Normally, I'd be a bit more effusive about a restaurant I love so much, but words don't do it justice. Best in Chicago.

We love this place. The food is amazing, and the house ponzu sauce is worth the visit alone! They are also excellent at accommodating gluten-free, even for their Okashi menu. The saki options are also excellently curated. read more

This place really exceeded my expectations. So I'm from California and exclusively went to one place to get sushi because it was the best. Since moving out here, I've been trying to find my new go-to sushi spot. While Kai Zan won't be that new go-to spot because it's price range is a little high for that, this place is AMAZING for a special occasion! Both my partner and I got their traditional Omakaze menu, and course after course they just knocked my socks off! The menu had the perfect flow of fresh to sweet to acidic, ending with a beautiful plate of sashimi. Even my partner, who isn't the biggest sushi lover, walked away enjoying "90%" of his meal - which is pretty darn good. Everything was fresh and soft and delicate with explosive flavor! Some of my own favorites off the menu were the shooters (because I love squishy things with vinegar) and the orange crush which was salmon wrapped around a scallop. Like previous reviews have said, you do get a lot of food for the price. This is not a tiny bite per course for 10 courses, you do really eat your fill! We were full by course 8 but kept trucking because everything was so darn tasty. The service here was also stellar, they explained every course as it was brought and our waters and teas were always full. Thanks for an amazing meal Kai Zan, you made my birthday very special!! read more

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One of the best sushi I have ever tasted! It's a small but quaint restaurant. Service is very accommodating and friendly. I ordered the Premium Omakase for $120 (but prices range on what they are serving that day). They were also offering a regular Omakase for $65 with some alternative options to share. But I must say, the Premium Omakase was impecable. My favorite was the sashimi and nghiri platter. The fish was so fresh and flavorful. You can taste the quality and detail put into each dish. Also, their uni was on point and also delicious! Overall: Amazing sushi and a wonderful dining experience! read more

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The omakase experience here is great! It was more than i could eat, and I can eat. Come with a group, order some sake, and settle in for a great meal! read more

KAI ZAN - Sushi course. So good. - Asian Fusion Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Japanese fusion that even Asian would like. Not a lot of items on the menu but everything we ordered was fantastic, the rolls, the uni, the nigiri! The waygu fried rice was also nice, definitely will come back! read more

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Tasty sushi but I feel like it's for more first time sushi eaters. I recommend making reservations because this place fills up fast. We decided with the $65 omakase with the $5 uni toppings. I thought all the sushi and sashimi were amazing and loved everything from it. The shooters were the best part! The carpaccio was flavorful and bomb. The cooked stuff was just aight and nothing memorable. I also didn't like how fast our food was coming out for an omakase experience! The service was excellent and very attentive. For my next visit, I'll try the premium omakase! read more

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The freshest of fresh fish. Absolutely delicious, and creative. And I love that it's two brothers running the restaurant and sharing their vision with Chicago! Highly recommend the omasake. read more

Hands down my favorite Japanese place in town. Having been in Chicago for four years, somehow I have never been to Kai Zan, but this visit completely wowed me. We sat at the bar seats and got to see how the chefs prepared for each course. I would highly recommend getting the omakase (or the premium one if you have tried the original omakase but wanted more high end / sophisticated raw materials to start with). Food is served to you in a super organized structure, and you won't experience a long gap or need to wait between two courses for sure. My favorite dish would probably be the uni tartare that's off the omakase menu. The uni has a super rich, satisfying texture - wrapping the tartare in the crunchy seaweed adds another layer to it! Within the omakase menu, the first couple of appetizers are simply amazing. The last couple of main dishes could be a bit salty. Overall, great experience and I'll be back again! This restaurant is definitely on par with momotaro, if not better. Also, remember to get the lava cake!! I love Japanese desserts and the lava cake here paired with black sesame ice cream will wrap up your dinner pretty well, and send you home with a happy tummy. :) read more

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We got the omakase and it was absolutely worth it! Very cute place with great service.

