A Chicago Japanese & Korean Home

Dancen – Late-night vibe Korean 🍻 Open until 2 AM. I take every visiting friend here. Not your typical bibimbap or jjajangmyeon — lots of unique dishes. Must-tries: cheese spicy chicken, grilled pork skin, pork cartilage rice, stir-fried squid, and pineapple makgeolli! Pro Samgyupsal – Korean grilled pork belly 🐖 Recommended by my Korean nail artist. The pork belly is scored so it’s not greasy, authentic flavor, perfect with lettuce. Service is just okay. Great Sea Chinese Restaurant / Peking Mandarin – Best Korean-Chinese food 🍜 Both have similar old-school vibes. Go-to for sweet & sour pork, jjajangmyeon, and seafood noodle soup. Tak Korean Bistro – Downtown go-to Korean 🌃 Good budae-jjigae, kimchi pancake, and BBQ. I prefer Dancen’s menu, but this one wins for location. Dark, casual Korean pub atmosphere. Ssyal Korean Restaurant and Ginseng House – Comforting samgyetang 🍲 Specializes in home-style ginseng chicken soup. All the banchan sides are solid. My go-to when K-dramas make me hungry. Kurumaya – Family-style izakaya #1 in my heart 🏮 A bit far from downtown, but worth it. Unagi tamagoyaki, katsu don, soft-shell crab, sashimi — everything’s delicious. Sankyu Sushi – Sushi + meat tofu heaven 🍣 Also in the northern suburbs. Must-order: meat tofu (sukiyaki-style). Great sashimi and grilled skewers; grilled shishamo is tasty. Katsu don is average. Daruma – Cozy, homely Japanese 🍱 Small spot with simple, honest Japanese home cooking. Fresh sashimi, lots of bento and ramen options. Consistently good. Chicago Kalbi BBQ – Japanese charcoal BBQ 🔥 Run by a sweet elderly couple for years. Meat quality is always top, lightly seasoned. Beef tongue, pork belly, Kobe short rib, pork cheek — all good. Kakitama (oyster omelette) is a must! Cocoro – Favorite sukiyaki in the city 🍲 Tender meat, well-balanced sweet-salty broth. Perfect for a warm, comforting meal with friends. #ChicagoEats #ChicagoFoodie #HiddenGems #ChicagoLife #JapaneseFood #KoreanFood 🥢