Shin Yakitori House

We tried to go there the night we flew in and this place was closed.

3 stars because they were serving a VERY VERY limited menu…(They closed down on June 18^th and are moving to a location in Chinatown-​Good Luck!) no sushi, and ¾ of their menu wasn’t available… we settled for the quail eggs, chicken yakitori, shishito peppers, short ribs (nothing but fat…), butter potato,(don’t know why we paid for a MICROWAVED potato) Okinawan Pancake, tempura purple sweet potatoes, and grilled corn which was the best thing of all the items we ordered, Oh, the Monkfish liver was pretty dissappointing as well… not even close to Ichiza, Raku, or En… ALOHA!!!

I went with friends this last weekend, and I would go again, but there were a few notable issues that didn’t make this a perfect dining experience for me.
I had ordered a rainbow roll, and while this roll is one of my usual favorites, it wasn’t cut properly, with rolls not being separated from each other, meaning that in going for one roll, it usually meant picking up two, and the cut lines were not split where each color of fish seperated. The fish also had a little part of a perceptible «sheen» about it. It wasn’t bad fish, but it wasn’t the best rainbow roll I’ve experienced.
The garlic, however, was excellent. I was leery of ordering a garlic skewer, as I love garlic, but know how powerful it can be. It was cooked well, and the taste wasn’t overwhelming. I didn’t feel like I was going to be left with «Vampire Killer Breath» for the rest of the night.
We were in there late at night, and at one point the only table in there. The staff seemingly disappeared for awhile, and we started to wonder where they went. They also seemed to have a little trouble divvying out the check, as they added on some food item that one of our table member’s wanted to order, but the restaurant was out of. It wasn’t life-​ending, but it was a little confusing to resolve.
Outside of that, however, the staff was very nice and polite, and courtesy goes a long way in making anything better.
Like I said, this wasn’t a five-​star experience as they seemed a little off their game that night, but it wasn’t off-​putting enough to be a deal breaker.
Being that my friends are something of Asian cuisine savants, and have been positive about this place, I trust word of mouth, and will attempt another outing here. I only wanted light fare this last time being mildly hungry, but I will bring my appetite with me on a return trip, and see where that leads me.
A 3.5 for me this outing.

Another wonderful addition to our growing Las Vegas local dining scene.
In a few words, SHIN is a great izakaya that offers a little bit everything… robata-​yaki, sushi, and a generous listing of Japanese pub food delicacies. But their main focus here is Okinawan cuisine and it’s local spirit, shochu and awamori.
A few memorable dishes special to SHIN.
Ei Hire — Dried Stingray Fin Jerky. Great accompaniment to beer and
comes with kewpie mayo sprinkled with shichimi (7spice)
Loofah and Tofu — Fresh Loofah (yes like the dried loofah body scrub!)
sauteed with butter and soy sauce… it tastes like a
soft poached zucchini.
Pig Ears — simmered in garlic soy? thinly sliced pig ears that have a
crunchy texture. For the adventurous.
Rafutei — comparable to kakuni (braised pork belly in soy, sugar and
ginger) melt in your mouth pork belly to be enjoyed with a
touch of hot mustard.
Okinawan food is like Japanese Island comfort food. Very unique and different from the mainland food. There is a frequent use of pork, bitter melon and lots of stir fry and braising.
Their bincho-​tan grilled skewers are good as well. Especially the chicken meatballs, chicken skin, and hamachi.
Shin offers a number of great shochu. I particularly love the satsuma and the awamori (an okinawan vodka-​like spirit made with sweet potato)… on the rocks.
One more thing… every time I“ve been there, the server was a soft spoken native Okinawan! I thought that was pretty cool…
I don’t mean to be disrespectful… but one thing… the honey toast was not as good as you know where… (don’t want to be rude and mention another restaurants name in this review…)
Can’t wait to revisit SHIN…

