Hotel Openings: First Look Inside Las Vegas’ Nobu Hotel

Sushi and celebrity lovers alike know Nobu as one of the country’s ritziest places to order your tuna and tempura. Now you can know it as a place to lay your head as well. Nobu Hospitality is opening their first hotel in Las Vegas, now taking reservations from October 1, 2012.

The first branded hotel venture by a celebrity chef, Nobu Hotel includes not only a top toque but a celebrity actor as well – Robert De Niro is also a partner in the hospitality group.
A Hotel Within A Hotel
Earlier this week in New York City, the group showed off the initial plans for their new hotel, which will be located inside Caesar’s Palace.
The hotel-within-a-hotel will offer a Japanese Zen feel, from the wooden tiles that extend from the elevator to the hallways to the sleek cherry blossom patterned carpet and custom light fixtures inspired by origami. Sleek touch-screen elevators will add a hint of the hotel’s cutting-edge technology and guide guests to the 181 hotel rooms and 18 suites with Strip or garden views.
“We have created a distinctly Japanese experience in the heart of Las Vegas with the first Nobu Hotel, but with a playful interpretation of Nobu’s style and the Vegas bravado,” said Rockwell, founder and CEO of Rockwell Group. “Using the grand canvas of a hotel, we were able to elaborate on the use of hand-crafted, curated materials that create a luxurious effect and provide a world-class Nobu experience.”
Inside the Guest Rooms
Guest rooms will be distinctly more Zen-like then most of their over-the-top counterparts and will feature neutral tones with hints of purple and aqua. Custom art by up-and-coming Japanese artists will feature a mix of traditional prints and expressionist designs, speaking to the link between traditional Japanese and modern art. The main focal point of the room will be the feature wall that displays a custom calligraphy, as seen in the photo above.
Bathrooms will feature rich teak fittings, stone tiles and traditional black Umi tiles. Walk-in showers will offer multiple showerheads and a teak bathing stool, a commodity seen in traditional Japanese bathhouses. Toto toilets and sinks that showcase custom freestanding concrete bowls set on wood plinth are designed to evoke a garden fountain. Luxurious bath amenities will include a selection of products by Natura Bissein, featuring a signature rosemary and white tea scent designed exclusively for Nobu Hotel.
A Zen-Like Experience
The arrival experience will include personalized service with in-room iPad registration and a traditional hot tea welcome amenity.

The unique turndown service will include his and hers yukata robes and slippers displayed bedside along with an exclusive Nobu Hotel blend of scented sleep oils. An upgraded minibar curated by Nobu will consist of unique selections including organic Wild Poppy blood orange chili juice crafted from orchards in California, chocolate-dipped Pocky pretzels, Japanese beer and an assortment of Dean & Deluca snack items. Nobu’s signature brands of chilled sake and Genmai-Cha brown rice green tea will also be available.
Dining
Nobu Hotel guests will also have private access to the adjacent 11,200-square-foot restaurant and lounge with priority seating and 24-hour access to Nobu cuisine through the first ever in-room dining menu.
The menu will include popular Japanese items, along with Nobu’s signature twists on American classics. A selection of bento boxes will offer a customary Japanese breakfast and the Vegas-themed High Roller, which features lobster wasabi, Wagyu steak, spicy garlic shrimp and an assortment of nigiri and premium sushi rolls. Additional menu items will include green tea waffles served with braised short rib, egg and aged maple; bagel and lox featuring salmon sashimi served on an “everything bagel” made of crispy rice; the RLT with rock shrimp, butter lettuce and Maui onion tomato salsa in a creamy spicy sauce; and the tonkatsu sandwich with panko pork and prune katsu sauce on shokupan bread.
The hotel is now taking reservations for October 1 and beyond. We’ll keep you posted on an opening date! What do you think? Can’t wait to stay or would prefer just to dine and stay elsewhere?