I've played poker for a significant portion of my income for the last 25 years. I've played all over the country, and indeed the world. And while I have often heard about great games in other places (the cash is always greener on the other side), I have never found a better spot than Texas Card House in Houston. In fact, after less than twenty-four hours here, I sent a text to my wife.  

"Check into how much it costs to buy a house in Houston. This place is incredible."

I have never considered moving to Texas in the past, but suddenly it is a real possibility.
Poker is thriving here in ways I have never seen. In Vegas, and most other places that host significant poker action, poker rooms are competing for the most valuable floor space on the planet. Slot machines make so much money per square foot that poker is a second class citizen. But not in Texas. 

Card rooms in Texas are clubs. You don't pay rake, you buy time. In this case, $12 an hour, with frequent promotions where you can pay even less. My mixed game pals will be shocked to hear it, since we regularly pay $16 an hour in Vegas. And if you are playing smaller games, the rake comes out to even more than that. Compared to playing $2/5 at a casino in Vegas or California, the $12 an hour is probably a %50 discount. But it doesn't stop there. 

Since these rooms aren't worried about taking up too much space, they are set up with tons of floor space between tables and amenities everywhere. Every penny that is spent on these rooms is to make customers comfortable and happy. If you make your players too comfortable in Vegas, they won't leave and go play slots or keno, but if you make them comfortable and happy here, they stay and play. 

So I walked into Texas Card House with mediocre expectations and was blown away by one of the most professional and friendly card rooms I have ever seen. The staff are amazing. The security guards know the players and are welcoming at the door. The dealers, floor people, and tournament directors are all pleasant and seem genuinely happy to be working here. None of the grumpy casino employees I see so often on the strip. Even the bartenders and massage therapists just feel different here. 

This is a direct result of having a lower bar in terms of income required to survive since they can buy space anywhere they like. They don't need to squeeze you so hard. This has led some card rooms in Texas to be in neighborhoods that make patrons uncomfortable, because the rent is cheap, but Texas Card House is definitely not one of them. The neighborhood is completely safe, with nice restaurants all around. And the security team is great. Nothing to worry about here. 

In Vegas, the food and beverage departments rule with an iron fist, charging whatever they like and allowing no competition. TCH doesn't have that problem either. A vendor shows up daily with to-go food, mostly asian dishes, for $9. If you are from Vegas or California, you probably assume that was a typo. It isn't. I paid $9 for a full meal of chicken and steak fried rice yesterday. Just a week ago I paid almost $30 for a similar dish at The Wynn.

Having food delivered is also fine. I've seen countless deliveries come in since I've been here, and the floor staff helps make sure the player gets their food as soon as it arrives. Can you imagine trying to get DoorDash to deliver to your favorite poker room and then getting the food while it's still hot? 

A fully stocked bar, with amenities like ice cream bars and candy sits at the back of the room, with a friendly bartender always there to help out. Consider this if you have ever shopped at a casino gift shop. A bag of M&Ms cost me $2. Two. Dollars. If you can find them for $5 on the strip you are a savvy shopper indeed. Yes, I know I shouldn't be eating M&Ms. Leave me alone. 

Everything they do here is top notch. The tables are clean and comfortable, and the chairs are as good as anything in the best rooms in Vegas and drastically better for tournaments than the junk you find in tournament rooms that look like they came from your grandmother's kitchen table in 1981. They're also on PokerAtlas, so you can get on a waitlist before you even leave the house. 

And now, for the most important part of a poker room, at least for me. The players. The action is crazy. The worst game in this room last night was better than the best game in Vegas most nights. A mix of recreational players who are just here to socialize, wild gamblers buying in for huge stacks and punting them off, and the fairly rare pro, had my mouth watering. I considered tendering my resignation to PokerAtlas immediately and playing cash the whole time I'm here. The games are incredible. 

When combined with paying half the rake, I think my hourly rate here would increase by something like $20 an hour. And houses are cheaper in Houston than Vegas… 

Congratulations to Alan Ly and his entire team for building an amazing room and setting a new standard for customer service. I can't say enough about what a joy it is to play, and work, in this room.