Wasabi

Even though this place is is known to be one of the best Bowls of Ramen in Chicago, its so much more. Its has great sushi, might have the best pork belly buns in town, and its BYOB! The place is small, with few booths and tables, and heard that the wait for a table can be long. We decided to sit up at the sushi bar. The pork belly buns were really good. We also got the ArtMex roll, that jalapeño on top has a great kick. As for Ramen I stuck to my usual Tonkotshu, which has a creamy broth, but the Shoyu is great as well. The prices are great, and with the BYOB factor is a huge plus! A new favorite spot of mines.

Finally tried this place out, from all the rave reviews was hoping to get something good out of it. The line was hinting it was going to be a great time, but maybe I overhyped it from the anticipation. The inside was nice/​dark ambience and everyone was really friendly as well as quick to service. We got in around 740 in the evening, so it was quite busy.
I started out with the pork belly buns, it’s got flavor and it’s good, but this wasn’t what I had in mind I guess. The buns remind me of an American pulled pork sandwich bao, (I’m assuming that’s how they get it out so quick because everything’s shredded and in the sauce, so they scoop it out and plop it on the bun) was hoping for thick slices of pork belly (not sure if that’s how they make it or was rushed) the presentation wasn’t great reminded me of Portillos when you get a hotdog all smushed
Then I tried the Le Japon sushi roll, again it had great flavor and was good from all the sauce. I forget how much sushi is relied on sauce nowadays. The presentation was decent with 6 individual pieces laid flat, bottom had eel sauce, I liked the bigger fish roe that was presented than the tiny roe you typically get from other sushi.
Finally I got tonkatsu ramen, first taste it was pretty good, but as I got into it it became heavily relied on a certain flavor like salty/​msg taste. The vegetables might be the culprit not sure but it was definitely a bit salty for my liking. Maybe it was just during the time but I’d have to try it again to be sure.
Overall I probably wouldn’t be wanting to come back in a hurry, just wanted to try the place because of all the hype.

Lots of ramen spots popping up in Chicago but wasabi is still the front runner for their spicy garlic miso and their tonkotsu ramen. The ramen here shows a better balance between richness and overpowering flavor than furious spoon. The ramen here speaks to more tradition.
Try the kakuni, which is their braised pork add on for ramen, which is melt in your mouth tender. Really fantastic addition to any ramen.
Sleeper hit is the takoyaki. I was absolutely skeptical because the Japanese street food is often too cake-​y and lacks enough octopus to warrant the «tako» in the name but their version is packed with flavor and textually perfect… Crisp outside, chewy inside.

I really believe Unilocaling is such a privilege so few consumers take advantage of and I want to salute my fellow Unilocalers for holding local businesses up to par.
No matter what you order at Wasabi, the dish will come prepared diligently with fine ingredients and tactful care. The ramen is arguably the best in town. The manager, arguably the best looking in town.
HINT: hate waiting in line??? whisper «Valley of the pearls» to the hostess to get your name put at the top of the waiting list.

Spicy Garlic Miso Ramen was fantastic. Just the right amount of spicy — left a little burn on your lips if that’s what you’re into. Pork was cooked perfectly and I enjoyed the amount of veggies and noodles. If you like a lot of meat definitely make sure to order the additional. The brussel sprouts were definitely my favorite appetizer, pork belly buns were delicious as well but not to die for.
I know this is a pretty tiny restaurant, but we came in for a table for 5 on a Tuesday night and they wouldn’t seat us until the 5^th person arrived. I work in the industry and I understand the rule, but honestly it didn’t make sense to me for how calm of a night it seemed to be… so waiting outside in the cold was a downer. Thankfully they still had room for us when our 5^th arrived.

This is my second time having Wasabi and it most definitely did not disappoint. The first time my friend and I were almost immediately seated, but the second time around we had to wait 45 minutes. Luckily, the recent Chicago winter has been unusually warm (or so I’m told, since I’m from out of town), so waiting wasn’t too bad.
When we were finally seated we were so hungry we ordered right away. I had the short ribs and chicken thigh skewers – these were fantastic! The soy sauce complimented the skewers so well, and it was impossible to be satisfied with the 3 pieces I ordered. I highly suggest customers order at least 2 pieces per skewer and then move on to their bowl of ramen.
The tonkotsu ramen was also fantastic. The noodles were cooked perfectly al dente in a savory broth, accompanied by the best tasting and most tender slices of chashu. It is impossible to leave Wasabi without wanting to come back again. The service is great, the food is great, and the ambience is great. Next time I’m definitely trying the sushi, too!

