Free Veteran's Day Lunch, Thanksgiving Dinner Plans Yet?

Thanksgiving Is Two Weeks Away – Are Your Dinner Plans Set?  If so, you probably should skip to the next article. If not, let’s cut quickly to the chase and give you two options:

• If you and your family would like to have a traditional Thanksgiving meal at home, our Thanksgiving Turkey Dinner To Go for up to 10 people will eliminate a lot of the preparation, fill your house with soothing holiday aromas, and leave you all pretty darn full  . . . with leftovers for next day – all for just $89.
• If you want to skip all the fuss at home, we also have Thanksgiving Day Dinner Specials in Katie’s and CV Steak – plus our regular menus on Thanksgiving Day.  For Katie’s, stop in whenever you’re ready and we’ll get you seated as quickly as possible. For CV Steak, reservations are a must at 775-783-6650. CV Steak is a very popular spot on Thanksgiving and, while we open at 2 p.m., many times are full, especially for larger (over 4) parties.

Thanksgiving Weekend Craft Fair: We’ve been getting a lot of questions and the answer is YES, the 16th Annual Kandy Kane Holiday Craft Fair is happening in our Valley Ballroom on Friday thru Sunday, November 27 – 29. We’ll have the hours and more information in our blog next Wednesday.

Reminder Department:

• Free Lunch Today: Our 5^th Annual Free Spaghetti Lunch for all Veterans and Active Military is today 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in our Valley Ballroom.  Simply present your military ID for entrance, and lunch for you and one guest is on the Carson Valley Inn! Don't have your ID? Briefly tell us about your service to our country and we'll welcome you anyway! How much do you know about Veterans Day? Click here for all the information on how and when it started . . . . and the significance of 11 a.m. on the 11^th day of the 11^th month.

  

  Over 500 Attended our 2014 Free Veteran's Day Spaghetti Feed

• Chamber 70^th: The Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce 70th Gala Celebration in the
  
  CVI Valley Ballroom is this Saturday . . . Still a day or two left to get tickets, contact the Chamber at 775-782-8144. Dinner, live entertainment, a 7-decade trip down memory lane and more are all on tap! Seems there will also be a "drink of the decade" for each of the Chamber's 10 years of history. If you plan to try 3 or more, please get a room here on Saturday night! 
• Get to Work! And we mean here at the CVI or at Sharkey’s Casino, We like working here - you will, too! Our openings list was updated this morning, check it out!
• Food Drive: The annual KTVN 22nd Annual Share Your Christmas Drive-By Food Drive  is way too important for our Community Food Closet to have anyone forget. So, expect a reminder with a twist here each week until it happens on Friday, December 11^th from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m! 

Race and Sports Book:

• The NCAA college basketball season kicks off this Friday and we’re looking forward to Nevada showing new energy, faster pace of play, and a winning record under new coach Eric Mussleman.  Nevada plays this Friday, Sunday and Tuesday in the Outrigger Resorts Rainbow Classic in Hawaii. Let’s root them on this weekend and all thru their 2015-16 Schedule.
• This week you can watch and bet NFL and College Football, Horseracing, NBA and College Basketball, NHL Hockey and Sunday’s NASCAR Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 at the Phoenix International Raceway.
• The PRO PK’EM jackpot is up to $3,943 on this week’s progressive parlay card.
• The big college football game our sports book crew is following with interest this weekend is the Oklahoma (8-1) at Baylor (8-0) game on Saturday due to its potential implications on who makes it to the top-four for the College Football Playoff National Championship.
• On the NFL front, so much for the Patriots-Broncos game on November 29 being a clash of the undefeateds! But, we now have a unique possibility: If the Patriots, Bengals and Panthers (all now 8-0) all win the rest of their games, all three would go into the playoffs undefeated.  Care to calculate those odds and share them with us? Here’s one constantly changing take on the subject. 

Cabaret Lounge Entertainment – No Cover, No Minimum – Free! George Pickard performs tonight; Melissa Dru entertains Thursday thru and Saturday nights, NFL Football is on Sunday and Monday Nights and Jonathon “JB” Barton returns next Tuesday and Wednesday. Melissa Dru's original song “The Islands” received an honorable mention after placing in the top 100 of the Billboard Song writing contest out of thousands of song entries. She has performed on the Nevada cabaret circuit for the last ten years with her band, The Melissa Dru band. Melissa will delight you with her song delivery . . . and bring you to laughter with her original and fun sense of humor. Musician, singer, songwriter and entertainer, she is a genuinely gifted artist.

