By Mike Ricketts, Times-Mail
miker@tmnews.com
FRENCH LICK - When it comes to a casino room, the high-stakes room at French Lick Casino breaks the mold, at least for Indiana casinos.
Upon entrance to the room across the polished marble foyer, it's much darker than most casinos. And a trip to the back of the room to a lounge area reveals windows. Yes, windows in a casino.
And just before getting to the lounge, where there is a warm food bar on weekends, there is a real bar that looks to be hand-made of cherry wood.
Brian Marsh, vice president of casino operations, said the bar is, in fact, solid cherry - and very heavy. And the tables, surrounded by chairs, behind the bar are topped with solid marble.
Because the casino at French Lick isn't actually a boat floating on a river, there was no need to use faux finishes or to worry about the weight of the furniture and gambling tables in the 8,000- square-foot room that includes a craps table handcrafted of cherry and mahogany woods.
"We have created something here that rivals what the more serious players would find in Las Vegas," Marsh boasted. And the room, which opened May 1, has been well received, he said, with nearly a full house on weekends.
And because of a new HVAC and air-handling system installed when a separate non-smoking room was opened, Marsh said even with a full house and with many lighting up, the smoke is hardly noticeable.
Marsh added the new room is a great addition to the "resort destination" that officials are trying to create with the French Lick Resort Hotel and the West Baden Springs Hotel.
"As we've said before, 'We're not a casino that has a resort,'" Marsh added. "'We're a resort that has a casino, and this high-end room goes hand-in-hand with that philosophy.'"
The opening of the new room that has 70 high-limit slot machines (which run from $1 to $100 per pull), video poker, mini baccarat, blackjack and craps also goes well with the opening of the Pete Dye Golf Course.
"We've had many who played the Pete Dye course during the day and came in and played in here during the evening," Marsh said.
Regarding the reception of the Dye course, everybody who has played it said they'd be back, Marsh said. And some much sooner than others: "We've had several play the Dye course and call that evening to get a tee time for the next day. And we have even had a couple of players who rebooked to play the course three days in a row."
On Wednesday morning as three played blackjack, another trio sat at the bar and four or five sat at slot machines. Marsh said players like both the amenities and the games in the room.
"We haven't had a single complaint," he said.