Yellowtail Japanese Restaurant at Bellagio

Just The Facts, Please.

Location

Bellagio

Dining Hours

Dinner Daily
Monday - Thursday
5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Lounge open until 11:00 p.m.
Friday - Sunday
5:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Lounge open until Midnight

Chef

Akira Back

Cuisine

Traditional and modern Japanese cuisine.

Price Range

$25+ per entree

Suggested Attire

Dressy / Business Casual

Notes

From Yellowtail's website: The restaurant's signature design element, a 25-by-13-foot, bronze wall-mounted installation of the dorsal side of the yellowtail fish greets you at the entrance.

Sample Menu Items

Baked Crab or Rock Shrimp Hand Roll
Crispy Onions, Spicy Aioli, Soy Paper
California
Alaskan King Crab, Cucumber, Avocado
Popping Spicy Crab
Cucumber, Asparagus, Pop Rocks
Holy Mackerel
Shiso, Pickled Daikon, Sesame Seeds
Shrimp Tempura
Cucumber, Aioli, Sesame Seeds
Soft Shell Crab
Cucumber, Ginger, Green Onion
Spicy Tuna
Cucumber, Spicy Aioli, Sesame Seeds
Toro Scallion
Blue Fin Tuna Belly, Green Onion
Angry Salmon
Avocado, Cucumber, Serrano
Unagi
Cucumber, Sesame Seeds, Eel Sauce

Jidori Chicken
Baby Root Vegetables, Potato Puree, Garlic Cream Scottish Salmon
Spinach, Baby Root Vegetables, Yuzu Lemon Braised Kobe Beef Short Ribs
Baby Root Vegetables
Kobe Beef Flat Iron
Baby Root Vegetables, Potato Puree, Teriyaki "Surf N Turf"
16 oz. Ribeye, Lobster Tails, Kizami-Wasabi Butter 16 oz. Vintage Ribeye
Kizami-Wasabi Butter

Yellowtail Tataki
Shimeji Mushrooms, Crispy Onions, Mustard Miso
Tempura Alaskan King Crab
Serrano, Sweet Ponzu
Seared Hokkaido Scallops
Mustard Potato Puree, Cherry Tomato
Gyoza
Pork Pot Sticker, Tomato Salsa
Seafood "Dynamite"
Alaskan King Crab, Rock Shrimp, Spicy-Citrus Aioli

 

 

Mavens Overview: Yellowtail

Yellowtail at the Bellagio is another restaurant in The Light Group's chain of restaurants in Las Vegas. As with their other restaurants, atmosphere trumps food as the striking feature of the restaurant. The one difference with Yellowtail from the other five Light Group restaurants in Las Vegas is that Chef Akira Back designed the menu rather than Light Group's Executive Chef, Brian Massie.

Yellowtail Sushi at Bellagio seems to argue for style over substance. The restaurant's decor gets great reviews, the food, not so much, except perhaps for the tuna pizza, which garners rave reviews. Even comments on the service mention that that that wait staff is attractive and inattentive.

Chef Akira Back, who has worked with both Chefs Nobu and Morimoto(of Iron Chef Fame) creates his own take on traditional Japanese cuisine. However, as the following is an excerpt from the restaurant's web site shows, He seems more interested in discussing his experience on the slopes than his experience in the kitchen.

A Korea native and former professional snowboarder who was raised in Colorado, Chef Akira Back brings his sense of adventure and boundless creativity into the kitchen at Yellowtail Japanese Restaurant & Lounge...Akira spent his early years as a professional snowboarder, showing off his talents in extreme movies, and garnered praise by industry magazines like Snowboarder and Transworld. To supplement his income, Akira started cooking in local Aspen restaurants to earn extra cash. He soon realized that the adventure and thrill he experienced on the slopes also existed in the kitchen. After seven years on the professional snowboarding circuit, Akira decided to pursue a full-time culinary career.

Yellowtail does take advantage of its location at the Bellagio by offering patio dining, which overlooks the Fountains of Bellagio.

