The Commerce Casino

What can I say about the Commerce? Along with the Bicycle, it is definitely one of Southern California’s more upscale and better-known casinos. The Commerce offers more players, spreads more games and limits, and has a friendlier staff than most other card rooms in the area. Tables there tend to fill quickly, and the Floormen aren’t gun-shy about spreading new games when the waiting lists get too long. The Commerce owns an adjacent hotel if you’re in town on vacation (but I must admit, I’m not familiar with their rates as I’ve never taken a room there). The food is not bad, not great. One of the downsides is that the players here are better than average. The shark-to-fish ratio is higher than I would prefer.

One thing that makes the Commerce rather unique is the presence of digital clocks placed throughout the gaming rooms. Most casinos would rather you not be aware of the time, so that you spend hours upon hours gambling your paycheck away. Well, I have the annoying personality quirk of being obsessed with knowing the time, coupled with a stubborn refusal to have my watch repaired. So I really appreciate those clocks, whether or not anyone else does. Also, the Commerce isn’t fussy about players having their chip-racks on the table in front of them while they play, as most casinos are. I think this is a great policy, because it makes it easier to stack your chips in a neat and orderly fashion. It also allows you easily count how much money you have in play, and to guesstimate the stack sizes of your opponents.

So now, getting down to the numbers. I rate the Commerce Casino as follows (scales of 1 to 5):

Player Quality (x2.00): 1.5
Cardroom/Staff Quality (x1.50): 4.5
Comp Quality (x1.25): 3.5
Tournament Quality (x1.00): 3.5
Game Variety (x1.00): 4.0

Total Weighted Points: 21.625
Total Weights: 6.75

Weighted Average: 3.20.

In conclusion, I enjoy playing at the Commerce. It ended up being rated as only slightly better than average, but that’s mainly because we weight player quality so heavily. The Commerce isn’t the best place to start for those new to casinos. You’re better off playing at the Hustler if you’re trying to make money as a baby shark. But if you’re looking for a classier experience, I definitely recommend stopping by the Commerce.


Find out more about the Commerce Casino here.