Great photos, if you want to write about badugi go ahead, i used to play up to 100/200 badugi on full tilt and quit when i couldnt find enough action anymore. I would be glad to talk strat.

OMG, the fish pics! Amazing. Have been only to Hiroyoshi in Vegas and loved it. Need to try Kabuto.

Love the idea of champagne, too. Always just do sake. Glad to know they have a corkage fee. We always ask in NY, but don't really think about it in Vegas. Will start asking!

Le subbed. Le awesome trip report. Le pics are friggin great.

I know nothing about mixed games, but I do enjoy reading your hands and trying to understand what's going on.

Le keep it coming!

Yes please. Always interested in hearing about games that are new to me so I can corrupt them for my group.

omg holy crap i want all of that sushi. thanks for all the details on that!

Vegas regs cutting their nose to spite their face. They created these games because they know tourists rarely play them, if at all and this is what they end up with.

+1 for more sushi and more strategy discussion on all of the banana mix games...really enjoy your report and your hand histories, and of course the sushi pRon. Keep up the good work.

I understand why you don't venture out of Wynncore between the RFB comp and your dad's mobility. But I know you like food and there are some seriously amazing meals to be had in Vegas. Kabuto, Raku, Chada and others are definitely worth a visit.

Kama toro from Kabuto is probably my favorite bite of food in Vegas. Kabuto pics were great. Never had the red sea perch, looks amazing. Next time.
gl.

It's pretty strange, as I think I am the only tourist who ever plays these games and am probably a breakeven player in them. They only run 1 table of 20/40 and then usually an 80/160. There used to be a consistent 40/80 game, but that doesn't run as consistently anymore.

I think the dead money in these games comes more from older locals who know the traditional stud and omaha games and want to play more limit. The problem is they play really passively and get exploited pretty hard sometimes.

Also, due to comments I will make sure to include strategy talk in the future.

Do you play in these games?

TF

Try the jabara-toro as well, it was the first time I've seen it on the menu and it's amazing. Hadn't seen akamutsu before either. I agree with kama-toro being one of my other favorites.

Since it seems everyone has Kabuto love, I'll talk about two other things we chatted with Nobu-san about while there.

First, the fish list is huge compared to what it used to be when they opened. I still have original menus and they maxed out around 17-20 pieces total, including the uni. They were always running out of fish back then and basically tried to use up all of the fish daily so nothing was old. At that time you could get a same day reservation at Kabuto without difficulty. Now it's one of the only places in Vegas I actually make a reservation before coming because I've been shut out so many times.

Second, we discussed the practice of ordering extra sushi after the set nigiri course. In North America this is accepted as being normal to do, but when we were in Japan eating at all the Michelin sushi places, they would give us our entire progression and then jokingly ask us if we wanted more. Despite wanting more because it was so amazing, we never asked for any because felt it would be disrespectful after having 16-18 pieces. Nobu-san pretty much confirmed this, saying that you could ask for more, but if you did, it should be a specific number of pieces, not types of fish. The reason behind this is that the sashimi and nigiri progression is a story being told by the chef in a specific order for a certain reason. In Japan it was almost always a very similar progression at places like Masuda, Harutaka, Tokami, etc.

Oh and last funny bit was when wifey and I were talking to each other and briefly mentioned Gen-san, the original Itamae of Kabuto. Gen is now at Yui Edomae a bit closer to the strip and basically just a poker player hangout.

The backstory is that when we were eating at Kabuto in the early days, Nobu-san did something wrong, we weren't sure what, but probably a grain of rice fell off the shari or a piece of fish was cut improperly. Gen-san full on grabbed Nobu by the ear and pulled him off the line into the back and gave him ****. Gen was pissed.


Gen's ear pull was much rougher than this

This trip we were sitting right in the middle of the counter and quietly said something to each other about Gen-san. This was Nobu's reaction.


It was pretty hilarious. His ears perked up and he just froze in place and stopped working.

Alright, I'll get to work on part 3.

TF

GEE IF ONLY A LITERAL FOOD CRITIC IN LAS VEGAS WANTED TO SPEND TIME WITH YOU AND TELL YOU COOL STUFF

Haha Gobbo. Wondering when you'd show up with all this Kabuto talk.

I take it when I can actually meet up it's going to be Kabuto then VP?

Ferg,

+1 to all the props!

Loved all the sushi pics, and yeah, that’s a lot of premium fish for $150 each!

Re: the extra pieces, the newish trend at SF omakase places is to hold back a few ultra-premium pieces and have them only available as post-omakase add-ons. I find this pretty annoying.

Most high-end omakase in sf is now set menu style, like a western tasting menu. I far prefer the places where at the bar the chef is just giving you pieces for omakase based on what he thinks you’ll enjoy.

Seems like a very annoying trend for sure.

Agreed about just having chef pick for me, though I appreciate the ability to pick what we want as we do in North America.

Thanks for the info.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm not sure if anyone could answer this. But if HORSE started up 8/16 to 20/40 would it run more often than the super mix with the exotic Archie and those super stud games?

Kabuto pics and descriptions.

First of all, love the trip report. More of a lurker lately, but felt the need to chime in.

Secondly, and probably the real reason I commented it to choose a rather odd place to speak about my fear of sushi, and hoping to have that turned around a bit at least to the point I could actually try it.

I'm 34 years old, so in some way I feel that the me liking sushi boat has sailed. When I was in my early 20's I took an allergy test that virtually said I have a sensitivity to everything, including fish. It was the one where they dot your arm and see what happens after 10-20 minutes. So, I've always been a little afraid of seafood, especially sushi, because I envision my throat closing up and my head getting as big as a beach ball. However, in hindsight, I realize those allergy tests are hit and miss, and I really feel like I have sensitive skin, and that probably has more to do with it. Additionally, I'm not a real picky eater, and I feel after 34 years, if something was going to blow up my head it would have happened by now...but still, there's that unfounded fear that keeps me from trying any raw fish.

