Pastry Chefof theYear
Mio Ogasawara at Sweets Raku
Sw e e t s R a k u : C h r i s to p h e r S m i t h
This dessert guru’s creations are so amazing, she deserved a sweet stage of her own
With so many world-class restaurants on the Strip, there’s no shortage of great desserts created by extraordinarily talented chefs. But true dessert aficionados gladly make the short trip up Spring Mountain Road to the unassuming little strip mall that houses Sweets Raku. Here, amid Las Vegas’ finest collection of Japanese restaurants, Mio Ogasawara creates some of the most delicious desserts imaginable in a tiny restaurant with no sign on the door. The award-winning chef humbly insists her creations are exactly what you’d find in a typical dessert bar in Japan. But they’re so delicately balanced and exquisitely rendered, they would shine in any French fine-dining restaurant. The menu (which itself is edible) is deceptively simple. You can order three courses for $19, with your choice of “main” course. One day, your options may include the “Apollo,” two layers of mousse (dark chocolate and raspberry) on top of a chocolate sponge cake, garnished with Earl Grey ice cream and raspberry sauce. Return the next day, and it may be replaced with Mont Blanc chestnuts with chestnut cream. If you’re not terribly hungry, you can get the pre-set first and third course for $12. But do yourself a favor, and go for all three — and add a cheese platter, which features a creamy mixture of blue cheese and heavy cream piped onto the plate like cake icing. Owner Mitsuo Endo could have simply showcased Ogasawara’s creations in the nearby sister restaurant Raku — an awardwinning establishment in its own right. But he wisely decided to give her a stage of her own, allowing the chef to create her delicacies right before the eyes of each and every customer. And even if you don’t speak Japanese (which a large portion of the customers do), her charming personality and engaging smile add an extra dose of sweetness to already unforgettable desserts. “This is my first time to be out in front of a counter,” the chef says through a translator. “So it’s my first time to really see and serve the customers. And I’ve learned a lot.” — Al Mancini 5040 W. Spring Mountain Road #3, 290-7181
Sweet arts: left, the "Apollo," comprising mousse, sponge cake and Earl Grey ice cream; right, "Mount Fuji," a sponge cake covered in whipped cream and chestnut paste DesertCompanion.com | 59