Really tasty food. We had 3 sushi, 3 small plates and 3 entrees, 2 of which were ramen dishes. Everything was delicious and fresh. We like how they bring things out hot as they are ready, but the entrees would be better brought together.
Dragon Sushi, rainbow sushi, Brussel sprouts and teriyaki steak were top faves. Ramen dishes are fantastic.
Hip atmosphere. I wouldn’t take my parents here but for us and our teens it is great and worth the wait. Don’t forget to BYOB.

After going through a string of other ramen joints in the past year, Wasabi is still a go-​to place for a solid tonkatsu ramen bowl in Chicago. Their berkshire pork belly was perfectly tender and flavorful… after trying at least 5 other ramen joints this piece of meat is pretty darn great. The pork broth is indulgently comforting too. We also got the miso spicy garlic ramen which was just spicy enough. Both bowls were not too salty either.

I am a pureblooded Californian, so even in late fall Chicago is (insert expletive here) cold for me. When cold, I get cravings for beer, soup, and ice cream. Go figure. During my visit to Wasabi, I warded off the urge for ice cream, and stuck to our BYOB and piping hot bowls of ramen.
It actually wasn’t too cold the night that we visited in November, so the queue was incredibly long, and the anteroom was too small to accommodate the eager to be ramen slurpers. Once we were able to be seated at the bar after an hour or so wait, we wanted to eat the entire menu. It all sounded so good, and not only because we were so hungry. The tonkotsu and spicy miso garlic which my husband had (and yes, it was garlicky, but I still kissed him later) were both satisfying, large bowls of deliciousness. The pork belly buns were like candy-​the meat was perfectly caramelized. The agedashi tofu with «seaweed confetti» was almost as light as air but still so savory. Love that it’s BYOB so you can pick your poison.
Wasabi will warm your bones, blood, and belly for the long winter ahead, but I think it would be tasty anytime during the year.

Last month I contracted FOOD POISONING from Wasabi which LASTED 5 DAYS. I started feeling ill an hour after eating at Wasabi and was nauseous all night, waking up at 2 AM with the «I feel like I’m going to vomit sweats» and eventually having that come to fruition at 5 AM via projectile, aggressive, awful vomiting — not to be too descriptive, but my stomach rejected that big bowl of ramen which it did not bother trying to digest a drop of overnight given the contamination of the food. I continued to vomit all morning and my temperature rose to 101. For the next 5 days, I was unable to eat, drink, or stay awake — I felt like hell. I had to miss two days of work, I had to cancel my spot at a charity event with my boyfriend (tickets cost $ 150 per person, so it cost $ 300 total), and I had to cancel on a work event with the head of my office (which was NOT good). Since I was so nauseous, I was unable to drink water without vomiting for 5 days, and I HAD TO GO TO EMERGENCY CARE. The doctor confirmed I had food poisoning, and even ruled out the flu (with that awful flu swab test). I was dehydrated and instructed to go to the emergency room for an IV the next day if the anti-​nausea medication prescribed didn’t work (I couldn’t drink water without vomiting).
I later called the restaurant to inform them of the situation and the response I got was «we’d like to welcome you back in and we’ll comp your next meal.» For real? After those 5 awful days, I cannot even think about stepping foot into Wasabi again without feeling ill. I incurred medical expenses because of this and I was nice enough not to file a lawsuit. And to top if off, the owner didn’t feel it necessary to speak with me, they decided to make a manager deal with it instead… so we had to play phone tag, as the manager had to check in with the owner on things. They later offered to refund my boyfriend the cost of our meal, but he informed me they did not return the money to his credit card. I don’t think they took this seriously, at all. Eat here at your own risk, they don’t care if their customers get hellaciously sick from their food.
*PS– I saw another review of Wasabi where someone else mentioned they had food poisoning for a week after eating at Wasabi.

