What's the most "real" or authentic sushi place in Chicago?

I've never been to Japan. Can anyone who has been there let us know what is the most authentic in food and style. I'm really tired of the Sushi Samba/Sunda/Tao type places with the same old boring W hotel clubber theme.

Chiyo and Katsu. Do a search on these and you should find some good LTH input.

I haven't been to Chiyo, but I'll second the recommendation for Katsu. (I haven't been to Japan either so I don't know from authentic.)

Read the threads here: http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Al ... =firefox-a

Ginza. It's in the same neighborhood as the Samba/Sunda "sushi" scene.

If you want an immersive experience, you might try going to Mitsuwa Market. There's no fine dining - it's a food court - but it's a decidedly foreign experience that my family really enjoys. Can't speak to how "authentic" the sushi is, but overall, you'll get an experience you won't have at a restaurant.

Or are you talking about a tatami room?

Another +1 for Ginza.
The other menu items are also as traditional as it gets in Chicago.

I've been to Japan, and eaten a lot of good sushi throughout the world. This is going to come off as really snarky, but it's just one person's opinion, so take it for what it's worth...

I haven't had a single piece of raw fish in Chicago that made me forget I'm several thousand miles from where it was likely caught. I just don't eat the stuff here with an expectation that the quality/freshness of the fish is going to be the most impressive element. For that reason, when I get the urge for sushi (and I know I'm not traveling to a place that has great fish anytime soon), I tend to go to the more gimicky sushi places...at least they're not trying to sell me a piece of unadorned fish that's not nearly as good as it should be. They are adding value in the form of innovative garnishes, etc.

I haven't been to Katsu, but after being told I would be wowed by the quality of fish at several places (including L2O) and finding them all pretty marginal, I've stopped trying for the most part.

If you're more interested from a "this place looks like it was yanked off a sidestreet next to Tsukiji" perspective, I'll agree with Ginza. I've been very impressed with the non-raw fish items I've had there.

ETA: I read through the Katsu thread, and the praise is effusive. I think I'll give it a try.

kl1191 wrote:For that reason, when I get the urge for sushi (and I know I'm not traveling to a place that has great fish anytime soon), I tend to go to the more gimicky sushi places...at least they're not trying to sell me a piece of unadorned fish that's not nearly as good as it should be. They are adding value in the form of innovative garnishes, etc.

That seems a sensible approach. I tire of the gimmickiness, which I always used to assume is a way to cover-up less than stellar seafood, and now I know it's probably exactly that, but I've come to accept it for what it is. Personally, I'd prefer a slab of (really) fresh sashimi, unmessed with and naturally perfect, but if that isn't available then, go ahead, make my maki.

ETA: I read through the Katsu thread, and the praise is effusive. I think I'll give it a try.

I don't really get all the effusive praise. My experiences at Katsu were good but not good enough to make me return with any regularity. I find it on par with the better sushi places in town but not head-and-shoulders above as many contend.

David Hammond wrote: Go ahead, make my maki.

I think we found the next home page quote!

Katsu and Kuni in Evanston. They are both classically trained Japanese sushi chefs and both have been in business for a few decades and certainly way before the current 'sushi craze. They each know what quality fish is and do their utmost to serve the best to their clientele.-Dick

Gott give a plug for ITTO Sushi on Halstead

I don't know if it's real or authentic,
but the food is delicious and we always have alot of fun at Kampai in Mt. Prospect-
It's a floating sushi bar, so everything comes around on little boats,
but they will also make you whatever you want.

http://www.kampaisteakandsushi.com/sushibar.html

spinynorman99 wrote:I don't really get all the effusive praise. My experiences at Katsu were good but not good enough to make me return with any regularity. I find it on par with the better sushi places in town but not head-and-shoulders above as many contend.

I'm going to have to agree. Katsu is certainly good but it's also expensive, and at least to me, it's more expensive than good. I guess at this point it's useless to complain about the unappetizing slabs the fish is cut into -- you know that going in, and you deal with it. But while I don't doubt that the Super Duper Premium Yellowtail I got on a recent visit was indeed flown in from Tsukiji, my question is, "When?"

I do agree that Kuni's is very good. (At least the fish you get there isn't hewn with a battle axe.)

Mitsuwa is like being in Japan, so if you don't care about ambiance, it's a fine choice for sushi. Just remember that, at least in the US, "sushi grade" just means it's been frozen at a really low temperature, to kill parasites. So it's not really about freshness here, it's about safety.