It was incredible to have a great Omakase experinece only for $69 per person! It was really excellent than my expectation. It is not a traditional Omakase, but still perfect. Especially, the soy sauce served with Nigiri was incredibly delicious. Very impressive! I want to recommend this place to students for celebrating thier anniversaries. The price is not too high, and the restaurant atmosphere is pretty cute. I really wanted to give 5 stars for this restaurant, but the oysters in Shooters was so bad. It was too fishy. I think for improving its taste, they need to use small ices into this dish. It was too warm, so it could not catch the fishyness even though they used Tabasco and lemon juice. Also, the salmon and the tuna of Sashimi was not that fresh too. It was too visible to notice that the tuna was just defrozen, and the salmon was just okay. It was not fishy, but does not have salmon's own special aroma. So, I guess the salmon's quality was just soso. Except these two things, everything was really beautiful. Oh, and the Strawberry sorbet flavored Mochi Icecream was so good too. I will definitely have this again. Actually, I wanted to reservate Omakase Yume or Omakase Takeya for our White Valentines Day, but both were fully booked, so I booked here. But, it was really NICE choice. We are really satisfied with the Omakase experience. I will definitely come again to have the Chef's special Omakase for next time since I can trust here's chefs! Thank you for the great experience!! read more

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The Omakase menu was absolutely incredible as was the service. Definitely the best sushi I've had.

This is one of those places I have yearned to try for a few years and I have either had plans canceled or was just plain lazy or could not find a reservation within the time frame I would like to eat. Well that has all come to an end now!!!! I got the chance to come by this past Tuesday with a 7pm reservation with my very good friend. Not the biggest place but very nice looking and a bit fancier than your normal sushi joint. We were lucky enough to get one of the booths which was awesome. Our server was pretty much on point and basically walked us through the best option which was about 10 courses for $65 each...done!!!! To try so much for $65 at this place is a helluva deal! Started out with the Madai Carpaccio (Japanese red snapper, basil, olive oil and black tobiko) and it was a nice starter and we both enjoyed. Next up was the escolar and maguro rolls with truffle oil which were very good..actually we were like wow we should stop here if it gets better than this. Angry Crab was next as its basically spicy crab wrapped in tuna with spicy mayo and tempura...pretty decent. The Shooters were pretty nice as they came in the form of a shot and they included oysters and scallops, quail egg, black tobiko, ponzu sauce, scallions and tobasco....woooo that was good. Probably the best 4 shots I've ever taken. Orange Rush was next and it was seared scallops and salmon which was good Tuna Dashi was amazing and a break in the action. It was a broth with shitake mushrooms, little neck clams and tuna....It was very good and flavorful AF Main Dish was tako wasabi, shrimp and pork belly on a stick...good...the wasabi was nice! Fiesta Maki was good and had a bit of a spice to it Dynamyte Mussels were definitely dynamite as they included scallion mayo, black tobiko and masago...very good flavor...probably the best mussels I've had! Assorted Sashimi closed out the courses and it was very good. I washed it all down with a 2016 Summer Water rose'...2 glasses did the trick. My buddy had a blanc and he said it was one of the best he has had. This place was well worth my 5 year wait to try it out and is now my favorite sushi place in the city! Multiple visits will probably be made within the next few months! read more

Best sushi in Chicago! The quality of the seafood was amazing and it was so good that it will be hard to enjoy other sushi in the area. Everything was unique, creative, and had well balanced flavor. Despite the limited selection of maki the fiesta maki and flaming tuna maki were the two favorite things we got. They both had a ton of fish and such great flavor. I will definitely be going back and would recommend to any sushi lover. read more

Wow, was this good. Easily one of the best dining of experiences I have had, and THAT is saying a lot. This dinner vaulted into my all time Top Ten. My wife and I were in town with our daughter, who was running in the Chicago Marathon. Along with her boyfriend and two others, we had six people in the private booth. I ordered two bottles of Prosecco, which I learned years ago is the perfect counter point to sushi (go figure), then we proceeded to order round after round of recommended 6 pieces plates. A few merited the 'encore' round, as in, 'hey Brian (our great waiter), bring another platter of whatever that was'. Folks don't ask me to recommend anything, because it's all a wonderful blur. Too bad, I don't live here, cause I'd be back over and over and over again. read more

One of the best sushi experiences I've had! We sat at the sushi bar and enjoyed talking to the chefs and watching them prepare our meal. The restaurant is small and intimate with great service. The omakase is reasonably priced for the quality and amount of food you get. Everything was presented beautifully and each course was unique and delicious. The angry crab, orange rush, escolar and maguro pearls and shooters were extremely memorable - a must order if you opt for the a la carte menu. Looking forward to our next visit! read more

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Really enjoyed the experience at Kai Zan. I was pleasantly surprised by each dish in the Omakase. Service was also pleasant and professional. Three stars because everyone in the group wanted the Omakase, but could not order it. That was the group's specific goal of visiting the restaurant. I would like to visit again, but don't want to risk the same disappointment of not being able to order the very dish we came for. read more

Best Japanese restaurant for the quality, value, and taste! Great sake selection as well.

