Open Side Menu Go to the Top
Register
London London

10-04-2023 , 09:20 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by dappadan777
Hippo is great overall, but has a few problems which really should be sorted as it's becoming the place people want to go to as tourists, anyone I speak to in cardrooms in America or Europe knows about it and asks, this is coming from someone who isn't a reg at all, but plays quite often at various places (but moreso online and aboard than here in London):

1) They need shuffling machines, its really too slow
2) They need to fix the waiting list issue or find another space to put more tables, I'm not a 1/2 player but have often been amazed at the fact there are 20+ people on a 1/2 list and if you're not lucky you won't get a seat at 2/5 unless you turn up early, just open some more tables (at the back?).
3) The cashier situation is a joke, the line is absurd and you've got 1 cashier, also I have been called out a few times giving in loose notes of £20s/£10s when buying in for £1-2K instead of it being in a casino wrap, I was told I can't do this anymore, which is incredible (but I think Government issue not specifically Hippo)?
4) The cramped seating is something less of an issue at 2/5 but the whole room seems small and cramped, and also very hot.

There must be some sense to it because Hippodrome as a casino and business is one of the most profitable, independently owned casinos in the country, it had a turnover of around 100m and a ebitda of nearly £7m last year, so they know what they're doing but it does need improving as a player. I think it was better in the Gods.

The food is amazing though and partly why I prefer it to the Vic and also the atmosphere generally within the casino is the most similar to a Vegas style casino we have here, which is also more exciting than the miserable Vic. As a more London specific query I'm amazed that 2/5 and the odd 5/10 or sporadic 10/25 is the highest game in every casino. It should be easily a place that caters for higher stakes.

On another note, I miss Palm Beach.
Agree with everything here.
London Quote
10-04-2023 , 09:22 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doctor Futtock
But peoples' wages HAVE increased over time and therefore they bring more money to the casino over time and, hence, the casino makes more money to pay costs. To facilitate this they do things like scrap the 1/1 poker cash game and hike up minimum bets on Blackjack from £5 to £15 and Roulette and the like. However, casinos have kept the odds the same for all their table games since the 1940s / 1950s - and they have survived very nicely thank you very much (with or without a poker room).



If casinos haven't needed to tinker with the payout odds for blackjack, roulette, slots etc - why have the suits at The Hippo (and The Vic) felt the need to suddenly tax poker players more in 2023? This has nothing to do with having to pay costs but everything to do with squeezing as much profit as possible from their customers.
but...they have tampered with the odds for table games

minimum bets are higher, and they've introduced double (or triple) zeroes on roulette and 6/5 blackjack as the two most obvious changes, plus tinkering around the edges

as for poker, I'm not convinced average buying at a 1/2 game change much with inflation, a lot of people want to play poker for the fun of it and look for the lowest stakes offered
London Quote
10-04-2023 , 09:42 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bloobird
but...they have tampered with the odds for table games

minimum bets are higher, and they've introduced double (or triple) zeroes on roulette and 6/5 blackjack as the two most obvious changes, plus tinkering around the edges

as for poker, I'm not convinced average buying at a 1/2 game change much with inflation, a lot of people want to play poker for the fun of it and look for the lowest stakes offered
Good point regarding blackjack and roulette changes.

Fun fact: Saw Daniel Cates (known as Jungleman) at The Hippo at Table 7 playing the good ol' 1/2 alongside his fancy woman last night.
London Quote
10-26-2023 , 09:55 AM
Popped up to the 4th/5th floor last night. Absolutely immaculately laid out area with seven or eight (seemingly brand new) poker tables for the ladies' tournament with plenty of space to move around and all looking extremely nice. Regular and loyal cash game players get the extremely cramped 3rd floor.

Just sayin'.
London Quote
01-01-2024 , 08:26 PM
Just a quick bump

London poker is still growing, the Vic now regularly spreading 5/10 to 25/50 NL daily, and even 50/100. Not sure on the line up, but seems to be gathering traction. (Might just be during the holiday period but will monitor it and update in a few weeks.

Also shout out again to the Vic for their daily high hand promo, now I do hate any rake drop, but this is proving popular, especially their NYE promo per hour, really got the numbers up. Gives all punters a fair shot, while paying the extra drop per hand.

Gukpt London coming up this week, a bit early than usual.

Roll on 2024...let's see what it brings.





Sent from my Pixel 6a using Tapatalk
London Quote
01-24-2024 , 01:20 PM
Games getting dry these days. High reg to fish ratio

Sent from my SM-A525F using Tapatalk
London Quote
02-11-2024 , 05:41 AM
Hey guys, just moved here from America and am now a resident.

