One of my favorite places to have lunch. Every time we come to visit the area we make sure to stop here and have a lunch. The good is always delicious and the sushi is fresh. Great atmosphere. Highly recommend. read more

1) The lunchtime Bento Boxes on the cafe-side are good, but that's about it. They have surprised me with the quality of the Hirame (which is hard the get right in The Midwest), but that's not a regular occurrence. The only reason we come back is the lunchtime bento boxes and 20% off sushi. 2) This is, by far, the hippest, trendiest, flashiest, most stylish Teppanyaki/sushi place in Rockford, but unless you're in a first date/Prom Night/trying to impress, it's not a good thing. 3) The cafe/sushi side seems to be an obligatory add-on (although a hip & trendy add-on), that serves sushi, but not a real "Sushi Place" read more

I've eaten on the cafe side of this restaurant a few times. Can't speak to the fancier side with the performing chefs, as we haven't gotten over there yet. In the cafe we usually get the bento boxes - there's a variety of different ones available where you choose a main course and it comes with some fruit, sushi, miso soup, whitefish and salad. The sushi is decent - I wouldn't call it great or anything but it's tasty enough. The miso soup is excellent. The whitefish is pretty blah, tastes like it came out of a box. Service ranges from good to awful. Last time we had to constantly ask for things like dishes for the soy sauce, for wasabi, etc., and then the wait staff kind of hovered around and interrupted our conversation at bad moments and grabbed plates away almost before we were done. The restaurant is beautifully decorated, especially the lobby area. Be warned that the cafe side does get really noisy when it's crowded so you're probably going to have to listen to a lot of silly women discussing their kids, or worse yet have kids bobbing around past your table, when you go in the afternoon. read more

Love Charlie! Ask for him! He is funny and cooked our food perfect! Our filet was medium & perfectly tender. Most fun I've had there. Thanks Charlie! read more

JMK Nippon - Love Charlie! - Japanese Near Me - Rockford, Illinois

Great place and great food. Nice atmosphere and good staff...Legendary in the Rockford area!

This place is amazing. I absolutely love this place. Not only is it beautiful inside, it is delicious. I always go to the grill side. It's cool and fun. Also, it has a koi pond under the walkway in the entrance, it's beautiful. You can also get some Japanese candy in the front, along with chopsticks and other cute things. read more

This restaurant is my first choice in the area for sushi and Japanese/fusion cuisine. The service has been great every time I've been here, and the food is delicious. I keep coming back to have a bowl of udon or unagi maki. So far I have not tried the hibachi grill. They have plenty of options to explore on the menu, and it's not likely you will get bored. I am impressed with the care that goes into preparing the meals, and I love the attention to detail where flavors and presentation are concerned. To add to that - the place is very clean, the atmosphere is not stifling even when full of guests, and I have no negative comments about the establishment itself either. Very accessible and inviting. read more

if you want a real hibachi experience dont come to jmk nippon it was absolutely the worst experience ever!! not once did the chef introduce himself! the chef ignored me and my friend the entire night! spoke spanish the entire time we were there! you would have thought that he knew the other customers the way he entertained their side of the table! he had his back turned to us the entire time! the only time the chef spoke to me and my friend was to ask if we wanted more sauce before he exited the table! when we were asked about the chef service we were completely honest and we told the waiter that he was absolutely horrible! the waiter went to go get the manager and she came to ask us what happened we expressed our unpleasant experience to her! and she then asked if we could describe what the chef looked like! sadly we could'nt give a proper description because we only seen the backside of the chef the entire night! the manager said that she would go see exactly what happened when she spoke with her chef and get back to us! she never came back the waiter had to get her once again! and when she returned this time she had an entire attitude! then proceeds to tell me and my friend that the chef said that the other party was asking him questions about him! and thats still unacceptable because not once did he give us the same opportunity to ask him anything! and then she continues on and says that the hibachi chefs dont have to speak to the table if they dont want too! but thats exactly what baffles me because thats what you pay for when you choose to sit grill side! the show! the experience! the razzle dazzle! and if that is the case then they should not offer the hibachi "grill side show" they should just cook everything in the kitchen! the manager continues to say that next time it will will be better. which is also a lie because i was just there a month ago for a birthday celebration and they said the same thing! they were completely racist towards my friend (the birthday girl) and her entire birthday party! the majority of the party didn't bother to eat their food because the experience was just that horrible!!! everything from the experience to the food which came out under cooked by the way was absolutely horrific!!! i came back thinking maybe things will be different this time like they promised! but clearly this restaurant is all about making false promises that they will never keep!! and dont tell them that your service was anything less than great cause their entire staff will gang up on you like thugs!! the manager and the staff was every bit of rude even threatened to call the police on us and proceeded to lie and say that we were causing a disturbance! jmk service has changed tremendously! the quality has went down drastically! jmk nippon is nothing more than a unfriendly, regrettable, low down, inattentive, racist, poor quality, byass, lousy, inconsistent, cringe worthy, sleazy, uptight restaurant! read more

