Finally got around to visiting our new casino up at Penn National last week and came away with mixed impressions.
The Good
Traffic was no problem and parking is free and easy. There's a parking garage attached to the casino with only a short walk to an entrance.
The horseracing experience has been upgraded. The set-up is similar to the old Penn National without the second and third floors and the grandstand seating. The Mountainview Terrace Restaurant occupies the lowest level, then box seats and finally an area at the top with concessions, tables and betting windows. I'm not sure but it appears you may need to go down through the casino to get trackside. They've also added a Simulcast Theater.
Tough for me to judge the slots. I'd find more entertainment value in tossing quarters off the Walnut Street bridge. But they have plenty of them - although I didn't see some of the most popular machines I've seen in Vegas like "Price is Right". They have an automated $10 Blackjack kiosk game that seats about 15 which was always full. There is also small section of video poker games in the back of the casino which I do like to play.
The entire facility was clean and well-lit.
The Not So Good
Their design consultant ripped them off. The Hollywood theme is cheesy and unimaginative. It basically consists of large movie poster billboards around the place - mostly for recent B movies - and some fancy lighting. The lounge showpiece is a large sky screen over the stage but it seemed kind of pointless to me. They are booking local acts but the music experience is antiseptic with recording music cutting off the bands if they play past their allotted time. Not a place to go for music.
The Bad
Hollywood Casino advertises six restaurants but only two offer table service. One of those is the expensive Mountainview Terrace Dining Room which serves a limited menu and is geared to horseplayers. The other is the Hollywood Skybox Sports Bar. Moderately priced pub menu but since it's the only sit-down restaurant, it fills up fast when the casino is busy. The other four are not much more than glorified concession stands. Place your order and take a number. Very disappointing.
Service in general was average to below. Tough to get a drink in the casino. The bartenders in the lounge were slow and I was never approached by a cocktail waitress in my limited slot time. Not as bad up in the race area but the beers are 4.00 there as opposed to 2.50 at the OTB's.
Also this is not an "Under 21"-friendly place. They can get into the horseracing area upstairs but they are not allowed on the casino floor. Unless your children are fascinated watching degenerates gamble on horses, I would advise against bringing the kids.
Conclusion
Even though it's far from what it could have been, you'll probably still have a good time at the Casino (especially if you are lucky enough to win some money) simply because it's a different kind of experience for the area.
Just remember... bet with your head not over it!