Wynn Magazine - Las Vegas
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/386731
photography by bryan hainer Teppanyaki The teppanyaki is the play-within-the-play at Mizumi. Here, in an intimate room perched beside a 90-foot waterfall, which may be closed off for privacy, chefs serve dishes as they are prepared to guests seated com- munally around a flat grill table. The meal follows a cadence of preparation and watch- ing, cooking and eating. "There are many different types of teppanyaki," Hashimoto says, describing everything from chain restaurants with shrimp-flipping antics to sol- emn traditional Japanese cooking. Mizumi, he says, offers a happy medium. "People are in Vegas and they want to be entertained, but they are also at Wynn, where elegance and service is what we try to uphold in every guest experience. We offer flair, excitement, and a cooking show, but in a controlled, styl- ish, and fine-dining environment." Whether it's the catch of the day with seasonal vegeta- bles like summer eggplant or winter kabocha squash, or an all-vegetarian meal, he says, "guests get to watch their chef preparing a wonderfully executed meal." RobaTayaki Nearest the garden entrance and opposite the bar is Mizumi's gleaming robatayaki coun- ter, where refined simplicity is on display. Here fresh ingredients are grilled over a Binchotan charcoal grill and served exactly at the moment they are ready. Barbecue aficionados know that the fuel of the fire imparts something to the food. "The Binchotan charcoal makes a huge difference," explains Hashimoto. Imported from Japan, it is made of oak without any chemical additives and it has a long burn, making it well suited for use in a restaurant. Robatayaki relies heavily on the quality of the ingredients and Hashimoto has sourced excep- tional product like organic Jidori chicken from California, and Alaskan king crab. Here the sea- sonal vegetables are farm- (or ocean-) to-grill. Most robatayaki offerings employ skewers, for ease of cooking, serving, and eating, with some exceptions. The one-and-a-half-pound Maine lobster is grilled in the shell and served simply with grilled eryngii mushrooms accompanied by sesame goma sauce and a French-style Japanese yuzu butter sauce. Pairing libations at Mizumi is as personal as choosing the experience you will have within the restaurant. Hashimoto likes to drink cold sake with his robata. "I like the contrast of hot and cold," he explains. Wine manager Louis Hamilton takes the contrast one step further to France with a cold Chablis from Domaine Laroche in Burgundy. Lobster prepared on Mizumi's robatayaki grill. 42 Wynn Teppanyaki Chilean sea bass with seasonal vegetables. FooD FoR THougHT