Asahi Japanese Restaurant

ra Shai Ma-Sei! Asahi is a great Japanese restaurant located in the Palatine area.

We ordered:
Chicken katsu -- Breaded chicken breast, deep fried and served with tonkatsu sauce. Really good portions

Rainbow roll -- California, 5 pieces of fresh fish, which looked to be salmon, tuna, white tuna, shrimp, and yellow tail

Spider roll -- Whole soft shell crab, cucumber, avocado, sweet sauce. These always come out thicker, and it was delicious!

They also have bento boxes to check out, which was a hard choice to not get. Service was great! Dining area is somewhat tiny... a few booths, a couple of tables, and few seats at the sushi bar, by the chefs. Overall, great food and experience!

Excellent food and service. Many great sushi and sashimi combinations!

Definitely give this place a try! I love it! Tonight was our first dinner there and we will definitely be back for more! It feels so casual, warm and welcoming inside, every staff member is super polite. I regret that I haven't taken any pictures of our rolls and nigiri, but seriously just get in here ant try it. I love little family joints like this one and happy to support small business especially when it's well deserved. P.S. Sushi was so good I can't even stop telling my husband how much I liked it;)

Great little spot! Sashimi slices are nice and big. Reminded me of Tokyo! Will definitely be back!

Excellent food as always ! We love coming back, always feel welcome by everyone there.

Best sushi in town for the price
10/10 would recommend

We order carry-out from here all the time. The Courtney Roll and Sexy Roll are excellent. Can't go wrong with the Philly or Cali Rolls either. The prices are reasonable and the sushi is delicious. Nice, intimate atmosphere to dine in as well.

This unassuming sushi restaurant offers incredible sushi and exceptional service.

I always feel welcomed by friendly faces. The servers are highly attentive, noticing when drinks are running low or when plates are finished.

The restaurant itself is casual and small, but offers a cozy environment for a meal in small groups.

There is a nice variety of appetizers. I love the asparagus beef roll, it’s without a doubt the best asparagus negimaki I’ve ever had.

The sushi is high quality and fairly priced. Itamae diligently prepare the sushi from a small counter in the center of the restaurant, welcoming and thanking diners as they enter and leave.

The menu offers a wide variety of maki, from simple California rolls to complex creations like the Sato roll. I keep coming back for the sweet potato roll, with immense flavor despite simplicity, and the delicious spicy tuna crunch roll. These rolls are edible works of art.

Asahi is simply the best.

Quality sushi with great service! Not the cheapest, but sushi is not something you want to skimp on. The chefs and staff are great and it's a great little neighborhood sushi spot that's been there for awhile! Support small business and check it out

I'm not a sushi connoisseur, but I loved this place! I had the volcano roll followed by a lava roll (of course) and I may order the same two rolls every time I come here! They were so so tasty. The service was excellent and price was on point. Definitely worth a try if you are at all interested

We have been going to Asahi for about 20 years. They have seen our kids grow up and they know my kids names. We have never been disappointed with any meal. Fresh sushi and great service (Jessica). Now I'm getting hungry.

So good! We stopped there before going to a concert for a quick bite and I can't wait to go back! Inside is warm and cozy and feels just like you're tucked inside in a big city. The people working were so friendly, and of course the food was great! A lot of regulars having dinner while we were there made the atmosphere very welcoming. Yum!

I have tried every sushi place in the NW suburbs and this is hands-down the best. Try it, you wont regret it. I go here 2 to 3 times a week now and it is super affordable compared to most in the area.

This is my second time coming to Asahi in a very long time, so I had to update the review!

I’m gonna keep it short and to the point The food is BEYOND DELICIOUS! I don’t see other reason why you would want to go to the city to get some sushi when you can come to Asahi and sink your teeth in some mouth watering freshly made sushi. The flavors are powering and make your tastebuds go on a wild ride. Can’t wait to come again again again and again.

Had the dragon roll & GYOZA as an appetizer

Also very important to note. I have never met such a sweet staff in my entire life. Super sweet, nice understanding and professional. Please give all your staff a raise. This staff tops every staff in any sushi restaurant in Illinois , period !

Enjoy your stay at Asahi!

Went here for the first time with my wife. We went early (5:30) so it was not crowded. Service was attentive and cordial but not overly friendly. That’s ok they didn’t know us. I had a 9 piece nigiri plate with fish of the chef’s choice. Unbelievably good. Absolutely fresh. There was not one piece I wouldn’t have again. Wife’s plate was equally good. Tipped the waitress as usual but then also tipped sushi chef’s in their tip jar. Omg they clapped and were so happy. Just go, you will not be disappointed.

Every single time I eat here the whole staff is so friendly and sweet. The food is delicious as well it is one of my favorite places to be.

I can't say enough great things about Asahi!
We were first blown away by the incredible sushi selection available on their menu.
Then a nice surprise of the complimentary cucumber + crab salad brought to us while we waited for our food to be made.

The presentation of the food was beautiful. The quality of the food was top tier. My wife and I didn't want our meal to end. So much so, in fact, that after we finished 2 Maki rolls, 3 nigiri, and a specialty roll we waved down our waitress to order 2 more nigiri!

After we finished our second dinner, we were again pleasantly surprised when they brought us complimentary dish of 2 deep fried banana bites! It was the perfect amount of sweetness to cap off a perfect dinner.

After an experience filled with fantastic customer service and utterly delicious, high quality food, my wife and I will most certainly be returning very soon!

What makes Asahi different from other sushi places, is that its not a factory that makes bazillion of rolls for mass production, instead their chef Sato creates a delicious masterpiece for every customer. I mean it. Since this place is pretty close to my house, I use to visit it quite often, both weekends and weekdays. There was not a single time I saw anyone inside without a smile on their faces. Staff is very friendly, interior is quite authentic (as far as I remember, they've renovated the place like a year ago) and rolls are delicious - that's everything you should know about it.
If you'll pick a seat at the bar (where you can observe the entire process of your dinner creation), pay attention to how the fish and produce are stored. These people definitely care about ingredients they use. Moreover, Sato (the owner) offers small complimentary appetizers, which is a nice little touch while you wait.
One more little thing, I really like chilled beer glasses... its a nice small idea, that delivers better experience from casual beer.
I definitely recommend to try Sexy Roll, which is my favorite, Sweet Potato Roll and Vegetable Tempura in here.

doesn't look like much from the outside, typical sushi place in a strip mall. Inside is fairly nice but got takeout. I like when sushi places make unique rolls and this place didn't disappoint. Order these 4 rolls (from good to awesome)
1. white angel roll
2. buffalo special roll
3. beef teri-maki
4. sweet potato roll

Im 5months pregnant and have been craving sushi, plus yesterday was my birthday. My husband took the list I wrote from the menu to the restaurant and explained to the host that I was pregnant and that these were the rolls I picked from their menu that I thought I could eat. The host spoke with the chef and they crossed a few off and added some other pregnancy safe sushi options. They also adjusted the sauce toppings and didn't add the tobiko on any of the rolls. They were our favorite sushi place before this but now they'll be our number one stop all the time. If you're looking to give your money to a restaurant that really cares I suggest Asahi.

Here's what we ordered,
California roll
Vegetable roll
Spider roll
Crunch roll
Vegetable tempura
Avocado Torched roll
California Crunch roll
Salmon skin roll
Tempura maki