The one thing that made me chuckle on my two trips to Japan is, because it's Japan, they don't worry about being "authentic," and they put just about anything in sushi. Sure, there is great fresh fish, but anything from eggs to natto to creamed corn to bacon might show up on the conveyor belt at a sushi shop, even (or perhaps especially) in really small towns off the beaten track.

I am a L.A. transplant in Chicago but never have been to Japan so take that into consideration in my response...

When I think of 'traditional' of sushi joints - in terms of the overall experience (not just quality of fish), I think of izakaya style restaurants - which are essentially places to go drinking and mop up the sake and beer with some food. Mostly sushi, sashimi and a few other items. They typically offer omakase which is a chef's choice (not a fancy prix fixe, but kind of 'hey, just send me whats good today'.)

At one of these 'traditional' places the desired location is to sit at the sushi bar, and many will wait for the bar while tables go unseated. At the sushi bar, you should deal directly with the chefs behind the bar and either just say 'omakase' or start ordering what you want through them. Also, if you are drinking, you should buy the chef a beer / sake and they will certainly take it from you If do you order Omakase, it should come one to two items at a time over the course of an hour or two, not all at once on a plate, boat, wooden board etc.

From the my experience in L.A., Honolulu and Manhattan the best Izakaya joints are loud busy places, with unfussy decor, a natural wood sushi bar, perhaps a TV in the background and for the larger places, a tatami room (sit on the floor / low table / take off your shoes) in the back.

Sooo..... after three years here in Chi town...

My answer to you is that there are NO traditional sushi restaurants in the city at all. Ginza is about as close as it gets, Katsu is has the best sushi / fish in town but it is less traditional (as I define it) than Ginza.

In fact, from what I understand from Katsu-san only Ginza, Katsu, Kuni's and one or two other sushi joints are actually owned by Japanese families. Note: I am not saying that any other nationality could not successfully own a 'traditional' sushi joint, but being japanese would certainly be an advantage.

Don't worry - There are plenty of pretty good sushi joints here. Nothing compared to the coasts where the ocean fish comes into port and demand is much higher. Tank, Katsu, Ginza, Tanoshi, Kuni's are my go to's. Just be sure wherever you go try to order the sushi chef a beer!

Well, LA clearly differs from Japan. In Japan, sushi is what school kids have for lunch (though it's tied for first place with Japanese curry). Sushi is found in train stations and little eateries where everyone is Japanese and no one is drinking. It is being consumed for breakfast at food stalls near fish markets and eaten for dinner at little corner "fast food" places, where half a dozen chefs crank out twenty or more types of sushi and just drop it on a conveyor belt. I'm sure there are bars in Japan where people are eating sushi, but that's not how most folks are eating it.

Cynthia wrote:Mitsuwa is like being in Japan, so if you don't care about ambiance, it's a fine choice for sushi. Just remember that, at least in the US, "sushi grade" just means it's been frozen at a really low temperature, to kill parasites. So it's not really about freshness here, it's about safety.

Just to add a bit of information, FDA regulations require that seafood that is intended to be eaten raw must be frozen at -20 degrees F for 7 days, which kills certain types of parasites. (There are other temperature/time combinations that satisfy this regulation.) Tuna, mollusks, and certain types of salmon are exempt from this regulation.

However, the terms "sushi grade" and "sashimi grade" are not regulated in any way.

But Cynthia is correct that "sushi grade" does not guarantee freshness or that it tastes good.

A few other threads related to "sushi grade":
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=22393&start=0&st=0&sk=t&sd=a

viewtopic.php?p=134925

Well, LA clearly differs from Japan. In Japan, sushi is what school kids have for lunch (though it's tied for first place with Japanese curry). Sushi is found in train stations and little eateries where everyone is Japanese and no one is drinking. It is being consumed for breakfast at food stalls near fish markets and eaten for dinner at little corner "fast food" places, where half a dozen chefs crank out twenty or more types of sushi and just drop it on a conveyor belt. I'm sure there are bars in Japan where people are eating sushi, but that's not how most folks are eating it.

From your description sushi in Japan to be more like hamburgers are to us today, an iconic fast food. I liken it to asking what a 'traditional' hamburger joint is in the U.S. - maybe a diner or a burger shack stand out but it is so pervasive here the idea of traditional doesn't apply to well anymore.

