Eat Like Ushi

Finding a recommended restaurant in Las Vegas is difficult. There are the buffets, the Michelin restaurants and the remainder of the strip with their supply to the mobs. A little bit out of the way of the strip is a Japanese grill called Raku. Be careful when taking a taxi as most of them don't know where it is, even if you give them the address and will try to drop you well before the venue. When you get there, you'll know - it's a turn off into a small carpark leading directly to the front entrance.

There's the options of a la carte, a set course made from the menu items ($50 back in 2011), and a separate more expensive kaiseki menu of special dishes (probably more similar to traditional kaiseki).

Our group of 9 had the set course served to us in the private room. To my surprise we didn't actually grill any of the food, rather it was cooked in the kitchen then brought out to us.

- sashimi
- steamed chicken, tomato
- grilled tomatoes
- seared rare beef
- grilled chicken thigh steak
- grilled matsutake mushrooms
- grilled mushroom wrapped with bacon
- seafood soup
- grilled portabella mushroom stuffed with ground chicken
- grilled Kobe beef outside skirt with garlic
- grilled Kurobuta pork cheek
- ikura don (rice topped with dried seasoning and salmon roe)
- grilled crispy pig ears (ordered from the a la carte menu)
- mixture of sweet desserts

Next time I would order the set menu with a large group, or from the a la carte for less. All dishes were very tasty and a welcome separation in cuisine and location from the rest of the Vegas monotony. There are some classic and some exciting selections that sound worth it like poached egg with uni & salmon roe, foie gras egg custard, uni & wakame soup, and green tea creme brulee.