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| - The chefs of today may well be the Van Goghs of our time. The care and precision of modern food presentation has made some of the creations on our plates incredible edible works of art.
The Japanese have the art of food presentation imbued in their food culture and they really put their heart and soul into making their food a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach.
On my visit to Las Vegas last September, I was starting to feel a bit jaded about eating at the big corporate named restaurants on the strip and sought out a dinner spot more in keeping with being a locals' favourite. A Yelp search threw up Raku and a quick check with local Yelp friend Emily R confirmed that it was one of her favourite spots in town.
I was especially drawn to their kaiseki menu, where they create a unique menu based on the best ingredients available that day. A quick phone call secured my dinner reservation and as requested on their website, I pre-ordered the kaiseki menu.
My taxi dropped outside Raku, which is located in a non-descipt small off-Strip mall. Any initial fears about the unprepossessing surroundings were soon dispelled by the warm welcome I received on entering the restaurant. There was a general hubbub of conviviality in the restaurant all evening with many customers obviously being happy regulars.
I bagged a seat at my favourite place to sit in a restaurant - at the counter watching the chefs at work. I was able to chat to the main chef all evening, who was very happy to engage and explain things to me about my unfolding gastronomic adventure.
Every dish was a work of art and there were quite a few new flavours for my palate to savour.
1. Mountain potato croquettes in dashi broth
2. Eight mini treasures, including creations such as tofu skin with wasabi and egg with sashimi
3. The house signature homemade silken tofu with salmon roe and homemade green tea salt and soya sauce
4. Fluke sashimi and liver with spring radish and grated onion dipped in ponzu sauce
5. Japanese/Spanish mackarel marinated in yuzu
6. Foie gras/egg custard/summer truffle served in an egg shell
7. Eel with shisho pepper
8. Uni with egg
9. Kobe beef on hot rock flamed with Hennessy XO sauce
10. Mixed tuna over rice
11. Panna cota
As you can see, the list of ingredients is like a who's who of the best ingredients to pass one's lips. Everything was a delight to eat.
I love the way that Japanese cookery has given exquisite food presentation to the west but in return, the has given them ingredients like foie gras to cook with.
Service was always with a smile all evening.
The final touch of class came at the end of my meal when the chef confessed that normally, they don't do the kaiseki menu for only one person due to the large amount of prep time involved but as I was visiting from London, they made an exception.
Arigato, Aburiya Raku!
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