Splendid experience, 100% recommend! We ordered the Chef's Choice Omakase & it is definitely the way to go! You will have a perfectly coursed out meal that is truly DELICIOUS, diverse & so, so fresh! The $65 price tag seems fair (and maybe even cheap) considering the quality of food & thought put into the creation of the meal! After every course, my husband and I had a new favorite dish! It got better and better as it went. While each dish is a smaller-bite sized portion, there are enough dishes & spaced out nicely that you really do leave satisfied. Pair your meal with some of the plentiful sake or wine options & you have the recipe for a great night out! I absolutely plan on coming back and trying out the Premium Omakase! read more

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Amazing sushi! Run don't walk! The omakase menu is the best I've ever had!! Fantastic staff, casual and lively setting and a good price for the quality of food you get!! read more

This is a somewhat unconventional review. We went here for our 5-year anniversary two weeks ago. Everything was great, until my wife started feeling terribly ill. She ended up passing out on the counter, and we left the restaurant about 6 courses into the Omasake. We still don't quite know what happened. She is not allergic to oysters or any of the other fish we had. The symptoms that followed for the next two weeks or so are consistent with ingesting bad shellfish, but we don't know for sure (especially given the super fast reaction) and I suppose will never know. The reason for this review, however, is that in retrospect, I am woefully disappointed at how the staff at the restaurant reacted to the whole ordeal. To their credit, they asked if we wanted to call an ambulance, but we had already called an Uber to go to urgent care. But this is where the support ended -- the chefs didn't react at all, we actually had to pay the bill in full, and in my state of concern we paid the entire thing plus tip. It irks me to this day that the staff thought it appropriate to charge and run the credit card for the full amount while we were desperate and figuring out what to do, halfway through the meal. I don't know if charging full price in this situation is fair or not - maybe it is. You can decide for yourself, but we're not going back. read more

Excellent restaurant. Request a booth, the seating and ambiance are comfy and elegant. The Fuji apple cake is delicious. I love the maki roll with salmon skin. The oysters dynamite are scrumptious. read more

Last week was my 3rd time coming to Kai Zan for their omikase menu and once again, they did not disappoint. This is probably one of the best Japanese cuisines in Chicago. First, I cannot stress enough to make reservations. The restaurant is quite small so if you walk in, it may not be possible to get a table. When you do make a reservation, they only allow for your party to sit for 1.5 hours. This allows for them to turn the table over for the next guest. If you make a reservation with a larger party, they will likely take your credit card information. Now the food. You can order the omikase menu or you could choose to order off the regular menu. I definitely have to come back and order the normal menu. Do not fear the omikase. The chef/staff will work with you if there are certain things you don't like or have allergies. They were able to tailor the menu for me so that I didn't miss out on the goodness. Out of the 10 items, my favorite were the escolar pearls. They will render you speechless. They lightly torch the escolar and give it a smoky flavor. To top it off, the pearls are accompanied with an amazing truffle soy sauce. I could just order a plate of those. The crab wrapped in raw tuna, sushi, sashimi and hot dishes were also amazing. Some of the 10 dishes may be small, but don't let that fool you. I could not even finish my 10rh course! Needless to say, you don't have to twist my arm to come back here! read more

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The best food in chicago! From start to finish, best hospitality, ask for Daniel, he'll curate an experience you'll never forget!

If price is no object I would say definitely give this place a try. While the food was really well done and fresh, I would say the value was on the spendy side. A lot of things you order are like 1 or two bites and range anywhere from 11-20 dollars. The fish was fresh and the flavors were good for the most part, some highlights were the Angry Crab bites and the Oyster shooters. The atmosphere was super cute and intimate, would be great for a date night but I wouldn't come here with a large group. read more

I wish I can put zero stars. We made a reservation weeks in advance for friends from out of town and when we came to the restaurant they told us they cancelled our reservation. They wouldn't even admit it was their fault. We paid $60 Uber each way and we were left with no options for dinner on a Friday night. read more

This place is awesome! You can't even tell what it is from outside which gives it an awesome casual vibe. Do the omakase if you are super hungry. The fatty tuna is absolutely spectacular! Our waiter was awesome and explained everything perfectly. read more

Their nigiri and sashimi keep us coming back. Hard to get a reservation but worth the wait!

