Makino — Restaurant in Spring Valley

It saddens me to give this detailed 1 star review of a place that I had heard good things about many years ago. So, lets start with the obvious. (Thursday evening visit @ 8pm, no waiting)

When you tout a Gourmet Seafood and Sushi buffet, I dont expect to see things like chicken and roast beef available, yet there were 9 selections on the buffet line that had nothing to do with seafood, only 1 was vegetarian.

Sushi is poor poor quality. I love Eel, theirs tasted funny. This is so odd because they have so many staff members behind the counter always busy, but the sushi is not good. I sampled many pieces including the salmon, spicy scallop, tuna, and crab.

I brought 2 plates of food to my table from the buffet line, none of it was hot except for the Basa fish, which tasted a lot like bottom feeding tilapia. Japanese eh? The salmon on the buffet line was way overcooked. The pork spare ribs, and shumai were the most palateable items which I selected (neither of which are seafood related). The yakisoba chicken skewer was flavorless, as was the tempura shrimp, which was still not hot even though i had grabbed it fresh after someone brought it to the line. Fried oysters were dry and unappealing.

Cleanliness. Half of the staff serving up mediocre sushi could be wiping things down. The tray lines and all serving stations were smeared and spattered, nothing had been wiped down in a while it seemed. I didnt get a pic of the horrible dessert selection. What looked like rotten melon was on display with a multitude of other obviously prepackaged fruits in some sugary gelatin sauce. Selections of bulk made, poor quality buffet desserts were also available, but heavily picked thru and it was a mess.

Total for this disappointing experience was $33.95. With the Boiling Crab in the same shopping center, Yama sushi (such better quality) around the corner in Chinatown (with Golden Tiki nearby) @ $28 per person and the Bacchanal a mere $25 extra for an amazing seafood extravaganza, there are much better places nearby to spend your money. I will add that the staff are friendly and attentive, however, the overall experience overshadowed the service. The health department needs to come by during a busy evening and take temperatures of everything on that line, as well as take notes of the...

For being just 10 minutes off the strip, this place is a great lunch spot if you're hungry for solid food and don't want to drop Strip buffet prices. The sushi is well made, the imitation krab meat is identified honestly, and during our early lunch service the sushi bar was well stocked. If you love salmon, there's plenty. I particularly liked the seared salmon skin nigiri. It's just a little fattier and fishier (in a good way) than the regular salmon nigiri.

The tempura was crispy and delicate, really good by most restaurant standards (not just buffets). And the tempura dipping sauce was dispensed hot from a pump carafe to maximize your tempura enjoyment. I respect the attention to detail.

The staff are very attentive and great with drink refills. Yeah, I know they probably do that so you eat less, but it comes across as courteous and they remember what you had. My wife is particular to raspberry iced tea (not plain) and they made sure they brought her the right one. Props for that.

The only knocks against it are:

1. The ramen was kinda weak. I know it's sort of a filler dish, but the broth could have been stronger and the noodles more al dente.
2. they have the basic nigiri's (salmon, tuna), and some others like mackerel and claim. I would have loved to see something like yellowtail, otoro, or scallop instead or in addition.
3. the ice cream was a little old, as in the texture was a little gritty from ice crystals. Green tea flavor was average. Cant speak about the other desserts because I was stuffed, but they looked good.

Overall, this place is like a 4.6 out of 5. Solid buffet, very close to perfection with some room for improvement. But I'm putting this place down as a must-go whenever I'm back in Vegas. Hope they stay open for...

The best Japanese buffet in Las Vegas! All you can eat Seafood, Sushi, Noodle soup and Japanese food items with regular desserts. My family and I love to eat and try out new food places. You'll know it by going through my reviews in Google Map. And Yes! This buffet is The best. I would say this buffet easily beats some of the high named expensive Vegas buffets. We went for dinner which started from 5:30pm and cost $40 each adult. First of all, this buffet is very clean. Then I would like to mention the servers/waitresses. Especially "Sarah" who was our waitress. In general all the waitresses are very attentive, polite, helpful and hard working people. They made our experience much more enjoyable. The quality of each and every dish is supreme with a very good and unique taste. Usually buffet Sushis are lump sum made but NO! This buffet takes extra care for their Sushi making like their other dishes. Each Sushi stands out with flavor, look, smell and taste. They also make (limited numbers) Sushi by order as you want from the menus. Then comes their noodle soup/ Tonkatsu bar. The master chef will make your noodle soup/ Tonkatsu as you want it. And, every time it is awesomely made with thick or clear broth. At last but not least I want to mention their veggie, fruit salad and dessert items. Even though they look regular but trust me they are of supreme quality and yummy. Their sitting area, tables, utensils, plates, restrooms are very clean. Highly recommend and a must go buffet in Las Vegas if you love Japanese dishes, sea food and Sushi. We would sure go there every time we...