The original Harrah’s casino in downtown Reno is trading its slot machines and tables games for market-rate apartments and office space. Caesars Entertainment Corp. Announced Wednesday that.

Harrah’s Reno is located in the heart of downtown Reno, Nevada and is one of dozens of Caesars Entertainment properties scattered throughout the United States. Though certainly not as well-known as its Las Vegas counterpart, the Reno Harrah’s location holds its own. This hotel and casino is the perfect solution for residents in the California and Nevada area that don’t want to make the much longer trip to Las Vegas. Plus, if you live in California, you will find many benefits to crossing the border, whether it be games without fees, free drinks, or more casino options.

Reno is a unique gambling city in that it has a few different areas of town. Instead of finding every casino and hotel within walking distance, you will have choices that extend across many miles. From Boomtown Casino when you first cross from California into Nevada, to Eldorado and Peppermill a few miles away, Reno is the perfect city for the adventurous gambler.

1. Ryan Sheltra, general manager of Bonanza Casino, assists a customer on reopening day, June 4, 2020, in what was the former table games area of the casino, now converted to slot machines.
2. Harrah's Reno Casino: Slot Machines!!! - See 478 traveller reviews, 51 candid photos, and great deals for Reno, NV, at Tripadvisor.

Casino at Harrah’s Reno

The casino at Harrah’s Reno is two levels. You will find table games on the lower level, with machines dominating the upper level. There are a number of different table games to choose from, including blackjack, pai gow, baccarat, and Let it Ride. The biggest drawback to the main table games area is the lack of table volume. If you are playing at absolute peak hours, you may have a tough time finding an open table, especially if you are with a few friends. At any other time, however, you should be able to find open games with ease. It is hard to put too much blame on the casino for the lack of games as, in general, the tables just aren’t needed.

The slots and video poker selection is fairly strong. As is the case with most CET properties, you will not find a wide selection of good video poker machines. The best available are in the 98-99% payback range, with many that are significantly worse. We recommend walking the floor and examining each of the sections closely to find the machines that have the best paytables for video poker at Harrah’s Reno as these games and locations frequently change.

In terms of slots, there are many more machines than there are players. This, of course, is a net positive for visitors as it means that you will not need to be fighting for a seat at your favorite game. The main floor has the majority of slots at Harrah’s Reno. In addition to the floor, there is also a high limit slots section. In here you will find everything from $1, 2 credit machines up to $100+ machines. Unlike some casinos, there is not a mid-limit slots section. Even during prime hours, the high limit area was fairly quiet, and most of the play was taking place outside on the main floor.

Restaurants and Bars at Harrah’s Reno

The dining options at Harrah’s Reno are actually quite extensive when considering the size of the hotel and casino itself. On the lower end, Hash House A Go Go, Quiznos, and the Joy Luck Noodle Bar have something for everyone. The only food option that is open 24/7 is the Noodle Bar, which changes its late night menu entirely. While Asian cuisine is the featured menu during the day and evening, the late night choices at Joy Luck shift to traditional American “fast food,” namely burgers, chicken strips, and sandwiches. For the price, the quality of the food was good and the service was prompt.

For mid-range dining, your best options are found in either Carvings Buffet or Ichiban. The lines at Carvings tended to be fairly long on most days (especially the weekend), but this is to be expected. As is the case with other Harrah’s properties, you will be able to skip the line with a Platinum, Diamond, or Seven Star Total Rewards card. If you are instead looking for a high end restaurant, you will be able to make a reservation at Harrah’s Steak House. This restaurant has several accolades, including election into the Fine Dining Hall of Fame, so you are most likely to leave quite satisfied.

Several different bars are scattered throughout the Harrah’s Reno property. Most active was the Jade Bar, which also features table top video poker machines. Another bar can be found adjacent to the Joy Luck Noodle Bar on the same level as the table games area. Beyond these, the Sapphire Lounge features live music and drinks, though a moderate dress code is enforced.

Harrah’s Reno Promotions

Promotions at Harrah’s Reno fall under the umbrella of the Total Rewards program. Though there is not much available in terms of new player sign up bonuses, having a TR account will enable you to establish a history of play that can then be parlayed into comps, free rooms, and entertainment offers. There are a few Total Rewards desks at Harrah’s Reno where you can create an account and receive a personal players card.

