Dining guide: Asian
Each week Neon spotlights a different cuisine in the Dining Guide, with Asian restaurants this week. Restaurants are rated on a letter-grade scale, from A to F. Opinions by R-J critic Heidi Knapp Rinella (H.K.R.) are indicated by initials. Price symbols are based on the cost of an average entree: $ = entrees less than $10; $$ = entrees between $10 and $20; $$$ = entrees between $20 and $30; and $$$$ = entrees more than $30.
BASIL 'N LIME
3665 S. Fort Apache Road; 255-2581
The thing we liked most about Basil 'n Lime was that the meats clearly were cooked along with dishes such as Tom Kha Gai, instead of being prepared separately and thrown in after the order is made. Such care also showed in the lively decor in shades of green with dark brown furniture, and in such other dishes as Pad Thai, lemongrass prawns, sticky rice with coconut ice cream and a refreshing Thai iced tea. (4/30/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: A
$
CHINA MAMA
3420 S. Jones Blvd.; 873-1977
Four words of advice if you go to China MaMa: steamed juicy pork buns. These plump, dumplinglike babies are real - and they're spectacular. Also worthy of note: the creamy chicken corn soup, green-onion pancake and beef roll. The place isn't big on atmosphere - it is, after all, a former bank, and you can pretty much make out all of the features except for the vault - but the food and prices are tough to beat. (11/6/09 H.K.R.)
Overall: A
$
EAST OCEAN DIM SUM & SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
9570 S. Eastern Ave., Henderson; 567-4800
Dim Sum isn't exactly tough to find in the valley but most of the places that specialize in it are clustered in and around the China Town area, so no wonder Henderson's East Ocean is packing them in. Well, that's not just because of geography but also because of the fresh, well-prepared foods such as shrimp wontons, shrimp noodle rolls, char si bao, pork shu mai, chive dumplings, shrimp dumplings and yellow custard buns. And the carts arrived promptly and repeatedly. (4/6/12 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$$
GALANGA THAI EATERY
505 E. Windmill Lane; 270-2493
The fact that the Thai iced tea was served in a mix-it-yourself format immediately impressed us with Galanga Thai Eatery's attention to detail, and the sauce selection with the appetizer plate just reinforced it. We also loved the eggplant basil and sticky rice with vanilla ice cream and liked the Pad Thai with pork. (3/18/11 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$
HUE THAI
5115 Spring Mountain Road; 221-4841
It's all about the bread at Hue Thai - at least as far as the banh mi are concerned, because the crisp-crusted baguettes really show off the meats and vegetables in these Saigon Sub sandwiches. The house special is a winner (although we like the charbroiled pork as well), as is the full-bodied build-your-own pho and the curry chicken/French roll combo. (12/17/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: B+
$
I LOVE SUSHI
11041 S. Eastern Ave.; 990-4055
I Love Sushi is a "fusion" sushi restaurant, of the genre that are refining and redefining the art to be more in keeping with American tastes. To that end, there's a heavy reliance on tuna and salmon, but we're not complaining. We liked the Joe's Special, Sex on the Beach, the I Love Sushi Special, the Lisa Hand Roll and the Tornado. And a vanilla mochi for dessert. And there's teriyaki, teppanyaki and yakisoba, in case sushi's not your thing. (7/21/11 H.K.R.)
Overall: A
$$
KOBE SUSHI BISTRO
6375 S. Rainbow Blvd.; 898-9998
Signature dishes: Monkey Special, Omelet Roll
KUNG FU PLAZA
3505 S. Valley View Blvd.; 247-4120
Kung Fu Plaza may have a clientele that's not quite as ethnically Asian as some of the other spots in and around China Town Plaza, but we figure that's because it's been open since 1973 and has built up a locals following in that time. At any rate, we liked it for a spirited Tom Kha Chicken and crunchy beef Pad Thai, plus personable service. (11/5/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: B
$
KYARA JAPANESE TAPAS
6555 S. Jones Blvd.; 434-8856
Tapas restaurants have been successfully borrowing from other cuisines - including Japanese - for years, and Kyara just takes that a step farther, with a menu that's primarily (though not exclusively) Japanese in origin. We liked the cheese tempura, asparagus in bacon, butabara (pork belly), poke, peppered tuna, beef tataki and agedashi tofu, and the serene, soothing atmosphere. (10/5/12 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$$
LE THAI
523 Fremont St.; 778-0888
Le Thai's food, if not transcendent, does represent solid preparations of mostly traditional Thai dishes. Our favorite was our dessert, which was a pancake layered with Nutella and topped with a sweet omelet, but we also liked the pork jerky with waterfall sauce, the Three Color Curry and the Thai fried rice. But the best thing about Le Thai is that it's perfect for downtown, a pleasant funky-artsy spot that morphs as the evening wears on. (7/13/12 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$$
LEMONGRASS CAFE