How exactly would you rate the poker scene here compared to the likes of Vegas, other good places in America (TX, FL, East Coast, LA, etc), and the rest of Europe? Hows the weekend action? Is this the best place to play poker in Europe?

Do people make livings as live poker players here?

Just trying to gauge a level of expectation before I dip my toes in. I am within walking distance (Albeit a 35 minute walk) from The Vic, but also love the UK and would like to travel around and see if there are other good cities to play poker around here as well.

Thanks for any info!
London Quote
02-11-2024 , 01:33 PM
The poker here is smaller and tougher than in the US. 1/2 in London is probably comparable to 2/5 in Vegas, 2/5 UK comparable to 5/10 maybe 10/25 in the US at times. There are lots of good players in those games who play bigger elsewhere in the world. The UK isn't anywhere near as wealthy as the US so the disposable income needed for rec players to gamble as freely/highly as in the US just isn't there. You will find very weak, nitty pros in the 1/2 games I'm sure and then 2/5 will absolutely have multiple pros in the game. You pay no tax on gambling winnings in the UK which is obviously very helpful for would be pros.

Outside of London you will find cities that have cash games but it'll probably be 1/1 and a very small game. I wouldn't travel anywhere in the UK to play poker but if you find yourself in other major UK cities (Birmingham/Liverpool/Manchester etc) you'll likely have a poker game you can play, it just won't be particularly great.
London Quote
02-13-2024 , 04:43 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by iFoldedKKPreOnce
Hey guys, just moved here from America and am now a resident.

How exactly would you rate the poker scene here compared to the likes of Vegas, other good places in America (TX, FL, East Coast, LA, etc), and the rest of Europe? Hows the weekend action? Is this the best place to play poker in Europe?

Do people make livings as live poker players here?

Just trying to gauge a level of expectation before I dip my toes in. I am within walking distance (Albeit a 35 minute walk) from The Vic, but also love the UK and would like to travel around and see if there are other good cities to play poker around here as well.

Thanks for any info!
All your questions are answered in this book:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/London-Poke...ps%2C94&sr=8-1
London Quote
02-15-2024 , 08:31 AM
OK, it looks like The Mint on Cromwell Street (opposite Natural History Museum) is making a comeback / revival and calling itself Forty Five Kensington PKR. I personally didn't play there when it was The Mint but have heard that the games were "legendary".

I've seen that it's doing tournaments and cash games (after 8pm) and was wondering whether it's worth a visit.

Does anyone have info on the number of players it gets or any general impressions?

Cheers in advance.
London Quote
02-15-2024 , 02:31 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doctor Futtock
OK, it looks like The Mint on Cromwell Street (opposite Natural History Museum) is making a comeback / revival and calling itself Forty Five Kensington PKR. I personally didn't play there when it was The Mint but have heard that the games were "legendary".

I've seen that it's doing tournaments and cash games (after 8pm) and was wondering whether it's worth a visit.

Does anyone have info on the number of players it gets or any general impressions?

Cheers in advance.
It's odd to me that Genting decided to launch poker here in a relatively unknown place and arguably an odd location - I never went to the Mint, so I guess I could be completely wrong, where nobody will just fall in off the street (which is what you sort of need) - when they also own Palm Beach and could have the best poker in London in the nicest location (which it was 10 years ago), if they weren't so clueless. I'll report back once I've been but they say games from 1/2-25/50 (i'll belive that when I see it). I think anytihng otuside of W1 isn't going to work for a mid-high stakes poker environment and why would you bother 1/2 in this location, but I could be biased.
London Quote
02-20-2024 , 05:16 PM
Anyone know the current status of the cash races / freerolls that Aspers, Empire & the Vic used to offer? Was a reg in London several years ago and considering doing a month or two over the summer there but its incredibly hard to find out any info on their websites about them.

I believe they all made the change to hours instead of points just around the time I left London. The Vic used to have a 6-7 week qualification period though if I remember correctly. Does anyone know approximately how many hours would qualify you for each one? I'm assuming Aspers is still run on a Saturday and Empire is run on a Sunday, so possible to play both in the same month?

Cheers for any info
London Quote
02-20-2024 , 05:32 PM
Empire one is still going...1st Sunday of each month (download bravo to see live games and wait lists, they don't have twitter updates anymore)

Varies in terms of hours from month to month but to be 100% lock you need 100 hours+ (they update the board daily, and it's top 50 or 60 players) They also limit it to 8 or 10 hours earn't per visit.

