Wow, what a find in the Bridgeport area. When you think of bridgeport you really don't think about a great sushi place. I was really impressed with their all you cna eat deal. However, be warned, if you over order, they will charge you per piece and you can not take anything to go off that menu. So be careful. The sushi was great, the soup was great, salad was ok and the service was excellent. read more

I live 2 blocks away and it took me a year and a half to try. I have no idea why. Cute and clean decor, good service, absolutely delicious sushi at reasonable prices. I had the sweet potato & the Hawaiian Roll, both were some of the most delicious sushi I've ever had. I'll be back soon! read more

South Kawa - Japanese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I went here today with a friend on a Groupon deal. The service was wonderful especially since it was a bit crowded. For an appetizer we ordered the Shumai which came pretty fast but was piping hot and very tasty. As far as the sushi goes, I thought 3 of the 4 rolls we ordered were amazing. We had the spicy tune, shrimp tempura, Grayslake, and the Sweet Sixteen. I thought the Grayslake roll was a little bland which was a bit disappointing because it was said to be the most popular. Overall, the service here is great. The servers are very attentive and welcoming. The food was tasty for the most part and came almost as quickly as the appetizer. I will definitely be visiting again. read more

Solid sushi. Decent prices, nice staff. Not too busy. Sunny roll is a gem, salmon was buttery and yummy.

We were surprised and a little hesitant about a sushi place in Bridgeport, especially when we walked in on a Friday night and it was empty. But we were blown away by the quality of the food. We didn't get any rolls but the sushi (sashimi on rice - I've always thought it was called nigiri), was amazing, perfect size and melted in your mouth. My boyfriend ordered the oyster and couldn't stop talking about it. The staff was friendly and laid back. This space needs to stay open, not only is it amazing but it's in Bridgeport. read more

I've been dying to try this place because it's the nearest sushi place around my mom's house. I finally went today and we ordered the $28 entree (sorry forgot what it was called) but it came with a soup and salad. The entree should say it's for one person only because when the server brought our food it only came with one miso soup and I had to order an extra one for my husband. The water here is AMAZING! I think it's like cucumber infused water. Besides the water the sushi was ok but nothing out of the norm. read more

South Kawa - Japanese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I LOVE LOVE their shrimp tempura it's definitely my go to! Their rock shrimp is also good love the spicy sauce to it. I just hate how when I order take out my shushi rolls are sloppy made, just because I'm ordering take out does not mean I don't deserve my rolls to be nice and tight. read more

I tend to only write a review when a place stands out- either good or bad. Today, South Kawa pleasantly surprised my fiancé and I. We had the Tiger roll, Volcano, Grayslake roll and a salmon and cucumber roll. ALL were delicious. We've become sushi become sushi snobs over the years with 2-3 regular spots. We've happily added another place to our list! read more

We keep coming back here since it's sooo good. I finally felt brave enough to get the sea urchin 'roe' - Uni. I've had it once and it was amazing - the sweet, savory, fishy delishiousness. I since have forgotten where we got it and couldn't find it again... Until now. Ok so you are eating something called "sea urchin gonads" if you try to find this online - but ignore that for a second.... It tastes amazing, kinda sweet, like mushed up roe but different. All the sushi is amazing, the fish has always been fresh, melt in your mouth kind of thing. The Fallen Angel roll tastes decadent and very good. We usually go for the raw fish and every time it has been flavorful and fresh. We also had hand rolls and either salmon or spicy tuna have been delicious. Their fried cheese cake desert thing is decadent and amazing if you have space. Yes, in this place you can actually get full on sushi! Don't worry about it being in Bridgeport - (i don't think anyone thinks about Bridgeport and sushi at the same time) - they totally know what they are doing, the staff is very friendly and it's BYOB so you can some money! read more

I was served by the kindest server in the universe after leaving my credit card there. He ran almost a block to catch up to us--and did it with a smile. Our other server was extremely genial as well. And of course, absolutely delicious sushi (try the sweet potato and salmon skin). If you get the Volcano, there's a great flaming dish. They also have an all-you-can-eat buffet for $24. read more