This review was 5 stars before I even came in. This was due to their having a plumbing problem and being super cool about it. They brought us all free tea and gave us a 30% discount on our meal. They did not have to do that, though it was appreciated. We were the first to get there planning to avoid the line, but due to the plumbing issue we still ended up waiting a while. S#*% happens so we weren’t perturbed by it.
What they lost 3 stars for is their very bland broth. I got their Tonkotsu and they boast about how it takes 40+ hours to make. I didn’t taste 40+ hours in it at all. When comparing the pork bone broth style of ramen broth with the best I’ve had, Ramen Tatsuya’s in Austin, Texas, or Ippudo’s in Tokyo, I think you’ll have a hard time saying Wasabi’s is all that. They do get an extra star added back for the pork being very flavorful, the tasty ajitama, traditional ramen spoon, and for the amount of noodles given. Ultimately though, the broth is vital to good ramen and it was disappointing here.
The more I try other ramen places, the more I realize I’m spoiled in Austin with great ramen. Because of this, I wouldn’t come here for ramen on future trips back to Chi.

Follow the waiting line to Ramen Nirvana.
Wasabi, can you get bigger digs already? Or at least open for lunch on a couple weekdays? Your line is sometimes daunting but I’ll just add you to my list of places where the wait is totally worth it.
Dined here with my monthly diners group. It’s first come-​first served and it’s not group friendly – meaning they only have one table that accomodates bigger groups, so your wait is going to be a longer one if you have a larger grouop. Most of the seating is smaller tables and some counter seating. We came with 6 people and that is probably the biggest number you would want to dine with, unless of course you’re renting out the whole restaurant and in that case, please invite me. We were offered a booth and since we were already waiting we took it. It was a booth and the hostess added a chair at the end – Thank you Osi V for volunteering to take that chair!
Anyway, they don’t seat incomplete parties, understandable. The wait for our group was about 30 – 45 minutes on a Tuesday evening. Yes, Tuesday. And there’s not much room to wait in their vestibule. But Ramen and Pork Belly Buns are so worth the wait.
Our group likes to share so we got to try the Pork Belly Buns, several sushi rolls and bowls of Ramen.
The dough of the pork belly buns was amazingly soft and mildly sweet – so reminiscent of my mom’s Siopao dough – and it was a great vehicle for the savory pork belly. I could have eaten 2 orders and maybe one day I will and I would feel no shame because they are so delicious.
The sushi rolls were also very good. My favorites were the Super White, Pike Place and Shrimp Tempura. Well made, very fresh and the presentation was appealing.
Now on to the real reason for the Ramen Season… Tonkotsu Ramen. Per their menu: egg noodle, rich pork broth, berkshire pork belly, soft boiled egg, marinated bamboo shoot, scallion, sesame, black wood ear mushroom, garlic oil They do not mess around with their Ramen. Ericka A and I split our order which we also upgrade with the extra grilled pork. The broth is rich and flavorful and the add-​ins are perfect. I could have used more of the pork – because I love Japanese grilled/​braised pork – but the split serving was perfect. So many textures and layers of flavor. As of today, this is my favorite Ramen in Chicago.
The only reason I can’t give 5 stars is the service. Although friendly and laid back, it got more laid back and less friendly as our meal wore on. We are not a demanding group so maybe it was just later night ennui that got the best of them.
Anyway, Wasabi is BYOB so it makes for a very affordable evening out. We each paid $ 30 (including tax and auto tip) for an amazing and satisfying meal.

Came here this past Sunday, and it just reaffirmed the fact that this is the best ramen place in Chicago. I came with a couple friends around noon, and when we got there, we were told that the bathroom broke so they couldn’t serve food until it was fixed, which would take max 30 min. We decided the wait was worth it and got seated. The wait ended up being about 10 or 15 minutes, so it wasn’t bad.
I decided to branch out (for once) and got the miso ramen instead of the tonkotsu. It was such a great decision! The miso ramen was amazing! The broth was a lot more flavorful than the tonkotsu broth. The tonkotsu broth was lighter and not very heavy/​thick, which I didn’t like that much. So I found the miso ramen broth to be perfect. I don’t know how they make the egg, but it’s literally the best thing ever. The yolk is soft but and not watery to where it would break and dissolve in the broth.
We also got 30% off because of the bathroom situation, so our bill came out to around $ 11 – 12 (tax included) for a bowl of ramen! Man, I love this place.

