Military Careers, Second Careers - Army Times

Poker brings cash into restaurants, bars

Leon Barnett, manager of Scrimmage’s Bar & Restaurant in Wilmington, Del., knows exactly why he added poker nights to his weekly event calendar: money.

“Anytime you have 30 people in your building, you are hoping they have a hamburger while they’re here,” he said. “It’s like having a DJ. You do that because you want to generate business.”

Some bars and restaurants in Delaware are capitalizing on the popularity of Texas hold ‘em poker as a way to boost sales. The businesses also can benefit by establishing a new stream of customers who come back for the food and drink, not just the poker.

“Numerous people come in to play who have never come in the restaurant,” said Angela Marini, general manager of Catherine Rooney’s in Wilmington. The venue features Texas hold ‘em nights hosted by Ace Henley, owner of Texas Hold’em Rentals, who travels from bar to bar nearly every night of the week hosting poker games in Pennsylvania and Delaware.

Catherine Rooney’s Bartender Natilie Cerami says the difference in tips on a poker night is negligible. The biggest luxury, she says, is having a regular crowd on a weeknight filling what is usually an empty room.

Bars in Delaware are allowed to host Texas hold ‘em as long as there is no cost to play and the customers aren’t told they have to buy anything before they participate, said John Mancus, chairman of the Delaware Gaming Control Board.

Some venues, such as the Poker Room in Newark, Del., make poker the cornerstone of business.

The Poker Room operates as a fundraiser, donating proceeds from games to nonprofits in exchange for renting out the facility and equipment to them, owner Brandon Buglio said. Charities such as the Poker Room are allowed to hold poker games in Delaware, Mancus said.

Buglio says he has a crowd of regulars that followed him from his days having fundraisers in fire halls.

Vince Avallone, 62, who has been coming to the Poker Room since it opened in February, says he plays poker four times a week. When Avallone realized he was spending too much time away from his wife, he did what any good husband would do: “I got her hooked.”

While brick-and-mortar businesses have capitalized on the poker craze, it pales in comparison to poker played online.

Online gambling was reported to have netted profits in the tens of millions by 2005. That was before the federal government banned U.S. banks and credit card companies from processing payments to most types of online gambling Web sites.

Henley and Buglio say that crackdown hasn’t brought more customers to their tables.

“It’s about the same really,” said Henley, “Because [my] games are free, and the online [games require] the people that can afford to lose and spend money.”