3.5 stars for SHIN.
I walked into SHIN not knowing exactly what to expect. I read reviews and what not, but I knew I had to try it for myself. I have been to Raku (which was delicious!) but I have not tried Ichiza. We walked in and was seated right away on a late Saturday night…9:00pm. I thought the décor was tasteful and there are a lot more tables compared to Raku.
After looking at the overwhelming menus (picture menu, sushi menu, yakitori menu) we decided to try a bit of each thing.
1. Salmon Carpaccio was good and probably my second favorite of the night.
2. Pot Stickers was a bit of a disappointment.
3. Soki Soba was my favorite dish of the night. The noodles were not soggy and the pork was so tender.
4. Chicken breast with salmon roe… I’m not a big fan of salmon roe but I heard this was good, but the chicken breast was dry.
5. Shitake Mushroom was decent.
6. Yellowtail was dry with too many onions.
7. The Tuna Tartar I did not try myself as I was full from the soba, but I heard it was just ok and sweet.
8. Pork Belly was fatty but it was a bit tough to eat.
Overall I think this place is decent and for the price its worth it. I will definitely return just to have the soba. Also, its open really late at night for those of you night owls.

Walked in about 11:30PM on a Sat. night there was about 2 groups of people and another couple.
The waitress took our drink order and then another waiter came out with a vegetable and dressing appetizer. I really liked the porcelain chopstick stands. The menu has pictures to go along with everything and there were 2 separate ordering sheets for sushi and yakitori. They also have a unique drink menu. As usual, we always over order for two people but that’s what you do when its your first time.
Spicy tuna roll — nothing special, not sure we’ll ordered sushi next time
Wagyu beef skewers– daily special– Freakin’ amazing, each skewer had 4 pieces of beef
Pork Belly and cabbage sitr-​fry– this was a great dish and it also had some sort of sauce or broth in the bottom so stir it up
Shrimp with spicy mayo– shrimps were a good size (3 pieces) but nothing stands out
Soki Soba– hot soba noddles soup with 1 pork spare rib in pork fat broth. Yummy!
Corn– good with some type of sauce on it (2 pieces)
It took about 15 mins for 1 dish to come out but once one came out everything else followed. You might wanna to specify the order you want it to come out in because we got our corn last and the soup towards the end of the meal (not really a problem just weird). All the dishes came out extremely hot so it was freshly delivered from the grill to our table.
We agree with Misty Y. we like not having to order off the things written on the wall like Ichiza, I always feel like I’m missing out when I go there because there is so much! The atmosphere is also alot less quieter than Ichiza, we have yet to go to Raku. The prices were reasonable our total bill was $ 40.70.

We did return to take advantage of the late night Chef Special happy hour, and we put down some serious food, including salmon collar and black cod, at some seriously good rates. Huge salmon collar was $ 4 on special.
And, although it was not on special, Mike C found a winner with the corn. The flavoring is habit forming forcing us to order a second round as well. I am telling you: Shin does the vegetables right.

