Spotlight - Four Queens

First Tropicana, then Hooters and for the third trip we moved even further away from the Strip and chose Four Queens. Regular readers of these blogs will know the story behind why we chose here but for others here's a quick summary;

The previous trip we went to Four Queens to eat at Chicago Brewing Company.

Mom's wheelchair broke.

Two lovely members of Four Queens staff helped us fix it.

I emailed Four Queens when back home to say thank you.

We received a reply from the Senior Executive Director of Operations (via his secretary) thanking me for the email and offering us an excellent deal for next time we visit Vegas.

Four Queens opened on the 2nd June 1966 and was named after the builder Ben Goffstein’s four daughters, Faith, Hope, Benita, and Michele. Since that time Four Queens has expanded to become a 690-room hotel, 27,269 sq ft casino with over 1000 slot machines and around 30 table games from poker to roulette but no baccarat.

They have a slot machine with a free slot pull to guests just outside the entrance and you can win slot free play and cash prizes up to $2,500. Sometimes the member of staff overseeing this machine will have a sheet of vouchers to give out too.

When we stayed at Four Queens for the first time we stayed in the South Tower. These rooms are generally more expensive than the North Tower and I think the North Tower rooms are older but I’ve only ever stayed South Tower. The North Tower is very close to Fremont Street with the elevators to these rooms located by the Sports Book – due to the close proximity to Fremont the rooms can a bit noisy at night but if memory serves me right it quietens down about 2am-ish. The South Tower is father away from Fremont and so a bit quieter but to be honest you can still hear the music from Fremont, to be honest though, if you’re going to be going to bed before midnight then you’re doing Vegas wrong anyway. Access to these rooms is via the elevators close to where check-in is. Top-tip : If in the South Tower try to get as high up a room as possible as you get some nice views of the mountains.

You’ve probably gathered by now, apart from a fridge we don’t really ask for much from a room and once again I managed to get us a free fridge. The rooms were a decent size, the beds were big and comfortable with a standard sized Vegas bathroom. The room was clean, no frills but did have was a coffee-making machine, iron, flat screen TV and we were very happy with it. Like our trip to Hooters the previous year, some bright spark had locked the safe so we had to get someone up to open it.

Four Queens has no fitness center, no spa and no pool but you do have access to Binions pool. If like us you just want a place to lay your head then the lack of a fitness center and spa shouldn’t be an issue. If you really want a fitness center and a spa then you’re doing Vegas wrong this holiday/vacation is about retoxing, not detoxing.

As with most of Downtown Vegas, Four Queens has a traditional Las Vegas atmosphere, easy going, authentic and vintage. The loyalty scheme here is the Royal Players Club, as with other similar schemes you earn comp dollars by playing slots, video poker and table games. The card can also get you special room rates, money off and special deals at Magnolias and Chicago Brewing Company or you can even use the comp dollars for purchasing souvenirs in the gift shop or put towards payment of your stay. Also, if you’re over 55 there’s an over 55’s club extension of the Royal Players Club and you get even more deals and offers.

There is a good range of slot machines at Four Queens with a nice mix of old and new. They have Silver Strike machines that I always find fun and the waitress service wasn’t too bad at all. The layout of the casino floor is a bit like a maze and some areas are quite ‘cosy’ but thinking about it, so is Fremont and Binions.

For us, food is where Four Queens really shines. You have Magnolias Veranda, Hugo’s Tavern, Chicago Brewing Company, Subway and there was a Wana Taco but I can’t find any information on if it’s still operating;

Magnolia’s Veranda overlooks the casino floor, serves your regular (and tasty) American food is always busy and after just one trip there we could see why. Yes, there’s really good deals for Royal Players Card holders, daily specials and we all love a bargain but you have the added bonus of actually really nice tasting food and good service. We usually come here for breakfast, there’s a good choice and everything is reasonably priced. Jane’s go to dish is the New York Steak and Eggs whereas I’ll try different things.