I've got a soft spot for this place and it's not even that great. Service is the biggest failure here. Hibachi grills get smokey and you will have a piece of JMK on you when you leave. I've pigged out on a lot of sushi and hibachi at this place. They could probably stand to innovate a little bit, but people keep coming back so what's the point? read more

For starters, Sushi is 20A% off here during lunch, and the prices are pretty good even before that discount! That being said, I haden't been here in a few years because I had thought they were over priced. Apparently I remembered wrong. I just went again today. Anyway, they're okay. Absolutely hands down top choice if you're looking for a 'show' more than dinner, but the food itself is average - note...I'm saying it's good food, just nothing you're going to remember *taste wise* as being incredible. My fried rice was a bit on the 'mushy' side (much like a well prepared TV dinner fried rice), and the sushi was pretty much what I would expect anywhere. The calamari was GREAT, albeit different. (Personally, I like the way they do it - they just use the legs, cut into fish-stick sized pieces) The prices are also pretty decent. I've actually avoided this place for a while because I had remembered it being incredibly expensive - it was not. A spider roll, a spicy tuna roll, calamari, and fried rice ran a total of 17 bucks at lunch - not bad! Oh yeah - one other thing....given that they cook everything right in front of you and use a crap ton of oil to make a lot of flames (again, it's about showmanship here!), you probably will have a *faint* smell of what you eat on you for the rest of the day. Nothing that will turn heads at work, but if so much as a faint hint of your food bothers you/makes you self conscious, go for dinner - not lunch. IN ENDING....they put on a great show, the exterior and lobby are great, and the dining area itself is average (like the food), but you probably won't notice with the dim lighting and 3 foot flames shooting up while the cook makes the food in front of you. :) I will certainly be back. It's okay for the price, and a decent place to go when nobody in your group can make up their mind on where to have lunch or dinner at. read more

I came here for lunch with a few family members. The ambiance is really nice and staff was very welcoming. Our server always checked on us and I'm the type of customer that likes that so she was great. Food was great as well, from the sushi to the udon noodles, everything came in a timely manner. Overall, great place for lunch and the sushi is 20% off too. read more

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Easily the best meal you can have in Rockford! I'll start with the food. I have been to JMK countless times, and the food has always been cooked and seasoned absolutely perfect. If you want a guaranteed, amazing meal, this is the place to go. The steaks are always tender and juicy, and (unlike a lot of Japanese restaurants) when you order medium-rare/well/medium-well, etc...that's what you're going to get. The environment is perfect for any occasion. You can sit at a hibachi grill, meet new people and enjoy a show. You can sit in the restaurant section on the other side of the restaurant and enjoy a quieter more private meal. Or if you're a busy man like myself you can order takeout on the phone, go pick it up, and set up a nice table at home for you and your special someone. No matter what you choose, the food is going to be great and you're going to have a good time. The service has been quick and extremely friendly every time I've been there, but I am incredibly handsome so I'm used to this behavior. The chiefs at the grills are funny, interactive, and they each bring a different style to the table so you will not see the same show twice. The waiters/waitresses are quick and attentive, but they don't come around so often that you can't maintain a conversation. The architecture is beautiful, the food is great, and it's reasonably priced. What more could you want? read more

TERRIBLE! Lack of entertainment and poor customer service. Save your money and go to Shogun or even Hu-Hut. Our waitress was extremely rude, and very short with us. We received our drinks 20 mins after sitting down, although they were not busy. We were not even sure if we received everything with our dinner due to the waitress being so short. We ordered sushi and received it halfway through our presentation (which was very bland, boring and no different than going to Hu-Hut - NOT ENTERTAINING AT ALL). We received our rice very last as the meal was completed. Meal cost for 2 was $75.00 (4 beers, split dinner for two and 2 sushi rolls) and not worth $50.00. I called Shawn, the manager the next day and he was more determined to point out what we could of done to make our experience better vs. what they cold do to keep our service. read more

i should preface this by saying that I've lived in Japan for over 3 years. The sushi is... solidly american. It's definitely not bad. You can most definitely get your sushi fix here without any problems. However, the sashimi is borderline. I always question how fresh/safe it is when I put it in my mouth. I also keep on wanting to try the sukiyaki and the shabushabu but every time i've been there the waiter gets a panicked look on their face when I mention it (along with almost any other truly japanese dish). I did see one table get the sukiyaki and it actually looked and smelled decent, so if I'm ever back, I'm doing it. So, if you know your Japanese food stay away. If you don't.... you'll be fiiiiiiiine. +1 star for the rural location, b/c food always sucks in the middle of nowhere read more

