Good place for sushi newbies?

We are staying at MGM Grand and are looking for a casual sushi and sake place for right after we check in. A place that will assist with selection since we have only had sushi a few times. Considering Grand Wok since it's right in MGM, but if there are better options nearby, I'd love some recs. Thanks!

 

Shibuya there at MGM has always been one of my favorites. It's going to be a lot pricier than Grand Wok though.

 

I would stick with Grand Wok. Shibuya actually has a smaller sushi selection. Plus, the first time you have sushi, you probably want to stick with the standard, non-strange options (I would avoid anything with octopus the first time)

 

This...Yellowtail at Bellagio is also good as is Blue Ribbon at Cosmo...both are easy to get to from MGM Grand
Cross the street and take the tram from NYNY

 

I would recommend Todai at Planet Hollywood/Miracle Mile but I think it's closed. A nice all you can eat sushi buffet is great so you can try a large variety of fish. My favorite is chutoro which is a medium fatty tuna. It's fairly expensive and often not on the menu; you have to ask for it. Some people like uni and many dislike it. Some places around my house offer a "love boat" containing a variety of fish for about $60. Just tell them you're new to sushi and they'll keep it simple with tuna, salmon, yellowtail, and some eel (which is cooked).

 

They're builing a Todai on the airport sidewalk side of MGM Grand (saw it was almost finished on the taxi ride in last weekend)
But Todai is a budget buffet place for shabu shabu and sushi on the cheap
Great if you crave it now and want quantity now, but for a few times a year with friends?
There are tons more places without wallet busting prices

 

Todai is great for sashimi and all the normal crap stuff. I wouldn't necessarily call it cheap though. The one at PH was close to $50 or more for the dinner buffet.

Thanks for the heads up on the one near MGM. Will have to check it out.

 

Agree, I think both of those are better sushi, especially Blue Ribbon. But they are also both more expensive and a farther walk for the OP. Nothing wrong with Grand Wok. But if you want to spend a little more and walk, Blue Ribbon is the choice

 

Yeah I've had great sushi at Grand Wok too... and agree that the wanna be teppanyaki place has limited sushi selection and also more $$$ than Wok to boot

 

Glad they are building a new one. Todai is a great place, especially if you are new to sushi and want to taste a large variety to see what you like (and don't like). Sushi is expensive and it sucks to order something you don't like.

 

If you have a car, I would head to Doh Sushi on Spring Mountain Road. They have an AYCE menu for sushi and tapas that we've really liked. For lunch, it runs around $21 per. Plus, if you're dining late, they're open till 3am. We normally sit at sushi bar and the chefs have been wonderful in helping make selections.

 

If you have a car, I would recommend Makino on Decatur. It's a high-quality Japanese buffet that serves a large selection of sushi in addition to other Japanese cooked foods when you get bored of sushi, like ramen, sukiyaki, tempura, and more. For less than $30/person, that's a pretty good deal in Vegas, seeing as you will probably spend $8 or more for just two 2 pieces of tuna sushi in any hotel on the strip.

 

oh, that was closed, wasn't it? When did it reopen?

 

Wow! I thought Yellowtail was incredibly mediocre sushi and the service meh! The only noteworthy thing is the incredible fountain views if you can get a table by one of the window or balcony.

Prices and quality of sushi are all over the board in Vegas. It would help if the OP could give us an idea of price range and convenience. I have tried at least two dozen Sushi places in Vegas and I would recommend some for varying reasons. Since you said in your post you are looking for something close, convenient, and casual to MGM then Grand Wok & Sushi Bar fits the bill, but the Sushi is meh. I would much rather take a short cab ride to one of the other properties for a way better meal.

You can have an incredible sushi dinning experience at NOBU at CP, Bar Masa at Aria, and Mizumi at Wynn which you will love love love what they prepare. $$$$
If you want to stay on a more reasonable budget then you can't go wrong with Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill at Cosmo, and there is Koi at PHo and Todai just north of MGM.

Personally I prefer to focus on places where Sushi is all they do and what your getting is freshly prepared. Mediocre Sushi is the worst IMHO, so I would advise the OP to pass on MGM offerings since I don't think either place there is noteworthy.

 

I had great food and service at yellowtail...maybe you had an anamoly your visit?

 

That's the Premium Outlets location, if I remember correctly. The one on Decatur should be fine.

 

Thanks for all the replies. We aren't interested in taking a cab to somewhere off strip. We will likely be really hungry after traveling most of the day, so looking for something convenient to MGM right after we check in. Price doesn't really matter.

 

You know, you might think that. My scenario was arrived on Vday last year. Had an early reservation, literally one of the first ones of the night around 5pm since we were catching a show.
After being seated in main dinning room (asked for window view got seated 20 ft from window even though none of tables near window were occupied), took 10 mins for server to show up for drink order and another 20 for waitress for sushi order.

When portions came out, they were the tiniest rolls and sushi pieces I had seen in my entire life (Nobu, Ra, Sushi Samba, Koi as comparison). Salmon was also stale tasting, like it had been in the case for a few days. Service picked up as the restaurant started getting crowed around
6pm and line forming at door. At that point they were wanting to start flipping the tables, so bus boy was there ever minute or two to clear plates and fill water. After desert the check showed up promptly upon request. When we left no thank you or F you from the staff acknowledging your visit. Definitely one of the worst dinning experiences I have had in Vegas.

 

I really liked Yellowtail at Bellagio and Rice and Co at Luxor. I'm a huge Spicy Tuna fan and I have found that those two have the best IMO. I base mt recommendation based on what I like.

 

That sounds swful Funk, my one experience was when Dutchvelvet and I just dropped in around 8pm on a Sat night got seated outside near the hostess station and got good service and decent if not huge portions of various nigiri orders