We ordered delivery from here on a lazy Sunday night. They don't advertise that they deliver to our area, but we were able to order through GrubHub. We tried it out, because we seem stuck in our old ways with ordering from Talay every time and wanted to venture outside of our box. There were definitely some pros and cons of our meal! We ordered the Spicy Roll Combo, which was a deal! You get a spicy tuna roll, spicy salmon roll and a California roll plus a salad and miso soup for $17! We also got the dynamite roll, which is your tasty/standard dynamite roll. Finally, we go the Fallen Angel roll, which neither of us really enjoyed. I love scallops but the combination of scallops and crab meat on a roll makes a really fishy and slimy texture that was hard to get past. All in all, we enjoyed our sushi, but probably would have chosen different rolls if we could do it over again. I am interested in trying the dining in experience, as well! read more

We got the free edamame check-in, the fallen angel, and the UIC roll. The edamame was fresh, the fallen angel with the sliced scallops on top was delicious and sweet, and my companion really enjoyed his UIC roll. read more

South Kawa - Fallen Angel (right most), UIC roll (next to it), $4 salmon roll - Japanese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Since they just opened, I thought I would try them out with a friend. The place is nice and small, but perfect for us. Once we started to order we asked about drinks and the waitress was ever so nice and was telling us about the soft drinks they had. i had to cut her off since I need something stonger than that. the owner came by and said that they are B.Y.O.B, but I did not see it advertised anywhere. He felt bad and said that he can hold the order if we liked so that we can go to CVS to get a drink. That won me over. Went down the street for some wine, came back with glasses on the table and not too long their after our food came. It was great! we ordered the house special, the Fallen Angel and was in love with it. I know I will be back soon with a bottle in hand before I walk in!! read more

I'm so happy to have a sushi place on the Southside, other than Shinju Sushi in Hyde Park. This is more convenient. I've eaten here several times and had takeout several times as well. My biggest complaint is that they advertise the sushi buffet, but have STILL not rolled it out. Every time you ask, they say, "one or two more weeks." The owner said it's because he has to hire another waitress. They have been saying, "one or two more weeks," since they opened, which has been a few months. It's really frustrating. The quality of sushi is REALLY good. My favorite is the cherry blossom. The ambiance is nice. It's usually dead inside, so it's nice to have quiet and listen to the piano music they usually have playing. The bathrooms are also very nice, which is unusual to find in an Asian restaurant. Anyway, once they start their sushi buffet, I will upgrade my rating, but until then, they need to stop lying and take it off their menu. read more

Went to Kawa last week at about 8:30 and we were the only diners. The staff is super friendly and the sushi was delicious. I was here when it was Noodles Pho U and the inside has been completely transformed since then. They also deliver and are willing to get to us at Damen and Archer. Who can beat good sushi without having to travel far! read more

I recently moved to Bridgeport and was on the hunt for a decent sushi place. I've only been here for lunch and takeout, but it's been good each time! Their lunch specials are a GREAT deal, so you can have a sushi lunch for $15-18, including tax and tip. The fish tastes fresh, the sushi rice is well seasoned, and the nigiri has a good proportion of rice to fish. read more

The Chicken Teryaki was great! The kids had California Rolls and the wife enjoyed Firecracker Rolls. Very attentive waitstaff and great cucumber water too!! Will visit again! read more

Great local place, surprised we hadn't tried it before. The rolls were all fantastic and the price was very reasonable. We had slow service, but it could have been that particular waitress. The food was worth the wait. We couldn't find the information anywhere online, but this place is BYOB, no corkage fees. The owner is a young guy and is very present in the restaurant. He was glad to take a few minutes to speak to us. We will definitely be back. read more

This place caught my eye as I was driving to a different restaurant for lunch and I am glad a turned around. Sort of caught me by surprise (in a good way) once I got inside. Cool, simple dining room / atmosphere with nice music playing. The waitress was very nice and personable, and helped me find the best bang for my buck between the lunch menu and the full menu. She made sure to point out that their lunch menu hadn't been updated, as they have since reduced the price of their 2/3 sushi rolls, which is great. Sushi was excellent. The bathroom was nice and clean, which is a huge plus for me. The ONLY thing I wish they could've provided us with is the wi-fi password. The restaurant is in a service 'dead zone' and it was tough to get a decent connection. A gentleman who sat a couple tables down from me had the same problem and asked the waitress for the password, but she didn't know it and that was that. Obviously, this wasn't a huge deal and I wasn't going to have her go find out, but hopefully management will see this and be able to provide customers with their password in the future because people love wi-fi, amirite!?!? :) Anyway, It was a nice, relaxing, delicious experience and I'd go back in a heartbeat. read more

