36 Hours Off-Strip: Las Vegas trip report (long)

[reformed]

I've been lurking for months, planning this quick trip - so first, thank you to everyone whose posts helped guide my Vegas eating travels.

Quick background: my husband and I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and are avid eaters, especially when we travel. We've been to Las Vegas several times, but until this trip had only stayed on the Strip without a car (but have enjoyed numerous meals at L'Atelier, Craftsteak, and Bouchon, amongst others).

We got into Las Vegas early Wednesday afternoon and headed straight for Lotus of Siam. I was most excited about trying the famed LoS; although we have fairly passable Thai in the South Bay where we live, a lot of it tends to be too sweet and a pale imitation of the incredible meals we had in Thailand. We arrived not long before the close of lunch, so there were only a few diners lingering. After being offered the buffet or the menu, we opted for the menu (which was definitely the correct choice, after inspecting the egg rolls and chow mein - and after watching a waiter make a very funny face when describing the lunch buffet to another table). With our waiter's help, we ordered off the Northern Thai menu:

- Khao soi - egg noodles with a light red coconut cream curry sauce and tender chicken bits
- Kang ka noon (spicy young jackfruit curry) - light thin curry with jackfruit (which I have never had in a savory dish before) and pork
- Nam prik noom (green chili dip) - blanched veggies (and crispy pork rinds) served with a thick chili dip
- Drinks: lemongrass and Thai lime - both tasty and refreshing
- served with a bowl of steamed long grain rice to share

We licked our plates clean. The style of food reminded us of what we had enjoyed in Thailand; perfectly spiced and seasoned and light, in contrast to most Thai food served in America, which is so sweet that it leaves you heavy with regret as you walk to your car. I appreciated the menu descriptions, which were the most accurate I've ever seen in a restaurant that serves Asian cuisine (comparing the texture of jackfruit to artichoke hearts: spot on!). The only disappointment, and this is just whimpering, although we asked for spicy, our lunch was fairly mild (to us). Lunch for two was around $40. We vowed to return.

A brief break, and we set off in our rental car for a pre-dinner snack at crEATe Burgers and Custard (7290 W. Lake Mead Blvd - not sure why Chowhound won't let me link this). Despite the slightly irritating cuteness of the name, this place had a pleasantly young vibe with very enthusiastic counter staff. If we were cool high school kids, I could imagine coming here for dates and after football games. The menu of burger choices was dizzying; fortunately, we had other plans for our actual dinner and ordered a cup of frozen custard - vanilla and chocolate (two scoops in a cup, around $3). Although we are not custard experts, we definitely enjoyed these scoops - smooth, thick, and creamy. The vanilla had a nice warm true flavor, and the chocolate was surprising in its unaggressive richness without any of that odd chalky aftertaste you sometimes get in soft frozen desserts. My husband had to restrain me from ordering another.

From there, we headed to the Chinatown area. First dinner stop: Raku. I admit I was somewhat skeptical of this Japanese robata joint, from the endless raves on this board; but it does live up to the high expectations. It's a very intimate, tasteful space; we were seated in the first room by the entrance. Our waitress convinced us to try a number of dishes off the specials board (and again, to address previous postings, her English was perfectly understandable).

- Hirame (special) - a beautifully presented plate of hirame (fluke) sashimi; firm, delicate and perfectly complemented by the housemade ginger-chili and the yuzu-tinged ponzu; also generous tastes of fluke liver and roe
- Ice fish (special) - perfectly batter-fried whitefish, with a squeeze of lemon
- Agedashi tofu - housemade tofu, a round cake of silky, savory tofu batter-fried and served with a light broth with a scattering of (beech?) mushrooms, topped with julienned nori and roe, a dab of chili paste on the side
- Kobe skirt steak with garlic - a skewer of grilled bites of tender beef, topped with fried garlic chips
- Chicken breast in chicken skin - a skewer of moist chicken cubes, wrapped with crispy fried, perfectly salted skin
- Butter sauteed scallop - two perfectly cooked scallops, served in a decorative shell
- Draft Sapporo

Service at Raku was impeccable. Food was served in proper order, plates were cleared invisibly. We were brought two cups of roasted green tea, a lovely way to finish the meal. My husband and I have eaten at a number of Japanese restaurants, both here and in Japan, and we were impressed by the dishes - both the quality and presentation ranked among the best we've had, all the more impressive because it's also a very comfortable experience for non-natives like us. Dinner for 2, about $60 - a steal.

