The Broadway casino in Birmingham is located just off the Fiveways junction, very central and in fact five minutes away from the G casino in Broad Street – no wonder it has to up its game to be successful. The car park is underneath the casino, and you can get your ticket validated at reception.
The Broadway Plaza, of which the casino is part, is a standard leisure site, with all the same faces – Odeon cinema, Frankie and Benny’s, bowling alley etc, and from the outside looks pretty standard. When you get inside, however, it’s really quite something special.
You get an idea of the scale and décor as you get to reception – but then you have the amazingly tedious membership process to get through. They are the same company as the Shaftesbury in West Bromwich, but instead of just confirming that you’re a member there and ticking a box as you would at G or Genting, you have to sign up all over again. Not only that but they photocopy your ID, AND get you to fill in a form with the same details as are on your ID, AND make you wait while they type them all into the computer. It can be a lot easier than this …..
Anyway, if ever there was a site where it’s all worth it, it’s this one – there’s no doubt it’s in my top five casinos in the UK. It opens up in front of you as you enter, and you realise it a very substantial size. It’s easy to miss the Manhattan Suite bar area on your left as you enter (and evidently many do, as there’s a standing sign saying “Bar open” to help you). Make sure you take a look, as this is a really impressive bar with beautiful furnishings – almost Vegas standard.
Down on the main floor they have all the usual top end slots and Electronic Roulettes, all working off the payout voucher system so that you can win on a slot and play it on a touchbet, very convenient. There are about 15 gaming tables, and a large poker room, with more poker spilling onto the main floor. It looks like they have tournament action every night, so a great spot for a dart at some tourney prize money.
The restaurant advertises itself as a fusion of Italian, Thai, Indian and Chinese – happily, having had a look at the menu, that’s the variety of dishes, not a bizarre four way fusion within one dish. Curried pasta with beansprouts and coconut sauce might be a bit much. It looks a great eating spot too, plenty of space.
Overall, it’s a really impressive site, everything done well and with the feeling of some grandeur. There is plenty of soft seating around to relax and check out what’s going on, so why not head down and take a look.