No idea what Aspers is doing, I believe Hippo is still doing one but not sure the likely hours.

Sent from my Pixel 6a using Tapatalk
London Quote
02-20-2024 , 05:34 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Good Money
Anyone know the current status of the cash races / freerolls that Aspers, Empire & the Vic used to offer? Was a reg in London several years ago and considering doing a month or two over the summer there but its incredibly hard to find out any info on their websites about them.

I believe they all made the change to hours instead of points just around the time I left London. The Vic used to have a 6-7 week qualification period though if I remember correctly. Does anyone know approximately how many hours would qualify you for each one? I'm assuming Aspers is still run on a Saturday and Empire is run on a Sunday, so possible to play both in the same month?

Cheers for any info
The Vic hasn't had a loyalty for a few years or more and doesn't plan to introduce one, their daily high hand promo and BBJ seem quite popular and well liked.

Sent from my Pixel 6a using Tapatalk
London Quote
03-01-2024 , 09:37 AM
Going to Florida this month, and plan to play a bit of poker whilst there. Can i buy chips with bank card in the big casinos? I have a starling account which i hear is fee free anywhere in the world, but just want to double check in here.

I wont need a huge amount, 5-10k max. Id just rather not have to sort USD before going over, or get boned by exchange rates / fees every time i buy something / play poker.

Basically does anyone have experience with using Starling abroad and can confirm / deny if ill be ok relying on it for everything whilst over there?
London Quote
03-03-2024 , 11:52 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Megloooo
Going to Florida this month, and plan to play a bit of poker whilst there. Can i buy chips with bank card in the big casinos? I have a starling account which i hear is fee free anywhere in the world, but just want to double check in here.

I wont need a huge amount, 5-10k max. Id just rather not have to sort USD before going over, or get boned by exchange rates / fees every time i buy something / play poker.

Basically does anyone have experience with using Starling abroad and can confirm / deny if ill be ok relying on it for everything whilst over there?
Not sure about America but have used it in multiple countries in Asia with no problem and good exchange rates. I think the issue is (at least for me) the base maximum withdrawal amount per day from a cash point was around £300, so you might have to sort that out beforehand if it's possible. Maybe withdrawing directly from a casino is different, idk.
London Quote
03-04-2024 , 02:20 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Megloooo
Going to Florida this month, and plan to play a bit of poker whilst there. Can i buy chips with bank card in the big casinos? I have a starling account which i hear is fee free anywhere in the world, but just want to double check in here.

I wont need a huge amount, 5-10k max. Id just rather not have to sort USD before going over, or get boned by exchange rates / fees every time i buy something / play poker.

Basically does anyone have experience with using Starling abroad and can confirm / deny if ill be ok relying on it for everything whilst over there?
I def wouldnt do this. You'll incur wild atm withdrawal or 'cash advance' fees everytime you buy chips. Also a few times ive been to LA to play, I didnt take enough cash with me and resorted to what you're suggesting when I busted the cash I took and needed to reup, I ended up capped at a very small withdrawal limit of like $1K per 24 hours as per my bank withdrawal limit, no good when you're tilted and standing at an ATM at 11pm in a casino in the middle of nowhere. My suggestion is to find someone to buy 5-10k off in London and take the cash with you. There's also plenty of online sites you can reporder the cash at ok exchange rates, a few days before you need it.
London Quote
04-08-2024 , 09:24 AM
Looks like Hippodrome are trying to run 1/3 now with a £150 - £600 buy-in but some 2/5 players are complaining it takes traffic away from their game. Interesting change from the £1000 cap they got going at Vic which might attract new players.

Apparently they got 2 or 3 games running on Friday / Saturday. Anyone played it? Comments?
London Quote
04-08-2024 , 09:49 AM
I popped in during the daytime randomly on Saturday and heard this, very new and good to see some sensible changes. The 2/5 players don't rule the room, let them trial it and see what happens. Would like to have seen 200 min buy in but doesn't matter too much.

Vic has added another £1k to their daily high hand promo which is proving popular, and empire is also very busy most days, seems London poker is thriving!

Sent from my Pixel 6a using Tapatalk
London Quote
04-17-2024 , 05:31 AM
Feeling a bit bored so here's my update on the low-stakes London poker scene as of April 2024...

Hippo - Pros
1. Good table selection opportunities.
2. Relatively deep-stacks compared to others.
3. Lots of young (mainly Asian) fish with disposable income from the Bank of Mum & Dad.
4. Good food (especially if you like steak and burgers).
5. Central location.
Hippo - Cons
1. Very constricted seating arrangements in many areas.
2. Waiting list can be long (especially weekend evenings).
3. Rake is calculated by rounding UP to nearest ten rather than down.
4. No shuffle-machines. Roughly about 5 hands LESS per hour.
5. Very few MTTs.

