Driving around Reno I would always see these signs that said “Free Pie”, “Free Pie… Reinvented!”
So, one cold Thursday afternoon when I had nothing better to do, I decided I’d go to the Gold Dust West and get myself some free pie and play a few bucks to kill some time.
The thought of the free pie vanished when I walked in, as I was met with that familiar smell. My nose was filled with that classic casino scent, an overwhelming linger of a cheap air freshener, mixed with fresh cigarette smoke.
As someone who grew up in Las Vegas and had parents who would go out to bingo a few nights a week and drop me off at the casino’s daycare type center, this smell brought on a strong feeling of nostalgia.
Reno is known for quite a few things, and gambling is one of them. If you take a glance across the town, you’ll see at least five large casino resorts standing out. You’ve got the Nugget, GSR, Atlantis, Peppermill, and the Row which consists of three casinos. But, scattered around town are lots of smaller, more local casinos with a very loyal customer base.
There’s the Cal-Neva downtown, a college favorite. Siri’s casino, also downtown, is another college favorite because of their $5 daiquiri special. We can’t forget Boomtown, or Rail City, and the year-old Legends Bay in Sparks. Reno’s casinos scream “Old Vegas”. Among all of these “smaller” casinos, there’s one that has always stood out to me: the Gold Dust West.
Not quite downtown, the Gold Dust sits between W Fourth and W Fifth street, right off of Keystone Ave. The Jacobs Entertainment owned casino is small but mighty. There are three full-service bars, a plethora of new and old machines, a teensy bingo hall, and a restaurant. Although this casino doesn’t have tables, it doesn’t seem to be a problem for many of their loyal customers.
When you really think about it, casinos are a very interesting concept, and they pretty much thrive off of three addictions: alcoholism, gambling, and smoking… And the fact that older folks will come almost every night and gamble their Social Security checks away.
Sure, you may be able to go to a sports bar and drink your beer while watching football and playing video poker, but if you want to indulge in a cigarette you have to step outside. Reno is definitely not known for its balmy evening winter weather where you would want to step outside and smoke a cigarette.
A casino is one of the few places in America where you can actually smoke inside. This is one reason why casinos are so appealing to those who smoke cigarettes and also enjoy drinking and gambling.
If you live in Reno and haven’t yet been to the Gold Dust, and pay attention to billboards while driving around, it’s possible you have heard of this place. Scattered around town, there are a few billboards that read, “Free Pie.. Reinvented!”
Now I know what you are thinking, if I walk into this casino I’ll just get free pie? Let’s go! That’s what I thought, but it isn’t quite the case.
You have to eat at The Grille inside and get a qualifying meal to get this free pie. But it isn’t your traditional slice of pie, it’s more like a parfait, if you will. I learned this the hard way when I went to the Gold Dust for the first time.
After finding parking, inside, no matter which direction I looked, I could always see a bar, which speaks to how small this casino really is.
I decided it would be smart to obtain a player's card, so I could start racking up rewards and be eligible to earn free play or enter in drawings if I ever decided to come back.
It was a quick process and took less than five minutes. This was when I learned that if you earn enough points through playing on the same day you sign up for the player’s card, you’ll get a coupon for half off a prime rib dinner at The Grille.
I walked around and explored a bit after I got my player’s card, and found some pretty cool things. There is a cigarette vending machine where you can buy a single pack of cigarettes for $11, a sports betting area, and I even caught some of a bingo game inside the casino’s bingo hall. Periodically, someone would come over the PA system to announce a giveaway of free play.
After deciding I had enough looking around and was ready to waste the $10 I brought away, I took a seat at one of the bars in between two gentlemen, one older and one younger, who both happened to be wearing Raiders jerseys.
A few minutes later, the bartender came up to me and asked me what I wanted to drink, so I opted for a Diet Coke. The bar I was at was nearly full, and the demographic of people sitting there was mostly older people, and they were all chatting with their seat mates, which led me to assume that these people probably didn’t just meet each other and probably frequent this place regularly.
I inserted my bill into the machine, and sat there a bit puzzled trying to figure out what game I wanted to play. I didn’t have many options, but video poker sounded the most appealing to me.
