Guide to Free Casino Cocktails

It might seem like a silly question, but a lot of people wonder what kinds of free drinks they can get when they visit a casino in places like Las Vegas, Reno or Atlantic City. It's actually quite a valid question! Can you get away with ordering something like triple malt Scotch or a mimosa while playing nickel slots? Or are you limited to Budweiser? Do they water down the drinks? Is there a trick to ordering that will get you better drinks or better service?

Casinos are more than happy to ply you with libation, because they'll hope you get tipsy and lose concentration on the games you are playing, and start making dumb errors of judgment. Even better, if you win a little bit while drunk, you'll start thinking you are invincible and pour all your money into the machines.

What villains! Well, you can play the system to your advantage a little bit. As long as you don't go really overboard asking for finely aged expensive wine or something, you can actually get some fairly good mixed drinks even if paying penny slots or some other low roller type of game. Also, if you're playing a game with a low house edge like blackjack or video poker, you may break even or lose a little bit but the night is made a little bit brighter by getting some cocktails you'd have to pay five bucks or more for anywhere else. There's some things to know before venturing in and just obnoxiously ordering the most expensive stuff you can think of and boozing it up, though.

The first and most important thing is to be nice to the cocktail waitress and tip her at least $1 per drink. $1 is considered standard and will get you perfectly good service if you do it for every drink. Failing to tip, however, or acting like a lecherous idiot, or just being rude, ensures you'll probably get one drink at the outset and then never see the waitress again. The general rule of thumb here is $1 for each drink, and if you're a high roller or just hit it big and want something fancy, $5 is probably more appropriate.

So, what can you get? Regardless of what you are playing or what casino you are at, you can be assured of most domestic beers, and common imported ones (like Corona and Heinekin.) Usually you'll get it in a bottle, but you might have to specify if you do or don't want a glass. Generally speaking, if it's served elsewhere in the casino, you can get it from the cocktail waitress. You can also usually get wine. It won't be terribly good wine, something from the bottom shelves of the local grocery store perhaps, but most casinos will give it to you and you don't have to be a high roller to get it.

But what about the mixed drinks? There's a surprising range that most casinos will give you even if you are low rollin'. I've never been turned down at any place for a rum and Coke (or pretty much any alcohol with Coke), Long Island Iced Tea, whiskey or bourbon. Lady friends report they have rarely to never been turned down for a Cosmopolitan, vodka or gin Martini, Pina Colada, Mojito, Sex On The Beach, Brandy Alexander, or Margarita, and they have even frequently gotten away with Mimosas, though if you are at a lower-end place they'll likely replace the champagne with white wine.

One trick to remember is that if you ask for a generic drink, like "rum and Coke", they'll give you the cheapest version of rum they have on hand. If you ask for something specific, however, like Sailor Jerry or Captain Morgan with Coke, then that's what you'll get it (if they have it.)

But they must water down drinks if they're free, right? Not really. Generally, the drinks are lighter than what you probably mix up at home, but most of them have a specific portion size of alcohol (usually about one shot) that they are made with. It should basically be enough to be satisfying unless you're some kind of problem drinker.

So there you go, enjoy the drinks and if you want to get the benefits without the alcohol impairment to slow down your play, consider something like a Bailey's and coffee to mitigate the depressive alcohol effects. Just about any casino will also bring you basic beverages like coffee, water, fruit juices and sodas if you ask for them, but be sure to tip the waitress $1 even if it's not an alcoholic beverage because it's just as much work for them to bring you a coffee or water as it is to bring you a Ketel One and cranberry juice.