Morimoto's First Vegas Restaurant Opening in 2014

The rumors that started last September about Masaharu Morimoto taking over the Japonais space at the Mirage are finally true. Just now, MGM Resorts International announced that the Iron Chef plans to open his eponymous restaurant in early 2014.

The Japanese chef with a penchant for singing made his mark in America while working for Nobu Matsuhisa in New York City when he started working on the Iron Chef America television show. He opened his first Morimoto in Philadelphia in 2001 with restaurateur Stephen Starr. This will mark the seventh restaurant with the Morimoto signature worldwide.

Expect to find dishes that meld Western ingredients with traditional Japanese fare in the form of tempura, sushi and sashimi. He's perhaps best known for his Morimoto sashimi salad made with seared toro, smoked salmon, barbecue eel, tun and hamachi, blended with five sauces and served in a blond wood box. His Duck, Duck, Duck features a roasted duck leg with a duck sandwich made with cucumber and a foie gras-infused croissant, all served with a red miso sauce and a soft duck egg.

No word yet on when Japonais will close or who will design the restaurant, but expect the decor to reflect Morimoto's collision between East meets West. If the restaurant follows suit with others in the arsenal, lunch and dinner will be part of the agenda.

Morimoto joins Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio at the Mirage, where he's opening Heritage Steak, expected to open in July.
· Rumors Swirl That Masaharu Morimoto Will Take Over Japonais [~ELV~]
· All Coverage of Masaharu Morimoto [~ELV~]