Kurumaya is a place that I have visited maybe three times before, several years ago. It was a…read morepopular, well reviewed place back then, just as it is now. But it just kind of slipped out of my consideration for no particular reason. But today I was driving near there, headed for somewhere else, and it hit me - Bento box sounds good today. And so it goes.. Parking in this small strip mall is usually pretty easy. It is a popular choice for lunch for many people that work in this business area of Elk Grove. I think that is because in addition to the good food, the service is not only friendly, but also very efficient. That allows you to have a nice sit-down lunch and still get back to work in time. They don't rush you, but you won't have to wait long for both the food and the check. Today I did have my delicious bento box, which as others have agreed, is a great deal for lunch. But I also splurged for a "Rock' n Rol" sushi roll, which was quite tasty. My waitress was wonderful - friendly and efficient as usual. But she didn't rush me personally. She even asked me if I wanted tea. In summary, it's an excellent choice for lunch. Good food, affordable, kind people, and a nice change from a fast food drive-thru.

Ask for Harumi - She is the most wonderful, nicest server ever and knows the best recommendations…read moreon the menu! If you're looking for the most authentic Japanese food outside the city, seems like this and a couple other places are all in the Schaumburg/Elk Grove Village area. Highly recommend hitting their lunch menu if you can because the bento box values are so worth it for authentic Japanese food/sushi. We got there at opening for dinner on a Saturday and got there just before dinner rush! This place is such a hidden authentic gem - you can tell from the decor to the choice of seating design to the actual menu and way they cook the RICE and other dishes. They serve the same grain for sushi as they do regular rice (Tamaki gold). Quality is not skipped here. We got the agedashi tofu (must get appetizer, as it's hard to really every achieve at home cooking), house special curry katsu, the beef kurumaya gozen (bento box) (which has incredible tempura, juicy soft beef), and assorted sashimi platter (I forget the name). All come highly recommended and were well worth the price point. I am just a bit sensitive about the freshness of the sushi, but I think this is probably as fresh as you can possibly get with generous cuts outside the city. Everything down to the miso soup too was delicious - best place to take your friends/family/coworkers for an authentic Japanese meal. Parking lot available out front. Recommend also stopping by Tensuke market nearby after!

We stopped at Tensuke Market for a couple of reasons:…read more 1. It was a non-food truck night at Mikerphone Brewing, and we wanted a snack. 2. We ran out of rice at home; a staple for this Filipina! I was pleased with the quality of food here, variety, and helpful store employees, that I plan to return again soon, even if it is a little farther for us to travel. Let's just say, I am avoiding the parking lot mess and longer lines at nearby H-Mart or Jong Boo in Schaumburg. I appreciate that my favorite brown sushi rice cones in a 5 or 15 pound bag. And there is a good variety of sauces and seasonings to make my favorite dishes at home. The food court here is a definite must and the salmon sushi roll with soy paper we had was so fresh, the salmon was "like butter." The ingredients, with a little bit of spice inside, went well with the fruit kissed brews at nearby Mikerphone Brewing. They let you b.y.o. food at the brewery, so Tensuke makes a convenient stop. The sweet lady at the register complimented my choice of the Hello Kitty Soy Sauce bottle. (So I am a sucker for cute condiments!) I look forward to trying some hot food items here, next visit.

It was good place To grab a bite and shop. Their dining room…read moreis so beautiful and organized. I had plain udon set. The gyoza were too dry even with the dumplings sauce and the ginger dressing didn't have any to me ginger flavor. Overall it a fun place To eat and shop.

I've now been here twice in less than two weeks and the first review was for my first visit for…read morelunch. This is now my updated review as a purposefully came back for a dinner on a Friday night. You should try to make a reservation because on this particular Friday night they actually were full. And you can do it online through their website. The dinner menu is significantly different from the lunch menu. It is much more expensive with a lot more choices, especially as it pertains to the sushi and the cold as well as hot appetizers. You also have the option during dinner to order a sushi tray whether it is a Nigiri sashimi or maki tray. And if you sit there and do the math if you order the trays, they're a lot cheaper, but you have to like what the options are on the tray. You can tell by the pictures we ordered quite a bit of food as usual for dinner. Everything was so super fresh and delicious as usual. Everything came out with really good timing as well. We had a completely different waitress and a team of of servers this evening and all of them were absolutely friendly and helpful and attentive. This is got to be my new go to for authentic Japanese. You can also tell because while we were there the patrons coming in were Japanese in majority. I cannot say enough about this place being amazing with incredible quality fish, and a great menu.

Very friendly staff and the fresh fried food and soup were good…read more The sashimi (otoro, fatty salmon, ikura) were very good, melt in your mouth level of deliciousness. The yakitori had issues, most of our skewers tasted reheated or cold, which was then reheated anyways. I think they have staffing issues as well. Ordered a lemon sour and it was flat due to having flat soda water. They kindly replaced it with a slightly less flat soda water. Strong recommendation for the otoro and sashimi cuts. Maybe double check if yakitori is hot before ordering more.

