I had lunch at Akai Hana yesterday, on my way home from an occasional run to Winnetka that (perhaps obviously, perhaps not) always requires some hunting for a good dining option en route.

I have, or rather, had, a soft spot for Akai Hana because it was the first place I ever ate sushi. A colleague took me there for lunch some 20-25 years ago. It was love of sushi at first bite, and it's been love ever since. (This despite the fact that said colleague put considerable effort into schooling me about the supposedly traditional Japanese practice of mixing the wad of wasabi and slices of pickled ginger into soy sauce. I'm thankful that I learned not too much later not to do that.)

That said, yesterday's lunch was not good enough to motivate me to return to Akai Hana. I enjoyed the chicken teriyaki appetizer and the miso soup, and of the components of the lunch special I ordered, I most enjoyed the salmon, which was quite tender.

The maki rolls were the most disappointing I can remember having anywhere. The spicy tuna rolls were notable for the nori not completely wrapping around the roll, leaving about 1/4 inch gap. Is that a good cost control strategy, cutting the nori short? Most disappointing were the pieces of old, brown, sour avocado in the California roll. I had to pull them out to eat the rest of the roll. I thought that my having left the brown avocado pieces on the serving board might have prompted the server to ask if there was some problem, but it did not.

Lunch combo, teriyaki appetizer, two glasses of wine: more than $30 before tip. I was really craving some sushi, but for that price the quality should have been much higher. Cured me of any lingering nostalgia I had for the place.

The comments in this thread are consistent with those about Akai Hana on Yelp (I finally have a decent smartphone and was playing with it while I ate).

There's also a bunch of non-Akai Hana sushi commentary on this thread, most of which is years old, about most of which I have no opinion, but I will disclose this as far as my tastes go: I don't mind mayo, but I'm starting to think it'd be a good idea to avoid any maki roll options with "spicy" in the name.

I have had much better sushi at Sushi Kushi in LF and HP and at Kamehachi in NB. There's also a sushi place closer to where I live that I like very much, but I'm going to study it some more before I post about it. I don't see needing to go back to Akai Hana, but if I wind up there again, I think I will stick to the chicken teriyaki and the miso soup.

A question for those in the know: if Akai Hana is rated "meh", is their retail counter Seafood Ranch a few doors down any better?

Katie, I have the same feelings about Akai Hana. Back in the day (20 years ago), they used to have a pretty decent lunch special, some interesting menu choices, and prices weren't too bad for what you received. But there's a ton of competition now, and Akai is just OK in my book in comparison.

Sea Ranch, however, is a different story. Haven't been there in a year or two, but last visit they were two separate establishments a parking lot apart, the foodstuffs and the fish stores. My Japanese buddy swears by the place when shopping for homemade sukiyaki (believe me, a REAL treat--it has basically spoiled me from ordering it in a restaurant!). He says they have EVERYthing from the komatsuna spinach, the marbled ribeye, o-fu, ochinko (Japanese pickles on the side) and all the ingredients to make the wonderful sukiyaki broth. The fish store is quite good too, his go-to place for the massive sushi tray he brings to my house on Christmas Eve. A 'sushi litmus test' of sorts for me is the ikura--salmon roe--and this version, bright orange little balls of flavor surrounded by seaweed, is tremendous.

Sea Ranch
Phone: (847)256-4404
Fax: (847)256-3318
3217 Lake Ave, Wilmette, IL 60091

Akai Hana wasn't great when they first opened, we went once and that was it. Sushi Kushi is much better but pricey but consider the location.
The Sea Ranch however has made consistently good take out sushi over the last few decades and the offshoot store across the lot has some good Japanese ingredients. Nest time in the area just get a Lunch Special Sushi from the Sea Ranch, sit in your vehicle and eat.-Dick

Some Japanese friends who live in Skokie also are partial to Sea Ranch.

As long as you're discussing Sushi Kushi, I refrained from visiting Sushi Kushi San3 (Vernon Hills) for quite awhile simply because the name turned me off. How can a restaurant with such a cutesy name provide anything but designer Americanized sushi rolls and the like?

Well, when finally trying Sushi Kushi San3 (with other folks, their choice), I ordered the saba shioyaki (broiled mackerel) and while the quality wasn't quite up to Renga-Tei's in Lincolnwood, it was very good considering and a steal at $9.75 for the whole dinner. I have done carry-out on the saba many times since & have always been happy with it.

I agree that the quality of Aki Hana has slipped thru the years.
However, one thing they get right is beef teriyaki.While I know that is not sushi, it still remains a favorite for my children as that is what I would order for them when they were quite young to appease them while I got my sushi fix. I have looked and looked and no one serves beef teriyaki that tastes like theirs. I have tried multitudes of sauces at home, both bottled (yuk) and homemade.
I thought I would ask the ever talented group that hangs here.
Has anyone been able to come close to recreating Aki Hana of Wilmette's teriyaki sauce at home?

If you don't mind coming back towards the city "Renga Tei" located at the corner of Touhy and Crawford has the best sushi in all of Chicagoland.
The hostess is the only problem but when you get past her GAME ON. I've been to all the places talked about on this thread and I can assure you Renga Tei is far superior. You'll need reservations for Saturday and Sunday evenings.