“First time?’ the man next to me asked with a smile. “Need some help?”
I told him that I had played video poker on my phone a few times before but wasn’t sure where to start. He told me his name was Paul, and then proceeded to tell me that he is a self proclaimed video poker expert, and in the past week had won over 10k playing just video poker. So naturally, I listened to what he had to say.
Before I knew it, my $10 had turned into $20 with Paul helping guide me through the ins and outs of video poker. Apparently the whole time Paul was helping me out, the younger guy to my left had been paying attention to what was going on and finally chimed in.
“This guy really knows what he’s doing,” he laughed. “Had I sat down next to him my first time playing, maybe I wouldn’t be trying to make up for it now,” he added.
So now Paul was not only showing me what hands to keep, he was showing the other guy next to me, Jason, what to do too.
In my head, something clicked and I think I realized just why people like coming here so much. I hadn’t yet interacted with many people, but the two I had talked to were friendly and outgoing. Maybe it was the couple beers both of them had indulged in, or maybe that is just the casino culture here.
Eventually, I asked Paul why he chose the Gold Dust over all of the places he could gamble in Reno, and his answer was pretty simple. He lives close by, like walking distance close, and over the years he’s been coming here, he said he’s made some great friends spending Thursday nights and Sundays watching football. He told me that he would occasionally go to other casinos but he never had the same luck anywhere else.
I asked Jason the same thing, and his answer made me laugh: free pie. The same thing that drew me to this place drew him too. He told me that he thought he was just going to walk in here and sit down at a machine and the cocktail waitress would walk up and ask him what he wanted to drink, and what flavor pie he wanted. He said he was glad that definitely wasn’t the case, or he would be in here a lot more frequently than he already is.
My $10 lasted me a long time, sipping my Diet Coke, chatting with Paul and Jason, and tapping the buttons on the video poker screen. Eventually, the $10 that turned into $20 had sadly dwindled down to a measly $4.70. I didn’t come here with the intention of hitting a jackpot, but decided it might be worth it to throw what I had left into the funniest looking slot machine I could find. So I went exploring again.
After walking around the tiny casino for what felt like 10 minutes, I found one called, “Invaders Attack From The Planet Moolah.”
I sat next to an older woman who had her players card attached to a lanyard and inserted into the machine as she was clicking away at Texas Tea while also smoking a cigarette. I put my players card in, and inserted my cashout voucher.
While this machine was pretty funny, it wasn’t getting me anywhere. I decided to strike up a conversation with the lady next to me by telling her her lanyard was pretty neat. She told me that if she didn’t have her card attached to the lanyard, she would lose it, and that she comes here too often to have to go get a new card each time she visits.
She pulled out another cigarette and offered me one, which I declined. She was a sweet older lady, and it seemed like she was enjoying my company. She told me about her grandkids, and how she can’t wait until they are old enough to come gamble with her. She told me her name was Betty, and that she has been coming to the Gold Dust every day for the past seven years.
In my head, I thought that was pretty incredible, so I asked her why she comes here and doesn’t go somewhere else. Betty told me that she is retired, and doesn’t have much else to do so this keeps her busy.
She said that she usually meets up with her friends here everyday and that they were somewhere in the casino playing as well. She said that the food at The Grille is always yummy and the servers always know her order. She added the cocktail waitresses just bring her a beer and she doesn’t even have to ask.
Betty said that going to the Gold Dust gave her a reason to get out of the house and talk to people which is something that she wouldn’t do just sitting at home. After a nice conversation with Betty, and no more credits in the machine, I decided it was time to head out. I told Betty it was nice to meet her, and that I hoped I’d see her again.
As I got up and walked out to my car, the scent of the Gold Dust lingered on my clothes. I sat for a moment before I drove off and realized just why people love to come to this place. It’s small, the people are friendly, and after you frequent it enough, everyone seems to remember your name. Although it’s always a plus to walk out with more than you walked in with, it’s about having a good time, checking out of life for a bit, and meeting new people or old acquaintances.
My first experience at the Gold Dust was a good one, but it definitely won’t be my last because I’ll be back. And maybe next time, I’ll get some pie.