Adelaide's casino floor is friendlier than the reputation suggests — but there is a real code, and it tightens after 20:00.

What smart-casual means here

Before 20:00: clean, presentable, no beachwear or work gear. After 20:00: collared shirts or evening wear, no sportswear, no thongs. The salon asks one notch higher — jacket preferred.

At the table

Buy in between hands, not mid-deal. Place bets in the circle, not on the cards. Touching chips after the call is the one rule that will get you spoken to quickly — hand signals exist so cameras can read intent.

Tipping and chips

Australian casinos don't run on the Vegas tipping economy — a modest dealer tip on a good win is appreciated, not expected. Chips are bought and sold at the table or cage; never hand cash to another player.

The fast mistakes

  • Touching your cards in a face-up game — hands off
  • Using your phone at the table — step back
  • Ask the dealer for rules help — it's genuinely welcome

The safest move: watch a table for two hands before you sit. Everything above becomes obvious in sixty seconds.