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Category: Sushi Bars [Edit]
3223 West Lake Avenue
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I expected more, because my dad is a big fan of this place. But it was really just your standard japanese restaurant with sushi.
I ordered the Chicken Teriyaki & Tempura combination - which is a good deal given how much food is in the combination. You get choice of soup or salad to begin. The combination then has a california roll, a crab meat cucumber salad, and about 8 pieces tempura and a sizeable portion of chicken teriyaki. To finish, you get your choice of ice cream (green tea, red bean, coffee, etc)
The sushi is unimaginitive - but it is still fresh and tastes good. But how many sushi restaurants still serve octopus and tamago in their sushi dinners?
A solid choice for dinner, but nothing extra-ordinary
If you think Akai Hana is the place to get delicious, fresh japanese food.. You must be out of your mind. I've been here countless times for the convienience and have been let down everytime. The fish is NOT fresh here! The rolls have a funky stink to them and the other japanese fare is subpar. I even found a crinkly nasty hair in my way overpriced yakisoba.. bleh
For fresh sushi go check out Sushi Station in Rolling Meadows.. it's worth the drive
We found the sushi here to be good. Easily passed the saba test (surprising us). Fish was not excellent but very good especially considering that we had delivery (which was a good deal). Weakness is their rolls, which are not very interesting.
Went for lunch the other day and thoroughly enjoyed Akai Hana. I love Japanese restaurants that offer more than just sushi, even though their sushi is pretty freaking tasty.
I ordered the tempura lunch box and loved it. My companion and I split the Hawaiian Role made with mango, avacado, tuna and a special sauce. Holy God it was good. The tuna melted in my mouth and the mango left a perfect finishing touch. Granted it was expensive ($18 for the roll alone) but completely worth it as I don't like eating rolls that are chewy.
Before going to A.H., I didn't realize they're a chain and took over one of my favorite Japanese restaurants in Columbus, Ohio. I know friends back in Columbus who love this place as well. I will certainly be returning should I be in Wilmette and hungry for sushi. Yum.
This place used to be a record store. What does that have to do with my review? Absolutely nothing.
The agedashi-dofu was probably the best I've had in Chicago. The spicy tuna handroll was too "chunky." Maybe if they sliced the tuna portion into thinner strips, or tartare style. The salmon skin handroll was edible, but by far the worst of my selections.
Two large Sapporos always makes up for the shortfalls.
I'm a sucker for the bento lunch boxes offered by any Japanese restaurant. Today, for $10.25, I got white meat chicken teriyaki, a california roll, cucumber/crab meat salad, two pieces of random sushi, miso soup, and rice. Great value!
The chicken was slightly dry and lacked teriyaki flavor. There was an orange slice garnish next to the chicken, and all of the pieces of meat tasted like it had an orange sauce on it.
Also, a pet peeve I have is when I go to restaurants, and their menu says you can choose 2 of the following X options for Y price, but all the names are in some other language e.g. Japanese that gives no freakin' indication as to what the selection is. How frustrating and annoying. No arigato.
My commute passes by here every day, but I never came in until last summer when some friends of mine were moving away and suggested it for a farewell dinner. The place was packed on a Friday night, but the staff was friendly and cooed repeatedly over my friends' seven-month-old daughter. I recall enjoying my bento box, which was a pretty good deal.
Craving sushi for dinner last night, I stopped by Akai Hana and placed a takeout order. I actually had a hard time deciding because the menu showed me nothing too creative. After finishing the food, it all seemed overpriced by about $0.50 or $0.75.
The shitake roll was good, but it's hard to screw that up. I ordered spicy yellowtail, but what I got was just plain yellowtail. It was good, but...whoops. The "crunchy" california roll was just a rolling of tempura flakes for $0.75 extra, and by the time I got home, they weren't crunchy anymore (if they ever were). And besides, the roll was way too salty.
There are several other sushi joints along my route, so I won't bother with Akai Hana for my next craving.
Food was good, but service sucked big time. Their menu has a good variety to choose from, their sushi isn't half bad, and their soups are pretty good. But the service was total crap. The waitress got our order wrong twice, and forgot to bring out some dishes until we had to reminder her a few times. They also charge the tip automatically if you have 5 or more people. I wouldn't mind that if the service was actually good.
Pretty decent sushi, I love their spicy scallop roll, its really good.
The green tea ice cream is hit or miss, its good most of the times ( 3bad out of 7visits). they have lunch specials which are on the pricy side (IMHO).