On to our second dinner of the night, just down the street to Ichiza. This was a totally different experience from Raku, and not in a bad way. If Raku is where you take your refined, elegantly mannered date, then Ichiza is where both of you can let your hair down and soak in the J-pop punk vibe. We sat at the counter and squinted at the names of dishes scrawled on papers tacked to the walls.

- Grilled beef tongue - a skewer of tender slices of tongue
- Shishito - a skewer of lightly grilled peppers, none were hot - no luck today
- Chicken gizzards with garlic chives - my husband loved the gizzards; the garlic chives were slightly overcooked, but good flavor
- Natto with sliced okra - a small bowl of natto (need I say more?), garnished with superthin slices of fried okra
- Deep fried quail eggs - my favorite dish here - two skewers of three quail eggs, battered with panko and deep fried so the yolks are softly cooked - a perfect bite
- Sardines with tomato sauce - good savory drinking food
- Two glasses of the house cold sake - a bit watery and fairly undistinctive

If we lived here, Ichiza would definitely be our late night go-to. The food is not by any means refined or particularly outstanding, but good enough - and exactly the kind of izakaya you're craving at 2am. Did I mention it was cheap? Around $35 for two.

One last quick stop Wednesday night - the lower level of the open plaza had a Tea Station (I've never seen it before, but apparently there are branches all over Southern California). I was craving a sweet taste to end the night (we decided against the honey toast that nearly every other party at Ichiza had ordered and failed to conquer) and got a rather unremarkable, super-artificial rose milk tea with tapioca pearls. $3 and change for the medium.

On to Thursday. Not surprisingly, we were feeling a bit full when we woke up and decided to pace ourselves until lunch - we headed back to Lotus of Siam and caught them at the beginning of their lunch service. They were getting slammed by the buffet traffic (the buffet-goers seemed rather happy, but were those onion rings I saw?), but the waitstaff remembered us from the previous day and although busy, still took care of us adequately. Again, on the advice of our waiter:

- Nam prik ong (red chili dip) - yes, sort of like spaghetti sauce, as the menu describes - in that it was tomato based and meaty - but with spices that were sublime
- Northern larb - a really nice savory pork "salad"
- Sai oua (Northern style sausage) - hints of lemongrass and kaffir lime leaf, a really unique tasting, well seasoned sausage
- Yum nuah (sliced beef salad) - perfectly cooked slices of beef, tossed with herbs and romaine leaves
- Served with a side of steamed rice
- Drinks - lemongrass, Thai lime, and a few Singhas

This time, we asked for the heat level to be turned up to 7-8 (out of 10) for all of our dishes, even the non-spicy dip. This was perfect for us - enough for a warm tingle that made you crave more, but not so much that you're resting your mouth between bites. I'm glad we were able to make a second trip to LoS (not something we've ever done while traveling); our only regret was not having a larger dining party so we could sample more dishes. Lunch for 2, around $50.

Our final food stop of the trip was M+M Soul Food. Although we intended to dine there (the place had a lot of charm, with formica counters and wipe-down booths, friendly pink-t-shirt clad waitresses, just the kind of atmosphere you'd imagine for a soul food restaurant), our time in Vegas was running out. We changed our half order of oxtails to go, with sides of fried okra and collard greens, and a cup of "muddy water" (half iced tea/half lemonade). The fragrance emanating from the styrofoam clamshell was so tempting as we returned the car and waited in endless lines at the airport. Thankfully, TSA didn't confiscate our dinner (I was a little concerned about the packets of hot sauce - should I put them in my ziploc bag of toiletries?). Slightly lukewarm from the delay, the oxtails were cooked well, falling off the bone into a nice gravy (perfectly sopped up by the complimentary cornbread cakes). Again, the greens and okra (chunks deep fried in cornmeal batter) probably tasted even better warm and fresh. Next time.

Thanks again to all the Vegas hounds who paved the way for our brief but very tasty eating tour of off-Strip Las Vegas.

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Ichiza
4355 Spring Mountain Rd Ste 205, Las Vegas, NV 89102

Aburiya Raku
5030 Spring Mountain Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89146

Lotus of Siam
953 E Sahara Ave Ste A5, Las Vegas, NV 89104

M & M Soul Food Cafe
3923 W Charleston Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89102

[selfportrait93]

Appreciate the report. I particularly like the Ichiza part because I have never been there but just love Raku. Ichiza is part of our plan next time we visit.

[Dave Feldman]

Thanks for your wonderful report. I wouldn't have traded your itinerary for Craftsteak, L'Atelier, and Bouchon, for sure.

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Bouchon
3355 Las Vegas Blvd S, Las Vegas, NV 89109