Few land based Casinos in the United Kingdom are as capable as boasting about their location with as much justification as London’s Hippodrome Casino. Sat in the very heart of the famous West End of the city (comprising of the areas of St James’, Soho, Covent Garden, Marleybone, Mayfair, Westminster…) the Hippodrome is placed directly adjacent to the Leicester Square tube station – making it easily the most accessible upscale Casino in the whole of London.
While the location of a Casino is hardly the be all and end all of its subsequent success and visitor rates, it doesn’t exactly hurt to be blessed with a brilliant placement in what can be a fickle, thriving and highly competitive business such as modern gambling. This is no truer than in the case of the Casinos of the architecturally cluttered and often confusing centre regions of Europe’s major cities.
Offering a premium gambling experience to visitors of all tastes and experience levels around the clock, the Casino is open 24 hours per day, 7 days per week – closing only once annually for Christmas Day. It could be argued that any Casino gifted with this insanely ideal location is destined to flourish, regardless of the quality of the service it provides to its customer based. It is my job today to investigate the validity of this argument by taking a closer look at the ins and outs of the Hippodrome not only as a gaming space, but a flagship of the modern industry.
Who owns the Hippodrome Casino?
The last time the Hippodrome changed ownership was back in 2009. The lease was acquired by a father and son from Leicester, names Jimmy and Simon Thomas. The entrepreneurs immediately began extensive renovations on the property, taking it back to some of the casino’s original designs. The investment in the renovations was in the region of £40 million and the casino was reopened in July 2012.
Hippodrome Casino: Shows and Theatre
The Hippodrome Casino has one of the best theatres in London, offering 180 seats and very high quality acoustics. It is also supremely comfortable making this very popular with with top performers. The Theatre at Hippodrome is known to host the best local and world class entertainment, including live jazz, soul swing, musical theatre, burlesque and cabaret performances. This really is one of the best entertainment venues in all of London.
Games at the Hippodrome Casino
What better place to start our review than with a detailed look at the games available at the Hippodrome Casino. At this stage I feel it is also best to point out that the building which houses this Casino is absolute monolithic in size, clarifying this now will ensure there is no confusion when I go on (imminently I promise) to list the seemingly endless number of games available within the establishment.
The Casino houses three very distinct gaming floors (that’s right, three) which individually and indeed collectively boast one of the largest and most impressive arrays of Casinos games to be found within the United Kingdom and even the whole of Europe. A total of twenty card tables provide poker in most of its variants (most commonly on offer is Three Card Poker and Texas Hold ‘em), five Baccarat tables, an insane 18 roulette tables and over 20 separate forms of slots covering both modern video formats and more traditional ones as well. On top of this visitors will find a total of five Tombola style Roulette machines and 51 video version machines featuring the likes of Craps, Roulette, Baccarat and Sic Do!
Atmosphere in the Hippodrome Casino
Upon entering the Hippodrome Casino you get a feeling that you’re walking into a lavish theatre as opposed to a gaming hall. The high ceilings and magnificent décor make for a gambling experience which takes players back in time to a period where glamour was just the norm.
Hospitality-wise, you’re likely to be disappointed as the Hippodrome is also home to one of central London’s most well-acclaimed restaurants – the Heliot. With a menu which is praised for the inventive twists it puts on classic British dishes, there are few places more perfect for taking a well-deserved break from the floor and reassessing the evening’s strategy!
Summary of the Hippodrome Casino
The perfect drop-in for gambling’s frequenting the centre of London on a rare or one off basis, the Hippodrome Casino certainly holds an air of a gaming house which is best suited to those passing through as opposed to the personal touches emanated by others in the area. That being said however, this would make an ideal regular haunt for someone who enjoys the vast scale and hustle and bustle of a busy floor.
