Wow, what a scheisshole! Parking was full on Saturday eve so we parked at the train station and walked.
Upon entering, you scan the interior and wonder if you've just walked into a movie theater by accident. I don't know why they use the word 'Grand' in the name - this certainly isn't.
You find out, by reading signs or asking someone, that, if you go downstairs, you will find only slot machines and a small bar, and upstairs is where the tables are plus two more small bars. Downstairs looks like one of those spiel salons on Langstrasse. Besides some gold trim on the walls and patterned carpet, there's not a big difference between the two. Upstairs feels a little more like a casino, but... you won't find out unless you pay 10 CHF to get in! A cover charge to spend your money! Are they wacked? You want me to give you 10 CHF so I can go blow all my cash anyway?!
Until now, I've never been to a casino that charges for drinks. And not only do they charge, a caipirinha is 16 CHF. And the bartenders are horribly unfriendly. At least the garderobe was free and friendly.
Once you get in, you wonder if you've just crashed a rich kid's birthday party who hired a wedding singer and rented some gambling props. There are a few roulette tables and a few poker tables and there's a bar and a small stage where a dreadful couple who look like they're stuck in the 80's (based on their hair and get up) are singing, right by the entrance. The place is so small and there are so few tables that you couldn't blow your cash if you wanted to! You're gonna waste your time drinking your 16 CHF caipirinha, watching over the heads of the people crowding around these tables, waiting your turn - and it could be a while! Then you buy in for some chips and almost everybody is using the same color chips! How lame is that? In fact, twice in the 10 minute period that I played a little roulette, there were two contentions and camera calls because the players couldn't tell their chips apart. Let's get efficient here and join the 21st century for crying out loud.
I suppose my impresssion of this place could be biased by the fact that most casinos I've visited are in California, Las Vegas and Puerto Rico, among others, but in Switzerland I would expect 'Grand' to be just that. read more