Akai Hana is a really cute sushi place. The decor is traditionally Japanese and has screens over the windows, the sushi bar itself is a little cramped, so I like to sit at tables or booths here.
I recommend their lunch boxes and dinner boxes... they are a pretty good value. You get soup or salad (I LOVE their ginger dressing), your entree, cucumber/crab salad, a california roll, rice, and ice cream for around $20. I would recommend it as a standard sushi restaurant, you aren't going to get the trendy fancy rolls here, but they are a classic.
Went here to celebrate a birthday. For a party of 11 we were seated in the back corner. Almost everyone ate the Sea Bass Combo. Sea Bass is fried with good size flaky chunks of fish. Substitutions were one dollar for spicy tuna roll instead of the California roll.
I ordered the Tempera Udon which came with two smallish pieces of shrimp, and tempera vegetables of sweet potato, green beans, and broccoli. I think there was zucchini or yellow squash (can't remember). The broth was okay, and the noodles were Udon consistency. I also had the side salad with the house dressing and a red bean ice cream for dessert.
Sitting in the corner we were situated with a bird's eye view of the kitchen/ prep area. And by the time our ice creams came around, the smell of pine sol permeated from this kitchenette area.
A couple of tips this place is NOT BYOB. And when you find a parking spot, take it, do not go looking for one closer. BANK space parking only after hours.
I've been visiting Akai Hana for years. They don't have too many rolls or dishes that are off the beaten track, but everything they put in front of you is well-made and very tasty. The agedashi dofu rocks my socks. I keep trying it other places and no one else does it quite as well... let's put it this way, when I go with my grandmother she orders the agedashi as her main course. The servers are always friendly and they have some well-priced lunch specials. I will say, I wasn't very impressed with the chicken teriyaki the one time I had it, but one dish doesn't change my feelings about the entire establishment. It's a laid back place to order up your standard Japanese fare. See you next time, Akai Hana. :)
Ok, so Sushi in the burbs really doesn't match the city, but growing up in area this was always a family hang. It's also nice that to this day my family and I get treated like kings there and that is a key reason for me not to dislike this place.
The actual Sushi/Nigiri is not the best and I usually stick to simple hand rolls. However, Akai Hana saves itself with it's entrees the one I always order is the Chicken Katsu dinner, they give you a generous portion of lightly breaded chicken with it's own savory sauce mixed with a spicy mustard. The Tempura Udon is also pretty good, and the trick is when you order this you should ask for the tempura on the side and you will get almost a full appetizer worth of shrimp/veg tempura. The bento box combos are hit or miss, but all have a good amount of food.
I would recommend this place to anyone that may live in the area or find themselves out in Wilmette and cannot wait to back to go to the city for sushi. Also check out the entrees I recommended it's a better route then the sushi.
Lastly, this place is very family friendly unlike the smaller date like places in the city, so if you have a family and want Japanese Akai Hana might be right up your alley.
Blah. Amidst screeching suburban children, I tried to enjoy sushi here. We ordered rolls a la carte as I'm used to at other sushi places, but I was surprised when the waitress told us we'd only each get miso soup if we ordered regular meals. She gave us one meager MSG-laced bowl for three of us, which I thought was pretty stingy considering the sushi here is not cheap. Bowls were chipped and also not cleared when we were done with different courses.
Didn't look like sushi was made by the chef; it was improperly rolled and when I was at the bar I noticed most of it was made by "assistants." No info about where the ingredients were from either, a must when ordering seafood given the current situation of widespread seafood contamination in China, a major source of eel, shrimp, and other sushi staples.
We have been going to Akai Hana for years starting when my wife and I were just a couple up until today with our three kids. It is a very great sushi place to bring the kids, and that is big for us as most sushi places are not kid friendly. We love their food especially the spicy tuna handrolls. The service is always very friendly and very attentive to our needs and we can get in and out of their with a family of five for a very reasonable price. We also love their market next door. THANK GOODNESS FOR AKAI HANA!!
This restaurant is popular for several good reasons. The menu covers most of the standard items you'd find at a typical pseudo-Japanese restaurant: appetizers, teriyaki, sushi, rolls, tempura, noodles, sukiyaki, nabe, etc... Basically, something for everyone. Large portions, too. Best of all, they have a huge selection of sake, my favorite being the Sho Chikubai's "nigori" from Berkeley, CA. Not sure what to get, then you can order a sampler of junmai, ginjo, daiginjo.
Interestingly, they have wireless internet connection in the restaurant, though it's really not a suitable place for opening your laptop. They also offer a "rewards program" where you can get a point for every dollar you spend there... Hmm.
