Sushi Hiro

SUSHI HIRO IS A GEM

If you never watched the greatest reality show in television history, The Bachelor Pad Season 1, let me summarize it thusly*: you can be vapid. you can be an asshole. you can cheat on everyone. you can make all your castmates cry. But don’t you dare be there for the wrong reasons.

Well Gia, if you’re reading this, look away:

I chose Sushi Hiro for the wrong reasons.

*editor’s note: i always wanted to use the word thusly. 

The thing about Sushi Hiro is that its very close to a paradise called NewTech Gym. I like lifting pretending to lift while watching John Meadows videos (RIP), and going from Crunch to this place was like having sushi at Sam’s Club for lunch and Sushi Sho for dinner.

Did I tell my dining partner any of this? Of course not. Fortunately, he doesn’t use the internet, so I think I’m in the clear.

HIRO REPRESENTS THE BEST OF VEGAS SUSHI

The Vegas sushi scene is a tale of two cities. The strip is tourist central, sushi slop. Off-strip is a myriad of strip malls and plazas (no I don’t know the difference). It’s Los Angeles lite, no surprise given the proximity. Some of the best Itamae are from Los Angeles, and their style pays homage in kind.

Sushi Hiro is a member of the latter.

The 11 year-old sushiya is the baby of Masahiro Oshima, the legend ex of ramen maruya in Los Angeles (and Virginia’s Yamato and Ithaca’s Sushi O Sake…).

It is a neighborhood sushiya at its best; four capable chefs behind the counter, a diverse variety of okonomi (a la carte) options, no working website, the works.

Hiro is close to Henderson, a suburb of Vegas I’m assuming was created from scratch by a commercial real estate company. The area is popular among celebrities/hockey players running from the Toronto media and so is Sushi Hiro at least according to the dozens of pictures on the wall.

There is an omakase, not a set menu, and certainly not a set number of courses. The cuts of neta are long, with tails akin to a tuxedo. The service is best described as somewhere between “friendly” and “demeanor of the lady who asks if you want a drink at the three card poker table” (for avoidance of doubt, this lady was VERY friendly).

WE SAT FOR THE OMAKASE ($125)

I use the word “we” loosely; my dining partner was 15 minutes late. Evidently he was on a “heater” at the Ultimate Texas Hold ’em table (no he didn’t pay for dinner). Fortunately, like with everything else, the sushiya was extraordinarily nice. We still finished the 22 courses in a crisp 55 minutes. As it should be.

LET’S TALK ABOUT THE RICE

In this humble blogger’s opinion, the nigiri at Sushi Hiro is notable for two things.

1. The tails
2. The slightly denser packing of the shari (the rice).

There’s a small misconception out there that shari needs to be loose inside and out. I blame AI, aka the scourge of creativity that will eventually make us all dumber. Sure, you don’t want an fridge-hardened oval brick. And yes, there should be air between the rice grains and the nigiri should crumble in your mouth. But rice, pressed together firmly, sticks better, reduces bacterial growth, and most importantly, keeps the shape before it enters your mouth; that’s sort of critical when your neta is heavy and long, like they are at Sushi Hiro and other LA-style shops. Good stuff here.

The cinematography* of this kanpachi is next level, I wouldn’t be surprised if Greig Fraser sent me a note (but seriously, Greg, email me.  The Batman. Dune. Rogue One. THE CREATOR. You bloody genius). I don’t talk about Kanpachi very often around these parts; partly because it’s so commonplace, partly because half the time the sushiya and me are equally confused about whether its actually Hamachi.

This is a neta best in summer, but given the 4,000 degree heat outside, we’ll call it even. Out-of-season kanpachi isn’t as fatty, and doesn’t have the strong taste as some of its amberjack siblings. That might be why a smidge of the powerful Yuzu Kosho – yuzu, chili and salt – is added on top.

*Editor’s note: zero chance I understand what cinematography is

Masaba (Chub Mackerel, Mackerel, True Mackerel, King of the Mackerel) is best starting in autumn, and so it was especially noticeable here. Saba spoils quickly, so proper preparation – usually through a salt and vinegar cure – is critical (called shimesaba). I really like this neta because of its strong (though hopefully smooth) taste. It’s like trying good vodka, minus the instant regret. A highlight.

A long cut of OToro came next, with an unnecessary dollop of caviar. Not to beat a dead tuna, but its cuts like this that require the more packed rice. It also probably requires a more precise cut, but so it goes with Jabara.

Chawanmushi is always a tough mountain to climb in sushi. Make it too hot, ruin the meal. Make it too cold, egg mousse. The temperature here was fine, but the presence of chicken – not not traditional, at least in homes – may throw some off.

I was more annoyed about the use of kanikama imitation crab. And when I say annoyed, I mean “I almost didn’t review this sushiya in protest”. Hiroyoshi would never.

“Ama Ebi” was next and perfectly sweet. They even served the heads in a miso – ebi no misoshiru – as is tradition. If we’re in the trust tree, I’m a little suspicious this was botan ebi, but I always trust the sushiya with descriptions (unless it’s salmon caviar).

The head reaffirmed some of my suspicions.

GET THE EXTRAS

Hiro really thrives on the available okonomi. Longtime legends will know I like ordering kanpyomaki, a benchmark of the sushiya’s skill. Here, the Kama Toro (minus caviar), torotaku, Kohada and hamachi belly were all wonderful as well.

Extra: Kama Toro

Sushi Hiro wonderfully balances no-frills sushi with high-end preparation. And yes, that reads like some bullshit google review that some paid influencer wrote, but it’s true. It’s not Vegas’ best, but it’s in the big 3 and a third, and worth the trip off-strip.

Recommended.