Izakaya is more of a restaurant (not a type of food) so this is where I was going...

Interesting to differentiate between "best" and "authentic" in this discussion. Certainly the "best" sushi places in the US are not izakaya (Masa, Urusawa, Yasuda, etc). I have no idea where they rank on the authenticity scale as I've never been to Japan. That being said, I'm sure I've seen high end sushi places in Japan on TV (so they're not all serving things on a conveyor belt).

jesteinf wrote:Interesting to differentiate between "best" and "authentic" in this discussion. Certainly the "best" sushi places in the US are not izakaya (Masa, Urusawa, Yasuda, etc). I have no idea where they rank on the authenticity scale as I've never been to Japan. That being said, I'm sure I've seen high end sushi places in Japan on TV (so they're not all serving things on a conveyor belt).

Maybe there's even further differentiation to be done between the "best sushi places" and those serving the best sushi, because the places serving the best sushi in Japan are far from high end. They are in what amount to Quonset huts on the periphery of Tsukiji market. There are certainly high end places in Japan where you can get sushi (just as you can order a burger at a fancy place here), but the best sushi is generally agreed to be served at the small counters of places such as Sushi Dai.

kl1191 wrote:

jesteinf wrote:Interesting to differentiate between "best" and "authentic" in this discussion. Certainly the "best" sushi places in the US are not izakaya (Masa, Urusawa, Yasuda, etc). I have no idea where they rank on the authenticity scale as I've never been to Japan. That being said, I'm sure I've seen high end sushi places in Japan on TV (so they're not all serving things on a conveyor belt).

Maybe there's even further differentiation to be done between the "best sushi places" and those serving the best sushi, because the places serving the best sushi in Japan are far from high end. They are in what amount to Quonset huts on the periphery of Tsukiji market. There are certainly high end places in Japan where you can get sushi (just as you can order a burger at a fancy place here), but the best sushi is generally agreed to be served at the small counters of places such as Sushi Dai.

Exactly. Though Tsukiji is just in Tokyo. Almost every town has a fish market, with the attendant sushi counters. However, there is also a lot of sushi that doesn't involve fish. (Because "sushi" refers only to cold rice dressed with vinegar, not the fish, so while most sushi in Japan has fish or seafood, because fish and seafood or so widely available, it doesn't have to have fish to be real sushi. Sashimi is raw fish.)

In the note above from Darren72, he mentions that certain types of salmon don't have to be frozen. Perhaps that's why the salmon sashimi at Shaw's is so good. Just fabulous stuff.

So we all agree then...

Speaking of izakaya style restaurants, Izakaya Hapa just opened up on 58 E. Ontario

http://www.urbandaddy.com/chi/food/8728 ... Restaurant

Just to 'bump' this thread with some current observations.
Had lunch at Kuni's yesterday with my son and my granddaughter with the primary purpose was to introduce my granddaughter to as authentic sushi as I can find in the Midwest.
I first met Kuni when he was the head chef at Hatsuhana and like many, I followed him to Evansten when he opened his own restaurant 24 years ago.
With the construction on the Edens and then I94 both in Illinois and Wisconsin, traveling to Chicago and vacinities had become a hit or miss business but with most of the Illinois construction completed and Open Road Tolling, things are mush easier if you choose the right times and days.
Anyway, I had not seen Kuni for a few years but found him still friendly and knowledgeable. My standard mantra is to tell the wait staff, we will order with Kuni and tell Kuni to serve us what he thinks is notable and best that day. Explained that this was my granddaughters first foray into sushi. Kuniy talked with her and recommended a California roll and made sure we understand that it was not real crab but surimi. It appears some product is now difficult to obtain or too expensive for Kuni to serve and hold his prices. Whatever, the California roll was excellent. For my son and myself it was an assortment of tuna Ranging from multiple types of Toro to a fantasist albacore, best albacore I have ever had. As my granddaughter watched, I asked if she would like to try some tuna and she did have Chu-Toro and later Hamachi. Kuni was very careful to ask about whether she wanted Wasabi and she abstained for the present. A Tempura Maki roll marked the second item for my Granddaughter and as I sampled a piece it was very good.
Aji brought up the rear for my son and myself and it was superb. Kuni knows the origins of his fish and he knows what's good. Sadly things like Murigai and Awabi are not on the menu due to price and scarcity i presume.
Prices were reasonable for the items we had and the quality by current comparisons with other quality establishments.-Dick