JMK!!! The place to go for sushi when your in the Rockford, IL area... Can't go wrong read more

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Hibachi grill dinners here are always fun. The chef does cool tricks while cooking and makes for good entertainment. Our chef was very funny and made cooking multiple meals seem easy. We really enjoyed ourselves and the food was impeccable. My reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is as follows. We had reservations for 7:30 but weren't seated until 815. Once seated, our chef didn't arrive to begin cooking until 8:45. By the time everything was finished and we were eating it was 9:20-9:30. We weren't out of the restaurant until close to 10pm. My husband made the reservations for us thinking we would be done and out of there by 9 because he had to work the next day. Also, I was thinking I would be eating by 8:30 easily so I didn't have a snack or anything... hence, by the time the chef showed up I was thinking about grabbing the raw shrimp off his tray, dipping it in butter and eating that! If arriving on a Friday or Saturday, eat in advance and take those reservations with a grain of salt! read more

My drink was watered down, the salad was drenched in dressing, the soup they brought out was just an empty broth, the steak was flavorless the scallops were alright. Worst was the chef had no personality. He just cooked everything & never interacted with us. Had a better time @ Shogun & they have a more diverse menu. read more

Service has always been great and the prices are very reasonable. Best place to get sushi.

JMK is good for two things: the hibachi experience and their basic sushi. If you are coming here for a special occasion, their hibachi grills are fun and pretty nice. However, what I most often come here for is the sushi. I am a usually a fan of the more fancy sushi rolls, but this place is great for the cheaper basic rolls. Their masa and california rolls are both less than $5, but each roll is really big and stuffed and tastes so much better than the basic rolls at other sushi places. I do not know why I love them so much, but this is the place I go if I want a really cheap but still very satisfying sushi roll. I get both for about $8, which is a steal for good sushi. I would recommend it! Additionally, the atmosphere here is great and it is a really nice place to go, whether you want to sit on the grill side, the cafe side, or outside. read more

Always a meal we love to enjoy when coming back to the hometown. We love the salad dressing and onion soup, and Kentucky sushi roll as appetizers with our Sukiyaki steak and shrimp I dip everything in the "yummy yummy" sauce. Sit on the cafe side if you don't care to watch your meal prepared/ don't want to share a stove-top table with others! The same hibachi menu is served on the cafe side as well as another menu full of bento boxes and more. They do a fun birthday celebration with pineapple slices and a Japanese song if you want to make a meal special for someone! read more

I really enjoy the food at JMK , but the service can be hit or miss. We usually sit on the sushi side and the waitstaff congregate in the corner chitchatting while customers are needing service. Management needs to make sure that the waitstaff is attentive and not just hanging out passing the time. Like I said, I love the food, but the service kinda kills it for me. read more

I was passing through Rockford this weekend and had a chance to eat here. I was very pleasantly surpised at how good this place was. The atmosphere of this place is amazing - they have a beautiful outdoor patio where you can sit and watch coy fish swimming in a small pond and waterfalls and other great things to look at throughout the rest of the place. I ordered a noodle dish and some sushi on the side. The veggies in my noodles were fresh and crisp and the flavors were great. The sushi was good and not expensive compared to Chicago. IIf you find yourself in Rockford, try this place out. read more

JMK is another Rockford staple and I absolutely love going there. The restaurant itself is beautiful and extremely large. The service is great, the waitstaff is attentive and knowledgeable as well. The chefs are always super friendly and I have had many of them tell jokes to keep you entertained throughout the meal. The drink selection is fantastic, I love the drinks that you can order in the ceramic mugs that you can take home. I have a collection of them that I keep at my house. The food itself is awesome. The steaks are super tender (I usually always get the filet, which is probably why) and I've had the shrimp and chicken before, which are both moist and excellent. I also love their large sushi selection. I am not a big sushi aficionado by any means, so take my opinion with a grain of salt haha. I love the surf and turf roll, which is a cooked roll that is fried in tempura. It's a massive roll (and fairly expensive) but it is quite good. I mostly prefer cooked sushi (which is not really the point of sushi haha) and everything I've had from there has been fresh and delicious. JMK can be a little on the expensive side, but I think it's definitely worth it and will continue going there. read more

absolutely LOVE this restaurant. I am never disappointed in this place. I am a sushi fanatic and I have tried a number of places all around the place. I also used to live in Chicago and I can say, hands down, this is the best sushi I have ever ate. I think you really get what you pay for. The prices are very reasonable, and the rolls are huge. I can never really finish my whole roll and I have left overs for later. would give this place 6 STARS if i could. read more

