So you want just one word to describe the Hilton’s new poker room? Average. The Hilton built a very average poker room, but staffed it with above average people. That’s my take.

I walked into the Hilton Hotel around 9:00 p.m. on Friday night looking for the poker room. After a short walk through the casino, I found my destination, right inside the sports book area.

The new Hilton poker room occupies the same area of the casino that the old Hilton poker room occupied. However, the new poker room is significantly smaller. With only 11 tables, the new poker room is just a fraction of the size of the old poker room that closed many years ago (shortly after the Mirage opened). The old Hilton poker room had nearly 30 tables, and was one of the most popular poker rooms in Vegas.

Although I expect the Hilton’s new poker room to eventually become popular too, it sure didn’t look that way on opening night. When I walked into the poker room there were only three tables going, and the biggest game they were spreading was $3/6 (although they eventually got a “baby no limit” game going).

With less than 30 players inside, the Hilton poker room seemed way overstaffed. One of the poker tables looked like a dealers-only game with all the excess poker dealers waiting around.

Obviously, the Hilton expected a larger crowd on opening night, but you certainly can’t fault them for over-staffing. Having too many people sure beats the heck out of not having enough (for proof of this, you could read my review of opening night at Green Valley Ranch, which opened three weeks ago without enough resources).

The management did a good job. I asked for a seat at the $3/6 game, and because the only $3/6 table was full, they put me on the list. The Hilton spent some money on a computerized list management system, and although the list-managers were still learning the system, they were able to get my name on the right game pretty fast. Of course, the management wasn’t really tested under stress, because the room was anything but busy.

The atmosphere of the physical poker room is underwhelming. Other than a few flat screen televisions in each corner, there wasn’t anything about the Hilton poker room that struck me as really cool or innovative. Truthfully, it reminded me of the atmosphere at the Circus Circus poker room; and that’s not a compliment. It must have been the water-cooler and coffee table underneath the Royal Flush progressive jackpot sign.

The dealers were a mixed bag. Several of them were obviously new to poker dealing, and others had been in the business for years. Although I didn’t see any serious dealer-mistakes made I did think it was odd that several dealers didn’t know how to use the automatic shuffle machines. Why weren’t they trained on how to use the auto-shufflers?

I have to point out that the dealers were all friendly, with pleasant attitudes. And, believe it or not, there were two young female dealers that were even cute. I don’t see very many cute young female poker dealers, so it was a refreshing sight. I hope they stick around.

The competition at my table was decent. Every single player was from Vegas, so there were definitely no drunk fish splashing about. The average age of a player at my table was probably close to 60. The texture of the competition reminded me of the Tuesday evening game at the Palace Station – not a particularly juicy endeavor.

The highlight of my night was when David Brenner sat down at my table. David Brenner is a comedian who has a regular gig at the Hilton. He is probably best known for his Tonight Show appearances, particularly back in the Johnny Carson era. He’s a real piece of work, and he kept his end of the table chuckling with witty one liners.

David was absolutely livid when his flopped nut straight got beat by a turned 4 out boat. The action got capped on the flop, and David definitely got sucked out on.

Later, I took a huge pot off him also. He was the last player remaining and my top pair, King kicker actually held up at the river. I don’t feel bad for the guy however. He had been on a monster run and had more chips than anyone else at the table.

The new Hilton poker room didn’t impress me with its design, but its friendly and competent staff combined with its monopoly on traffic from the nearby Las Vegas Convention Center should ensure that the poker room is a success.

You can read the complete review of the Hilton poker room, along with pictures from opening night here.