 Benihana Village
at the Hilton Hotel, 3000 Paradise Rd., 702-732-5111
I always call this place the "Hilton". But the official name is the
"Las Vegas Hilton". So, if you want to look it up in the directory
that is where you need to go. There are several Benihanas arount the country.
If my memory serves me a guy that used to be on a Japanese olympic wrestling
team introduced the concept to the U.S. I think his name was Rocky something or
the other. I'll have to look it up. By concept I mean tableside teppan cooking
( teppan yaki). I think everyone should visit this place at least once in their
life. It is a lot of fun and the food is amazingly good, albeit expensive. The
chefs at work are quite the showmen what with cleavers and knives flying
through the air. |
 Hamada of
Japan
598 E. Flamingo Rd, Tel: 702-733-3005.
I understand this place has evolved into a mini chain with two more locations
for a total of three. One in the Flamingo hotel the other one elsewhere. I only
visited the Flamingo Rd. location so far. Anyway, traditional Japanese fare
with your sushi, sukiyaki etc. A bit pricey. |
Hyakumi
in Caesars Palace. 702-731-7731
Sushi bar with a large assortment of Japanese sake, beer and wine. They also
have teppanyaki dining in a garden type setting. Fairly expensive. |
Osaka
4205 W. Sahara Av., Tel: 702-876-4988
The Osaka restaurant is about one and one half miles west of the I15 freeway in
an older Las Vegas neighborhood. . As you open the front door you are standing
in front of a white block wall not three feet in front of your nose. Pretty
baffling. To your right is the sushi room, they have a very large selection. I
counted three sushi chefs hard at work. This was at about 6 PM. The restaurant
itself is an assemblage of modified tatami rooms. I say modified because they
have an opening underneath the table where you can stick your feet. Removal of
footwear is requested. I have a problem with that. The temperature in Las Vegas
on that day was about 108F, you can imagine what my socks smelled like! It is
unavoidable. The menu is extensive, but they are heavy on seafood. I counted
seven different kinds of sake including one brand for $125.00 (for 750 mll).
Complete dinners run about $15.75 per, which is really not bad. I had the
teriyaki, My companion had the vegeterian combination ( oddly enough chicken
broth was served with htis). I found the breading on the tempura a little
heavy. The meal starts off with a bowl of soup, really just a broth with a few
strands of noodles and some chopped green onions. My friend, the vegetarian,
did not want the chicken broth (she had ordered the vegetarian combination) and
the kitchen could not (or would not) substitute a bowl of miso soup. I happen
to know that miso soup is not hard to make. I found the steamed green soybeans
in the shell a very nice touch. They were sort of an appetizer. They also
served a small salad of thin sliced cucumbers in the Japanese manner with
sesame seed and some rice vinegar. Very refreshing. The teriyaki platter was
served with a bit of potato salad, some broccoli with a dressing and some very
nice tempura items on the side, including two tempura shrimp. Conclusion: if
you want a quasi Japanese experience, modified to the American taste, than you
can't go wrong here. The price is right. Smokers and those who do not are
separated in different rooms, very nice.Also, these folks have been in the
restaurant business for thirty years, quite a record for Las Vegas where things
move at warp speed. What is it about oriental restaurants where they almost
always have a table set aside for folding napkins, doing paperwork and wiping
silverware? No office or back room?  |
Tokyo Japanese
Restaurant
953 E. Sahara Av. Tel: 702-735-7070.
Just as I was about to do a write up on this place the Clark County Health
Department staged an enormous raid on this run down and dilapidated shopping
center. Numerous restaurants received citations. So, I better leave it alone.
That place is not very safe at night anyway. But it does have a lot of Japanese
and Korean businesses. There is also one Thai and one Chineses restaurant.
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