Harrah’s Reno Hotel

The Harrah’s Reno Hotel is likely its weakest selling point. We put this more on the competition than we do on the property itself. Rates are low, and you will likely not be expecting a 5 star resort when you arrive at Harrah’s Reno, and this is right where your expectations should be. The rooms are ample and clean. They are spacious and the beds are comfortable. There wasn’t anything wrong with the rooms, though it was odd to see that instead of a standard light switch, the bathrooms had timers on the lights. Other than this, the rooms were fairly typical. There are two different towers at Harrah’s Reno, and they are called the East and West towers. If you have a preference, there is likely to be enough rooms available to allow for selecting the tower of your choice.

Rooms include a fridge (no mini bar) and other standard amenities. It is worth noting that Harrah’s Reno does not currently have room service available. The alternative to this is to order from Hash House A Go Go and pickup food to bring back to your room. This is likely a bit more work than a prospective room service user may be looking to put in, but it is not the worst option since they do allow call ahead orders.

There is also a pool at Harrah’s Reno, though its availability is limited by the seasonality of the area since it is located outside. It is reasonable to expect the pool to be crowded in the hot summer months that Reno is prone to experiencing.

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Nevada’s reopening of hotel-casinos is not enough to stave off layoffs at some properties, with recent job cuts totaling in the hundreds at two Reno gaming hotel operations.

Caesars Entertainment notified the state, city of Reno and Washoe County that it will permanently lay off 471 employees at its Harrah’s Reno property, which remains closed after the state-mandated shutdown of nonessential businesses in March. Caesars is in the midst of closing its sale of Harrah’s Reno to Las Vegas-based developer CAI Investments.

More: Harrah’s Reno to turn into Reno City Center. Here’s what it will look like.

“Harrah’s Reno will be permanently closed and all employees will be terminated,” said Brad Belhouse, regional president for Caesars, in a notice about the layoffs.

The Harrah’s Reno layoffs will be effective after Aug. 1 but no specific date was given. CAI Investments plans to turn Harrah’s Reno into a new mixed-use development known as Reno City Center once it finalizes its acquisition of the property.

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Caesars cited the ongoing merger with Eldorado Resorts for its decision to not reopen Harrah’s Reno. Eldorado Resorts first announced its plans to acquire Caesars Entertainment for $17.3 billion last year. Eldorado initially eyed the first half of 2020 as the target date for closing the deal before the COVID-19 pandemic roiled the gaming industry and the global economy. Caesars says both companies are now expecting to close the deal in August but the date could still change.

Another Reno hotel-casino, the Peppermill Resort Hotel, also will be laying off workers. The Peppermill layoffs total 103 employees and will be effective on Aug. 1.

“When we originally provided notice of furloughs effective March 17, 2020, we did not foresee the furloughs could last beyond six months or become permanent,” said Billy Paganetti, Peppermill general manager. “Frankly, no one could have foreseen how the COVID-19 crisis played out.”

The hotel-casino closures led to an unprecedented drop in room tax revenue, according to the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority. During April — the first full month following the mandatory shutdown of nonessential businesses in Nevada — taxable room revenue in Reno-Sparks was $3.5 million. The number is down 89% from the $32.2 million collected during the same month last year.

The Peppermill was one of several Reno-Sparks hotel-casinos that opened its doors once again this month as part of the state’s phase two reopening. The hotel-casino implemented several safety precautions for its reopening, including daily temperature checks for employees and the installation of thermal cameras.

With travel still down and events such as Hot August Nights being canceled, however, the hotel-casino business is expected to still be far below what it was last year.

“The required response to the COVID-19 crisis has evolved, and resulted in uncertainty facing our industry,” Paganetti said.

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“Because of this uncertainty, we have made the difficult decision to permanently layoff employees,” Paganetti added.

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Jason Hidalgo covers business and technology for the Reno Gazette Journal. Follow him on Twitter @jasonhidalgo. Like this content? Support local journalism with an RGJ digital subscription.

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This article originally appeared on Reno Gazette Journal: Harrah’s Reno permanently laying off 471 workers, Peppermill to lay off 103 employees