Sometimes you gotta dig your face into some hot, fatty buns. The bigger and juicier, the better. You can successfully achieve this at Wasabi. If you order nothing else, get the Pork Belly Buns. They come 2 to an order, as one would expect when talking about buns. Get at least an order, but I won’t judge if you get more. Close your eyes and go for the gold!
Our dinner group of 6 agreed that this was one of the best meals we’ve had in all our years of eating out together, and we go out every month!
My only real experience with ramen before coming to Wasabi was eating the 10/​$ 1 Maruchan bricks throughout school and getting more elevated options at Mitsuwa Marketplace. But I’d never had magical 45-​hour ramen before and I cannot wait to have it again!
If you’re not about that soup life, their sushi is solid. We got a number of rolls to share. My favorites were Super White, Logan, and Shrimp Tempura. I personally did not like Crabby Wasabi because it tasted the way seafood smells in a grocery store. That’s really the only way I can describe it. With that being said, a few at the table liked it. So maybe it’s an acquired taste.
Our group split a couple orders of ramen, too. That was truly a treat. Aimee M and I went with the Tonkotsu Ramen and added some extra special pork to it for $ 4.50. Both of us agreed that even with the added pork, we’d have liked a little more meat. There were only 2 small pieces of the add-​on and about 2 pieces of the pork it comes with regularly. Still, we were both able to get a couple small bowl’s worth each. That’s not too bad for under $ 20. It was so delicious!
Wasabi is BYOB, which makes it very affordable. After passing around Pork Belly Buns, sushi and soup, it came out to about $ 31 each after tax and automatic gratuity (groups of 5+) were added. We left very satisfied!
The two areas in which we all agreed we’d like to see improvement were:
1) Regulation of temperature
— We were seated almost all the way to the right after you enter. We were in back, closer to the bathrooms, and most of the time we were very cold and unsure if it was drafty from the door up front being opened so often or if they were blasting the AC. However, about 3 times during our dinner, the heat was turned up and we went from shivering to sweating profusely. It was very odd.
2) Timing of service
— The start of the meal was timed out very well. We were given time to browse the menu and they opened up our bottles of wine. We ordered the appetizers and they came out very quickly. We were barely finished with the first round of rolls before more showed up. Unfortunately, we then sat there for the majority of our 2 hour time there waiting for the ramen and the servers didn’t pay us much attention after it was brought to us. We had to flag someone down to pay the bill.
In the big scheme of things, our complaints aren’t major. Prepare to possibly wait a while to be seated since they don’t take reservations, be prepared and wear layers whether you’re indoors or outdoors, and you should probably order your ramen immediately and then space out the heavier appetizers and the rolls in case there’s a lag. Above all else, prepare your mouth for a flavor explosion!

I can totally see why people always come here and its super packed!
Stopped in for the spicy garlic ramen and takoyaki. I must say the spicy garlic ramen broth was spicy and thick. The broth wasn’t too spicy. The boiled egg broken immediately when i picked it up with my chopsticks and the pork belly. OHH MYY GOSH, it was so juicy! I give the ramen a ⁵⁄₅. As for the takoyaki, i give it a 3.5÷5. I have had better, not to say it wasn’t good, but i think it was smothered with mayo.
Overall, I would definitely come back. Keep in mind, the average wait for a TABLE at least is 40 mins. us 3 opted for the bar and our wait was 20 minutes.
Also there is not waiting space, you either stand outside or squeeze together by the entrance

