Dotombori

Very helpful staff and great location. Their sushi rolls are very unique and quite large. Good prices too!

Very fresh sushi! Warm, comfortable atmosphere. Excellent service! Nebeyaki Udon soup was tasty. We live in Niles so we will be back!

Sneaky…
Originally, I had thought we had a pleasant first-​time experience at Dotombori. The Spicy Rainbow and Mango Sushi were refreshing and revived my jaded seafood palate. The décor was simple, elegant, and overall is well-​kept. Then it dawned on me; There were two major red flags I should have picked up on!
The signature rolls average about $ 15. I’m fairly accustomed to that figure, but not after what I now realized: Don’t be fooled by the photos or when the food is first presented.
Yes, the rolls are colorful, plump, and scrape the sky. What you don’t pick up on is that the sushi that seemingly covers the roll is PAPER THIN.
From my observation, the rolls are triple or sometimes even quadruple the average thickness of rice you would find in more upscale sushi venues. Combined with paper thin sushi and a $ 15 price point, this is a thinly-​veiled way of overcharging.
The second red flag that I should have picked up on was the final bill. 2 Miso soups, 1 seaweed salad, 1 OMG, 1 Spicy Rainbow, 1 Mango Salmon, 1 Lycheetini (delicious), and 1 Asian Peartini (extra delicious) came out to $ 62.50. Final total after tax, before-​tip, was $ 68.75. Not bad. .. Right?
The kicker is their tip guide at the bottom:
15% Gratuity = $ 10.31
18% Gratuity = $ 12.38
20% Gratuity = $ 13.75
Makes sense… Oh no it doesn’t.
$ 10.31 /​15% = $ 68.75
$ 12.38 /​18% = $ 68.78 (!?)
$ 13.75 /​20% = 68.75
Their tip guide is representing how much you should tip on the TAX as well!!! I don’t know about you, but Uncle Sam has a large enough presence in my life already. .. I should not have to tip him as well.
Very sneaky to an unsuspecting customer who is looking to correctly tip on the quality of food and service received (subtotal), not on Sam’s shadow.
It may seem like I’m making mountains out of mole hills, but I feel these two items are just blatant, sketchy, veiled business tactics that detract away from the overall experience.

So glad I discovered this place. The sushi is by far the best and always fresh! Every new dish I try, I’m never disappointed. Lunch specials and happy hour are the best time to go for great deals.

Great sushi! We love coming out here for sushi even if it’s a bit of a drive. Everyone is so friendly and the sushi is spectacular with a great presentation.

Super clean, such nice people and very extensive menu. The presentation is always top notch and they have great lunch specials.

Came here for the first time Saturday night and was really impressed. Décor is cute, service is friendly and fast, and their food and drinks were delicious. They even brought out a free desert for the four of us at the end. We will definitely be coming back. Nice job!

Love: $ 7.95 lunch specials, including bento boxes (like bulgogi, beef teriyaki, chicken teriyaki) and atleast a dozen different rolls. The assorted veggie tempura with my bulgogi was über fresh and crispy, and I also got 4 California roll pieces and a half bowl of rice (a little skimpy, yes).
Like: we got separate checks very easily. Friendly, prompt, no hassle service! Easy street parking.
Dislike: that Dotombori isn’t closer to me!

Still always so good. The service is fantastic. The woman that is always there (??owner/​manager??) is soooooo nice. I brought my 87 year old father for his 1^st Sushi ever yesterday. He asked for it again today. Btw…very accommodating to his wheel chair. Again… I have never had a roll or dish I didn’t like… some better than others… my bestie has her favorites that differ from mine. My freind that is not a fish fan likes sushi because of this place, he has also tried several non fish dishes and is always very happy. Just love love love this place

Very good Japanese restaurant in Des Plaines.
Good quality and service.
Traditional Japanese menu with all the stand-​bys, plus some Korean dishes.

I finally went back more than a year since my initial review, and this place was just as good as I remembered. We made it back for happy hour dinner (between 5 – 6), and got some great sushi for a steal. We started with a gyoza appetizer and sake. Both came out quickly.
For dinner, we had 4 rolls: the Las Vegas, Spicy Crunch, Viking, and White Dragon. All were incredibly tasty, though my favorite was the Las Vegas by far. It had mozzarella cheese on it, which sounds like it wouldn’t be too appetizing, but it was delicious.
This time, service was very attentive. We were checked on often, and our waters were topped off frequently. The only service I didn’t like was that after we paid, we were sitting for a bit finishing up our sake, and a waitress came up and asked if we needed anything else. We realized there was a couple waiting at the bar area, and the waitress was trying to get us to hurry out so that the couple could have our table. OK, I understand. But still.
All that food and sake and the total came to around $ 50. Completely reasonable. I’ll make sure to head back soon!

