Seems like a good idea.

is it a good idea to get the omakase at nobu?

Not sure anyone here will say it's even a good idea to go to Nobu.

I don't think it's a bad idea to go to Nobu. But there are probably 100 better ideas to spend time and money in Vegas.

Oh, it's a bad idea alright.

Second sentence 100% correct, but make it 1,000.

I don't know, let's not be too snobby. Nobu has some great food. Is it worth the price? Maybe not, but it's not bad. If you want to stay on the strip and eat this type of food, there are not 100 better choices.

Suspect,

I’ll be the dissenting voice. I like nobu! I wouldn’t get the omakase, though, because it’s really heavy on overpriced Kobe beef and expensive but not particularly special sushi.

Instead I’d just order a bunch of their a la carte dishes. Cold stuff like the jalapeño yellowtail, other new style sashimi, tartare etc and hot stuff like the tempura shrimp, miso black cod. Pretty much all the dishes I’ve had there have been very tasty.

jalapeno yellowtail + rock shrimp (crack) are the GOAT app pair

black miso cod also v good

For a group of five one night and the same group minus one another I am getting a request for something less fine dining and more of a "hidden gem with a cool vibe" after throwing out Kabuto, Chada, Raku, Cut, Picasso, Delmonico, Carnevino, Bouchon, Portofino, Carbone in addition to L'Atelier/Joel Robuchon, Hugo's Cellar, Guy Savoy, Alize, E, Twist as flyer options.

I'm not sure if "hidden gem with a cool vibe" is code for "casual dining" and I'm in the wrong thread.

All I've got is Bazaar Meat after all that. Any suggestions for team diva?

I thought Chada was casual? Seems as if you are in the wrong forum if they turned down all those places Just go to casual thread -- I think you can please more people that way.

Heck, just go to Chada.

I agree, there's a decent chance that's a nicer way for saying that they don't want to pay Strip fine dining prices.

After a couple annoying experiences with people who asked me for recommendations, now the first question I ask is about their budget and if that number is just for food or including drinks/tax/tip. You would think adults know from other cities that two drinks, tax and tip add $50-80 to a $100 meal, but apparently that's not the case.

The guy who threw that term out is very willing to throw down for a good meal himself but he may be voicing concerns for another in the group but I would expect that he would state that pretty bluntly if that were the case. It is also this same guys 50th birthday which is prompting the trip and I think he may just be looking for something other than standard fine dining and something a little different. But I thought a lot of those suggestions ticked those boxes. I'll either a) clarify, b) throw out some casual options or most likely c) just let him pick something.

Off to scour the casual thread.

Thanks!

are you guys up for going a couple miles west of the north end of Strip? check out Herbs & Rye, i definitely think it qualifies as "hidden with a cool vibe"

Thanks homer, I'll throw that one out there too.

Anytime I'm in Vegas I plan at least one dinner at the Triple George Steakhouse. One block north of Fremont Street, old school vibe, mostly locals, and GREAT STEAKS.

Better than Golden Steer?

Other Mama could work? @floppyj

Hugo's shouldn't be on the "flyer" list - that's where Bazaar Meat belongs. Hidden gem w cool vibe and less fine dining = Chada or Raku for me 100%. Would have said Sparrow and Wolf but I had a kind of meh experience last time, and my wife had one the time before. Also like Hachi quite a bit.

I don't really know what you're looking for with a "cool vibe" though. Chada and Raku are pretty low key options, where Sparrow and Wolf has a little more bustle, hipster bartenders, etc. I always pimp Carson Kitchen and think it has a really nice vibe. Food is no less good, but it's definitely not fancy. I like the rooftop patio if the weather's nice.

I've heard so many good things about Other Mama but haven't made it yet.

If you're price-insensitive, it doesn't get more Vegas-y than Piero's.

YES

Steakhouse with award-winning cocktails. Great spot. And, inexplicably, half price steak 5-8p or after midnight.

Second. This checks off all the boxes for his group.


Apples and oranges. Triple George is a newish place, more casual. If you've been to Tadich Grill in San Francisco, it's like that. I haven't been to Golden Steer but know what they're about, and also haven't heard anyone ever rave about the food.

Floppy,

Certainly not a hidden gem to Vegas people, but I really enjoyed Carson Kitchen as a fun nice-casual dinner place.

El D, eco, Wyman, david, cascadia,

Thanks all!

Looks like a couple votes for each of Triple George, Herbs & Rye and Carson Kitchen all of which look like they would work well for this group. Turns out a couple won't touch raw fish so I'll have to consider whether I'm up for a solo mission to Kabuto or Yui Edomae or elsewhere before the rest of them roll into town.

Some nice options that even if they won't work for this group I'll add to my wish list. I won't be able to help but continue to pass on recommendations to them but I think I'm going to have to just let them sift through the recs and pick something that catches their eye and hope for the best. Thanks again.

I spend half my trip downtown, so usually eat at the Triple George a couple times, and it's a solid restaurant. Good food at a decent price, and some fun cocktails, too.

I'm a dissenter. Had a business dinner at Triple George a month ago and I thought it was pedestrian and poorly executed. No steaks though, so YMMV. And sample size of one, so it's possible we just had a complete anomaly of a bad experience.

I had the pork chop, which was inexplicably dry and tasted like char and char alone. Another guy had the airline chicken and thought it was awful. He's the Triple George connoisseur and was pissed that he didn't order the chicken parm or the chicken pot pie, which he said have never done him wrong. I think the third guy got the saltimbocca. We split the king crab gnocchi as an app, and it was ok. And service was not great. Anyway, just one data point. If I go back I'll either get a steak or order off the comfort food list (pot pie, meatloaf, etc).

Gobbo likes it!

http://jimmyeatsvegas.com/eat-where/

"I will say, however, if you feel like going to an old school location instead of one in the new resorts, check out the Golden Steer on Sahara. It’s one of the few really old places left and it has the added benefit of having a grandfathered in open flame license. So if you fancy a bit of danger along with the stink of 60 year old cigars with your steak, this would be the place to go. (In all seriousness, it’s a pretty awesome place.)"

well ok he raves about the ambiance...