Holy moly wagyu! We did the premium Omakase here tonight and it was delightful! It was $120 per person for the premium Omakase and it was worth the price tag considering the quality of ingredients. My favorites definitely were the nigiri composed of the fatty tuna (otoro), smoked lobster with fish roe, hamachi and then the wagyu. Each piece progressively got better with each bite. I also enjoyed the salmon, tofu and truffles with the shiro miso and dashi stock poured over it. The sashimi platter was amazing, I couldn't figure out what piece I wanted to savor last! Overall it was a great experience. Im curious to see what the chefs choice Omakase entails since it seems like it was such a great value at only $65. I might have to come back for that one! read more

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Small place, make sure to make a reservation and request a booth for the perfect date night. Go for the the Chef's Omakase for a little taste of everything. I especially loved the unique ingredient combinations (like polenta wrapped in escolar) and the beautiful plating. read more

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The quality of the ingredients, the spectacular presentation of the dishes, and the relaxing atmosphere makes Kai Zan one of the best restaurants in Chicago. I went with a group of four and we were seated in one of their private booths. Our server was friendly and made some great recommendations. The 10 course Omakase is around $65 and is well worth it. I'm personally new to seafood and didn't want to commit to my own Omakase so our server had suggested that I join my husband's for an additional $15. We shared most of the courses and the courses that were meant to be enjoyed as single bites (ex: angry crab), they brought out an additional "bite" for me. In addition to the Omakase we also ordered all three of the daily specials. If you're there and they have Wagyu, go for it! It was $10 per piece but it was well worth it. Their taro chip special was great too, it reminded me of ceviche. If you like seafood, I suggest the Omakase. If you're on the fence like me, skip the Omakase and order à la carte. Although I enjoyed most of the courses, I couldn't stomach the oyster shooters and didn't enjoy the orange rush (sushi scallops wrapped in salmon). Again, I didn't enjoy these dishes because I don't love seafood, not because they weren't good. If you only get one thing, let it be the Escolar pearls. It's quite easily one of my favorite dishes of all time! Tips: It's BYOB (limit of 2 bottles) It's popular (make your reservations in advance) Go with a group (So you can be seated in a private booth) read more

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Always the best! We have never been disappointed by a visit to Kai Zan. Not like any other sushi restaurant you have ever been to - simply a must if you can get in. read more

KAI ZAN - Asian Fusion Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

How have I not already written a review of Kai Zan! This is hands down my favorite sushi and fancy dining restaurant in Chicago. This is the Uchi of Chicago with it's quality and artful dishes. A very intimate and personalized eating experience. You MUST get the omakase for $65 (one day, I'll splurge for the premium omakase!!) and treat yourself to the chef's delights. I've even took the omakase menu home so I can occasionally reminisce on these tasteful bites. NOTE: You have to make reservations which quickly fill up well in advance. My most recent experience at Kai Zan, my boyfriend and I were seated at the bar right in front of the chefs for dinner and a show! Service is very attentive, friendly and happy to answer questions, explain each dish in detail or make accomodations. Also offered is an uni upgrade to the shooters dish The omakase included the Madai Carpaccio, Escolar & Maguro pearls, Angry Crab (sushi bite) Oyster and Scallop shooters (yum!), Orange Rush (scallop bite), Tuna Dashi (subtle but delicious soup), Main (bites of shrimp, char siu, tako yaki octupus ball, and tako wasabi salad), Fiesta Maki (sushi roll), Dynamyte Mussels, and a Sashimi assortment - my kind of dessert! Literally no complaints. Even as a repeat customer, I'm consistently impressed with their creativity and commitment to the art of sushi. Perfect for special occasions for your loved ones. read more

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Never disappoints. The freshest sushi in chicago! Every single menu item is so perfectly curated and I've never had anything below phenomenal. My personal favorite is to order the chef Omakase because you get to try all the most popular menu items. read more

I love this place! It's expensive, but so worth it. Each dish is unique and scrumptious. It's hard to get reservations since the place is quite small, but once you do... don't turn back! Definitely worth the wait, the time and money. read more

Been here half a dozen times and always absolutely fantastic. Food, service and ambiance - does not get any better. Would give 10 stars if I could... Thank you Chef Carlo - we will see you again soon read more

