The floor

Six tables down the old operating room

Four open, two reserved, a bell on the hour, chips that keep score and not a cent riding on any of it.

How it works

Seats, signals and the way a table turns over

Four tables are open to whoever is next when the bell goes. Two can be held by phone for groups of up to six and are released fifteen minutes after the agreed time.

Every table gets a fresh deck weekly, a lamp of its own and a paper score card. The card is torn up at close and nothing carries into the next night.

A dealer works the room on Tuesday and Thursday. They explain rules, deal when asked and make sure nobody who came in alone spends the night watching.

What gets played

Five hundred, euchre, cribbage, friendly poker — all for points.

The signal

Hourly bell: hands finish, seats settle, waiting players sit down.

Score cards

Paper, on the table, torn up when the lights come on.

At the table

Five things the floor enforces

Six to a table at most, four at the first-timers' table on Tuesday.

Chips stay in the room. They are not currency and cannot be exchanged for anything.

Cards come from the bar; a personal deck does not go on the cloth.

When the bell sounds, finish the hand and let the table breathe.