Bodines Casino

Located at 5650 South Carson Street, Bodines Casino is kind of similar to what you might expect from a casino in Downtown Las Vegas, in of its size. It comes in at 30,000 square feet of gambling space and is located in about the center of the state’s capital.

Popular amongst locals, this property is not home to a hotel and features about 300 combined video keno machines. Other than the word, “Casino,” in the signage, the property’s facade could be mistaken for an Applebee’s.

According to VPFree2, the Video Poker at Bodine’s is pretty terrific in that they have more than a half dozen games with a return to player in excess of 99%, assuming optimal strategy.

The property is also home to a small sports and racebook that is open during most hours of the day, so those types of bettors are in luck here, as well.

Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner from 7:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. seven days per week, Bodines Restaurant is a popular and economical stop for Casual American food, even for those in the area who are not planning to do any gambling. The prices are dirt cheap. The Round Bar also has some American pub style appetizers and pizzas available for those who are looking for something to eat when the restaurant is closed, or who just want something quick.

If you’re ever in Carson City, then you should stop and check the place out. Of course, our readers (except for Carson City locals) are probably going to be more likely to stay in Stateline than they would Carson City as most visitors to the latter are there visiting family, friends or are in town on some kind of business. Carson City isn’t exactly the tourist mecca of the State of Nevada.

Cactus Jack’s Senator Club

Located at 420 North Carson Street, Carson City, Nevada…we assume that Cactus Jack’s Senator Club doesn’t have anything to do with Mick Foley, who went by the name, “Cactus Jack,” in both the WCW and WWE.

Actually, this casino was originally just known as, “The Senator Club,” and is pretty much just a spot for Carson City locals.

The property is home to roughly 120 combined slot, video poker and video keno machines. It is not listed on VPFRee2, which means that it’s possible nobody who reports to that site has ever checked, or just because there were no good video poker paytables there. If you’re ever in there, please let us know, as we would expect a locals place to at least have a few paytables over 99% return to player.

Apparently, the property is also home to a single live Blackjack table.

The property is also home to a low-priced American diner that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner from the morning until late evening hours.

Again, this is just a locals spot that is worth checking out if you’re ever in Carson City for any reason. It’s always fun to get around and meet a few locals when visiting a new place, after all.

Carson Nugget

The Carson Nugget opened in 1954 and the casino and hotel are technically the same thing, despite being physically separate. The casino is located at 507 North Carson Street while the hotel is across the street and down a few short blocks at 800 North Carson Street.

The casino features 28,930 total square feet of gambling space and the hotel, down the street, features a total of 83 guest rooms and suites.

The current owner is Dean Dulillo, who is the CEO of Reno-based M1 Gaming. He would come to purchase this property in 2015, which prior to that, had a handful of various private owners.

Guests of the hotel will enjoy access to free wireless internet and also RV Parking, for anyone who happens to need it. Rates on standard rooms seem to be well below $100 usually and the property has no resort fees…which would honestly be tough to justify, but I’ve seen properties with even less going on charge them. Technically, the hotel is called the Carson Tahoe Hotel.

The casino floor is home to 315 combined slot, video poker and video keno machines ranging in denomination from pennies to $5/credit. According to VPFree2, this casino is home to a 99.17% Bonus Poker paytable as well as a 98.91% Deuces Wild game, so the video poker could definitely stand to be better if that’s true.

In of Table Games, there are a couple of Blackjack Tables.

Perhaps surprisingly, Carson Nugget does feature a Live Keno Lounge, which most people probably wouldn’t walk in expecting given the limited gambling offerings in other areas.

Another somewhat surprising aspect is that this casino is home to a comedy club that seems to have live shows on most weekends.

The property is also home to three eateries, which is two more than I would have normally guessed. The first is Awful Awful which promises, “Awful Big, Awful Food,” so at least nobody going there can say they are disappointed as long as the food is big. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days per week and are open from 6:00 a.m. until the late evening hours.

Alatte Coffee and Wine Bar is not a restaurant, per se, but it does what it says on the box. A place that serves both coffee drinks and wine, specifically, at least is a unique combo. I’m not sure that I would mix the two in one visit…there’s no way that would be easy on one’s stomach.

Finally, Angelina’s Italian Steakhouse is open for dinner service on Friday and Saturday evenings. Reservations are recommended, so call the property and book those if you want to eat there.