I went here on a quick bit of dinner, and it was a bit disappointing, but since it was a discount night of sorts, it’s not too bad since paying for sushi is like almost a car payment.
My friend was already there and ordered a selection of rolls and nigri but she had no clue and clearly having a tough time — I don’t think sushi is for her, despite my suggestions. I’m not even anything near of an expert on Japanese cuisine but I know what I want & like, and have an open mind to try stuff, even if it sounds yucky.
I had a few California rolls and an assortment of tuna, salmon, and shrimp — all were decently tasty but it seems to not quite taste and prepared if it was done by an expert, and a Japanese one at that. Washed that down with some tea, had a few more rolls and assorted nigri, and left for the night.
Décor was nice, had some Japanese and Asian touches for the interior, and generic tables and chairs. Music played didn’t detract from the masticating activities or the conversations. The wait staff (and I think the owner too) tried to be helpful and did fairly well to serve us.
Next time I come around, I’ll need to try the fish dishes and bento box, and will update this review as well as the rating.
To be continued…

This was our first visit here and we were pleasantly surprised with the nice, cozy, and trendy interior. The exterior seems slightly dated, and the corner storefront is in a somewhat dated series of storefronts right in downtown Des Plaines, and I was sort of expecting the same for the interior. Anyway, after today’s nice lunch outing, we will certainly be back. They are Korean run and have a mainly sushi, sashimi, and bento box menu. We had a couple of their lunch special $ 7.95 bento boxes. I had their chicken katsu bento box, and wife had their beef bulgogi bento box. The servings were delicious and great values for the price (coming with 4 pieces of California sushi roll, 5 pieces of tempura, and rice), and we’ll be back. I also really like the convenient and free street parking in this area, and there are several eateries to try around this part of town.

Got takeout after work, their happy hour pricing from 5−6pm is great (4 rolls for $ 36)! The sushi was fresh and plentiful (no skimping!) and my favorite is the Wasabi Tuna roll. The 4 rolls were enough for two hungry ppl. Service was very friendly and interior clean. I shall certainly be back!

The first time I went here, it was kind of a disaster. The wait time between ordering and receiving the meal was close to an hour.
Every visit afterwards has been much better. Service was excellent, rolls are delicious, and the décor was nice.
Sometimes if the chefs are creative (bored?) the rolls are served in a cute design on the plate :)

Ordered a to go.
The bulgogi rolls melted in my mouth! Frest and tastey ! I was very happy. 8 juicy rolls $ 5 (happy hour menu), plus a small miso $ 1.50(regular menu). Other happy hour menu options are about a dollar more.
A hop and a skip away from the library~ for those lunch hour specials.
The place is lovely and quite relaxing. More stars upon further dining.

Awesome food, reasonably priced, and friendly staff! sushi chef is inovated, will make anything to order, and his creations are beautiful!
everytime we bring someone new they rave about the sushi! Mary the hostess is the best!

Very good Japanese restaurant in downtown Des Plaines, better than you would expect in Des Plaines. Traditional Japanese menu with all the stand-​bys, plus some Korean dishes and specialty rolls.
I had a deluxe bento box (with your choice of entrée and roll) and started with agedashi tofu. The agedashi, deep fried blocks of tofu was great and I was pleased with the bento box, which was huge.
The bento started with miso soup and a salad. Both were standard Japanese restaurant fare, not bad but not special. The bento box i coed five pieces of tempura, including one shrimp. Tempura was very good, healthy size veggies that were fried perfectly. I found the tempura sauce a tad bland. The box also had bulgogi (my choice of entrée), which I thoroughly enjoyed but was more like beef teriyaki than traditional bulgogi. It also had good veggies.
I was pretty full by this time when my huge kamikaze roll arrived (spicy tuna with regular tuna). The fish was very good, fresh and plentiful. I do wish I could have picked from any roll on the menu, they were all around the same price, but it delivered.
Overall a very good meal.

This is located by the Des Plaines metra station, in downtown Des Plaines.
The exterior looks decent, but patrons who were interesting in coming in had a difficult time figuring out if they were «open» since it appeared to pretty dark inside. The hours were posted on the entrance. They only open during lunch and dinner time, so the business hours were not continuous.
We ordered the specials for today: chicken katsu curry and spicy salmon sushi combo. There was another neon board with four (4) other specials, one being salmon tataki… Well, I should have ordered that.
Everything we ordered had a good taste, and the quality of fish was pretty good as well. However, I had a feeling that I should have ordered something else. On a side note, I felt that katsu was over-​prices: $ 15! The size of the cutlet was average, and there was nothing special about it. Regarding my sushi combo, I can for sure find a better deal in Chicago. The table near us ordered some kind of tempura lunch combo and the presentation looked more glamorous than our order. I guess there will always be next time.
Despite the ordering chargin, the atmosphere was cozy and private. I enjoy the Korean music playing on the background. I think I may have an opportunity to come back and give them another chance.
By the way, the total came to $ 35…yeah, kind of steep, but it is what a Japanese restaurant typically charges. I will stick with my hole-​in-​the-​wall Lawrence Fish Market.

What an absolute gem!
I ordered for two, but it was just me :)
Miso and house salad to start. They have the perfect blend of dressing and they do a great job of coating the lettuce.
The miso was very flavorful, lots of tofu and seaweed.
Main course was sushi and sashimi dinner and I upgraded to the Hawaiian roll. Best decision ever, as that roll made my top three favorites, immediately.
The place was busy, luckily I found a spot at the bar, and watched as the chefs prepped each dish. Such skill and care went into each plate and it’s presentation.
The flavors were a perfect blend. Mango, a light amount of heat (before I added wasabi) and a bright freshness to the Roll made it a palate pleaser.
Tea was always filled, staff was courteous.
This is how sushi should be.