Another izakaya place has opened up in Vegas — this one goes by the name of SHIN Yakitori House. What makes this an izakaya? Ultimately, it’s a Japanese establishment that serves food to complement drinks. The food usually served are small bites, similar to tapas. But what makes SHIN more unique in Vegas is that they have a long list of yakitori items! And that means various goodies served up on skewers and put on the grill. And their specialty is Okinawan-​style food as well!
This restaurant has taken up the former space of Sushi Hana — therefore there are two private tatami rooms, a counter, and quite a few tables.
There was a modest group of diners on a Monday evening, and our luck was that we walked in during happy hour! (Mon-​Thurs 9 pm to 12 am)
Our waitress greeted us pleasantly and offered us the counter or table. We took our seats at a table and looked over the various menus given — one for sushi, one for yakitori, the picture menu, and the specials board.
Our mistake was not coming here on an empty stomach. This visit was more of a taster for bigger things to come on a return visit.
* Hotaru Ika ($ 6.95) — This came off the specials board. It’s raw baby firefly squid and served in a sweet sauce. It was surprising good and something I’ve never seen before.
* Monkfish Liver ($ 6) — Also known as ankimo and something we just love. It’s buttery slices rested on a bed of seaweed with delicious ponzu sauce. Always a favorite.
* Wagyu Harami ($ 4.75) — A tasty beef skewer that was juicy and tasty — we ordered two more!
* Tebichi Soba «Okinawan Style Noodle in Soup topped with Pork Feet» ($ 7.50) — This was probably the one disappointing dish we had that evening. When ordering, I asked the waitress if she recommended this dish or the Grilled Pork Feet. She liked this one better, so we got it. It had only one piece of pig’s feet, green onions, and noodles. It lacked taste. In the picture, it actually looked like there were a few pieces of feet and a different style noodle. In retrospect, we definitely should have gone with the grilled feet instead.
* Chicken Thigh with Spicy Mayo ($ 2.45) — Tender pieces of chicken thigh with a drizzle of spicy mayo, sounds good and tastes good!
* Smelt Fish ($ 2.75) — Also known as shishamo, and comes two in this order. A squeeze of lemon and a light sprinkling of salt makes this grilled fish full of eggs just burst into your mouth.
* Quail Eggs ($ 2.25) — One skewer consists of three eggs and what we love about this dish is that the egg yolk is smooth and creamy inside. Makes you want to make it at home.
* Chicken Skin ($ 2) — Who doesn’t love some grilled chicken skin? The fattiness is something you just can’t say no to.
We’ll have to come back to try their shark cartilage, salmon carpaccio, miso cream cheese, deep fried octopus balls, deep fried tofu, stingray fin, pork belly, and honey toast.
Service was good — our waitresses kept our tea and water filled all the time without request, something I definitely appreciate.
We also noticed that the majority of customers and all of the staff (from what we could see) were Japanese, as in Japanese-​speaking too. Makes it feel even more authentic!
Happy Hour: Mondays through Thursdays from 9 pm to 12 am (Half off Chef’s Choice Specials Menu, $ 1 Sapporo)
Lunch: Everyday from 11:30 am to 3:30 pm
Dinner: Everyday from 6:00 pm to 3:00 am
Update! (05.07.10)
Went back for a second visit and just wanted to add on to this review.
* Octopus Marinated with Wasabi ($ 5.25) — I’m a big fan of this having tried it at Shuseki first. Now I’ve had it at quite a few places and it’s just yum! It is a bit slimy and takes some getting used to, but I love this slippery goodness.
* Rafutei (Simmered Pork Belly Okinawan Style) ($ 5.75) — Fatty chunks of pork belly with just a tad of hot mustard for some eat and that means good stuff all around! It just melts in your mouth!
* Okinawan Yaki Soba (Okinawan Style Fried Noodle) ($ 7.50) — This was a surprisingly yummy dish — red pickled ginger slices, bonito flakes, and chunks of meat mixed in with the noodles and vegetables gave this dish a nice taste.
* Agedashi Tofu ($ 5.50) — Always a favorite of mine and they didn’t disappoint here at SHIN.
We did order the quail eggs again and we just love how the hot yolk just melts in your mouth. As a result, I went home and made it myself!