8820 S. Eastern Ave.; 463-1300
If your scope of Vietnamese food is limited to banh mi and pho you can stretch your horizons at Lemongrass Cafe, which has a broad menu and does it well. We liked the Bun Cha Gio (vermicelli with fried egg rolls), Bi Cha Bo Nuong (lemongrass beef), Banh Mi Bo Koh (Vietnamese-style beef stew) and starters of Goi Cuon (spring rolls) and Banh Xeo (Vietnamese crepe). (9/10/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: B+
$
MARSSA
Loew's Lake Las Vegas, 101 Montelago Blvd., Henderson; 567-6125
Signature dishes: agedashi tofu, opakapaka lau lau
NAKED FISH'S SUSHI & GRILL
3945 S. Durango Drive; 228-8856
Signature dishes: For Sizzle My Nizzle, lobster tempura salad
NITTAYA'S SECRET KITCHEN
2110 N. Rampart Blvd.; 360-8885
We were off to a good start with the house fruit-infused water (red apple, kiwi, orange and lemon on the evening of our visit), and we liked everything that was to follow, which was the World Famous Spinach Salad, pork and vegetable egg rolls, cilantro steak skewers, grilled mango shrimp, shrimp satay, beef jerky and fried bananas. (1/21/11 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$$
OYSHI SUSHI
7775 S. Rainbow Blvd.; 646-9744
We realized too late that Oyshi Sushi's all-you-can-eat deal is a pretty good one but no matter; we'll keep that in mind for next time. On this first go-round we liked the grilled beef asparagus, Simply Shrimp roll with shrimp cooked in two styles, Red Rock roll with spicy tuna and fresh tuna and a rib-eye steak teriyaki dinner that turned out to be the rare bargain that actually is one. (12/4/09 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$$
PIN KAOW
1972 N. Rainbow Blvd.; 638-2746, and 7835 S. Rainbow Blvd. and 9530 S. Eastern Ave.
We did Pin Kaow at lunch, when $6.95 would get you a special that included soup (an offbeat but tasty cucumber on the day of our visit), egg rolls and wontons, plus entree. We had a Thai beef salad and a pork curry and both were delightful - though no more so than the decor, in which the prodigious use of wood and flowers has helped the restaurant transcend its strip-center location. (11/13/09 H.K.R.)
Overall: B
$
PING PANG PONG
Gold Coast, 4000 W. Flamingo Road; 367-7111
Signature dishes: dim sum, tea-smoked duck
PING PONG
2955 E. Sunset Road; 228-9988
We thought the food at Ping Pong was pretty spicy, on the 1-to-10 or mild-to-hot Thai restaurant continuum, but we (at least the less timid of us) thought it was pretty special, too. That included Pad Thai that was so moist as to be almost creamy (which is a good thing), kickin' Tom Ka Gai, grilled chicken curry, beef jerky and a dessert of sticky rice with coconut ice cream. (6/18/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$
SAM WOO BAR-B-Q
China Town Plaza, 4215 Spring Mountain Road; 368-7628 or 368-7638
Signature dishes: char siu (Chinese barbecued pork), roast duck
SHABU-SHABU PARADISE
1716 W. Horizon Ridge Parkway, Henderson; 385-4567
We couldn't figure out why Shabu-Shabu Paradise wasn't packed on the evening of our visit, aside from the confusion that may stem from its "Japanese fondue" subtext. That's accurate, but only to a point; shabu-shabu is generally lighter than fondue, and more healthful. It's done flawlessly at Shabu-Shabu Paradise, where we enjoyed the half-shrimp and half-scallop and half-beef and half-chicken shabu-shabu combos. (8/31/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: A
$$
SPICY TUNA SUSHI
10345 S. Eastern Ave.; 722-2424
Like other fusion sushi places in the area Spicy Tuna offers numerous creative rolls and other sushi; unlike the others, it wasn't crowded on the evening of our visit. And we thoroughly enjoyed most of our choices, like the garlic-butter edamame, bacon maki, SJW Special, Monkey Special, Screaming Orgasm and Dr. George Special, though we found the spicy tuna roll surprisingly ordinary. (1/22/10 H.K.R.)
Overall: A-
$$
SUSHI FEVER
5985 W. Sahara Ave.; 838-2927
The notion that Americans' idea of Japanese food has shifted from "steakhouses" to sushi bars was reinforced at Sushi Fever, whose teppan tables sat cold and unused while the sushi bar and dining room were bustling. And no wonder, with fusion rolls such as the Monkey Roll with its slabs of fried banana topped with crab and special sauce, and Linda's Special, its spicy crab and avocado wrapped with tuna, salmon and yellowtail and topped with garlic shrimp, raw onion and jalapeno, and served with a truly special sauce. Whew! We also liked the high-value two-item combo, for which we chose shrimp tempura and pork tonkatsu. (3/23/12 H.K.R.)
Overall: B+
$$
SUSHI TWISTER
5666 Boulder Highway; 433-8892
A Boulder Highway strip center across from a weekly-rental hotel may seem an unexpected spot for a fusion-sushi joint, but Sushi Twister's there and it's thriving. We'd say that's on the strength of creative, well-executed rolls like the Sushi Twister, Crispy Vacation, Cowgirl and Magic Mountain, plus a broad selection of nigiri sushi and more. (7/1/11 H.K.R.)
Overall: B+
$$
SUSHIWA
790 Coronado Center Drive, Henderson; 263-5785
Signature dishes: Henderson Roll, Korean Barbecue Roll