YUM! One of the best ramen spots in Chicago. Especially when it starts to get cold, I love me a warm bowl of ramen and broth. The line gets long and on a Friday night, my party of three waited 1.5 hours outside in the cold around 7pm. After waiting, I was extra hungry so I greedily ordered an appetizer of crispy Brussels sprouts and spicy roasted garlic miso ramen with extra noodles ($ 2.50) and extra egg ($ 1). The Brussels sprouts had an addicting sauce and made for an excellent appetizer until the main entrees (ramen) arrived. The ramen was delicious, with a pork tonkatsu broth that had a little kick. The mushroom and wood ear was tasty and added a bit of texture and crunch to the noodles. And even though I got to taste both the tonkatsu ramen and the spicy roasted garlic miso ramen, I preferred the later. It was so tasty without being overly rich as the tonkatsu ramen was.
One of the best parts of the night was that it was BYOB so bring your fave beverage and enjoy it with some of chicago’s finest ramen!

If I was on an island by myself and I could only take one food item with me… it would be Wasabi’s Tonkotsu Ramen.
I can’t believe I haven’t gotten around to reviewing this gem yet… I’ve been here many times since living in Chicago and every time the experience and the food is just so good. The best part? Wasabi is BYOB so bring on all your much-​less-​expensive-​than-​ordering-​it-​at-​a-​restaurant booze. I get the Tonkotsu Ramen every time I go, and I have to say, after trying multiple Ramen bowls in the city, Wasabi is the best BY FAR. No comparison. I mean, it simmers for 45 hours before they serve it. FORTY FIVE.
Wasabi will most likely have a wait when you go, especially if it’s a weekend and it’s cold outside. But it’s worth it. The atmosphere couldn’t be better, either… dimly lit, high energy, yummy smells. I’ve heard the sushi is great too, so I’ll have to try that sometime if I can ever get away from that Tonkotsu.

Honest review: this is the best tasting broth i ever had it was orgasmic so rich u really taste the pork flavor. The dislikes are the service they told us to wait outside which i didnt like she said it as if we were animals bad hostess. Waiter didnt give any recomendations and didnt discribe menu items jus was a very poor waitress proper training should be implemented waiter only came to drop things off n pick up money. I feel there is way to many items on the menu. It should be cut in half to focus on certain dishes perfecting them not jus havin a bunch of okay dishes. The appetizers should be enhanced werent really any standouts. There should be different flavors of ramen like a seafood one or other unique flavors would be unique. Make better desserts cause a cheese cake is to plain. Also portion sizes are really small for the price best tasting ramen but if u fixed the issues it could really be one of the best tasting restaurants in Chicago i like the aditon of udon noodles u should make it more visible so people could know cause thats the new trend
Pork belly bun: only two come in an order. I like my pork belly more cripsy this was a lil to flabby but still delicous. It needed more of the sauce though because its sweet and it counter acts the saltyness of the pork belly. Really was good but i like the pork belly bun at oiistar better i would recommend that u order extra sauce on the side
Fried takoyaki [be warned temperature wise hot](octopus puff which means fried octopus) picture a fried mushroom u get at a pizza joint but a billion times better it is so good!!! Omg i was shocked at how good this was. the octopus was cooked perfectly not rubbery at all the japenese sauce was nice n sweet n the mayo and all the other sauces really made this so rich. The bonito flakes were a nice touch to but they were a lil to dry so they were old
fried chicken lollipop: the sauce was really good it tastes like ranch dressing. I wish the actual chicken was seasoned more but it was still good. It was really greasy so it wasnt cripsy like the plate was covered in grease n it wasnt that tender good though jus they need to make this dish better
Spring roll: omg so cripsy!!! The filling was so delicous this was really good i was really surprised. Must order picture like a eggroll but 100 times better n more crispy
Spicy roasted garlic miso: omg omg omg best ramen ever! The broth is so rich. The pork flavor was orgasmic like really u know they spent a long time making the broth. Tje condiments were really good i hate when they put unnecessary stuff in soup. The spicy level is perfect but i was hoping it was spicer. The egg however was overcooked if its overcooked dont serve it to the customer. The pork y was really delicous get it with aburi kakuni! Its torched pork belly! Omg so fucking orgasmic! The noodles were good. This was by far the best ramen i ever had only thing though i wish there was more in it though for the price they should really fill up the bowl
Uni shooter: this was actually really good im surprised when u get it u cant really see whats inside it looks like muddy water but omg there is so much flavor goin on there are so many wonderful ingredients in it that make it wonderful if u never had uni or dont like it this will
Make u like it. I wish there was a quail egg in it though but other then that great
Niku soup/​tempura soup with udon noodles: its the same broth just different meats in it. The broth was so rich and delicious. I was really surprised since it wasnt made our of pork like the other ramen dishes if u dont want to eat pork this is a good
Chocolate cheesecake: omg so good it was a lil to frozen for me i hate when restaurants serve u desserts straight from the freeszer. the flavor was good chocolate good quality texture was good the sauce was so deliocus perfect sweet/​tart balance
expresso cheese cake omg this was so good better then the chocolate. What i liked there wasnt to much of a coffee flavor which i domt like theres a rite balance of flavor the only thing i dont like about the desserts is there small
redbean icecream: i always try unique icecream this was really good idk how to describe the flavor jus order it lol it was really good not to sweet

