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While many Southern California Casino owners are looking to the future with elaborate expansions and new amenities, the Morongo Band of Mission Indians is also giving a big nod to its past.

As a planned expansion is underway to Morongo Casino, Resort and Spa, the tribe has reopened the original Casino Morongo, with both facilities operating across from each other in Cabazon. That original casino moved its slot machines and table games out after the much larger Morongo Casino, Resort and Spa was completed in 2004. In recent years, it was used primarily for bowling, bingo and special events.

But now Casino Morongo is back in action — filled with 300 slot machines, a refurbished bar area with video poker and a new casual restaurant with classic American fare. Simon Farmer, executive director of marketing for Morongo Casino, Resort and Spa, said that while Casino Morongo is in close proximity to the larger resort, it’s not a part of it. “We are absolutely recognizing it as a separate casino,” he said.

Morongo Tribal Chairman Robert Martin said in a news release that the operation of two separate gaming facilities marked a major milestone for the tribe, which he said added thousands of local jobs and billions of dollars in economic activity for the region over the years.

“We’ve come a long way since the days of the modest tribal bingo hall we operated in the 1980s,” he said in the release.

Farmer said the movement of slot machines to the old casino property was something that was initially done as part of a planned expansion: Casino officials knew that they would need to take more than 300 slots out of service as it worked on adding 65,000 square feet to casino’s footprint, so they moved those slots to the old casino property so guests could enjoy them.

He said that at some point the conversation shifted and casino officials began talking about turning Casino Morongo into its own entity as a way to serve its patrons, some of whom had been visiting since the original venue opened in 1995.

He said that compared to Morongo Casino, Resort and Spa, Casino Morongo will offer a more comfortable and familiar environment for its guests.

A new restaurant inside the casino, the Pit Stop Diner, will offer made-from-scratch recipes and classic American comfort food 24 hours daily. A refurbished bar area will give guests the chance to play video poker or view a game from one of 30 big screen TVs.

As far as slots, Casino Morongo is offering classics such as Pot-O-Gold and Buffalo. It will also have slots with larger, more interactive video screens such as the Walking Dead Slot Machine.

Currently, Casino Morongo only has electronic games and slots, but Farmer said officials are considering the possibility of introducing tabletop poker as well.

Casino Morongo will even offer its own Winners Club Card, where people can rack up points to earn meals, free slot play and get entered into promotions and tournaments. The card is separate from the one offered at Morongo Casino, Resort and Spa. Signing up for the card is free.

Farmer said that whether or not Casino Morongo continues to be its own thing depends on how receptive visitors are, but says the tentative plan is to continue to operate it.

“It’s not just this overflow side project,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of team members from the resort that came over here. We have the same kind of commitment to providing a good time that people expect from the big property.”

Casino Morongo is located at 49750 Seminole Drive in Cabazon. Go to morongocasinoresort.com/casinomorongo for more information.