Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/753186
JOHN UM | CHEF @chefjohn At first glance, you might think John Um's collection of Instagram images depicts a gorgeous collection of brilliant flowers, or deeply saturated photorealistic paintings. Take a second look, and like his 47K followers, you'll get pulled in to post after post of sushi as art. After all, he's the sushi chef for SushiSamba in Las Vegas, Miami Beach, and Coral Gables (though he makes Vegas his home), and the nature of his business, he explains, "is to have a perfect culinary experience by achieving a balance of taste and artful presentation." Always looking for exotic ingredients as inspiration, he began docu- menting his creations, ultimately using his Instagram page as a career portfolio. "Now I like to provide information about these unique dishes, and even some art work that inspires me." His rainbows of artfully plated sushi regularly command upwards of 1,500 likes apiece, but this purist is no prima donna. He presents a single, minimal, phallic-looking geoduck with the hashtag "#calmdownitisjustaclam" and his tagline? "CHEF because badass motherf*cker is not an official job title." Inspiration: "Everyone and everything. I hear my cooks and I get inspired, I experience other chefs' dishes and get inspired, I simply look at the sky and get inspired." Toque solidarity: "I get a lot of compliments from different chefs around the world… wishing to try the dishes." Vegas love: "Come on, everyone wants to be in Vegas! Las Vegas is like adults' Disneyland. However, what people don't know is that this place is not only about casinos and parties. We have a lot of cool places with art, and an outstanding culinary scene." 20 minutes in Vegas: "Put $20 in a slot machine, enjoy a bottle of beer while playing with a minimum bet, then go all-in when you have one minute left." Date place: "Seven Magic Mountains. This is where I asked my girl to marry me, so it is a special place for both of us." Local hangouts: "Downtown Las Vegas! #dtlv. When you have all these vibes and art works around the streets, you cannot ask for more." City view: "Mandarin Oriental Bar and Skyfall lounge at Delano." For more on Um's best of Vegas, go to vegasmagazine.com. clockwise from above: "This three-piece tiradito dish was made for one of the events at the Venetian. This twist includes tuna with apple lime sauce and serrano pepper; salmon with garlic ponzu, kinkan honey, and garlic chips; and yellowtail with lemongrass sauce and chili strings."; Um working with the executive chef/partner Timon Balloo at Sugarcane Raw Bar Grill, SushiSamba's sister restaurant in Miami. Sugarcane opened in Venetian in November; "Chirashizushi but with a twist. It's an assortment of different fish on top of sushi rice."