Made a same week reservation and secured a 4:30pm dinner reservation for Saturday. I was a bit put off by the time we were given. I was thinking to myself is that considered dinner or a late lunch? But I really wanted to treat my bf to omakase for our 4 year anniversary so took it anyways. After all, it's my fault to making the last minute reservation. We tried the chef's menu and premium menu. The chef's menu is $65 for 10 courses. The premium menu is double the price with the same number of courses, but not twice the quality. For some reason, they don't print out the premium menus either. I would stick to the chef's menu. Food was fresh and delicious; a great value for omakase style. It's easily one of the better Japanese restaurants in the city. My favorites were the escolar & maguro pearls (2nd) and fiesta maki (8th). On the premium menu, the most memorable items were the fresh wasabi where the wasabi is cut up in tiny chunks, and the dessert which was ice-cream with passion fruit pure and crumble. If I'm paying $120 for a multi-course meal and stating the most memorable items being a condiment and ice-cream, I think it's safe to conclude it just didn't blow me away. To sum up the experience, we were running 5 minutes late, and when I called to let them know, I was told we had 90 minutes to finish and we might not get seated if we don't get there soon. A friend of mine who went recently said she had 2 hours to eat, so it's not the case everyday. Perhaps it's just a Saturday thing since there're more diners so they have to be rigid in sticking to the schedule. The staff choreographed beautifully in bringing out the dishes and taking them away promptly, but we felt rushed. The bill was handed to us at 6pm sharp. They asked if I was celebrating a special occasion the day before when they called to confirm my reservation. I told them my anniversary. When dinner was done, we ordered a dessert (additional one outside of the omakase meals), but there was no effort put into decorating the dessert, and we ended up paying for it. I'll admit that I'm used to restaurants now waving the cost of the dessert for special occasions or at lease decorating it, but either way, why ask me if I'm celebrating anything if they don't plan on doing anything for the guests? We walked out a little after 6pm and it was still bright. It was the strangest feeling since that's normally when dinner starts. Warning: make your reservations a month early for those coveted weekend dinner seats, or get stuck with a late lunch time like what I had. read more

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Truly the best sushi in Chicago... possibly the best I've had in all my travels also. The staff is outstanding.. the service is wonderful and their timing runs like a well oiled machine. Perfect in every way! We each did the 10 course menu and for around $70 each an amazing way to sample the best of this business! We also ordered desert...the lava cake and green matcha tea creme brulee at the servers suggestion. Favorites included the angry crab, orange rush and escolar& maguro pearls. We substituted the shooters for chef choice rolls. One was blackened tuna... fabulous! Incredible dining experience.. we will be back! Byob with $10 corkage fee also. read more

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So I booked a trip to Chicago as a surprise for my wife on Mother's Day. The main purpose of our trip was to eat our way through chicago. We're both sushi snobs and have eaten omakase everywhere. So we arrived in Chicago from Houston today. And took out uber with our 9 month old son to the restaurant. On the way there, I called to tell them I was running 15 mins. They told me no problem and that the kitchen hood was messed up so they could only make cold items which was okay I guess. On our last trip to Chicago, we are here twice we liked it so much. So this time around, we were super excited and had our list ready to order. 2 blocks before we got to the restaurant, they called and said they're closing the restaurant due to issues. I asked for a reschedule Sunday or Monday but unfortunately, they're closed those days and we have to return to Houston on Monday. So my wife and I and our 9 month old son are kinda bitter and pissed. I showed up. We explained our whole situation. The owner and sushi chef came out and was super understanding and apologetic. We showed him our list on our phone of the items we wanted to order and he determined what he could and couldn't make. We waited and he came back with two bags of to go. He even comped it because we had to take. $25 uber there and $20 back. We felt better but we're still not satisfied because we didn't get our full menu of everything we wanted. We tipped $20 and left. We're now back at the hotel and even to-go, this is the hands-down best sushi restaurant in the USA. Order these items below. The chef made us what he could have an it was to die for. My pictures don't do their sushi ANY justice. Try this place. We literally booked a trip from houston just to eat here because we love it that much. Maguro and escolar pearls Uni shooters, oyster scallop shooter DIY toro handrolls Tuna belly King crab and uni cucumber roll Angry crab Dark chocolate Vietnamese coffee Mochi Madai carpaccio  Orange rush Wagyu pearl Lobster uni caviar Hotate read more

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LITERALLY the best place EVER! The food was uhmazing! The atmosphere=Gorge! Our server, Danielle, was so knowledgeable and every single thing he recommended was better than he could even describe! Can't wait to go back! read more

KAI ZAN - Asian Fusion Near Me - Chicago, Illinois