The room is nicely decorated, clean, comfortable and spacious. Good for any occassion. Service is slow, but not rude. The place is usually packed, even on weekdays, so you can't expect much individual attention. Also, this place is open 7 days a week, unlike others.
Anyway, I'm not going back to this place. For these reasons:
Miso soup = MSG
Sauce/dressing = pure sugar
"Premium" green tea = $5
Desserts = Cheese Cake Factory
and...
Chirashi = Rice. Not just rice, but very WARM and poorly seasoned rice. I bit into a WARM slice of tako, and I almost gagged. And they give you a TON of this WARM rice, more than twice the usual amount. Half of it is generously covered with slices of cucumber. The other half carries eight thin slices of low-end sashimi. Unbelievable...
SUM: I'd rather go to Sea Ranch Market next door and buy fresh fish so I can make my own food at home.
Its an authentic looking modern pseudo Japanese restaurant with a price to match.
The chicken, as noted in other reviews was still a bit dry. Agedashi-dofu was too sweet to be traditional.
Stick with the rolls.
Awesome quality but the service really bites! I went there yesterday at 5:00 PM on purpose and I still got lousy service. After I was seated I had NO contact, not even a glass of water. I looked around and saw several employees (waiter types) chatting it up nearby. I asked the head honcho if there was someone to help us. Well, he yelled something to the staff and suddenly we got some OK service. I don't know what he yelped to them (Japanese) but it worked!
This place would get 5 stars if they could get the staff to work!
Great place to get sushi in Wilmette.
Fresh sushi and always busy. My parents always get the tempura udon and they love it. The Orange Roll is very good--- try it for sure.
The prices aren't too pricey but not cheap.
I love the Akai Hana market that is next door to the restaurant which is why this review has 3 and not 2 stars. I also love the fact that you can buy sake to-go.
Other than that I am way under-impressed with the sushi here. The rolls are fine, I really enjoyed the spicy tuna roll. The Sushi/Nigiri is a little iffy though. The last time I ate here we got a combo sushi platter and something on it made me nauseous for a few hrs. after I ate it. Could have been an allergy or something on my part (which, since I eat a ridiculous amount of sushi would surprise me), or it could have been some questionable fish, who knows. Either way, I will not be finding out by going back . . .
I had the lunch box. I agree that the chicken teryaki was dry. Nothing special as far as sushi goes... but a good deal for lunch. The service was mediocre.
I love this place. I've never had to wait to be seated and the service is awesome. We always get the same waiter if he's working. He's this gay Thai guy who my mom is friends with. He's adorable. We had other waiters and waitresses as well and they were just as attentive. The food is well, I'm not going to say the best Japanese food but it's up there. I always get the agedashi dofu or whatever. It's soooo gooood. I got it at other places and they just don't taste as good. The lunch boxes are are pretty big. You really get the "bang for your buck." I think I said that way wrong, but that's okay! The miso soup is good, not too salty.
When I go to any Japanese restaurant, I kind of grade them on how well the rice is cooked. I know, weird right? This place has the best rice. It's like puffy and sticky but not to the point where its just lumps together.
I haven't been there in a while, but I heard their prices went up. I hope they didn't. :(
The overall appearance of the place is cute. Feels like I'm in Japan. No just joking, it has that Asian vibe though.
It's a plus if you speak Thai since the entire wait staff is Thai, just like at all of the other Japanese restaurants.
Boo to the tiny ass parking lot!!
A.
Clean, Japanese restaurant owned by Koreans, this place has sushi, sashimi, and bento boxes that are overpriced. The food is good, but nothing special. The chicken teriyaki bento box comes with rice, pickled radish, wasabi, a pile of cabbage, 3 types of sushi (tuna, shrimp, and salmon), 6 california rolls with overly riped avocados, and the chicken teriyaki. You have your choice of dark or white meat for the chicken. It is filling. The salmon teriyaki is also a great choice - the fish itself is juicy, and the skin a little crispy. It is located in the Edens Plaza, and if you're craving for chicken teriyaki, stop by. It does get pretty filled up by the local Wilmette/Winnetka-ians.
My wife and I love this place for various reasons. She loves their fish collar appetizer and I just love their sushi. Yum!
This place is perfect- a basic Japanese/Sushi restaurant tucked in a little strip mall. I come for lunch on weekends when I'm up this way shopping at Old Orchard. The food is very good, reasonably priced, and the staff is efficient. The decor isn't anything too exciting, but this isn't that kind of sushi place. You come here to devour good sushi without breaking the bank. Others seem to agree because this place does serious business, it gets crowded! Knowing what this place is all about, I really don't know what else I'd ask for.
