Not wanting to give up on the restaurants at the Bellagio, Friand and I decided that we would give Yellowtail a go. We had passed it that morning on the way through the high end shopping gallery to the coffee bar, and thought the sushi menu looked promising.
As all us vegans know, sushi is probably the easiest, most reliable, and most satisfying of all the vegan options out there. You can order a vegetable roll and never have to utter the word "vegan" to any server, never have to worry about there being a capable & creative chef in the house, just order, eat & enjoy. After the disaster that was "Olives", we were looking forward to a simple, yet elegant meal.
Remember, "Sushi" refers to the RICE, not the fish. I always laugh when people say, "Vegan sushi? Give me a break!" Yup. Rice is vegan, folks.
We were seated and immediately greeted by our server, who directed my attention to the "Infusion" at the top of the cocktail menu. A delightfully sickeningly sweet martini style sake drink, with pineapple and vanilla flavorings. I'm not a froo-froo drink kind of girl, but this thing made my teeth chatter with sweetness, and let's face it: it prevented me from drinking too fast and too much. I can pound gin martinis like James Bond on shore leave, so this was a good move on my part!
Friand ordered the 7 course Omakase with the sake pairing. Any sushi lover, nee, any refined connoisseur should order this way at a sushi joint. Let the chef decide what the best dishes on the menu are that night, not you! I've rarely seen Friand order anything on his own when we've been out for sushi, he's always been delighted & amazed by the chef's own suggestions. This Omakase did not fail him. 6 different sakes for 6 dinner selections including a salad, sashimi and kobe beef, and one slice of green tea cake with a mocha shooter for dessert, kept the food & drink flowing at our table.
There are actually several items on the menu suitable for veg*ns including edamame, an array of salads, vegetable tempura, vegetable roll, wild mushrooms and eggplant skewers. I was overwhelmed with possibilities!
I began my meal with the vegetable roll. There was nothing out of the ordinary in that roll: cucumber, asparagus, carrot, avocado and pickled daikon, sprinkled with sesame seeds, but the rice had the perfect proportion of vinegar to make all the flavors pop instead of run together. I could not pass up the opportunity to try the eggplant, though. And when it arrived, my mouth was overwhelmed with taste bud ecstasy. Sweet, bitter, juicy and savory, the Japanese eggplant melted in my mouth.
I was thankful that there were a dozen pieces of eggplant on this plate, otherwise I may have freaked out and actually begged for more. It was probably enough for any normal person to be satisfied with this much food (8 vegetable roll slices and a dozen pieces of eggplant), but I was like a bottomless pit! The Omakase still flowing on Friand's side of the table, I needed to keep up. At this point, I was torn between ordering more eggplant or going for another sushi roll. That rice was too good to pass up, so bring me another veggie roll! This time, I had fun overdosing on wasabi and seeing how much I could slather on my sushi before my eyes started watering & flames shot out of the top of my head.
Yellowtail was a delightful and sophisticated way to round out our trip to Vegas this week. We both left a little tipsy, and a whole lot satisfied. I highly recommend making a reservation and brushing up on your chopstick technique. Come hungry!! This is a must visit restaurant at the Bellagio!!
Hours of Operation:
Dinner Daily Monday - Thursday 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Lounge open until 11:00 p.m.
- Friday - Sunday 5:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m. Lounge open until Midnight
- Reservations: Recommended by calling 866.259.7111 or 702.693.7223
- Location: Located by North Valet right off of Via Bellagio shops.
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