I've dined at JMK on numerous occasions when I'm in the Rockford area. I don't go to JMK for sushi so I will limit my review to the teppanyaki side of the restaurant. All the food items I've ordered have been great. Very difficult to complain about any aspect of the JMK experience. The restaurant is meticulously clean and the staff is always prompt and helpful. The presentation and the performance of the teppanyaki chef is always the same. Same flaming volcano. Same wild knife tricks. I did however get a glass of ice water during lunch that had a previous customers lipstick on it! Certainly not what I was hoping for, but the server promptly corrected the faux pas. If you are in the Rockford area, give JMK a try. read more

This review is for the cafe side only -- I don't do the hibachi grill thing, not when you have a cafe side this nice. Plus, added bonus, less of a wait. I went in on a Friday night with no reservation and my party of two was seated immediately. I've always loved eating in such a beautiful place, and I've always loved their sushi. I probably won't order the roll that had tempura batter around it, because for $12 I thought it was going to be freshly fried. Turns out it was cold and damp. But you know what? Now I know better. Next time I'm going to order like five of the vegetable tempura rolls because those were still hot when they came out, and that was freaking delicious. I'll always come here when I'm in town. Walked by a table on the way out with a mother and her young son frying their own meal on a small grill, and it was adorable and looked like a LOT of fun. read more

Date I ate: 9/21/09 Back on the road again and passing through Rockford again. I tried Shogun last time through and it was OK, but nothing exciting. Though the reviews are mixed for JMK, I figured I'd give it a shot and I'm glad I did. As most of the others have mentioned, this place is very stylish and attractive - great place for a date. As has also been mentioned, it has two sides - hibachi and sushi bar. I didn't try out the hibachi, so this review is just for the sushi. I ordered a Lobster Roll and a New Orleans Roll. Both were pretty tasty. The Lobster Roll was on the large side and priced as such (about $13). The New Orleans Roll was slightly smaller and a little bit spicier than I like, but it's hard for me to complain about a roll with crawfish in it - don't find those often enough. The rice was bland, which is not the way I like it, but the fillings were very tasty and the texture was just about perfect. I also tried some Kani Fried Rice as a side and it was ok but could've used more spice. I wonder what the Chicken Fried Rice would've been like - maybe next time. I'll definitely stop in at Jmk (what kind of name is that, btw??) next time I'm passing through. read more

I went here on a Saturday night with some friends who live in the area. They said that this is their go to restaurant in Rockford and I could see why. It has a really lovely atmosphere, great decor, much nicer than many of the hibachi restaurants I have been to. The food was really good. I had the fillet and scallop entree. The scallops were great, and the fillet even greater. My boyfriend had steak and chicken, his beef being a bit of a downgrade from the fillet, it was good but not great. Probably worth the five or so dollars to just get the fillet. read more

JMK is overpriced, but delivers quality sushi and teppan cuisine in Rockford. The food is sometimes a bit bland for my taste, however the ingredients are always fresh and of top quality, and the decor is very nice with beautiful and interesting artwork throughout the restaurant. For these reasons, I prefer JMK over Shogun for an upscale Japanese restaurant in Rockford I have dined her several times, both at the grill side where the chef cooks in front you, and at the cafe side. I have also enjoyed a couple nights with a large group of friends at the Karaoke bar, although the drinks are overpriced by $1-2 across the board for Rockford standards. Also, the restaurant/bar closes at 11 PM or so, which can interrupt the fun. The best time to go is during lunch, where they have "Bento Box" deals that have a nice combo of food including your choice of meat for $7-10. Anytime I have an afternoon off, I try to get over there with some friends for a "luncheon." read more