I will say I have been to this restaurant many times in the past and the food and service was…read moregreat. I went back a couple days ago and everything has changed. The menu is much less, the food portions are less, and the container the food comes in is plastic and made for to go orders even though we dined in. The service was also not very friendly and when our waitress brought our food, she didn't even smile or say anything. She just plopped down the food and walked off. This used to be my favorite restaurant but I don't think I'm coming back.

This has been on my list for awhile and one day I decided to try. It's located in a strip mall with…read morelots of parking. When you go inside, they have a sufficient amount of tables to sit at, but it wasn't very busy on a Saturday night. You order at the register and he brings it out to you. You'll have to be patient, they don't have a lot of staff. We ordered tako karaage (fried octopus), croquettes, Taiwan style tonkotsu ramen with 2 pieces of chashu, and the deluxe bento with butashoga (ginger pork). I had a bite of the pork and it was delicious. Ginger was not overpowering. Tender meat. Prices were very affordable and cheap. Service was great and he brought out our food hot and freshly made. I would definitely come back and try other items. -tako karaage 5 - it had a nice little chew and was not overly fried. Great taste. -croquettes 5 - I loved these. When you bite into them, they're soft. Flavorful, savory filling inside. I should have gotten more of these. -Taiwan style tonkotsu ramen 5 - noodles were chewy. Bountiful amount of ground pork. The two chashu pieces were tender and easy to break apart. Broth was not heavy, it was just right.

Tekka Sushi is a real hidden gem in a strip mall. It looks like a small place but it's a decent…read moresize with a larger banquet area in the rear. This ended up being one of the best quality sushi places in the area. All the fish was top drawer quality and everything tasted spot on. The only things I think could be improved upon would be the wasabi as it was a bit flat and needed to be stronger as well as the calamari as it was a bit stringy. Everything had an excellent taste and was presented very nicely. Service was excellent and we would consider this a "go to" place if you want excellent quality sushi with an abundance of variety!

Tekka Sushi has a beautiful interior with a cozy, modern atmosphere that makes it a great place for…read morelunch or dinner. The sushi was fresh, well-prepared, and absolutely delicious. My favorite was the Fire Dragon Roll--the baked flavor was amazing, and it quickly became my top pick. The Fire Phoenix Roll was also very tasty and worth trying. The only downside was the first impression. Unfortunately, the manager at the reception didn't seem very friendly or welcoming. It's a little disappointing when your dining experience starts with that kind of mood, especially since the food and the restaurant itself are so enjoyable. Overall, I would definitely come back for the delicious sushi and the lovely atmosphere. I just hope the customer service at the front becomes as warm as the food they serve.

Yo this place smacks, I brought my parrot, Lucky, with me and he really enjoyed the Hokkaido broth…read more I had to bring some home for the rest of the birds

This was hands down some of the best ramen I've ever had. The broth was packed with flavor and…read moretasted like it had been simmering forever in the best way. Every bite was comforting and rich without being too heavy. The edamame was surprisingly amazing, perfectly seasoned and super fresh. And the shrimp tempura? Chef's kiss. Soft on the inside, light and crunchy on the outside, and not greasy at all. Everything we ordered hit. You can tell a lot of care goes into the food here. Definitely coming back next time I'm craving ramen.

My all time favorite ramen place!! I always get the salt ramen with the salmon rice combo. If you…read morego on the weekend prepare to wait in line and wait for a table. Otherwise it's pretty chill on the weekdays.

A long time staple within Mitsuwa, Ramen Santouka offers a very solid and consistent ramen meal for…read morethose in the area. In my latest visit, I ordered their spicy char siu miso ramen + pork belly rice bowl combo. In hindsight, I probably didn't need to get pork both in my ramen and in my rice bowl, but it did make for a hearty meal. Even though it's probably the same pork, the pork within the ramen felt much more flavorful than the pork in the rice bowl, possibly because it was sitting in the broth. The ramen broth was flavorful and the noodle type and springy texture is reminiscent of that which I had while visiting Japan. Overall - while the char siu ramen has and will continue to be one of my go-tos, I don't know if I would go with the pork rice bowl again as part of the combo meal.

It was our first time trying this stall at the Mitsuwa Food Court in Arlington Heights. Good news…read moreis that I now have a new favorite that can alternate with, and is at par with, our all-time favorite bowl of ramen from the Santouka stall! I ordered the Special Tempura Plate and it was Oishi! Yes, with an upper case O! Absolutely delicious! The service was friendly and fast, considering that they cook each plate or bowl to order. It was so good and so fresh that we decided to order two more pieces of the white fish tempura to add to our meal and 4 more to go for my mom who loves fish. The very friendly guy at the counter advised that I use an air flyer to warm the fish up at home. The Food Court is of course not a place you go to when you look for ambiance, but it definitely has the Japanese vibe with the variety of Japanese food that you can select from. It is also a plus that it is in Mitsuwa Market so that you can shop after getting your belly full of deliciousness!

Great concept and great techniques, but if you're used to having the real stuff in Japan, you'll…read morenotice the flavors are a little off. I think most people will love it though. And 2 of the 3 bowls were found with a small bit of lemon rind in them. Mine didn't have the lemon rind in the bowl, but I did find some in my soup. Very strange.