In his engaging round-up of the best high-limit poker rooms in Las Vegas, professional player Daniel Negreanu dives into pretty insane levels of detail in his reviews -- bathroom distances, food situations -- and also offers a few good Vegas nostalgia riffs when he was a hungry up-and-comer:

I can still remember the lonely walks back from Mirage to Budget Suites at Paradise and Twain at 3:00am after I went broke for the umpteenth time. Soul searching, analyzing what went wrong, then trying to figure out what I was going to do next. My life back then was very different. I'd wake up, take a quick shower (sometimes) then walk about 20 minutes to Mirage. Once I got in a game, there was no eating. I'd take a round off once in a blew moon to get a croissant and a yogurt at the snack bar. I'd barely miss one round. All I did was play poker. It was kind of awesome in a twisted way. I loved the game, loved the life, and loved the challenge of taking on the Las Vegas locals in the hopes of becoming one. I lost that challenge time and time again, but persevered, never quit, and eventually broke through and beat the game.