The last dish I had there was the Country Fried Steak and Eggs. It comes with house-made country sausage gravy, now to us in the UK, gravy is brown but the American white, thick gravy is something I’ve always turned my nose up at. But not this time. I thought I’d give it a go knowing if I didn’t like it, I’d still eat it anyway. It was actually far nicer than I thought it would be so I’m now officially an American gravy convert, it seems there’s a place for both UK and US gravy.

As well as Breakfast they also do stuff such as buffalo wings, salads, pizza, pasta, burgers and sandwiches along with entrees such as steak, pork and chicken. We’ve only ever had breakfast here but would happily try the rest of the menu.

There are a lot of places to eat all over Vegas and we love trying many different places but each trip we will always fit in Magnolia’s and Chicago Brewing.

Chicago Brewing Company. A nice place to sit and chill, enjoying hand-crafted beers and eating a range of appetisers and entrees. Quite a long time ago I went to Chicago, I would love to go back and of course I tried a Chicago Deep Dish Pizza. Here at Chicago Brewing Company they also do a deep-dish Chicago style pizza and it’s very nice (it takes a while to make but just order a beer or two and relax). If you’re not sure which beer to choose then for just $10.50 you can order a sampler consisting of number of their brews.

One place we’ve not tried is Hugo’s Cellar. This is one of Vegas’s original fine-dining restaurants and its décor maintains the vintage theme and ambience. It’s tableside service and the salad is made to order at the table; your partner is given a red rose and a sommelier will happily recommend a suitable wine. It’s not a cheap place to eat, but you’re here for fine dining and not a quick burger. It definitely looks to be a special occasion place and somewhere we will eventually try…just need me a hand pay. Oh, and to further tempt you there is complimentary chocolate covered fruit. The place is usually open 5pm until 10pm and reservations are definitely recommended.

Now you’ve got no money left you can just rely on good old Subway – we actually prefer Subway in the States; there always seems to be a better choice of things and they’re filled fuller. There was a Wana Taco and I know it was there in 2019 but can’t find anything about it now.

If you just want to people watch and have a drink then they have the Patio Bar. The bar is 43-foot-long and seats 62 people in a combination of indoor and outdoor seating. You can choose to either watch the large TV screens inside or watch and listen to the very nearby Fremont Street Experience Stage. They also advertise as having a misting system for when it gets warm so you stay nice and cool.

For entertainment there is the Comedy Club - currently home of the Mike Hammer Comedy Magic Show. Before seeing Mike Hammer we had seen Penn and Teller the year before at Rio and we went and saw Nathan Burton and Planet Hollywood the year after. The magic of Mike Hammer was fun and entertaining as was Penn and Teller and Nathan Burton. However, with the comedy Mike Hammer was far more tongue in cheek and adult who didn't shy away away with a bit of controversy. Nathan Burton is definitely one for the families and Penn and Teller is for everyone. We thoroughly enjoyed Mike Hammer, his style of comedy was right up our street - it really takes a lot to offend us. He called me out during the show especially as he couldn't understand my accent. After the show he went out and greeted us all, we had a bit of a chat and he's a really nice guy so I'd definitely recommend seeing his show. The room where he performs isn't too big and it works really well for his style of magic, it's not so good if you want to avoid him ripping the proverbial out of you but it's all good fun.

I’m going to sound like a broken record here but hear me out. Four Queens is cheap and cheerful, it’s got a great Downtown location, the rooms are more than decent for the price and here’s the kicker – there’s no resort fee and Wi-fi is now free (you did have to pay). We don’t do glitz and glamour, we want to be in a place where we feel comfortable, can lay our head down and experience good value for money. This is what we got at Four Queens.

We’ve stayed here a few times and are planning to return October 2021. There are a lot of casinos Downtown, I’ve not seen too many vloggers staying at Four Queens and it tends to get overlooked which is a shame, it has character and the staff have always been nice to us. Can’t wait until October but for now it’s ta ra a bit.

As a side note I bet you’re all thinking; “Does this guy really like everything?” “Can he not be critical about one thing?!” “He’ll get splinters in his arse with all that sitting on the fence” I’ll say just two words……. Wicked Spoon….

But that controversial opinion is for another blog.