If you’re in Carson City for some reason and don’t mind a fairly basic hotel and casino property, then sure, you could look into staying here. If nothing else, the hotel rates are reasonable and there’s no Resort Fee. The gambling offerings aren’t great, but hey, it’s Carson City, so you take what you can get.

Carson Valley Inn

Carson Valley Inn Casino is located at 1627 U.S. Route 395 and is in Minden, Nevada. Minden is in Douglas County and is about fifteen miles due south of Carson City as well as a few miles directly east of South Lake Tahoe. The population of Minden is right about 3,000 people, so if you’re staying here, you’ve probably got family in the area or are just ing through.

There are, however, eight places in Minden on the National of Historic Places, so maybe you’re a history buff and you want to stay in Minden to check those out.

Originally opened in August of 1984, the Carson Valley Inn is modeled after a rustic hunting lodge and is home to 22,800 square feet of total gaming real estate.

The hotel side of the property is home to 149 total guest rooms and suites with refrigerators and Keurig coffee makers in all rooms as well as free wireless internet for guests. All of that comes with no Resort Fees, imagine that, it can be done!

Booking on their website is weird because the rates keep changing. It looks like some days will be $79, but when you click through it, it’s $119. It might be a glitch, but in general, it seems their rates are mostly anywhere from $79-$139, but you can avoid confusion by simply calling the property to book your rooms.

Guests of the hotel will also enjoy access to the property’s pool, hot tubs and fitness center.

The property is also home to a motor lodge, which is a more economical choice and features 74 guest rooms of its own. The hotel was already reasonably-enough priced, of course, but the motor lodge seems to be roughly $30-$40 per night under whatever the hotel is charging. The hotel rooms are slightly more dated and basic, but they’re also clean, relatively nice and are comparable to a decent economy hotel. If you’re looking to save a few bucks, you won’t regret your choice of the motor lodge’s rooms.

In addition to the two hotels, there’s also an RV Park, so this Minden location will also be convenient for those who are touring around the country that way. There are a total of 59 spots, and as with motor lodge guests, RV Park guests are welcome to use the pool, hot tubs, business center and fitness center in the main building.

The indoor swimming pool and hot tubs are situated in a comfortable room that reflects the lodge theme of the property with its stone and wood walls and are surprisingly nice. We truly wish there was more of a reason to come to this area of the state because this property seems like an excellent value all around!

The property is also home to TJ’s Corral, which is an outdoor entertainment venue that features occasional concerts during the Summer months.

In of their gambling offerings, Carson Valley Inn is home to about 575 total slots, video poker and video keno games. According to VpFree2, you can get 99.54% (9/6 Jacks or Better) starting as low as nickels, so that’s a decent game, even if it might be the only one.

Carson Valley Inn is home to a three table poker room that spreads both Limit and No Limit Texas Hold ‘Em. The property is also home to a small race and sports book that features three dozen viewing screens.

The property is home to a small Table Games pit, which include three Blackjack tables, Let it Ride and Four Card Poker.

The CV Steak Bar is open seven days per week, with the actual steakhouse open for dinner service Wednesdays-Sundays and it has this to say:

Enjoy exceptional value and a comfortable atmosphere perfect for a special occasion, casual gathering with friends, or a let’s-not-cook-tonight escape. The CV Steak menu features a selection of appetizers and a generous range of entrees including steaks, chops, seafood, chicken and pasta dishes. Entrees include the CV Steak signature table side tossed salad, sourdough baguette, creamery butter, vegetable and choice of twice-baked, baked or au gratin potatoes. Also featured are desserts and after dinner drinks, a generous selection of wine by the bottle and glass and a specialty martini menu.

Recessed areas above each booth showcase black and white photos that recount the history of Minden and Gardnerville and were hand-selected by architect and designer Larry Henry for their historic significance. The photos are a perfect complement to the Arts and Crafts motif that ties all elements of Carson Valley Inn together…and ambient lighting creates a feeling of intimacy.

That’s definitely going to be some of the best food in the area, almost by default. You should definitely check it out if you happen to be staying there.

Katie’s Country Kitchen opens at 6:00a.ml. Seven days per week and features Casual American breakfasts, lunches and dinners. It remains open until the late evening hours and the offerings and prices are pretty much what you would expect from an American diner. It’s a reasonably good value.

Job’s Perks is a coffee place and pastry shop that is also open at 6:00 a.m. daily and remains open until the late evening hours. In addition to the stuff you would expect, they also feature a number of other quick eats as well as some grab and go items.

This is a great place for locals to visit or perhaps spend a weekend. If this were in a bigger area, it would be an easy casino hotel to recommend as the value that guests get for their money seems pretty strong—though the Video Poker could be better. Unfortunately, most of our readers will likely have no reason to ever be in this part of the state, but if you are for some reason, then you should check it out.

Casino Fandango

As you would expect, Casino Fandango is a tropical themed casino and is located at 3800 South Carson Street for the casino with the hotel’s address (basically next door) being 3870 South Carson Street in Carson City, Nevada.

This relatively new property opened in July of 2003, so it’s pretty clear that there’s a bit of a gambling market in Carson City, which should come as no surprise, since it’s the state’s capital and the state is pretty much known for gambling.

The casino floor consists of 40,891 square feet of gambling real estate and there are a total of 100 guest rooms and suites in the property’s hotel, which is apparently d with the Courtyard at Marriott…which is the hotel at 3870 South Carson Street.

Of course, being a Courtyard by Marriott, the rates are going to be a little more expensive than those of other casino hotels, and you can check out everything about the hotel (which we are treating separately) here.

Getting back to the casino, Casino Fandango is home to a ten screen Galaxy Theaters location, which gives guests of the nearby hotel something to do and is also a popular destination for Carson City locals who are in the mood to take in a movie. Casino Fandango is also home to a Cabaret Lounge that sometimes featured live entertainment on weekends, but hasn’t done so since reopening after the Covid-19 closures, so you’ll want to keep an eye on their website to see if that has changed.

The casino doesn’t offer any details on their website as to the total machine count, which is usually a pretty standard thing for a casino website to have, so we won’t attribute a number to it here, either. That said, VPFree2 attributes to it two Video Poker paytables north of 99% and even one that pays more than 100% with optimal strategy, so that’s certainly something.

The property is home to seven Table Games, of which five are Blackjack and the other two are Pai Gow Poker.

The property is also home to a Live Keno Lounge, which would just lead us to guess that Keno must be still popular in Carson City. One thing that’s interesting is that you can follow the results on their website, so that’s at least fun for those of you who want to grab your tickets and go elsewhere to do other things.

Finally, the property is home to a small William Hill sportsbook that has a handful of big screen TV’s, but it’ll get the job done.

The property is home to five dining establishments, including the fine dining Duke’s Steakhouse, which is open for dinner service from Wednesday-Sunday evenings and has this to say:

At Duke’s, savor spectacular 28-day dry aged prime U.S. beef prepared to perfection while enjoying our extensive wine selection. The elegant ambience and extraordinary service is yet another reason Duke’s is recognized as one of Northern Nevada’s premier restaurants and was voted BEST for Steak in Carson City.

It’s a great place that many Carson City residents (and visitors) will stop at for dinner whether they are gambling on the property or not.

Open Friday-Tuesday evenings, Ti Amo Italian Grille does what it says on the box and features traditional authentic Italian dishes as well as some unique food stylings with a bit more of a modern flare. Regardless of your Italian food tastes, you’re sure to find something on their menu that you’ll want to try.

Also, open for dinner service Friday-Tuesday evenings, Shinsen Sushi is a popular sushi restaurant that features excellent fresh sushi and has an all-you-can-eat option, which is what you are going to see me doing if I ever happen to be dining there.

The Palm Court Grill is the property’s 24/7 Casual restaurant that has a little of everything from American to Mexican and even a little bit of Chinese food thrown in for good measure. If you’re looking for something that’s both relatively quick and relatively cheap, or have had a few too many cocktails and need to get something on your stomach (It happens), then this is the place to check out.

Finally, Craft 55 is named that because they have a rotating selection of 55 craft beers at all times. If you get hungry, then you’re not out of luck as they feature a cheap menu that consists mostly of appetizers and American bar staples….a couple of the choices are pretty unique, though.

That’s it for Casino Fandango, which might be a fun place to stop in (especially for Video Poker enthusiasts) and has a good bit to offer for a property of its size. If you don’t mind shelling out a few bucks for overnight accommodations and are in the Carson City area, then you might check this one out. People looking for a bargain on their room rates will probably stay elsewhere, but should still check this casino out for a little bit if they’re in town.

Gold Dust West

Located at 2171 East William Street, Gold Dust West Casino is located in Carson City, Nevada, and first opened in 1995. This smallish casino consists of only 17,600 square feet of gambling space, but offers plenty for the guests of its 142 total rooms and suites to do on site.

Formerly known as Pinon Plaza, this place rebranded when it was purchased by current-owners, Jacobs Entertainment.

The property is home to a seasonal outdoor swimming pool, limited service spa, and fitness center. Guests of the property will enjoy an included continental breakfast as well as wireless internet access. All rooms feature coffee makers and are otherwise pretty basic, but clean.

Room rates live in the area of $100/night, but are sometimes more than that of there is a special event or holiday. There is also a housekeeping fee that is charged for stayover service and added to the rate, but there does not appear to be a Resort Fee.

The property is also home to a 32-lane bowling center and RV Park, which should make it a good choice for families who are staying in the Carson City area as well as people who are roaming about the country by RV.

The property is home to about 350 combined slot, video poker and video keno machines. According to VPFree2 and assuming optimal strategy, there are two Video Poker paytables in the low 99%’s as well as a handful in the 98%+ range. That’s not great by Nevada standards, but it’s better than a few casinos in the area.

The property is home to a small William Hill Sportsbook and features a few Table Games that include Blackjack, Craps and Three-Card Poker.

The property is home to a single eatery, The Grille, which is open from 6:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. and features a casual American menu and pricing similar to that of a diner. If nothing else, people will at least be happy with having an extremely economical place to eat on property.

That’s everything there is to know about Gold Dust West, which mostly attracts Carson City locals, but might be worth considering if you have to be in town for decent rooms, a somewhat reasonable price and some stuff to do on property. The gambling offerings aren’t the best available in the city, especially not for Video Poker players, but you might want to stay somewhere with a bowling alley, so there’s that.

Max Casino

The Max Casino is located at 900 South Carson Street and is currently owned and operated by 777 Gaming. This small property is home to 12,250 square feet of gambling space as well as a hotel that features 91 total guest rooms and suites.

Originally opened as a Travelodge (yes, the hotel chain) Casino in 1972, the property would later become Carson Station until being purchased by its current owners, who rebranded it as Max Casino. What does it have the, “Max,” of exactly? Let’s find out:

The property’s hotel is known as The Federal Hotel and is franchised with Choice Hotels as part of their Ascend Collection. The property is essentially the quality of a Limited Service hotel and rates are on the low end of Carson City casino hotel properties, usually not much above or below $100/night, but usually a little bit below. As part of the Choice Privilege program, if you’re a member, you might be able to use your points to get a free night.

The property is home to 200 combined slot, video poker and video keno machines. It is not mentioned on VPFree2, so it’s possible that nobody reporting to that site has checked it out or just that there’s not any good video poker there. If you happen to stop in and check out all the Video Poker machines, please feel free to drop us a line and let us know. The property is also home to a small William Hill Sportsbook location.

The property is home to one restaurant, The Black Bear Diner, which is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days per week. The food is Casual American fare and, by diner standards, the prices are probably just a hair over average, but nothing too bad.

Unless you can find cheaper rooms here than elsewhere, we really couldn’t think of a reason to choose this property if you are staying in Carson City. There are plenty of other properties with better gaming offerings, amenities and other stuff to do. Not that it’s any reflection of what is going on there NOW, but they were also cited for seventy-some gaming violations back in 2015.

Sharkey’s Casino

Located in Gardnerville, NV, at 1440 US-395, Sharkey’s Casino is a small casino that looks like a sort of roadhouse both inside and outside.

On their website, they promote the fact that they have a, “Free Players Card,” which is interesting, because I don’t ever having to pay for one at any casino.

The property is home to one eatery, Jackpot Cafe, which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days per week and is good American food at a low price point. The Cafe is a popular stop for locals and er-through even when they aren’t planning on doing any gambling.

The property is home to a small sports book. According to Mark in guest services, there are somewhere between 200-300 total gaming machines inclusive to slots, video poker and video keno and no Table Games. They’re not listed on VPFree2, but could be that nobody has been in there and reported to that site. They are also apparently owned by the same entity as Carson Valley Inn.