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News

• Tonight is Ladies’ Nights and the first 150 ladies to sign up receive a Free Fan (the kind that fold like an accordion) and ladies-only drink specials. There are also Hot Seat Gifts from Heart Strings of Gardnerville.
• Boar Friday, Prime Rib Saturday, King Crab Sunday in CV Steak:  Our Friday Special this week is Wild Boar with bourbon jus and spiced grapes for $28.00. Saturday night its Garlic Studded Prime Rib for $26 and Sunday's special is one pound of King Crab Legs for $32. All these specials are served with fresh vegetable, choice of rice or potato (au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked), tableside tossed salad and warm demi-loaf of bread.
• Because we feel like mentioning it:
• Thursday is Pizza With The Works Except Anchovies Day.  Seriously? Who thinks

  

  Bodines Pizza Oven
  Churns 'Em Out Hot and Fresh!

  these things up! I guess it doesn’t really matter because we’re all ready for the celebration at Bodines Casino where we make every pizza to order in our special pizza oven. And we’ll make it with whatever you want on it except anchovies! Actually, we asked the staff at Bodines how often they get a request for anchovies on pizza and they answered with two words, “Blue Moon.” So, we looked it up and found that a Blue Moon happens on average about once every 2.7 years. At that rate, hardly worth keeping anchovies on hand! Speaking of a Blue Moon, we do have Blue Moon Beer on tap at the Silver Dollar Bar in Sharkey’s Casino!
• Saturday is Pickle Day. No, we really don’t have anything in any of our properties that relates to celebrating Pickle Day. However, we did think some of the information at the link was quite fascinating.

Comments? Have questions or comments about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit “0” when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning!

Free Veteran's Day Lunch, Seasonal Dessert, Men Make Dinner Day Ideas, More

Are You Cool and Collected or a Screamer? By now, you've probably seen our outside sign or read the post on Facebook: Theresa won a $15,196 slot jackpot last week. Her luck wasn't running very well that day so she and her husband decided to have something to eat. When they walked out of Katie's she had $20 in her pocket and decided to give her favorite machine one more whirl. On the third spin, all the Quick Hit Platinum symbols lined up on one of the Quick Hit Platinum machines just outside the Cabaret Lounge and she did just what she told everybody she would never do when she finally won her big jackpot – she let out a scream! What will be your reaction when you hit a big jackpot? Will you be "cool" and maintain that "I meant to do that" attitude? Or, will you whoop it up so the whole casino knows? Our preference? Let it all out!

There IS Such A Thing As A Free Lunch! Our 5^th Annual Free Spaghetti Lunch for all Veterans and Active Military is coming up on Veteran's Day, Wednesday, November 11. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in our Valley Ballroom and the entry process is simple: Veterans and active military personnel simply present your military ID for entrance, and lunch for you and your guest is on the Carson Valley Inn!  Don't have your ID? Tell us a little about your service to our country and we'll welcome you anyway! We honor your service to our country with a brief ceremony starting at 11 a.m. There will be a Veteran's Day colors presentation by the Color Guard from the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center, the National Anthem will be sung by Melissa Dru and an invocation will be given by Fr. Doroteo Rojas-Serrano of St. Gall’s Church in Gardnerville.  The free spaghetti lunch includes fresh tossed salad with choice of ranch, Italian or thousand island dressings; spaghetti with choice of marinara sauce or Bolognese (meat sauce); garlic bread and assorted cookies.

We're Spicing Things Up! No, not that kind of spicy . . . We're talking about a Spiced Pumpkin Mousse Trifle, a special seasonal dessert available nightly in CV Steak through December 26. We stopped by the bakery earlier this week and watched Tracy put that day's supply together. She starts with a small made-in-house ginger spice cake that conveniently snuggles into the bottom of the serving glass. That's topped with a specially prepared pumpkin mousse. Another ginger spice cake is then added, this one's shaped more like a cookie, and then another layer of pumpkin mousse. A swirl of whipped cream topped by pumpkin spice finishes off this yummy seasonal specialty.  Be sure to leave room for it!

Were You Alive Then? Franklin D. Roosevelt was president until he was succeeded by Harry S. Truman in April after Roosevelt succumbed to a lingering illness. World War II was at its height. The Detroit Tigers won the World Series against the Chicago Cubs, who haven't made it to the World Series since. And, the Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce was formed. It all happened in 1945 setting the stage for the Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce 70th Gala Celebration in our Valley Ballroom next Saturday, November 14. What’s on tap for this special event? Why not find out firsthand by contacting the Chamber (775-782-8144), buying a ticket and joining in on what will certainly be a most informative, interesting and nostalgic evening!

Saturday, Employee Costume Contest Was Fun! If you were around and wondering who won prizes in our employee costume contest last Saturday, here’s how it came down:  The winner for day shift was Teresa Most (Fancy Pumpkin) in Job's Perk. Second place went to Gina Cranmer, Samantha Loewe and Jennifer Cano (Cat in the Hat and the Butterfly Girls) from Katie’s. On swing shift, Bonnie Cosgrove (Evil Queen pictured at left) from Slots won first place.  In second place were Logan Ambrose, Allyson Herkenrath and Alexandra Parker (Cat In The Hat and Thing 1 and 2) from Katie’s. Thanks to all of our employees who participated!

