Las Vegas is home of the ersatz, so few sushi palaces are the authentic thing, but recently a trip to Nobu at the Hard Rock Hotel has me convinced that this Japanese dining experience is like no other. And there were no long lines because we made advance reservations (702/693-5090).
 Nobu is named after the celebrity chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, and with a Nobu in Malibu, California, the Hollywood crowd has discovered him, so much so that one of his partners in the luxury dining chain is none other that Robert DeNiro.
My dining companion on this particular evening is a famous Las Vegas show producer and we are celebrating his birthday. He is a Frenchman, used to drinking fine red wines from France, so we order a bottle, but Nobu is so packed the waiter has difficulty in hearing us and instead brings us a famous French Rhône River red special ($100 a bottle) called Chateauneuf du Pape, and my friend is overly delighted with the waiter’s mistake, or choice.
I will chalk it up to the waiter’s choice, for our waiter, Arnold, has impeccable taste when we decide to order the Chef’s Special or Omakase. We figure Arnold knows the extensive menu better than we do. “I will take care of you,” assures Arnold, and the black T-shirted and black jeans clad Japanese lad certainly does.
But first it is time to drink Sake! We hold the wine back for the exquisite dining to follow while Arnold pours our first taste of Guava Sake, one of three in-house Sakes that are actually made right at Nobu. The Guava Sake is cool to the palate with no liquor overtones, and in fact we could not taste the liquor at all, but after two, or was it three, small glazed glass carafes, I think I am ready to speak Japanese, which is certainly not my mother tongue. Arnold says that Sake is only heated when it is an inferior blend; it is an easy choice to order more of the coolness of the Guava Sake. Maybe we can buy it in the marketplace soon.
Later we switch to one carafe of the Pear Sake that by this time has us sitting up with a nice glow on our faces. I heard about the Raspberry Sake, but Nobu no longer serves it. I did notice the bite of the Pear Sake, and I know it is time to cut myself off before the third type arrives - plum.
When ordering the Omikase you get a chance to experience a variety of dishes, actually more like a virtual stream of hors d’oeuvres that you will find usually in no other Japanese establishment, except maybe in Japan, or of course, or at another Nobu.
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Nobu seats about 250 for
fine Japanese/Peruvian cuisine.
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Arnold starts us off with five thin slivers of Yellowtail Sashimi with a small cut of raw cilantro that sharpens the tuna flavor. By this time I notice the two small polished black river rocks on the clear burnt ash tabletop, and my dining companion questions their use. I realize you set your chopsticks on the small valley of the rock between orders so that they never touch the table.
The stalks of bamboo between us and the other diners does nothing to muffle the sound, and the only drawback to the evening is that my companion and I have difficulty in communicating, except with gustatory hand gestures of approval. But we were here for the dining experience, and we later discuss the ritual of the evening. We immediately order the garlicky Squid Pasta and Nobu’s world famous Lobster Salad, a reputation that precedes it as the best in town. The salad is infused with Shitake mushrooms, crisp lettuce, and the right amount of slices of fresh lobster with a small baste of lemon dressing. Everything is so fresh I wonder if the seafood market is around the corner. Sometimes the fish at many Japanese restaurants is frozen, then thawed before serving. I didn’t detect this calamity at Nobu.
Arnold, who has kind of a ninja look about him, as does all the wait staff, next produces a Sea Bass with black bean sauce that is exquisite. Arnold grins through his neatly clipped goatee. I do not remember if he said it is from the waters of the Humboldt Current, because after all, the entire menu is a distinct Peruvian fusion flavor. Nobu once had a restaurant in Peru. In fact, the Tuna Tataki with Ponzu recipe arrived in the States with Nobu with his South American-inspired salsa.
I think the Sake is taking effect — I am laughing with no control — that's it, pass me another shot!
We also experience the wonderful Miso-infused (Mirin Sake sauce) Cod wrapped in butter-lettuce cups, with a garnish of grated daikon and topped with an edible flower; it must be eaten with the hands. It is so fine it makes our eyes roll around and around under the subdued lighting. The restaurant does serve Miso soup as a side dish, I note.
Chef Nobu Matsuhisa has Japanese dining palaces in New York (in the trendy TriBeCa area), London, Los Angeles (Beverly Hills), and soon at the Badrutti Palace Hotel, St. Moritz's only five-star hotel located on Lake St. Moritz. Nobu will be at the hotel for at least the next three ski seasons. During the summer season the winter crew will be found at Nobu on the Greek island of Mykonos at the Hotel Belvedere.
 The Las Vegas Nobu opened in 1999 and it is packing in the fans, with the local hipster scene mixing in with the tourist crowd. David Rockwell (of the Rockwell design group) certainly did a wonderful job of interior design with the Vegas eatery, with a flair of hardwood floors and Japanese-style rice paper screens on the ceiling. The 16-seat jade tile sushi bar is filled with patrons on this evening. Presentation is everything in a restaurant, so I can see why Nobu won the 2003 and 2004 Epicurean Award for best Japanese cuisine. I must check Architectural Digest for details on the design.
Arnold tells me that their version of Red Snapper is a lighter pink colored snapper that is plucked from the cold waters of the Pacific Northwest. Almost all salmon these days is freshwater “grown” salmon and Nobu does serve it as an excellent part of the Omikase experience. We also crave the thinly sliced Kobe beef that is of a color as exquisite as its taste. I believe the dark richness of the meat must come about because the cows are beer fed. Nobu even has its own signature soy sauce — Matsuhisa (and a new restaurant chain called Matsuhisa).
We finish the evening with a wonderful Shrimp Tempura and a Bento Box of Chocolate Soufflé served with Green Tea Ice Cream and Asian Bread Pudding dribbling with chocolate.
We will have to come back soon for the Chicken Teriyaki and the other wonderful delights we missed on this occasion because we are now sated to bursting.
— By Kriss Hammond, Editor, Jetsetters Magazine.
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