Lots of goodness here! I really dig this place since they offer a bunch of varieties of Japanese food. What I mean by this is that it’s similar to Ichiza and Shuseki, and perhaps a little more. Raku is at a whole different level quality and budget wise, so we’ll leave that aside.
My friends and I stopped by a few nights ago to get our belly filled with Japanese delights mainly from the Robata Grill because that was our craving beforehand. First thing I notice is that this place still reminds me of Sushi Hana. Same sushi bar along the same wall with the new addition of the Robata Grill at the next station over. Second is that everyone that works here is Japanese. Last but not least, they’re menu is quite extensive. They offer a nice selection of Saki and cocktails, Yakitori stuff, sushi, and other weird (sting rays anyone?) and not so weird Japanese food.
Average price on the Yakitori menu is about $ 2.50 unless you want seafood items then it’s about $ 3.75 and up. I didn’t actually walk up to the grill so I’m still uncertain if it’s charcoal or gas grilled.
There was four of us, but only three of us were eating. Two girls that just met through me. Of the two girls one of them is a stoner. Guess who ordered?
Armed with the Yakitori Menu and pencil my buddy ordered pretty much 3 of everything. I’ll try to list them all, but that night I fell into a deep food coma and never actually recovered from it.
Corn (2 piece) — my favorite part of the whole meal
Chicken Meatballs — ordered another 3 because it was pretty yummy.
Chicken Thigh
Chicken Thigh w/​Cheese — I don’t remember this.
Chicken Thigh w/​Spicy Mayo — No
Chicken Breast w/​Spicy Mayo — No
Chicken Breast w/​Wasabi — No. It’s just Wasabi smeared on it.
Chicken Skin — Not too shabby actually. Nice and salty
Pork Spareribs — Yum! Meat practically peeled off the bones. No skewers
Beef Tongue — Love it! Thicker than Ichiza, The secret is more Lemon so ask for more.
Beef Short Ribs (Kalbi)
Asparagus Wrapped w/​Pork — Not bad. The pork is not bacon. Juicy or was it fatty?
Enoki (mushroom) Wrapped w/​Pork
Shiitake Mushroom — I hate mushroom but this was actually good.
Butter Potato — Think «baked potato»
Japanese Pepper — Hell no. It wasn’t spicy and sure boring as hell to eat.
Baked Rice Balls with Garlic Butter and i think Shoyu (soy sauce)
We also got some Tempura Sweet Potatoes w/​Salt that gave it a nice touch. Yellowtail, Cilantro, and Avocado roll was ordered beginning of the meal before they sent out a mini house salad with sweet Miso dressing for the table.
We ate almost everything! Only a small Togo box for a rice-​ball and a piece of Kalbi. It was disgusting how much we consumed. I thought i could eat, but this little girl next to me really had the munchies! Our bill was about $ 150 to give you an idea how much ordered amongst the 3 of us. The chef was no where to be found after we finished out meal. Probably passed out on the floor cooking for us the whole time. I had to get up a few time during the meal because my arse was getting sweaty.
All that and we couldn’t leave without trying their Honey Toast. We had 2 orders of them. I’d rank it between Ichiza and shuseki with Ichiza having the best Honey Toast. SHIN toast is a little bigger, and their scoop of ice cream is smaller; however, they use black honey instead of regular.
We were the only one in the restaurant until the employees’ friends came in and had couple drinks. Service did not slack at all. In fact they actually open the door for you as you approach the restaurant and also as you leave. Dishes were always cleared promptly, and hot tea were always refiled. They even tried to change out our eating plates, but we obliged. To help keep your table tidy lays a handy, hot tea-​like cup for your naked skewers. Very nasSs~
Came back the next night only for dessert. Coming back in a week because my pot head friend loved it so much she reserved a table for 10 so we can feast again. This time I’ll be regulating. lol
Come here if you don’t want to deal with the crowd. You might find something you like while you’re at it.
Side note: Bottle water here is Voss 375ml glass bottles.

I’m going to call this place «Plan C».
Plan A. go to Raku for dinner. its too crowded as always and not really in the mood to wait.
Plan B.Ichiza.again.too crowded.
Ok, fine, let’s try the new place.
They’ve really done quite a job revamping the interior of the place. I can see why they wanted to get rid of the random green walls «Sushi Hana» had. They added a private room too and the furniture is certainly more izakaya-​like.
The big difference in this place than any other Japanese restaurant in town is the amount of Okinawan dishes they offer. This is really the highlight of the place. Okinawan food is pretty unique and different from standard Japanese stuff. It would’ve probably been better to advertise that than the Yakitori which Raku blows away hands down. I really enjoyed the goya-​champaru which along w/​the Orion beer was probably the highlight.
The takoyaki (fried octopus balls) was a joke for $ 6. I am guessing it was homemade because the ones sold frozen in supermarkets have more tako in them than these did.
We tried a bunch things on the yakitori menu like pork belly, short ribs, chicken thigh, chicken w/​fish eggs, smelt and a couple of other things w/​pork belly and smelt being my 2 faves.
Its not a bad place to have a couple of drinks, staff is friendly and attentive and they are open til 3am every night. I’m only coming back here for their Okinawan menu though.
BTW…I saw the owner of Ichiza eating at a table upfront as we were leaving. I guess he had to go to Plan C too.