Nice to finally not have to drive so far to get some non-questionable sushi. Their roll options looked creative and their sushi entrees were very generous. The reason why I'm only giving Kawa 3 stars is due to their false advertising. I've been there twice so far and have asked about the "sushi buffet", only to be told both times that it will be available "next Tuesday". It gets pretty frustrating after that expectation has been set and, a month later, still not met... and the same excuse given. I will update my review when they finally roll out the long-awaited sushi buffet or stop advertising it on their menu. read more

If there ever was the poster child for a culturally confused sushi joint, South Kawa is it. From the moment we walked into the narrow layout of the establishment, we noticed paint-work of Japanese cherry blossom tree on the wall yet accompanied by Chinese-styled lighting and classical music of Bach and Beethoven in the background. What gives? This place is fairly new... in fact, it's so new that I think they need to air out the smell of cardboard boxes from their recent shipments. The menu contains the usual Japanese fare, but when we ordered hot green tea to go with our Japanese meal, we got mediocre Chinese tea. Service was okay. The girl took our order without taking notes and had to come back from the kitchen to ask one more time. We ordered some nigiri and a couple of rolls. They were of decent quality, except for the super white tuna nigiri that was cut the wrong way--made it hard to take a clean bite of the fish. I ordered the Fallen Angel roll, which is surprisingly good and original. It's spicy crab meat, seaweed salad, avocado, and crunch on the inside, and topped with seared scallops, spicy mayo sauce and tobiko. But for the price that they charge (not exactly a cheap meal), I feel they should not make diners use disposable chopsticks and serve real Japanese green tea for a better dining experience. read more

This is my favorite sushi restaurant in Chicago. Last winter there was a -20 night windchill, with tons of ice on the sidewalks, but I was craving Kawa so I walked the mile from the red line stop. It was worth it. Every bite is always worth it. Kawa's aesthetic is nice, simple, and relaxing. The Asian influences in decor do a great job of fitting the Japanese menu without transporting you to the tackiest corner of China town like so many other places do. The staff is always wonderfully courteous and are more than happy to share recommendations. Their specialty rolls are wonderful, especially the Fallen Angel roll. Around Valentine's Day they have a special Cupid roll and it's also awesome. read more

Pricing is fair. I ordered the sashimi deluxe and it was so fresh!! I will definitely order from here again.

I will always love the food here. I've been here soooo many times. The food is cheap and the sushi is amazing. I love their lunch specials and if you check in on Yelp you get a free edamame so that's nice too. The noodles are really good too and a lot of the deals come with a free Miso soup and salad. This is definitely one of my favorite places to eat in Chicago. read more

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Groupon brought me here. I know if you want really fresh sushi in Chicago, you have to pay a bunch (seeing as how we're nowhere near any ocean). I get that the fish comes in frozen and that they thaw it out in a refrigerator. However, the sake (salmon) sashimi i received was still frozen in the middle. I just kind of thawed it out a little on top of the rice, not a huge deal for me. Then again, I'm not that high maintenance. If you are you'd probably not like that. The fired rice was tasty and the gyoza was too. And, once it thawed out a little more, the salmon was tasty too. read more

Great place! Sushi was delicious and they have amazing specials. Service is very good also.

The lunch menu is awesome super cheap. $10 for 3 rolls and the avacado is huge. Ambience is chill, but ask for regular water instead of the cucumber water. read more

Took my mom here for Mother's Day! The staff was very kind and the sushi was delicious (:

Check in on Yelp and get free Edamame. Yay, I'm a fan. Menu is great with lots of options. Ordered 4 rolls for 2 people. Plenty of food! The spicy salmon roll was not spicy at all, a little disappointing, but still good. The roll had a crunch, as if there was a tempura element in it, liked that. The dragon roll was good, as I'd expect. The other rolls were good too, but can't remember which they were. One had mango, which I hoped to be A-mazing, but was a disappointment as the amount of mango made it nearly impossible to taste. Ordered hot tea. Tasted like hot water with zilch flavor. Skip that. Seating is good, atmosphere is quiet. Overall I like this place. If you live in the neighborhood they've probably put a door hanger on your front door. Be sure to bring that! It has a 20% off coupon! read more

Amazing rolls. The sushi was fresh and delicious. Order the Chicago Spicy Roll - you can't go wrong with that. Will definitely go back to try a few other specialty rolls. read more

I do NOT recommend ordering the edamame unless you like devouring massive amounts of salt. Even though we wiped off the salt, the residue of sodium was still INTENSE. We ordered the shrimp tempura, spicy salmon, spicy tuna and Mexican rolls. All were pretty good even though some of the rolls were falling apart as we picked them up. All-in-all "A-OK". Extra star for being so close to home! read more

