab a beer. This was our first time in a Dotty's, they're not your average video poker bar. The set up is a mix of a convenience store and someone's home. You walk up to the counter for drinks - free if you gamble. There's slots to your left and kitchen tables to your right. Not a single tv in the joint, but the walls are lined with ficus trees and bookcases filled with knick-knacks. Odd, I tell ya.

We figured it was best to walk to M, it seems everyone had the same idea, we all walked in herds down St. Rose Parkway. Traffic was backed up in all directions as far as the eye can see. Build it, and they will come. I don't think that area has ever seen so much traffic. Heck, I don't think Henderson Police knew what do with the size of the crowds. They seemed overwhelmed. We got to the resort just in time for the fireworks to begin. The show was pretty good. Afterwards, we joined the masses for our first look.

Getting inside took sometime. Having to use escalators to enter the casino created quite a bottleneck, but once we were in we liked what we saw. The casino has great style, a nice layout and it's very comfortable. They offer the newest slots and there are plenty of table games. The sportsbook and poker room are located next to each other, both looked great at first glance. Frank played some 4-8 while there. In the meantime, I wondered the property and scoped out the restaurants. I spotted Anthony Marnell outside the Italian restaurant, it was neat to see him and offer my congrats.

We always hope to win a royal like Frank did at Southcoast's grand opening, but once again we had no such luck. It was fun trying, though. Overall, we had a good first impression of M Resort. One of the things I noticed off the bat that sets them apart from others, is the casino has a few self serve beverage stations. I really like this feature, I haven't seen one offered outside of MN or WI Indian Casinos. They also have a pharmacy inside the casino and a gas station with a car wash on site. We look forward to going back once the newness wears away. We want to try the buffet and a couple restaurants (prices appear to be very reasonable).