IT’S funny how old age creeps up on a person. One minute you’re dancing at a deep house party on a rooftop in Long Street. The next you’re begging a DJ to turn the music down because you can’t hear a thing anyone is saying.
It’s okay though. I’m happy to embrace the twilight years sitting in a rocking chair on the porch, reminiscing about those bygone days, while predicting the weather with my knee. However, while you are young and carefree, I highly recommend you make the most of it.
GrandWest Casino has introduced a special night — Thursdays from this week until the end of June 2026 — for guests aged from 18 to 35 years old. My first instinct was to yell “age discrimination!” but this vibe truly is for them. It’s energetic and full of sensory stimuli, like the aforementioned DJ, a troupe of beautiful young women in sequinned dresses, sparkly things stuck on their faces, twirly multicoloured lights on the end of a stick, and very cool silver go-go boots which apparently come from Shein; trays of apple sours shooters; and eight hands of fast-paced blackjack.
Afterwards there are burgers and brews at Tiger’s Milk, where Thursdays happen to be karaoke nights. “Oh no,” I said. “I will never get drunk enough to do that again. Besides, I can’t sing nicely at all.” That, my friends, is no deterrent whatsoever and for what the participants lacked in talent they made up in volume for the whooping, whistling, appreciative audience.
So how does this Blackjack, Burgers & Brew promotion work? Here are the details I’ve been given.
- No booking is required. Guests simply need to visit GrandWest on a Thursday during the campaign period.
- To participate, guests must be Sun MVG members aged between 18–35.
- Collect a ticket from the MVG Rewards Centre kiosks from 3pm, place it into the tombola, to be selected.
- Eight players are drawn at 6.30pm and eight players at 7.30pm via a manual draw.
- Selected players are entered into the blackjack tournament, and qualifying players may also receive access to the food and beverage offer via a voucher issued through the MVG Rewards Centre.
- There is no minimum or maximum group size, as this is not a pre-booked experience. (If you, like me, did not know, you and your friends can book your own table for normal gaming.)
- Participation is, however, limited per draw: eight players per tournament round. Only one voucher per qualifying player per night is issued.
- Participants will each receive R500 in competition chips for the tournaments and finale.
- The tournament is short-form and structured: Each round consists of eight hands, followed by a final table for the top players.
- The winner of each final will receive R2 500.
- The experience is designed to be fast-paced and social, rather than a long session.
- Guests can choose between two fixed Tiger’s Milk meal specials.
- Option 1 (R167): Two standard beef burgers, one Tiger’s Milk Lager (300ml)
- Option 2 (R188): Two 180g beef burgers, choice of cheese or mushroom sauce, one Tiger’s Milk Lager (300ml)
- Additional toppings, extras, or sides (eg chips) are not included and must be paid for separately.
- Guests are responsible for settling their full bill at the restaurant.
- Only one drink is included in the offer. Any additional drinks are for the guest’s own account.
- Non-alcoholic alternatives may be requested directly with the restaurant, subject to availability.
- There is no entry fee for the tournament — guests qualify through MVG membership, age criteria, and gameplay participation.
There are of course a bunch more Ts&Cs and rules and so on, but the staff at GrandWest will be happy to fill you in. Also, you don’t need to know how to play blackjack (although the basics won’t hurt) because the dealer will teach you and explain everything. Like why it’s not a good idea to take another card when you are on 17 or 18, which is why I am a useless player because I cannot silence that little “but what if?” voice in my head. With a minimum bet of R50 I don’t last long.
Card counting is no longer a thing, I asked. The pit boss chortled indulgently when I said if people are clever enough to do that, they should be allowed to. Card-shuffling shoes (the name of the thing the cards come out of) make that impossible. Look at me investigating as if I have mathematical skills.
While I am way out of the target market for this, I can see how it’s fun and exciting night out, with very little outlay and potentially big rewards.
For more information on the MVG programme, click here.
