Video gaming in the suburbs | The scene

Tuesday, October 16, 6:26pm Although legal video gaming launched in Illinois on October 9, Chicago won’t be getting machines anytime soon, thanks to a local ordinance prohibiting gambling. But of the 96 bars, restaurants, truck stops and fraternal organizations operating 278 terminals statewide, several are just a short Metra ride from the Loop. (Get the full location list at www.igb.state.il.us.) One of the closest spots, Michael Anthony’s (6434 Ogden Ave, Berwyn; 708-484-2222), beckons with a sidewalk sign: welcome legalized video gaming! miller + pizza = winner. Inside, four machines along one wall seduce with arpeggiated electronic tones and an array of brightly lit slot games (maximum payout: $500) with names that sound like racehorses: Dangerous Beauty, Golden Goddess, Kitty Glitter. Marty Bryski and Beth Dilcher (pictured) had been anticipating the machines since the Video Gaming Act passed in 2009. “We used to hang out at the OTB,” Dilcher says. “This is much nicer.” Bryski, a Ukrainian Village denizen, admits he usually gets his video gaming on illegally at a city bar. Now the 51-year-old happily hoists a bottle to toast “a little taste of Vegas in the ’burbs.”