Certain cities (notably Seattle) have banned mini-casinos and cardrooms altogether.
There are so many of these mini-casinos that they generally have a limited drawing area (why would someone drive 30 miles to a mini-casino if there's one five miles away?). Catering to local residents and not tourists, these casinos tend to be pleasant places to play cards without necessarily being flashy or breathtaking. Also, card gambling is only legal if it is hosted in a restaurant or bar, since the law specifies the card games must be used to promote food sales.Īccordingly, hundreds of card rooms commonly called mini-casinos have sprung up around the state. Note that only gambling with cards is legal in Washington gambling with dice or roulette wheels or slot machines is still banned (except for Indian casinos).
Individual cities or counties may choose to regulate or ban card gambling, but the state explicitly allows it and licenses it, so unless a local jurisdiction bans it, it is legal. Washington is an unusual state in that, in addition to the standard Indian casinos located throughout the state, it explicitly allows card-based gambling of both a player-banked and house-banked nature and has done so since 1997.