The Internet Buzz on the food served at Yellowtail is mixed. Many patrons feel the prices are too high in relation to the food served, even after factoring in Vegas pricing.

Internet Buzz: Yellowtail

  • The setting is very intimate, very cool. There's a small section inside next to the bar, a few tables spread throughout the restaurant, and a few tables on a deck looking out over the casino floor...The food was good, but I've had better sushi at many local restaurants throughout the country, and it was WAY cheaper. The price of this restaurant certainly doesn't reflect the taste.
  • A sleek lounge area with comfortable seating and soft music make Yellowtail the perfect place to bring a first date for drinks and light conversation.
  • The restaurant is pretty intimate and cozy (kinda dark with light music in the background). If I had to do it over again, I would recommend making reservations to sit outside on the balcony. On the balcony, you would have a full view of the Bellagio Fountains playing while you eat.
  • Best part of our trip to vegas! this place served me the best thing i've ever tasted: A sushi roll with: Lobster on the inside, topped with tuna, cilantro and truffle oil. Sweet Baby Geezus...amazing!!!!! Great music, great atmosphere.
  • They have this amazing pizza tuna with truffle YES TRUFFLE! omg omg omg i was in heaven WE ALL WERE!
  • The big eye tuna pizza with white truffle oil. Just get it... ask for the patio. It lays directly over the Bellagio fountains I'd also recommend ordering the miso glazed cod which is not on the menu for some reason. Although it is not as good as the original (Nobu), it's definitely up there, albeit a too-small portion.
  • I'm not going to complain because of the price ($400 for three people), but really, the quality, creativity and overall presentation is lacking...Well, the one saving grace for me was the Tuna Pizza....but really, you give me anything with truffle and I'm a fan.
  • The only thing I really remember about this restaurant is how much I paid and how hungry I was when I left! There are two things that I enjoyed about this restaurant 1. The tuna pizza with truffle oil YUM! and 2. The view of the Bellagio water show from the restaurant.
  • If this place had pictures on the menu they would be out of business! The portions are super tiny and super expensive. I could understand if there weren't any other sushi restaurants around, but c'mon, this is Vegas and there are all sorts of sushi restaurants opened by world renowned chefs.
  • First and foremost, don't waste your money. I get it, it's Vegas, you expect to pay more for things, especially in the Bellagio. This however was a total rip off. When I pay $10 for a hand roll I expect it to be at least as big as the ones I pay $3 for at home. I ordered the rock shrimp hand roll and while it was very tasty, it was about the size of my thumb.
  • The waitress was charming, but she wasn't attentive at all. The service had a lot of room for improvement.
  • Really good sushi that is fresh but the price is pretty high for what you get. My only real complaint is that you would expect the menu to be a little bit more creative and original for the price.
  • Everyone should experience YELLOW TAIL at least once in their life! This is not a joke about "being" with an Asian woman.  I'm Asian, so watch it!  Seriously, remember the name AND GO!  I've been 3 times and the next time I go to Vegas I will be there again!
  • The place itself is great, great decor and ambiance, you can see the Bellagio fountains from inside the restaurant. I had a lychee cocktail which was yummy, they have a pretty creative cocktail menu. For dinner, we ordered the seven-course Chef's tasting menu. 1 - Salmon tartare - probably the best I've ever had 2 - Salad with poached eggs and yellowtail - amazing 3 - Sashimi - Amazing 4 - Cod with balsamic reduction - very strong and made me nauseated 5 - Braised Kobe with some reduction (and quail egg, I think) - good 6 - Sushi rolls - 3 or 4 kinds, really good 7 - Dessert was a frothy chocolate drink, which was okay, but whatever the cake was, it was pretty good. I would probably go back but would stick to Sashimi and rolls, no cod and beef or dessert for me next time.
  • We had the Omakase, everything was DELICIOUS! The best's gotta be the Toro Tartar with Caviar! Also the miso black cod with sake foam! WOW . Much better than nobu!
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