Sometime since my last visit, 5 video poker (VP) machines near Marilyn's lounge were upgraded. These machines now offer full pay schedules at the 25 cent level that include Double Bonus (100.17%), 9/6/90 JOB (100%), Double Double Bonus (99.96%), and NSUD (99.73%). Also available at the 5 and 10 cent level are 10-coin NSUD. $4 coin-in are required to earn 1 point on these machines and they are excluded from point multipliers. The bank of 10 coin droppers with 9/6 JOB are still available, but those
do not award any slot club points.

We frequently dine at Carve which is like Rodney Dangerfield in that it gets no respect. On our most recent visit we received a basket of delicious bread and then shared our usual spinach salad that included baby leaves, a warm bacon dressing, and mushrooms For entrees we each ordered a junior cut of prime rib done medium rare and shared a sweet potato with maple butter. The food and service continue to be above average and prices are moderate. Bargain hunters may want to purchase a restaurant.com gift certificate.

If you happen to be staying at the Eastside Cannery, Snaps coffee shop is worth a visit. We have dined there 3 times for breakfast and enjoyed each our meals. There are usually one or monthly specials that may be found on the casino’s website under “Dining” and then look for “Eat & Drink Specials”. For the current (January 2013) month a $3.99 M-F breakfast special is offered that includes a choice of bacon or sausage, hash browns and toast, but you must purchase a beverage. There is also a $9.99 prime rib special available (see website for details).

Casa Coscina is the Eastside’s Tex-Mex restaurant. On our first and only visit, we started off with Mango Margaritas (4 Sips out of a possible 5), the obligatory salsas and chips and a delicious tortilla soup. Our entrees were Red Snapper Coscina - sautéed red snapper filet with a zesty tomato and cilantro sauce accompanied by rice and homemade refried beans. A picture of our entrees may be located in Webster’s Dictionary under the page headed “Mediocre”. We concluded the meal by sharing a caramel flan that was very dense, but mildly tasty. ($7, Comps, 1.5 out of 5 Forks)

The restaurant is open Fri-Tue for dinner. Check the website under promotions for the current special. This month's (August) is a $9.99 chile relleno & chicken enchilada dinner that includes soup, rice and refried beans. Add a Corona or margarita for just $2 more.

When the casino opened, a very competitive and liberal inventory of FP video poker was offered, but a few years later the schedules were downgraded. For awhile the only playable VP were the quarter 9/6 JOB coin-droppers located in classic slots room that had been rescued from the former Nevada Palace. About a month ago, (5) 25¢ machines with 100.17% DB, 100.00% JoB, 99.73% NSUD, 99.66% BP, and 99.58% TDB were added. These are located near Marilyn's Lounge and require $4 to earn one point.