If I was to gather up the courage to eat some sushi, I think my other drawback is that I live in Rural Town USA, which I give another unfounded fear where not only will my head grow to a beach ball, but I will also **** my insides out at the same time.

Although I attempt to be humorous with this post, I really would appreciate any advice on eating sushi, even if it concludes to "pass, it's not for you."

Finally, this is not a hijack attempt as it's not my nature, but if these needs to be deleted or moved, I can find another place for this.

Thank you!

Edit - Oh, and parasites.

Well, this is probably a great place to post your comment, since the OP is an MD.

Here's my take:

- most of those allergen tests are WAY over-exaggerated. It's too detailed to get into here, but I'd suggest looking up the paleo diet, gluten sensitivity, and specifically how foods that have a known inflammatory response (eg, gluten, some plant proteins, milk, etc) can cause the body to become sensitive to typically non-allergenic foods (like meat- we're not supposed to be allergic to meat). So just from the outside I doubt you could be allergic to such a broad category of food such as "fish", simply bc fish is, well, basically just the same protein and fat you'd get from eating chicken or beef. Obv over-simplifying a bit but there you go
- make your first sushi experience a real experience. I'm sure there are some good places in middle America but I'd make sure to do your homework and go to a quality place. If you try crap sushi, well yeah, you might hate it forever This should also help with the parasite fear (probably unfounded assuming you go to a quality place, and it's not like our beef/chicken etc is any cleaner, actually probably dirtier)
- start with simple stuff- a tuna roll, salmon, yellowtail. Let yourself appreciate the subtlety of the flavors and you'll be fine- if you go in expecting something like ribs w/ BBQ sauce you're going to be disappointed. Eating sushi is about experiencing subtle, small qualities that frankly an unrefined palate can't appreciate.

Good luck!

Thanks Leon!

I was actually born in MD, and live in VA now. I've thought of waiting for my next trip to Vegas to try sushi as I have friends there that like sushi a lot. It was pretty funny, huge party went to a sushi place in Vegas for his birthday and I ate like one of 3 things that was cooked, but enjoyed the sake, lol

If Mr Turd has a suggestion the MD area (I have family in Annapolis) or the Greater DC Area, which I'm also not too far from, I'd be willing to give it a go, but I gotta find someone to go with as I can't think of a single friend I have in the area that would try sushi, including my wife, lol. I'll research and wait for more suggestions. Thanks again!

I can't speak to the allergies, but if you've eaten cooked fish, I can't imagine sushi would be much different. I am not an allergist or a doctor, though.

As to parasites, I've been eating sushi for about 44 years (hmm, complete non-sequitur, but as long as I've been playing soccer), and I have never, ever been sick from it in any way, even grocery store sushi. And I live in Kentucky!

Start with something simple and not too fishy, like salmon or tuna, and go from there. It truly is my favorite food and I'd eat it breakfast, lunch, and dinner if I could afford the good stuff all the time.

I think what Leon meant is that I am (and he is also) a medical doctor, not that we live in Maryland. So bonus for you I guess.

Disclaimer: Since this is on a forum, the following is not medical advice, but some information for your perusal since you want to go to a sushi restaurant.

Start with something like this website for some info:
https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/...ons-to-seafood

Also use government based immunology and allergy sites if you want to look stuff up.

A few basics:

Not all fish is the same. The proteins that cause allergic reaction in vertebrate fish (those with a backbone) vs. crustaceans vs. molluscs are different. It is uncommon to be allergic to all three or even more than one. My wife gets itchy and a rash to crustaceans (eg. shrimp/lobster) only, but still eats the rest.

There is a lot of cross contamination in any restaurant that serves seafood, not just sushi restaurants, though obviously higher there.

These proteins are mostly heat stable, meaning cooking them does not change their allergenicity. Thus, if you've been eating cooked fish, crustaceans and molluscs your whole life, you're likely fine.

Regarding parasites, the FDA requires that all vertebrate fish is frozen to kill parasites. They may be a concern in Japan, but in North America I would say you are completely safe. My brother who is a spear fisherman is not safe. He eats it right out of the ocean and probably has parasites for sure.

Also this brings up the point of freshness of fish. Everyone talks about the fish being fresh, but if you take tuna as an example in Japan, the highest quality sushi restaurants (eg. Jiro, Masuda etc.) age their tuna for an average of 10 days when I spoke with the Itamae. This actually allows enzymatic reactions that change the fish flavors and add more umami (basically glutamate). It takes great expertise to age your fish properly, but you will never have tuna caught that morning at a great sushi restaurant. This is just one of many sushi related myths.

If you're gonna go nuts, be in a place near a good EMS system
Kabuto fits the bill!

TF

Haha, welp I am in idiot, and clearly not an MD...

Thank you for all the great advice. I'm closer to pulling the trigger than I've ever been thanks to this, maybe I'll do a sushi TR...hopefully from VEGAS!

Tragic,

Plenty of places in the MD/DC area you could try. You don’t need/want a high end sushi place, just a good one that doesn’t suck. Tons of casual sushi restaurants would fit the bill just fine.

Things to try your first time:
salmon nigiri (aka sushi aka fish on rice)
hamachi/yellowtail
Unagi (bbq eel)
Maybe a simple roll or two with tuna/salmon/yellowtail and avocado etc.
Spicy tuna roll if you like spicy stuff (they are just lightly spicy).

You could also just try a couple of the above from a Whole Foods or similar grocery store. It won’t be great sushi, but it’s perfectly decent for simple/common stuff like that and an easy way to give it a try. Salmon nigiri generally the easiest to start with imo.