I'm not really thrilled with this place as others seem to be. I have gone here on 3 occasions and each time was disappointing. The sushi selections are not that impressive and I think I got sick on another occasion. Another time my sushi roll seemed really dry. It's so close to my house, that I've substituted going here instead of going to my usual Chinese/Sushi spot on 31st. I'm on the fence about South Kawa. Nothing stands out and it always looks dark and dirty...and kind of has a stench when you go inside. I will give it one more go, to see if maybe I'm missing what the excitement is about for this place. read more

I think they have the best lunch special ever. There is no way for me to eat my money worth at a sushi buffet. The fish is fresh. The place is dim and quiet. It's never that busy. Their water have a cucumber taste. It's interesting. read more

I was going to order Ramen, but they only have fried soba today. So we ordered shrimp fried soba and beef soba. Beef was just ok. The IIT roll is worth trying.... Best thing here is the red bean mochi ice cream!!!! Try it! read more

Amazing sushi!!! Love the lunch special prices!! Would recommend to everyone and anyone!

I am so glad that Bridgeport has a sushi spot! I decided to give it a try with a Groupon ($15 for $30). I went to Kawa with my mom on a Friday night, and the place was empty with like two tables. I love the atmosphere and the service was superb too!!! We were served with hot tea and cold water at the same time!!! Our waitress was very attentive. We ordered the fallen angel, grayslake, and another special role (all were 8 pieces). The rolls were mediocre because it doesnt taste fresh at all. We couldn't even finish the three rolls and they were that bad. The total amount for the three roles + taxes was 45 something. I rather go eat sushi buffet!!!! Anyway, i gave this place a try and i dont think i will go back to it. read more

Happy dance!!! So glad I tried this place. My fiancé lives in Bridgeport and we saw this group on and figured we'd give Kawa a whirl. We were very pleasantly surprised! Our fellow yelpers suggested the rock shrimp appetizer and WOW... Amazing. We order the dynamite roll, angel roll and American eagle all were so delicious. The staff was super friendly and attentive. Yay for Bridgeport finally getting a yummy sushi restaurant. We will be back especially if they offer another groupon and a bonus BYOB. Heck ya!!! read more

South Kawa - Dynamite roll, angel and American eagle. Yummy!!! - Japanese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Another little hidden jem in Bridgeport! I have been going here since it opened and am here for their consistency. BYOB and always fresh; love Kawa and hope they can hold on through a tough past year. read more

Phew, It's official. You don't have to go north for inexpensive, tasty sushi anymore. I had sushi the night before and it still was still outstanding. For apps, we had shumai and the seaweed salad, tasty. My partner and I had the fallen angel roll $12, kamikazi roll $13 and the 5$ eel and avocado roll. All were equally fresh and the fallen angel was gorgeous and quickly devoured. Most people forget the more expensive rolls are larger and more complicated with taste, but even the $5 rolls are great. They have a long list of vegetarian rolls ranging from $3-$11 per roll. The other rolls range from 4-9$ (They have 20 in that range) and $13-15 (16 rolls in this range) So that one horrible review that the rolls are expensive and look alike is extremely incorrect. Something tells me they don't give good reviews very often and are a little out of touch with reality. The staff was nice and friendly. I would def consider having a party catered here. I eat sushi out about once a week and I consider myself a good judge. My favorite haunts are CoCoRo which is where the Japanese eat when in town - more Japanese than most as it has a lot of traditional Japanese options- and New Tokyo which is great, cost effective and also BYO. So this being in Bridgeport is a leap in evolution for our neighborhood. The ingredients are FRESH and the prices are great. We went in at 9:30 and the place was super quiet so I am suggesting getting in there before it gets hot. OH, and did I mention they will deliver to Maria's Bar down the street (or your house) as well as take out?! Lastly, there is a sushi buffet printed on the menu but it hasn't started yet as they haven't the volume yet so don't get all salty about that. You can eat until you are stuffed just on the $3-9 rolls alone. Oishii South Kawa! read more

Edamame (free with Yelp check-in)- Big bowl, hot, yummy! Rock shrimp tempura- Amazing! Halloween roll- Tuna on tuna...heaven! Grayslake roll- Crunchy goodness! BYOB however they have complimentary hot tea for the cold bodies. The server was awesome as well! I love having this gem right down the road! read more