Wasabi ! Un des meilleurs japonais que j’ai goûté en ce moment à Chicago. L’endroit est un peu éloigné, on a du mal à le trouver et quand on arrive dans le coin on se dit «vraiment? est-​ce que je vais aller manger par ici?», mais une fois rentré c’est surprise ! Chouette ambiance, les serveurs sont très sympas, c’est branché, mais pas péteu et en plus pas cher ! Bref: j’adore ! On a été supra surpris par une délicieuse entrée: le ceviche ! Qui s’attend à en manger un si bon chez un japonais? Le ramen, lui était un vrai régal: plein de saveurs, fin, chaque bouchée est un gargoulli de plaisir !

A fellow Unilocaler recommended this place. It did not disappoint. The place looks like a trendy spot would look on the inside with booths, tables, and a lot of rustic looking things. The wait staff was friendly and food came out fairly efficiently.
We came with some friends who had a picky 4 year old for lunch. The kid wanted eggs so the waitress brought him some tamago. He did NOT like that. She tried to get the chefs to cook him some scrambled eggs, but that didn’t happens. Thanks for your efforts waitress! Later, she brought the kid some ramen not in broth. I definitely liked how she went out of her way to make a little kid happy. Good job!
When ordering food, i wanted some advice on appetizers. Our waitress wasn’t overly helpful… until I asked about their Hamachi Kama. Her eyes lit up. So I ended up getting that. It was a very large portion (justifying costing as much as our ramen entrees) and really tasty. Again, thank you waitress for helping me find what I wanted.
Onto the ramen: I like soup. In fact, i’m a bit of a soup monster. I could drink SO MUCH soup after a meal. Wasabi’s ramen’s broth is wonderful. After the initial taste, I knew I had to figure out how to up my own home made ramen game. But how do I find 45 hours to make a soup?! Alas.
Anyway, I ended up devouring my ramen while trying to savor every drop. I then moved on to finish the broth a friend of mine couldn’t finish.
I really hope I get a chance to come back here one day.

The restaurant usually gets packed fast so it is not ideal to come here with a big group, unless you do not mind waiting at least 30 minutes.
Tonkotsu ramen ($ 13) — I usually get this every time I come here. Portion is perfect for 1 person or IF you have a very small appetite/aren’t as hungry or would like to order appetizers as well (good to share amongst 2 ppl). It’s delicious and so far the best Japanese ramen that I have tasted in Chicago [slightly biased since I haven’t tried all the Ramen restaurants yet]. Perfectly seasoned, but probably has msg in it since I usually knock out or partake in a nap after eating ramen here. Hits the spot on a rainy day!
Atmosphere — good for dates or just with a couple of friends… dim lit restaurant and the spaces are pretty close to each other depending on where you sit… you can almost hear the conversations going on around you so if your eyes like to wander, don’t come here with 1 friend because then. I would feel bad for your friend.
Parking — plenty of street parking available in the area… and yes it is free during the weekends.
Public transportation — not that close by… you gotta walk a little.
Waiting — yes you will most likely have to wait a little. and there isn’t a great waiting space inside so be prepared if you come here on a rainy/​cold day…
Yes I would come here again on a gloomy day when I’m craving Japenese Ramen!