They definitely get a wage... as does anyone working in WA state.

Well, the "volunteer" dealers in Portland do not get a wage, which is part of why they have gotten into legal trouble, and why they can just have a low entry fee instead of a rake. And why someone in this thread thinks Seattle area casinos are such a rip off, despite them having the lowest rake in the country.

Among places who pay their dealers, that is.

Bravo only provides information to Tulalip and I think one of the smaller rooms in the south.

No one wants to pay for Bravo's dated technology, especially when it costs a boat load.

The Snoqualmie 5-10 game on Monday and Thursday is only a $3 rake with no jackpot drop.

The 5-5 PLO game that is now running on Tuesday is a $6 per 30 minute time drop (I believe).

Just read through the last several pages here. It seems people prefer Red Dragon or Fortune to Tulalip/Muck. Could anyone share some specific reasons why?

Also, is there any 5/10 NLHE or bigger games around Seattle?

Haven't been to Red Dragon, but Fortune is the nicest poker room in the area BY FAR.

I would imagine most people that prefer it are Limit players. Or prefer smaller stakes NL. If so, it's definitely the best place to play. Good promos, lots of games going, variety, above average food.

If you want to play NL bigger than 1/3 then it will definitely not be your #1 choice.... but that's really the only con imo.

red dragon is starting to spread 2/5. So far running only on fris and saturday. I'll be there those nights to help get the game going.

Snoqualmie on Mondays & Thursdays spreads a 5/10 I believe. Can someone who knows confirm. Also, what time does this game typically begin?

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Most people live closer to Dragon and Fortune than to Tulalip and Muckleshoot.

Tulalip is in a reservation that is a nightmare to get to on I-5, especially during typical heavy traffic hours. It isn't any easier on the weekend because it is next to a major shopping destination.

Muckleshoot is also in a reservation and surrounded by rather sketchy parts. It also attracts some of the same people in its surrounding neighborhood. I don't think Muckleshoot ever attracted large enough of the tech and eastside crowd.

Tulalip did attract tech and eastside crowd for a while, back when tribal was the only big game in town. Then through series of horrible management that included bad customer service, many of its regulars had left. It's also a fine example of why you don't ask advices of your biggest regulars, given that these guys will probably never make suggestions against their own interest. Tulalip never quite understood the idea to "shear and not to skin."

Well said. One example is my hours. Until recently, my weekly average was around 25 hours at cash games at the Tulalip. All of it Friday through Sunday. Now its close to zero. The Tulalip poker management "give a shyte" button is broken for the weekend player. BTW the Tulalip outlet mall is pretty much a ghost town even now. IMO amazon Prime (and other e-commerce offerings) is a big reason why.

Mondays - usually 2-3 games starting early afternoon
Thursday - usually 1-2 games starting in the early evening

You can call the poker room before heading over (425-888-8311) to check the status and add your name to the list.

How many 2/5 tables at red dragon normally when it's available? What's the max BI?

I actually spend a decent amount of breath arguing the Portland poker rooms violate state law (out of love; I prefer to work towards a long-term solution rather than small, "creative," patches here and there to seemingly get around the law), but in defense of at least the "main" rooms, dealers are generally very good. I don't know where you were, but none of the "big three" rooms in town would EVER have the same dealer for three hours, and have the standard card count down. Quality is obviously going to vary a little bit, but having played all over (including several years in Seattle) I have no problem saying that on average the dealers here (again, at least in the "big three" rooms) are as good if not better than anywhere else, with the top tier matching top tier in any location.

the dealers are good, the management are nice, and there is no rake. and you want to change that to regular casinos who take almost all the money out?
players that dont like that can just drive over the bridge a few miles to raked games in washington state.

It's a new game and the BI structure is a lot bigger than other games in the area ($300 to $1000), so typically there is only 1 table.

This was at Portland Meadow in late April of this year. I had the same exact dealer for at least 2 hours, closer to 3. There was no shuffling machine. I did not see dealer switch out deck and did not see him count down cards once.

Dealer was great, never slowed down the game, properly and efficiently dealt cards, and was great with chips. As far as the skill of dealer, it was on par with some of the best dealers in Seattle.

Perhaps it has to do with lack of policy and that it's beneficial to keep a high pace, like I said, there was ZERO count down and the entire 2-3 hour session was dealt with the same deck.

FWIW, it was a 1/2 game, so I wasn't suspecting any cheating or colluding, just more less surprised.

Not sure if it's a good idea to engage this topic in this thread...

To be clear, no, I don't want that....I just want the dated social gaming laws updated through the proper channels.

That's surprising, and definitely an anomaly. No, they don't have shuffling machines, but they generally have a pretty solid rotating downs schedule, and nearly all dealers count down.

How is the LHE action in Seattle? Think a new casino opened, not sure of the name, but if 20/40+ runs there daily I would def. be interested in moving there. Hard to find action during the week in Philly besides Mon or Tues at Parx 15/30, and I plan to get a weekend job just to cover benefits and rent.

Check out Fortune Poker room. They have an app that has current games running. Pretty certain 20/40 runs every evening. Im not sure about Red Dragon Poker (new room), but they have a similar app.

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I'm going to have to rescind my recommendation of the Fortune Reuben. They've changed it so that you get about 1/3 of the pastrami, instead getting 2/3 more sauerkraut or red pickled cabbage.

Another issue is they've started heating the cabbage so that it's nuclear hot, when it obviously should be served cold. The last reuben tasted strongly of the plastic container they used to nuke the veg.

I had to scrape off all the cabbage and the top piece of bread to make it eatable.

Instead, I recommend the Club Sandwich, which they are more generous with the meat. I assume it's because ham / turkey is cheaper than pastrami.

As always, the pork vermicelli bowl is consistently fabulous.

$30/$60 LHE going at Palace in Lakewood right now. Been going three hours already with 3 on wait list. Might be a fluke, but I hope it keeps going every week!

I'm thinking of taking a trip down from Vancouver this weekend. I've never played poker in Washington before.
I have my eyes on the $3K guaranteed, $40 buy-in at 11am on Saturday at Tulalip. Does anyone have any positive or negative opinions on this tournament?
It seems like there aren't really any better options in the area (Seattle metropolitan)?

Coming from BC, I would probably play at Tulalip.

I think the Hideaway has a re-entry/add-on tourney on Saturday at 10:15 am if you're looking for slightly higher stakes. It says it's $45, so figure $90. Gets about 4 tables usually. I don't know which is softer, Tulalip or Hideaway.

On Sunday the Hideaway tourney is noon and $100.

Much further south is Muckleshoot:
5TH SUNDAY Dec 31
10AM
$400 BUY-IN 25,000 CHIPS
$3,000 ADDED
I would love to play this but I am not spending my New Years Eve like that.

Tulalip is your best bet and is on the way here/home, so no bull**** traffic (well, not more than you normally would have to deal with).