UPDATED 12-27-07: Came here again and this time it wasn't as good as before. I don't know what it is. This time, even though it was good, it just didn't blow me away like last time. So one star off.\n---------------------------------\n\nTHANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to all the yelpers who rated this place highly. That was the main reason why we bookmarked it and decided to check it out. I wasn't sure how late they were open but we arrived pretty late, around 10pm and crossed our fingers as we entered. Man, it was bustling! Turns out they were open until 3am Mon-Sat, until 2.30am on Sundays. However, last call is 45 mins before closing so make sure you arrive on time.\n\nSo there were 2 guys waiting for a table and the hostess asked if we wanted to sit at the counter. Lil guy was all for it. So, counter it was. I was just fascinated by the atmosphere in here. There were 2 tatami tables with very drunk people singing and carrying on. They were obviously having a good time.\n\nWe were given menus but it was the posted items above our heads which interested me. Hubby left the ordering to me. I ordered an udon ($6.35) for little guy with his usual edamame ($3) and agedashi tofu ($4.35). Then, I proceeded to order a bunch of items for us adults.\n\nUni pon ($5.50) arrived first. It was 4 plump pieces of uni sitting on thinly sliced cucumbers nestled on daikon spaghetti wading in a pool of ponzu sauce. OMG it was fantastic. The uni was soooooo fresh and flavorful. I could've eaten 3 of these.\n\nThen came the salmon skin salad ($5). This was no ordinary salmon skin salad. This was the emperor of all salmon skin salads I've ever had. Crunchy slivers of carrot, shreds of lettuce, grape tomatoes, daikon sprouts, perfectly cooked salmon skin, grated daikon, topped with a dollop of roe. Hubby and I shared this but were fighting over who got the last morsel. \n\nTaramiso, otherwise known as miso butterfish ($5.50) is something I've been craving since leaving Hawaii. I used to eat it at least once a week. After a year of missing it and seeing it on the menu here was enough for me to kiss the ground of this izakaya. The taramiso did not disappoint. In fact, it was so perfect hubby and I again commented on how much we've missed this dish.\n\nAll the while, lil guy was enjoying his udon, edamame and agedashi tofu while watching his portable DVD player oblivious of all the ongoings around him. \n\nTofu salad with tuna sashimi ($7.50) was interesting yet refreshingly delicious. Romaine lettuce, followed by mashed tofu, topped with diced avocado and cubed tuna sashimi, toss in a few daikon sprouts and a pinch of bonito flakes and voila, a masterpiece. The grape tomatoes complete this both in color and texture.\n\nOf course an izakaya meal isn't complete without some sort of alcohol. We had 2 large bottles of Asahi draft ($5.50/bottle) and then we finished by sharing a bowl of miso chasu ramen with extra chasu ($10). I'm sorry, but Santouka Ramen does not measure up to the ramen here and it was the last item we ate. The broth was perfect, not too salty and not under flavored. The chasu had just the right amount of fat interspersed with the lean bits. It looked like pancetta. Hubby was a bit skeptical but I assured him he would like it, and guess what? He did.\n\nThis is definitely bookmarked for our next visit to Vegas, and let me tell you this, I'm reliving my meal right now just by writing this review and the bad part is, I'm not eating the food as I'm writing this. BUMMER!
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