dhuey

Part of the fun for me about blackjack is that with some simple card-counting you can make it a no house advantage game. Free entertainment and drinks. 6-5 blows that deal.

redtop43

I've mainly been playing Blackjack Switch at Four Queens downtown. $5 game usually. However, I wouldn't play blackjack there as the games are mostly $10 and 6:5.

For blackjack I suggest Orleans. 3:2 blackjack, and 90%+ of the time a $5 table. I think the same applies to Binions. I think D downtown pays 3:2 but I haven't seen a $5 table there.

RumPatrol

Treasure Island still has a good 6 deck $10 3:2 game, it is the only place on the strip I'll play anymore. You have to go to the tables just inside the entrance where the Sirens show used to be, walk straight inside and then the pit on the right across from the cashier and high roller area. Just be careful because they do have 6:5 games mixed in there. The pit near the bar by the front entrance also has some $10 3:2 games. I gravitate for TI almost exclusively for gaming because of that, even though the rest of the hotel doesn't do much for me.

Mirage, MGM and Mandalay Bay all had $10 3:2 games not long ago, but last time I was there I couldn't find one at any. Mirage in particular went full 6:5 and took away most of their tables. The best bet for a legit game will always be downtown, but on the strip your only consistent option is TI at this point.

LV2DSM

I’ve found 3:2 recently at $25 at Mandaly and Luxor on weeknights.

RustyC

Re: OP. Still El Cortez, hands down. Maybe six single-deck tables at $5 and 3:2 with honest rules about most other things. They do hit soft 17s and, IIRC, won't let you double down after splitting, but you can double on any 2 cards and I believe the house advantage on a flawless basic strategy is only 0.16%. They keep card-counters out by putting heat on greens and above, so if you stayed on red and had a $10 standard bet with a count strategy and 1x-6x bets, you could expect to be up $15/hr. over the long term, though to do that you'd need to concentrate at all times and ride out the bad streaks.

They used to have $3 tables...they're still thought of as downscale, but less so than in the past before remodeling and when they had a lot more smokers. Though back when Jackie Gaughan had them, the Gold Spike and the Western were even MORE downscale. Playing the $1 tables in either of those places could be quite an experience. (The Western was also Tecate headquarters and the fistfights were free entertainment)

Even at the favorable-odds places you see how most people play hunches or chase losses or do things that increase the house percentages (including getting caught up in the Royal Match or other side bets without knowing the true odds or having a strategy). The Strip casinos would do just fine without 6:5 and all the shoes...they'd take customers' money more slowly, like in the old days, but run fewer people off. They're creating a whole generation that's not into the gaming at all, and giving them good reason not to be.

NickHusky

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redtop43

I posted in this thread several years ago; since then I've visited Vegas at least a couple dozen times and settled on Orleans as my go-to place. They pay 3:2 (there might be a single-deck game that pays 6:5), deal two decks by hand, almost always have multiple $5 tables. There is no surrender, but the only other unfavorable rule is no resplitting Aces. You can resplit (I don't know if there's a limit but I've never seen more than four hands) and double after splitting. The dealers are generally friendly and the cocktail waitresses pretty prompt. You can double any two cards, and they do hit soft 17 but I don't ever remember seeing a casino that didn't.

Jaimito Cartero

There used to be a number of casinos that stood on all 17’s. Especially downtown.

Visconti

Bellagio and Treasure Island, at least pre pandemic. While there are generally higher minimums, they had 2-deck games with fairly generous rules, e.g., splitting Aces without restrictions, dealer stand on soft 17, surrender, double after splitting, generally good dealer penetration, 3:2 BJ (of course).

Those are the only two places where I'll play any serious BJ.

AFAM-DFW

All BJ tables at SouthPoint are 3:2. They even have a $5 table or two. For a strip casino, I like the Mandalay for their ceiling height, moderate music volume and general feel. 6:5 on most tables though.

JB OmahAA

EXACTLY THIS; I can handle losing a hand here & there in the mix of the game, but enjoying the camaraderie or commiserating with your tablemates is a large part of why I like to play table games. we had boisterous table at the Flaming once where a guy that looked like William Shatner was chiding one of the the other players. I told him to "take it easy, Shatner" and he passed me his business card: turns out the guy did gigs as a William Shatner lookalike , replete with Capt. Kirk uniform. We all had good laugh. Live long and prosper in Vegas my friends!

Visconti

Agreed!

Yeah, you can have some really fun times, unlike the serious games where some gamblers' irrationally take it as an affront when anyone plays a hand that deviates from Basic Strategy. Some of the best times I've had were in at tables where I didn't care about the odds and just played for fun, often doing stuff that generates much laugher, such as hitting on 18 or splitting 10s! You do this at a serious game, and the Pit Boss' and dealer's "card counter" sirens start going crazy.

I've had sessions where literally the players just couldn't stop laughing because of the sheer characters at the table.

corky

What?? I admit that I couldn't even look at someone doing that even if they were doing it for laughs at a $5 table. I also can't imagine the dealer taking you seriously and going along with it!

Silver Fox

I have to say I/we have done that when the mood was right at the table! Dealers were loving it too!

Jaimito Cartero

The only time I’ve ever hit a hard 17 or above was when the dealer exposed their hole card, and it was the only chance not to lose. In 40 years of playing Blackjack in Vegas, it’s quite rare. Probably 3-4 times, and mostly at the Western Hotel where the El Cortez trained their dealers. I got paid on pushes and 22’s more often.

I loved playing roulette there, as they’d forget to remove some of the losing bets fairly often. Plus being 15, and never getting kicked out for playing.