4 Stars.. getting close to 5 Stars.. The Gardens Casino in Hawaiian Gardens California has been completely redone. The Gardens was already a very popular casino in it's original tent construct but that is now gone and replaced with a very attractive new building (the project is still under construction as of this writing.. Sep. 2016). The main facade off the parking lot is stately but lacks a big PUNCH. I would recommend they add some signage similar to what is done on the side and rear of the building (that signage is very nice but is viewed by traffic and employees (rear of building is for employees only I was told). The current sidewalk that leads from the parking area is extremely narrow and doesn't have any visual appeal. Speaking of visual appeal once you enter the casino the lobby, it has a very nice fountain with a beautiful sculpture of golden dolphins and then directly behind the sculpture is a bar restaurant setting (a favorite area with customers). Overall the visual appeal is a bit dated but still a great improvement that makes for a nice experience. I have overheard some players saying they now consider HG to be the nicest LA casino. (Not yet for me but they are approaching that). The management is doing a much better job recently (my take). I had considered the old management style to be a page out of the old west. I think the upgrade is helping to bring about a better image and efforts to make the casino experience much more enjoyable for those that are not packing (a bit of humor). The action is always playing out in the two large rooms that make up live poker. You can get round the clock action here. The casino also accommodates the high roller with a private section set aside for that experience. Finally the casino has plenty of room for daily tournaments. The sectioned tournament area is large; large enough to accommodate most events and it appears that it could easily expand into the live play area that is adjacent if it is necessary. Good design on that. The events offered keep getting better and better. Action is the issue and Los Angeles casinos, HG included, are creating a lot of ACTION; increasing the money that can be won IS smart. The current tournament is a great example of this! I am referring to "The Gardens Poker Classic" which is drawing a lot of players from far afield (I met Chris Moneymaker yesterday on the break as I played in this tournament). The Classic has a guaranteed $3,000,000 prize pool... first place prize is at least $500,000 and a beautiful new Mercedes. Very low buy in and daily satellites make this doable for most players. A professional player told me that he played in a few of the qualifiers, winning some money but more importantly improving his starting chip count for the final (smart strategy, wouldn't you agree). This way yoou can also make some money as the tournament structure pays out at 10 percent of players and qualifies 6 percent to move forward towards grand final. This very popular tournament is being played out at four LA casinos; the final days play is scheduled in December at the famous Commerce Casino. by cmilton111