New York City Poker Room Reviews -- Upper West Side

[Ed. note: This is the eighth in an ongoing series of reviews of the major New York City Poker Rooms. Due to the quasi-legality of these games, no room will be mentioned by name or specific address. While I realize these restrictions limit the usefulness of the reviews, I also respect that most of these rooms are trying to operate without drawing much attention to themselves. Anyone interested in learning more specifics about any club should contact me directly.]

[June-1-2005: Club was raided by the NYPD and is CLOSED.]

With the New York Post stealing my thunder last week, I decided it was time to step it up and write another review. A club on the Upper West Side had long been on my list of places to go, but because the Upper West Side isn't on my way to anywhere, the review had been pushed off for several months. When SoxLover caught me online playing in a razz SNG on Full Tilt last week, it set off a chain of events that culminated in our sitting at the same table Wednesday night at the Upper West Side club.

It had been a long time since SoxLover and I were at the same table. He's a guy who used to participate in a law school home game with me, but over the course of the last year those home game have sort of disintegrated. SoxLover has been keeping up his live game skills by playing quite a bit at one of NYC's most popular (and oldest) rooms, but figured he could stand to broaden his horizons.

We met at 7pm on Wednesday, grabbed a greasy burger and a beer, and then headed to the club. It was located in a large pre-war building, the type that typifies most of the Upper West Side, right above an OTB parlor (for you out-of-towners, that's "Off Track Betting"). Convenient, I guess -- if your luck's not running well on the river, you can always come downstairs and try the ponies. Of course, you'll have to deal with the homeless guys, alcoholics, and general derelicts that reek of piss who frequent OTB parlors, but at least you have a chance to recoup your losses.

There was a fairly steady stream of people coming in and out of the club's building. We followed a young guy in a baseball cap and a fairly young woman in a heavy jacket in through the front door, up one flight of stairs and through a fire door. A windowed, double door -- metal grill over the outside of the window, curtains hanging on the inside of the window -- on the left side of the hallway sported a "Members Only!" sign. We made our way through a tiny vestibule to a second door, on which a sign instructed delivery men that they were required to wait in the vestibule. We ignored it and passed through a second door into the club.

A small lounge opened in front of us, furnished with a few couches and a large screen television. There were windows set in the walls, but large-slatted blinds were drawn over all of them. To either side of the lounge, arches led into larger rooms that were set up with six poker tables each, making the club, by NYC standards, on the larger side. What made it more impressive was that all twelve tables had games going.

Twelve tables!

A dry erase board on the far wall announced the games that were spread: 1-2 NLHE, 5-5 NLHE, 4-8 limit holdem, 75-150 stud, and a few other medium and large stakes games. People were constantly streaming to and fro; it felt like we were standing in the center of Grand Central Station. A frazzled guy at the front desk told us that he didn't have any 1-2 seats, so we should put our names on the dry erase board. We did, and then SoxLover suggested we sit 4-8 while waiting. We racked up $200 in chips each and sat down.

As soon as I posted for my first hand, the guy from the front desk came over and erased our names from the 1-2 list. When we protested, he claimed he had called us but we hadn't answered. Um, yeah. I'll admit it was loud in that room - 60 people talking and clacking chips will do that - but I don't think it was THAT loud. We picked up our chips and moved to Table 11, where two seats had supposedly opened. The only problem was that there was only one seat. Hmm. SoxLover told me to take it and wound up seated at a different 1-2 table in the back corner of the room.

Already, my impression was that the club was a bit out of control. That is, it was great that there were 120 people spread across the club's two rooms playing cards, but the person responsible for running it was clearly overwhelmed. This opinion didn't change when I saw the quality of dealers that began pushing into the box at my table. One of them was so bad that she made at least four separate mistakes in one push!

Generally, I'm not the type to complain about dealers. I have a tremendous amount of patience and can usually let most of these things roll off my back. Even I found myself a little flustered by several of the dealers, though. Too many mistakes were made, and even when mistakes weren't being made, several of the dealers didn't seem at all interested in staying on top of the action and/or the pot. Not all of them, obviously - we did have one or two very good dealers that pushed in. The problem, I think, is that the club is a victim of its own success - with 12 tables going on a Wednesday night, they need at least 12 dealers (preferably more). Perhaps it's difficult to find 12 highly qualified dealers.

There were no chip runners, either. I don't know if the club didn't have any up dealers that night, or doesn't have them generally, but when SoxLover asked for a rebuy, his dealer laughed and told him he'd have to go rebuy himself at the front desk. That's not the biggest problem in the world, but it's one of those "little things" that can be the difference between a good experience and a great one.

Another one of those "little things" is the bathroom. Again, I'm not really the pickiest person about these things. I expect the bathroom to be clean, with a minimal level of privacy. Neither of those was accomplished by the club's bathroom, which was located in the common hallway outside the front door of the club. I know it's a pre-war building, and the owners of the club have to work with what they're given, but I think the next time I'm there I'd rather piss my pants than use that bathroom again.

At least the snack and soft drink service was up to speed.

Here's the thing of it - all the negatives are outweighed, I think, by the action. You will never want for a game or a table at this club. In fact, with twelve tables, it's larger than some casino poker rooms I've played in. The atmosphere is much more "Rounders", much less "a bunch of guys sitting in a room playing cards" that is sometimes the case at some of the other NYC rooms. If you're looking for a true underground poker room "experience", checking this room out wouldn't be a bad idea. I definitely had a good time while I was there; it helped that I walked away a winner.

Does the club walk away a winner? Let's see:

Location: The location of the club isn't terrible. It's practically on top of the 1/2/3/9 subway station at 72nd Street, making it relatively accessible both for West Side residents and for tourists (one stop south on the 2/3 is Times Square). For folks who live in Brooklyn and/or live or work on the East Side, it's a bit more difficult to get to.

Hours: Got me. At 8pm, the place was packed. I imagine it's the type of place that opens at 1 in the afternoon and stays open until the last table breaks at 6am the next morning.

Club Atmosphere: Tons of activity, tons of people, tons of chips going clickety-clack. There were even a few women players sprinkled into the crowd. Of all of the clubs I've been to in New York, this is the one that comes closest to feeling like a casino poker room while still retaining the elements that make it feel like an underground NYC club.

Quality of Play: Seemed a bit better than other clubs I've been to. I imagine there are more "sharks" infesting the waters of this club, since it has such a large playerbase. Still, there's not much to worry about at 1-2. There were still plenty of soft targets at the table.

Tournament Structure: Unknown.

Cash Games: The lowest limit seemed to be 4-8, but they had all kinds of games: stud, rotation, limit holdem, no-limit holdem. There might even have been an Omaha game. For people who are interested in more than just 1-2 NLHE, this might be a good club to check out.

Playerbase: I already mentioned the twelve full tables going on a Wednesday night, right? Simply put, the pbase here is HUGE. I can't imagine what the waiting lists look like on a Saturday night, and keep in mind, waiting lists are practically unheard of at most clubs in NYC.

Worth Your Time?: Most definitely.