Everyone likes to get out of the city for the weekend but finding a cheap, close, and quirky place isn’t very easy… so here’s 10 tips on how to find trouble, have fun, and not loose too much money in Reno NV! Well, I just got back from a weekend trip and it was even better than I expected. If you live in the Bay Area I highly recommend going. There’s plenty of cheesy/tacky things to get a kick out of, plus after 3 or 4 cocktails and winning a few hands of Black Jack it’s actually a really fun way to spend some time hanging with friends.
My Top 10 things about/to do in Reno.
1. Beto’s Mexican Restaurant
This is seriously some of the best Mexican food I’ve had in a long time as I love gritty, home grown mexican restaurants like this. I recommend Combination plate #6; get the carnitas taco, cheese enchilada, and the al pastor sopa (this comes with rice and beans and is only $6). The pozole soup is so, so good with tasty pork broth, hominy, onions and garlic and Steak fajitas are amazing as well. Seriously, this place is almost worth the trip. Homemade Flan for $2.25 is an awesome way to finish the meal!
More advice: The decor leaves plenty to be desired, the chicken is just boiled chicken (average), the tamales are apparently not so good, the mexican fountain drinks are way too sweet, I hear it is usually really crowded (I went twice with no problem), and the chips are straight out the bag.
That said, this place is amazing!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/betos-mexican-food-reno
2. The Peppermill Suites
Basically, it’s like Snoop Dogg and my Grandma got together to design these suites. A mix between 70’s Super Fly-esque pimped out cocaine dealer pad and a gaudy grandmothers bedroom. Mirrors everywhere, runner lights, jacuzzis in the room, rose patterned wallpaper, textured carpet… the list goes on. If you like tacky, this place is for you.
3. Savers Thrift Store (Reno thrifting in general)
It’s huge, has tons of stuff, well organized, is not crazy cheap but has lots of better than average finds with decent prices. My friend Eve bought 14 items she was excited about for around $70.
3800 Kietzke Ln
Reno, NV 89502
(775) 284-4350
4. Pegs Glorified Ham and Eggs
This is popular with the locals and in-the-know tourists. It’s a solid diner with quality greasy spoon style food. My recomendations are the biscuits and gravy or the Huevos Rancheros (both are excellent). The kitchen is small and so it takes a while to get your food but is totally worth the wait.
5. Casino at The Pepper Mill
First off, there is a place called The Fireside Lounge in the casino that specializes in “exotic” coctails like Blue Hawaii, Scorpion Bowls, Mia Tais… oversized drinks with tons of fruit hanging off of them… if it’s not too crowded you can get a seat around the “fire pit”, and by “pit” I mean 3 feet of flames coming out of a jacuzzi looking pool of boiling water, and if thats not enough, the decor consists of mirrored ceilings, fake Tiffany lamps and faux cherry blossom trees.
The Fish bar next door has walls made of giant narrow fish tanks where you can order drinks, play video poker, and check out the fish swimming around your head. As far as gambling they have all the standard games and the dealers are, for the most part, very nice and helpful.
6. Men’s Club of Reno
Like most guys I know, I have to start this by saying “I don’t usually go to places like this but… ” ok now that I got that out of the way, I have been to a fair number of strip clubs over the years and this was probably the most fun I’ve had. Almost every girl was at least “attractive”.
The girls were fun, friendly, not aggressive, just trashy enough, etc. The staff were all cool. Drinks were pricey for Reno standards, but not anymore than a decent bar in the city. We went as a group of four (3 guys and 1 girl) and were pleasantly surprised that the crowd was about 1/3 women. We didn’t have the sushi which is apparently the best in Reno.
Of note, we went on a Saturday night which is supposedly the only good night to go.
http://www.mensclubofreno.com/
7. The Pool at Pepper Mill
I know the Pepper Mill appears three times on the list, but it’s that rad. The pool is really nice, basically a Tuscan theme, and if Olive Garden opened a day spa it would look something like this. The perfect way to start the morning after a long night of drinking is laying by the pool and ordering more drinks (or bringing your own down to the pool). Swimming and lounging in the sun seems to make all the pain fade away. Plus, it adds a really relaxing element to the otherwise party oriented vibe of Reno.
8. It’s Just Over Three Hours Away
It’s a quick easy drive if you can leave midday.
9. Cal-Neva Casino
This is one of the more ghetto Casinos in Reno and I like it because it attracts more of a local crowd than the Pepper Mill, like serious local gamblers who smoke two packs a day and have gambled everyday of their life for the past forty years. The other thing I like is that the tables tend to be the lowest bet in town; $3 tables for Black Jack are available at nonprime times, so if you’re an amateur like me, its good to get a little practice without much risk. They are so ghetto that they are doing all kinds of wacky promotions to get people to go. Check out these links…
A. Tomato fight
B. Jello wrestling
C. Beer Pong contests
10. It’s a World Away
Basically, this could be number one, or part of every thing listed above. Reno is a grittier, cheaper, less douche-baggy, working class version of Las Vegas. It’s close enough to drive and when you get back you feel like you experienced something you could never do in the Bay Area. It’s a weird combination of a small random desert town but with some big money casinos and high-end strip clubs. Reno is an easy road trip that makes you feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere, but can find a full spa treatment, then go thrift shopping, etc. etc.
I go to Reno about 8 times a year for work. Like with all cities I only see through work (portland, bakersfield, albaquerqe, etc) I only have their hospitals, their organ donors, as examples of the setting. Reno has a lot of hard drugs like meth, a lot of young, gun-inflicted suicide, a lot of tattos, and is the one and only time I’ve had a case of some poor bastard playing a game of Russain Roulette. (he lost)…
Comment by ModernSophist — October 7, 2009 @ 10:20 pm