Empire - Pros
1. Good table selection opportunities.
2. Very relaxed, almost pub-like, casual atmosphere.
3. Rake is calculated by rounding DOWN to nearest ten.
4. Shuffle machines. Roughly 5 hands MORE per hour.
5. Daily MTTs in afternoon
Empire - Cons
1. Cash-race makes it the most reg-infested of venues.
2. Extra £1 taken out of every £20+ pot (due to said cash-race).
3. Many short-stack players.
4. Dungeon-like / basement setting can put people off.
5. Lighting a little too bright.

The Vic - Pros
1. Very spacious (slightly cramped around the 1/2 tables).
2. Shuffle-machines. More hands per hour.
3. Usually decent 1/3 games in evenings.
4. Lots of high-hand promotions (including daily paying out top 3 hands).
5. Daily MTTs in evening.
The Vic - Cons
1. Often, very long waiting times.
2. No points system whatsoever. Unlike all the others.
3. 1/2 tables are usually infested with nit-regs.
4. Rake calculated by rounding up PLUS £s taken out of every pot for promotions.
5. Very poor food selection.
6. Dead atmosphere (plus usually a long wait) in afternoons.

Aspers - Pros
1. Spacious.
2. Shuffle-machines.
3. Very wide selection of MTTs throughout the day and evening.
4. You can match the deepest stack.
Aspers - Pros
1. Grim atmosphere.
2. Located far from west-end and a fairly long walk from station.
3. Less experienced dealers.
4. Poor food.

Conclusion
On a personal level, Aspers is too far out of the way but the real deal-breaker is that for most of the week, no tube runs after midnight to get you back to central London. Even when it does, that's still quite a long and dull central line journey. The Vic is also becoming increasingly unappealing with its long waiting times and "blood-out-of-a-stone" 1/2 games dominated by pension-age nit-regs just waiting to snag a high-hand! With it being like a morgue in the afternoon, this really means that the odd 1/3 game in the evening is the only decent option. However, what happens when these three or maybe four 1/3 games are no good? Well this leads to the conclusion that...

With The Hippo and Empire being virtually next to each other, table selection becomes vastly superior to that offered by the other two. Add the fact that it's slap bang next to Chinatown (to attract the Asian gamblers) and the tourists and casual players will be attracted to the bright lights of the west-end, as a low-stakes cash-game poker player, a trip to Leicester Square in the West-End is the no brainer.
London Quote
04-17-2024 , 07:15 AM
Cheers for the update; I only play from time to time so this is really helpful, have you played at Forty Five Casino in Kensington?
London Quote
04-17-2024 , 07:49 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by DSA Stephen
Cheers for the update; I only play from time to time so this is really helpful, have you played at Forty Five Casino in Kensington?
Short answer: No.

Long answer: I believe it's 2/5 and have heard it's taking a while to move forward. They also do MTTs but no idea how many runners these get.
London Quote
05-15-2024 , 10:00 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by DSA Stephen
Cheers for the update; I only play from time to time so this is really helpful, have you played at Forty Five Casino in Kensington?
Just had a look and they're listed on Poker discover. I was going to type all the info out but just have a look on the link!!

https://pokerdiscover.com/clubs/unit...kensington-pkr

It looks like the structures are kind of ridiculous. The Friday evening is 8K chips (& 2K early bird) with a twenty minute clock. Pretty sure when it was the Mint it was a 20 minute clock but with 20K (or maybe even 25K) chips and a 5K early bird. This had a reasonable amount of play for £100 tourny, the new structure doesn't. Saying that, I live so close, I might pop down one Friday. If I do, I'll check back here.
London Quote
05-16-2024 , 01:22 PM
wow all 4 of those sound kind of bad! Is there no regular 5/T game in london anymore? (seems like Palm Beach closed?)

Where does 2/5 most regularly run?
London Quote
05-17-2024 , 07:27 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Keruli
wow all 4 of those sound kind of bad! Is there no regular 5/T game in london anymore? (seems like Palm Beach closed?)

Where does 2/5 most regularly run?
I haven't played at the Vic for a long time but it appears that currently it's the best place for 5/10 and above and has 2/5 running a lot of the time. The Hippo has 2/5 running most of the time and 5/10 quite often. Your unlikely to see anything other than 1/2 at Aspers or the Empire.
London Quote

      
m