Another New Chip

The newest chip to join my collection is the $5 house chip from the Ameristar Casino in St. Charles, MO (near St. Louis). The casino is a "riverboat" situated on the mighty Missouri River. The riverboat doesn't even pretend to act as a boat, the casino is attached to the parking garage/hotel on land. Inside, it's bright and shiny and new looking (being 5 or so years old will do that), but it's nothing special. There is a metric ton of penny slots on both levels. Yes, penny slots. I witnessed a guy hit a 'jackpot' on one of them. Whilst wandering around, I noticed a group of people standing behind a guy, as his slot machine was running through a pay-out. Everyone was amazed at his massive winnings, a solid 10,000 units. Until you realized that on a penny machine, that's $100. Woo-hoo. I wonder if that old guy will get to retire now? Which reminds me, the casino itself was pretty empty. Sure it was a Monday night (President's Day to be exact), but it was empty. Pretty standard collection of old people, oxygen tanks and old people with oxygen tanks. Only a handful of blackjack tables ($15 min.) and other assorted table games. Not the worst I've ever seen, but I would definitely check out the other 3 St. Louis-area casinos before going back to the Ameristar. Which, by the way, wins the award for lamest casino name ever. So they at least have that going for them.