Race and Sports Book:

• This week you can watch and bet NFL and College Football, Horseracing, NBA Basketball, NHL Hockey and Sunday’s NASCAR AAA Texas 500 at the Texas Motor Speedway.
• The PRO PK’EM jackpot is up to $3,806 on this week’s progressive parlay card. These crazy upsets (did you really pick the Raiders to destroy the Jets?) make it seemly tough to pick all the games straight up. But, if you do, you can multiply a $5 bet over 700 times!
• Games our sports book crew is following with interest this weekend include LSU/Alabama and Clemson/Florida State on Saturday and Raiders/Steelers on Sunday.
• Yesterday at our Sports Book LSU was 7-1 to win the NCAA Championship and Alabama was 4-1. Might consider one of those futures bets at the same time you are placing a wager on the game itself.
• Here’s something to ponder: The Broncos play the Patriots on Sunday, November 29. The possibility exists that both teams could be 10 – 0 that day. Sure would make for one of those “biggest game of the year” claims! And at least one person has calculated the odds of this happening - read about it here.

Chad Bushnell

Cabaret Lounge Entertainment – No Cover, No Minimum – Free! George Pickard performs tonight; Chad Bushnell entertains Thursday thru and Saturday nights, NFL Football is on Sunday and Monday Nights and George Pickard returns next Tuesday and Wednesday. Born and raised in Red Bluff, California, Chad Bushnell has opened for big names in the industry including Scotty McCreery, Lee Brice, Tracy Lawrence, Neil McCoy, Billy Currington, Mark Wills, Josh Gracin, Mark Chesnutt, Jerrod Neimann and Tyler Farr. Chad has an album out titled “You Can Drive My Truck” that was produced by his lead guitar player Casey Doss. He was a Top 10 finalist in the American Country Star contest in Nashville and won the Horizon Award. He recently released his latest single “My Little Redneck Girl” and is working on a new album with Johnathan Frizzell from CMG Records in Nashville. He also won the Best of the North State Band award in Northern California for 2015.

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News

• Pssst – Want a Job? Our HR folks posted a couple of new openings on our website in the last few days. Why not check it out – we always have room for good people!
• Mike’s Horses: Hoppertunity finished second in the Hagyard Fayette Stakes at Keenland last Friday. We congratulate Bob Baffert, trainer of all of Mike's horses, who also trained American Pharoah, winner of last Saturday's Breeders' Cup Classic
• Tonight is Ladies’ Nights and the first 150 ladies to sign up receive a Free Trinket Box and ladies-only drink specials. There are also Bath & Body Works Gift Baskets for hot seat prizes
• Venison Friday, Prime Rib Saturday, King Crab Sunday in CV Steak:  Our Friday Special this week is Roasted Rack of Venison with cherry brandy demi for $32.00. Saturday night its Garlic Studded Prime Rib for $26 and Sunday's special is one pound of King Crab Legs for $32. All these specials are served with fresh vegetable, choice of rice or potato (au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked), tableside tossed salad and warm demi-loaf of bread.
• Blackjack Tournament Tuesday: November 10 is the second Tuesday of the month and that means it’s the night for our Monthly Blackjack Tournament. Just a $25 buy-in gets you into the action and all the buy-in money and any rebuys go to a pool that is dispersed among the top three finishers. It’s a great entertainment value and the banter between players is often amusing in itself! Check at the “pit” for details and join us next Tuesday night!
• Because we feel like mentioning it:
• Thursday is Men Make Dinner Day.  We have three properties and four restaurants so we're really not advocating that you stay home on Thursday and that the men make dinner for their wives. We read through the supposed rules for this day (hey, if it's on the Internet it has to be true!) and we technically don't see anything that says men can't take women out for dinner on this special day. So, here are a few suggestions for Thursday night: the $19.00 Sunset Dinner Special in CV Steak (arrive between 4:30 and 5:30 PM), the Thursday night $6.99 Corned Beef and Cabbage special in Katie's, Pasta Night at Bodines Casino or the $7.99 Beef Stroganoff special in the Jackpot Cafe at Sharkey's Casino.
• Friday is Nachos Day and we offer a couple of different choices to help you celebrate:
• Bodines Bodacious Nachos - tortilla chips smothered with homemade chili, cheese, pico de gallo and sour cream.
• Katie's Macho Nachos with refried beans, cheese sauce, sliced jalapeños, diced tomatoes, green onions and black olives. Add chicken breast or beef for a small extra charge.

Comments? Have questions or comments about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit “0” when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning!