Harrah's New Orleans (Trip Report)

[Ed Miller]

I grew up in New Orleans, and I spent this week visiting the fam. I couldn't resist the urge to stop by Harrah's Sunday afternoon for a little poker, though. Harrah's has moved and completely remodelled their poker room since I was last there (December 2001, my first casino poker experience).

The new poker room has about 15 or so tables. The tables are the highest quality tables I have ever played on... the felt is very plush, a pleasing forest green, and they are very big (plenty of room for a 10-handed game). On Sunday afternoon, all the tables were hopping, so I assume that it is at full capacity relatively often. The games spread while I was there:

3-6 Holdem
6-12 Holdem
1-5 Stud (I believe with a quarter ante)
1-4-8-8 Spread Limit Half-and-Half (Holdem and Omaha High) with 1-2 blinds
4-8-12 Structured Half-and-Half (Didn't notice blinds.. I avoided this game)
15-30 Omaha High
5-10 Pot Limit Omaha High

I am told that the 15-30 game runs all the time (there were two going on Sunday) and that they routinely get a 30-60 Omaha High game going on Tuesdays and when the jackpots get big. Apparently they occasionally get bigger Holdem games, mostly when the jackpots get big.

The games were very soft. My 6-12 game was like butter, and the 15-30 Omaha High games made me drool, averaging maybe 7 or 8 seeing the flop for one bet. I also watched several of the PLO hands, and the players seemed to be definitely on the loose side, with 5 or 6 seeing the flop for a raise and then 3 or 4 callers of a pot-sized bet on the flop on several hands that I witnessed. Anyway, I believe limit Omaha High has a pretty large variance associated with it, but an appropriately bankrolled player could most likely make a killing in this game.

Unfortunately, being basically the only game in town, the rake is pretty high at 10% to $4 and a $1 jackpot drop on all games. My 6-12 game was so soft, though, that it was clearly beatable despite the rake. Also of minor note, the cardroom uses Gemaco cards instead of Kem cards... I did not really like the new look and feel. Of much more major note, the new cardroom is situated very close to a bank of noisy slots, and there is lots of ringing and dinging which is definitely annoying.

Overall, I definitely recommend the room... they are spreading a lot more Holdem than they were a year ago, and the games all looked quite good.