The Roll of the Dice: Casinos in Atlantic City

     Everything you could ever want under one roof: fine dining, elegant clothing and accessory stores, spas, nightclubs, and gambling. It is paradise; once you enter you don’t want to leave. Time has no meaning in the vast windowless structures that house the lavishly appointed casinos.
    On any given day the casinos are filled with many different types of people from the fanny pack clad tourists with cameras glued to their hands, of which I am one sans fanny pack, to the blue haired old women playing the penny and nickel slots. Mingling amid the tourists and elderly are the serious gamblers, people who haunt the casinos night and day in hopes of winning a fortune.
    The atmosphere can be both jubilant and filled with desperation. Fortunes can be lost in an instant, but they can be won too. It all depends on the roll of the dice or the deal of the deck.
    I am not a big gambler, but I love going to the casinos to people watch and take in the atmosphere. I don't make special trips to the casinos, but if I'm in AC I'll usually go and gamble $5.00 in the slot machines. I never win, but $5.00 can last for a couple of hours since I walk around and try my hand at different machines. I have only visited the casinos on the boardwalk, but I find them all the same. Caesars and Trump Plaza both have an atmosphere of understated elegance with their plush carpet, marble floors, and huge crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, but there is nothing to distinguish them from each other. However, Bally’s Wild Wild West Casino and The Tropicana have themes and decorations that add to their allure.
    As you walk along the boardwalk outside of Bally’s Wild Wild West Casino there are various storefronts depicting old western general stores and saloons. Animated waterfalls, mines, a "49er" panning for gold, and a running stream greet you when you enter from the boardwalk.
    The atmosphere is carnival like with the kitschy decorations that sit on top of the various slot machines such as a man in a wooden bath tub pictured below.

    My camera is permanetly glued to my hand as I walk around and subtly snap pictures, with is not allowed and there have been several times where security has reprimanded me.
      While Bally's tackily decorated casino floor impressed me, The Tropicana's exotic, old Havana themed, three-story shopping area, The Quarter, left me in awe. Upon leaving the dingy, smoke filled casino section of The Tropicana I did not expect the pop music to turn to Latin salsa rhythm and the threadbare carpet to turn to faux brown bricks. Palm trees placed discreetly in corners and the ceiling resembling the sky, complete with clouds, give the illusion of walking in a Cuban town and made me feel like I was outside. There are several mosaic fountains nestled amid the eateries and shop lined halls that add to the sultry atmosphere. I have never shopped in a place like this before and, while I did not buy anything, I did enjoy walking around The Quarter and listening to the music.
    Not only do Bally’s and The Tropicana stand out among the bland casinos that fill AC, but they are in a central location. They are within walking distance of the AC Outlets and the Piers Shops at Caesar.  Every casino offers the same games, shopping, and excellent service so you might as well go to the ones with interesting décor and unique themes.

Links:

Shops in Tropicana's The Quarter 

Rainforest Cafe, Atlantic City

    There are so many delicious and varied eateries in Atlantic City. I, as a fan of cheap and entertaining, love eating at the Rainforest Café, which is located on the boardwalk in Trump Plaza. Since it is part of a popular restaurant franchise, you have to walk through a “retail village,” which sells rainforest themed merchandise, to get to the restaurant.

     Fog floats up from the “swamp” where the automated alligator resides. A wave of humidity hits you as you enter the restaurant. Vines fall from the ceiling, fake green tropical trees and plants cover the walls, automated monkeys rest among the tree branches, and automated parrots and insects rest throughout the dense vegetation. The ceilings are covered with stars and moving clouds. Upon entering the main dining room, you have to walk under the huge fish tank full of colorful fish and underwater plants. Last spring when I was there I saw a worker dressed in scuba gear enter the aquarium and interact with the fish.

     My favorite part of dining at the Rainforest Cafe is the thunderstorms. Every thirty minutes a simulated thunderstorm with fake rain, flashing lights, and loud bursts of thunder occurs. The animals come alive; the elephant snorts, the monkeys swing from the trees as they chatter, and the butterflies flap their colorful wings. The first time I did not expect the thunderstorms. I was startled when I heard the first boom of thunder because I knew it was bright and sunny outside. I loved the storm so much that I stayed for the next one so that I could snap pictures and take a video on my iPhone. 

     The atmosphere is the reason I love eating at the Rainforest Café, but the food is reasonable priced and delicious. My favorite dish is the chicken fingers and fries. The chicken is always warm and the fries are always crispy, which is the way I like them. Last year I was there for my birthday and my sister arranged for a volcano cake to be delivered to our table. The wait staff sang happy birthday and I blew out the sparkly candle at the top of my volcano. The chocolate pillars of the volcano were moist and covered in warm fudge and the vanilla ice cream inside the pillars looked good, but since I'm lactose intolerant I was unable to taste the ice cream for myself. 

Links:

• Rainforest Cafe Editorial Review