An innovative Sushi menu makes AH stand out. My wife ordered a crunchy one and also a sweet potato one that I had never seen before. The chicken teriyaki with rice, soup and veggies was excellent. Make sure to order the dinner though as it comes with salad, seaweed salad and ice cream for desert. Also when ordering chicken if they ask for white meat or steamed its $2 more. Might as well go with the dinner for the extra two bucks. There are some other options for the full dinner option.
It's been consistent for all these years and the prices are good. I've always gotten the bento box and have been stuffed. Their tonkatsu is cooked perfectly along with the sauce they pair it with. Get there before noon for lunch or the parking lot is jampacked.
Visited recently after a long absence. Not as good as it used to be. The swordfish teriyaki, which used to be buttery and melted in your mouth, was overcooked and very dry now. They are also trying to be more streamline -- offering only popular sushi rolls versus trying to be different with unique rolls.
This place used to be good. Now the food are overpriced and poorly prepared. The sushi and sashimi are poor quality. I used the order the sea bass, but now they serve a small portion and its more expensive. The worst part is its not as tender. I would give it one star but out of politeness for its past I'll give it 2 stars. I would go to Renga Tei.
Convenient place to get some Japanese food - love the fact that the Akai Hana market is right next door. In regards to the restaurant - cozy atmosphere and service is very friendly and quick. The tempura udon is delish and the chicken teriyaki is served to you with such huge pieces - you're definately getting a great deal. Their green tea ice cream is just right - not too sweet and not too bland.
The sushi that I did have was great. I should have stuck to that, but instead I got the sukiyaki (my friend claims to love it) and it was unentertaining to say the least. I also could not get on their wifi after getting the password.
Have you tried their green tea ice cream... i found it the most delicious. The meal was ok maybe I wasnt so starving: Salmon bento and tuna bento,, but I am not going to try these items again. Rolls were alright. And Green tea ice cream's the must! Our wait staff was super friendly she kept our glasses full everytime she passes by. So this place for me still remains a good memory.
This review is for Akai Hana Grocery the market next door to their restaurant: Small Japanese market selling overpriced goods even in relation to Mitsuwa which already has the market for expensive Japanese goods. Poor selection of produce, meats and fish; In fact the only fish I saw were Chilean sea bass bones and salmon bones they were trying to sell. The Japanese markets all sell the fish heads, filleted bones and "leftover" cuts after the fillets are removed, however nobody in their right mind should pay $4.99/lb for Chilean sea bass bones. Save your gas for a trip to the NW suburbs and get your goods there.
This is a sad review. I'm sad since I loved Akai Hana growing up. Twenty years ago the sushi and overall food was great, especially for the price. Over the past several years the quality has continually declined. My most recent trip to Chicago allowed me to eat lunch here. It was lame. Based on that meal I should give Akai Hana 2 stars, but I've had over a hundred meals here and this use to be a 4 star place so out of respect I'm giving it 3 stars :(
been awhile since I've been here--I remember it as your typical, very basic Japanese average restaurant with not a lot of focus on the sushi. I came up to go to the Akai Hana Market afterwards.
This restaurant has a fantastic menu. They have a ton of authentic items on their menu and also americanized items. They have something for everyone. Their sushi is very good and also their tempura. The waitstaff are very attentive to children. This is a great place to bring the family.
Large sushi portions as pointed out by another reviewer. The best salmon teriyaki whereas Matsuya has excellent chicken teri and Renga Tei has excellent beef teri. Huge bento boxes with fresh, tasty items. Service is nothing to write home about but not bad. Also yummy beef wrapped asparagus, red bean ice cream, plum wine, etc. The food suffers noticeably when they're busy, which is almost every evening around dinner time, and every weekend dinner. I try to get their early so I can enjoy my meal.
This is a great place in the suburbs to have Japanese food. Go during lunch time and get a bento. For like 7-8 dollars, you can get soup, sunomono, rice, sushi, and tempura. Really great service, looks crappy from the outside (being in a strip mall) but inside it's really lovely. Great artwork. This restaurant is related to Shiroi Hana on N. Clark. Very very good and cheap.
this is one of my all time fav sushi restaurants. as soon as you walk in , the staff acknowlege your presense and you get seated pretty quickly. everything is fast. once the food comes out, it's fresh, and beautiful. we eat til we drop. they have this great mural on the wall of the ocean and what eventually comes out on our plate. fantastic food and service, great combination
Wilmette, IL
Category: Japanese
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