My boyfriend grew up in Poplar Grove and has been selling JMK to me ever since we started dating. Over a year and a half into us being together we finally get the opportunity to drive out to the burbs and have a lovely double date with his brother and his girlfriend at JMK. We grabbed a seat at the bar while waiting for the rest of our party. He grabbed a Mai Tai (well known for them, apparently) and I grabbed a drink made up mostly of SoCo and juice in a take-home ninja glass (because I'm a really sophisticated adult). We were sat quickly and taken care of very well throughout the dinner. I've eaten at a couple of hibachi restaurants before and this one was on par. I ordered the calamari dinner and the boy ordered the salmon steak. His brother and girlfriend ordered a couple of rolls of sushi to share. It wasn't until our cook got to our table and actually started the whole hibachi shindig until we got our sushi. They ordered a rainbow roll and spicy tuna and shared some with us. The rainbow roll was VERY fishy tasting. Not fresh, crisp, lovely fish but unimpressive bleh tasting fish. The spicy tuna was fine. That's about it. Our cook was really charming and kept us entertained the whole meal. I wish I hadn't ordered the calamari (pretty bland), but the few bites I stole of the boy's salmon steak were worth it. I was bummed that they cooked and served the rice last! And that they charge $2 extra for fried rice. Of course everyone wants fried rice. C'mon. It was a good time, but I'd go elsewhere for better sushi. read more

Finally had a chance to try JMK . I was impressed and see what all the hype is about. We had the dinner for 2 ,chicken & steak and upgraded to the filet mingon. The soup was very tasty, shrimp, chicken and steak was seasoned just right and tasted very good as well. We also had a godiva chocolate cheesecake which was very yummy. For drinks I had a Mai Tai and it was average, my fiance had a zombie drink that tasted a little on the strong side. Over all great experience, great resturant and we will be back. read more

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Stopped in for a birthday dinner with the family. They need to make it clear when you enter what you are coming for... if you are coming for Hibachi you go left, if you want Sushi (or a non habachi table) you go right. We had a variety of rolls, sashimi, tempura, and ramen. Everyone loved their meal, drinks were good, all the sushi was fresh and flavorful and quick out of the kitchen/sushi bar. We will definitely keep coming! The place is HUGE so even though the parking lot can look crowded from the road you can probably get a seat - this is important info because a few times we drove past the place thinking it was too busy. read more

The service was terrible! The Vegas roll was delicious!!! The food was not good and unseasoned. The drink server was rude and the cook was argumentative. The manager served the soup portion and his tie fell in the soup. We had a full table of guests and we left very unhappy. read more

The only reason JMK is getting 4/5 stars is because we had to wait 2 hours to be seated for our 7:30 reservation! Granted, it was Valentine's Day, but 2 hours. Jeez! We did have fun waiting in the bar though with probably an extra glass of wine or two. The food is always delicious. I tried sushi for the first time -- loved the tuna. The show is fun, but I have to stress that the food makes the whole trip worthwhile. Sometimes places like this can disappoint because you see the fab decor and performance and your expectations are immediately high, but I have never been underwhelmed here. read more

Good restaurant to eat. Lunch hour sushi 20% great deal. Like it. Never disappointed. read more

JMK Nippon - Japanese Near Me - Rockford, Illinois

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I've come here a number of times over the years. The food has always been tasty. My family and I really like it here. But, everytime were here, one specific manager (Brian I think), is yelling at the waitstaff. Dont know if it's terrible staff or just him, but you can even hear him from inside the kitchen. Once had to talk to him regarding a wrong dish for my daughter, and he was very rude. I've no idea how he became a manager, he has no idea how to talk to customers, and he ruined the evening for us. read more

Had lived in Japan for nearly ten years, JMK Nippon is as good as it gets in Rockford for food, ambience and environment. When I go there, I feel like I've stepped into a high end Japanese restaurant in Tokyo. The food is fresh, authentic, and tasty. I especially like the décor and atmosphere of the restaurant, which are paramount considerations in Japan, just as much as the freshness of the food. Sushi is only good if it is absolutely fresh. I wish they would establish a little izakaya in the area, just like they have in Japan with Yakitori and Nabe and other assorted Japanese bar dishes. read more

JMK is always my family's first option. We have been a customer for decades. John & Mas are always on top of their business to ensure quality food and trained workers. Look foretold seeing ya soon lol. read more

JMK Nippon - Dinner for two, always great! - Japanese Near Me - Rockford, Illinois

I love this place! When I lived in Elgin we would always go to Benihanas for special occasions and it was my absolute favorite! This place is pretty much the same but not as expensive. I recommend the Hibachi Steak and Chicken, can't go wrong with that! And the Ginger sauce is amazing! read more

Atmosphere: WONDERFUL! (It's a beautiful place) Teppan Table: The Best In Rockford Sushi/Sashimi: Hit and Miss (And I don't think Hit and Miss is something we are looking for with raw fish). All of this said, we have had many wonderful birthday celebrations here. Fun if you are looking for a Teppan Table Show! read more