Turning Stone Casino to Open New Sports Lounge, Ditch Caesars Sports Betting

Turning Stone Casino Resort, in Verona, New York, is scrapping its once popular Lava Nightclub, and replacing it with a “sports lounge” called NY Rec & Social Club, which opens Dec. 18. 

On that same day, Turning Stone and two other upstate New York casinos run by the Oneida tribe will be launching TS Sports, ending a partnership with Caesars Sports that in 2019 allowed these properties to be some of the first in the state to offer in-person sports betting.

Artist’s rendering of the still-under construction NY Rec & Social Club sports lounge at Turning Stone casino in New York. (Image: courtesy of Turning Stone / YouTube)

Turning Stone will relocate the old sportsbook into the old nightclub space to create a new sports bar with a leisure-suit vibe and plenty of betting. All the games on 60 screens + foosball, pool, darts, shuffleboard and a large bar with some leather sofas, blackjack and craps. Mancave chic. 

The lounge can seat up to 200 guests. Dining options promise “innovative game day fare,” which sounds to us like fancy chicken wings, maybe with smashed brussel sprouts and $18 takes on an old fashioned? Turning Stone was not able to confirm nor deny our menu speculations before press time.

The new TS Sports sportsbook to bring the betting action into a upscale gastropub setting. (Image: courtesy of Turning Stone / YouTube)

The NY Rec & Social Club is one piece of a two-year, $370 million expansion project at Turning Stone. The plan calls for adding more than 250 new rooms to the hotel, doubling the size of its conference facilities, and adding more dining and entertainment spaces.