| rev:text
| - My previous review of Morimoto was with the No1DP who appreciates Iron Chef Morimoto due to the fusion elements of his cuisine. Turns out that my family went to eat there without me NYE 2017 and enjoyed it so much that everyone wanted to go back there on the next visit. Because I was able to go back my two reviews can focus on two of the core aspects of the restaurant. While my first review focuses on the fusion elements of the restaurant, this review focuses on the social/group dining element of the restaurant as literally almost every dish can serve as a small plates item.
According to our waiter Nicole, Morimoto can be best experienced three different ways: small plates due to their emphasis on hot and cold appetizers, sushi/sashimi due to their separate menu and entrees that focus on the fusion elements, but with an added steak option for a little example of Vegas decadence. We could've done the omakase option for significantly cheaper but we liked having the independence of ordering whatever dishes we wanted. Through the suggestions of our waiter we were able to partake in all the plates fairly.
DRINK: Thai Basil Smash (Hendricks gin, St. germain, pineapple, Thai basil, hibiscus, $17). A sweet cocktail that hides the taste of gin. Could taste the pineapple but not the basil.
TRUE APPETIZERS
Cold
- Tuna pizza (anchovy aioli, olives, jalapeno, $23)
- Yellowtail 'pastrami' (togarashi, gin creme fraiche, candied olive, morimoto grapeseed oil, $24)
The emphasis here is the quality of the fish. Instead of ordering sushi/sashimi as a pure fish it's incorporated into the fusion cuisine as an appetizer. The tuna pizza works great because the aioli, normally strong, doesn't overpower the fish. Same thing with the yellowtail and the togarashi/creme fraiche. Only thing bad here was the candied olive, it was too tough.
Hot
- Kakuni x2 (10 hour pork belly, rice congee, soy-scallion jus, $21)
- Rock shrimp tempura (spicy kochujan sauce, wasabi aioli, $23)
These are more filling than the cold appetizers. Pork belly is very savory and filling on its own, hence best separated into small parts. Congee helps the digestion of such a rich meat. Tempura is good but only if your party appreciates wasabi and Korean pepper paste, which are very dominating and spicy parts of any food. Luckily for my parents it is made mild, but I would've appreciated something stronger.
ENTREES AS SHARED PLATES
- Whole roasted lobster (garam masala, lemon creme fraiche, $56). Garam masala worked here in addition to the vegetables. Wish that the creme fraiche came earlier as it would complement the garam masala as it's a strong flavor in itself.
- Crispy whole fish (spicy tofu sauce, papaya salad, $43). With the help of Nicole she split the fish to make it easier to eat. Luckily there were not a lot of bones and the fish was soft and flaky. Tofu sauce was not spicy.
- Japanese A-5 Wagyu ($35/oz, 3oz minimum). What's notable about this dish is that the wagyu can be ordered three ways: as a NY Strip cut, ribeye cut or filet cut. We got the ribeye cut. Like a high-quality otoro, the meat literally dissolves in your mouth as you eat it due to the high marble. I have not experienced this in any other wagyu even in Japan, hence this is my gold standard for wagyu.
- Ishi yaki buri bop (yellowtail on rice cooked tableside in hot stone bowl, $38). If you've eaten at plenty of Asian restaurants you'll realize that this is a literal description of the dish - fatty yellowtail (buri) bibim(bap) served ishiyaki/dolsot style. If you've read my reviews I love buri and dolsot bibimbap so right away I fell for this dish. This is also appropriate for a closing dish due to the carb. Fried egg not necessary.
- Chinese broccoli ($10). Tough and a bit plain but necessary between strong umami flavors from each of the mains.
DESSERT
- Tutti fruiti toro (guava pineapple gelee, tropical fruit sorbets, $16). Identical to their famous appetizer toro tartare with the gelee as counterpart to toro. It is also eaten identically to the appetizer, with the combination of gelee + sorbet much better together than the sum of its parts.
- Chilled cheesecake souffle (blood orange meringue, strawberry-red wine sorbet, $16). The souffle was too small for five people. The citrus meringue worked here with the fluffy cheesecake.
Even by Vegas standards, Morimoto is certainly not a cheap meal. My contribution including tax and tip came to about almost $200/person. Ever since all of my parents' kids started working our choices for fine dining expanded; my family loves the wagyu so much they will pay the money to eat the wagyu here as they can't fly to Japan as often as I do. I will go back here because their execution of fusion cuisine is one of the best I've seen. Japanese fusion with emphasis on quality of ingredients.
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