Roka Akor - Chicago — Restaurant in Chicago

Okay I am back again for a rave worthy review. A true delight for my fish, sushi eaters, and non fish dining compatriates! To celebrate a very special birthday we choose Roka Akur as our evening eating experience. And let me start by saying they did not disappoint. This place is a gentle balance of seafood and quality steak.

The sushi here Is top-notch—fresh, well-prepared, and beautifully presented. We choose the assorted sashimi rolls and gave the chef the ability to choose what went on the plate. Our favorites included the unagi, salmon, and some type of white fish that was naturally buttery. For the non sushi eater at the table we also ordered the Chicken Yakitori Skewers and the Toro Tartare . The skewers were phenomenal, grilled to perfection. The Tartare was said to be good, but gave our dining partner a jaw workout. I believe his exact words were “ it takes forever to chew this up”.

For our entreees we had the Korean Spiced Lamb with Smoked eggplant and Cucumber with a Baked Potato and Shiso Sour cream; the Prime Rib with a side of Crispy Fingerling Potatoes; Prime Skirt Steak with Sweet Garlic Soy; and a Roasted Lobster with a side of Crispy Brussel Sprouts. The inclusive menu is what really makes Roka Akur stand out. For all the non-fish eaters you will find plenty to love: the chicken they serve has a perfect caramelized glaze, the vegetables are crisp without being greasy, the lobster smoked and charred at the right spots, and the steak is so savory and satisfying. Not to mention but there were also several vegetarian options. Literally , it was one great dish after another.

For desert we pushed the envelope and tried everything. The Passion Fruit Tart with Coconut meringue. From the first spoonful, it delivers a burst of tropical flavor—perfectly tangy, with just the right balance of sweetness. The texture is smooth and airy, almost cloud-like, making it feel indulgent yet light. The Matcha Cheesecake had that slightly bitter, earthy tea taste but it wasn’t overwhelming. What really stood out was that the sweetness level almost over powered the flavor of the Matcha. Or next dessert was the Ube Pot De cream. If you are like me and never heard of Ube don’t be startled. Ube is like a purple yam. As a dessert it was subtly sweet but paired perfectly with the fresh fruit. It was definitely giving the vibe of vanilla custard with a uniquely earthy undertone. But for some reason , it worked. And it was my favorite out of everything.

The ambiance of this restaurant warm and modern, with traditional japanese touches that add to the experience. Service is attentive without being intrusive. And overall they seem genuinely happy to offer quality service. They were overly safe when it came to preparing the food away from nuts due to an allergy.

Just my opinion, don’t walk but run to this place because you will not be disappointed because Roka...

This was my first time ever having Japanese fine dining, and I have to say it was an exquisite day. Now, my friend and I had gone in during HAPPY HOUR, so we didn't purchase any bigger dishes, but the items on the happy hour menu were out of this world. Upon entering, we were greeted respectfully and welcomed in, and I have to say this restaurant is really elegant. You can smell the charcoal from the grill, which had a beautiful smoke scent upon entering. The way the restaurant was set up was really elegant as well, it had some good music too, the only thing I would say is the music was a little loud so I had to speak up so my friend could hear me. However, we were able to manage through, so it's not the biggest issue at all.

Food wise, everything was absolutely delicious(compliments to the chef, btw). My friend and I both ordered the Lychee Martini, and I was quite surprised as it was sweet rather than tasting like alcohol. It was incredible, and I ordered another later in the evening. The Lychee fruit it comes with definitely does not look appetizing, but upon tasting it, it's like an oversized grape with more sweetness than sourness, but it was indeed tasty. My favorite dish from the night was hands down the Wagyu Dumplings. It was the first time I ever had a Dumpling, but the umami and different flavors from the wagyu were incredible! It was easily my favorite item from that night, but a close second is the Porkbelly, which just instantly melted in your mouth, which was so incredible to eat. The only reason it's second it because it does have fat. Now I understand it's part of the cooking process, but I personally am not a fan of having fat on the protein I eat, but if you like that, then I recommend this dish.

The next item we had was the beef skewers, which were pretty good. They had a nice taste and weren't tough upon biting. The skewers also had a green pepper in between 2 pieces of beef, so you can get a little kick of spice when eating the beef. As for desert, we had the passionfruit tart, which actually was a good choice as we had the sweet martinis, so the taste of both really complimented each other(props to the waiter for suggesting the desert, I forgot her name I'm sorry!!) Now the tart did come with a coconut sherbert, now I'm not a big fan of coconut but it does create a balance from the sweetness of the passionfruit because the passionfruit did have a strong taste. But overall, this was an extremely great experience. I will definitely come back with maybe a date or a friend to try the actual menu and have some Tempura shrimp or a Wagyu steak because I know it will taste exquisitely!! As for price, we spent about 70$-80 per person because we did order dumplings, skewers, and martinis twice, so we were eating good that day.😂😂😭

5🎖...

We had high expectations for Roka Akor Chicago during our Christmas Eve dinner, but unfortunately, the experience was disappointing due to dishonesty about the food they served.

Our evening started well, with attentive service and prompt order-taking by our server. However, the positives ended there. We waited nearly 50 minutes for our main courses, which was frustrating but somewhat understandable given the holiday rush and the fact that all eight of us ordered steaks. During the wait, the staff provided some appetizers as a courtesy, which was appreciated.

When the steaks finally arrived, things went downhill. All of our steaks were overly seasoned and salty. Two of our orders—prime ribeye and filet—were particularly concerning. The prime ribeye had a significant amount of tendons and was tough to chew. We asked the server to confirm with the kitchen, only to find out they had run out of ribeye and substituted it with a random cut of meat without informing us. This lack of transparency felt deceitful and unacceptable.

As for the prime filet, we ordered four, and while three were fine, one had a completely off texture, almost resembling synthetic meat. When we brought this to the attention of our server and the manager, they brushed it off and offered complimentary dessert as compensation, which didn’t address the underlying issue.

Overall, our experience left us feeling that Roka Akor prioritizes expediency over honesty, which is especially troubling for a restaurant that markets itself as a high-quality steakhouse. Serving the wrong cut of meat without informing customers is not only unprofessional but also a breach of trust.

If you’re looking for a place that values transparency and quality, Roka Akor Chicago is not it. They should seriously reconsider their approach to customer service...