Kurumaya Japanese Kitchen

A family friend asked my mom and I to meet them here for dinner. Having arrived first, I was caught off guard with a menu written entirely in Japanese. With us not being Japanese and I didn’t think our friends could read /​speak Japanese either, needless to say, I was slightly confused /​worried. I think the waitress saw the deer in headlights look in my eyes and quickly flipped the menu to the other side where it was the menu in English. PHEW!
The place was a cute strip mall style restaurant with casual décor. They have a main dining area, but will open up the back dining area when it gets busy that allows for you to «sit on the ground» to experience the traditional Japanese dining style. Parking was really easy — lots of spots in the strip mall.
Food: First off, the Unagi Dashi Maki is goooood. Very simple — steamed egg rolled with eel in the middle, but great appetizer to share (or not share) for the table. If my mom hadn’t given me the look that indicated I needed to share with the rest of the table, I would have gladly finished it on my own. I had the Katsu Jyu, which is the breaded pork (tonkatsu) cooked in broth, eggs, and onions on a bed of rice. It also came with miso soup and a side dish with the pickled radish and cucumbers. The tonkatsu was breaded nicely and the onions and eggs added to the flavor of the dish. The miso soup was a little too heavy on the miso for my taste, but my mom enjoyed it. My mom also enjoyed her Nabeyaki Udon bowl. The udon is also kid approved!
Service: Great. They were really attentive and food was being served rather quickly. We were one of the first tables in for the dinner time slot, so not sure if service would slow down once the dining room starts filling up. And boy, did that dining room start filling up quickly during our time there!
Not saying I am a connoisseur of Japanese food, but this was one of the most authentic Japanese meals I have enjoyed. Would recommend checking this place out if you’re in the area and looking for Japanese food.
Tip: There is a photo album on the tables that has additional items not listed on the 2-​page menu and it also has pictures! Quite helpful to a newbie like me to that place.

As close as you come to eating in Japan in Chicago. Packed at lunch. Go for the beef tongue you won’t regret it.

I felt we were ignored possibly because we were the only table without a Japanese person. Our food was extremely slow, dishes piled at our table. The food was good but the prices are about twice other restaurants so I we were paying for it.

It is hard to understand for the menu and pictures. Food is pretty good, must try Miso katsu.

This place is great authentic Japanese food that feels homemade. It is tucked away in a small strip-​mall close to Japanese supermarkets like Mitsuwa (
) and Tensuke (
) so it is convenient to stop by for some dinner or lunch after shopping.
The menu is pretty different than what I have experienced at most Japanese restaurants too. You have your usual sushi/​sashimi menu as well as your entrees. However, I would highly recommend you to just order a bunch of appetizers. Each one is different and has unique flavors/​textures. You will get to try a bunch of them especially if you go with a group and share everything. If you have ever had tapas or dim sum it feels very similar to that.
They have a Japanese menu but everything on it is on the English one. They also have another menu with little drawings and explanations of the dishes. The hosts and waitresses are really friendly so if you are confused or need explanations/​suggestions just ask.

This is my kind of place. Casual with amazing food and a great value. I had an eel w/​rice dish that was delicious. I’m not an expert on Japanese cuisine, but there was a lot of Japanese being spoken.

If you think disapproving grandmas serving you food adds to the experience, this place is for you.
The food is very simple and rustic, so don’t go in expecting a gourmet fancypants setting.
Try the beef tongue.

I don’t get what everyone is raving about. I came for lunch today and I had a bento box for lunch. The tempura was crisp, but very greasy. The steak, however, was horrible. It was tough, overcooked, and bland, even when it was drenched in teriyaki sauce.
One last gripe is that the menus do not have prices on it. $ 13.50 for a substandard bento box was very disappointing.
I will not be back.

After coming here four times to take my grandfather out for lunch, I finally feel like I have the basis for an accurate review.
This place is awesome. Make no mistake about it, the food, service, environment are all exactly what I“m looking for when I’m craving a traditional Japanese meal.
Décor: Modest, simple. The table cloths could be mistaken for an Italian joint, minus the fact that it’s all darkwood and there’s a sushi bar where people are enjoying the phenomenal food. And the loads of Japanese folks eating here for lunch definitely says something.
Service: Service is fast (as they need to be, considering how many people are typically here for lunch) but friendly at the same time. There’s no small talk here, and if you call in advance, they set aside your table while preparing your house salad and two cucumber rolls on the table before you arrive. Impeccably on point and always aware of our needs (refills on tea/​water, helping find the best place for the baby, etc.), it’s a very efficient, friendly environment.
Food: And here we go… if you’re coming here to order rolls covered in sauce… go away. What they have here are high quality home style dishes of Japan, along with some amazing quality fish to be enjoyed in nigiri fashion. Some key stand out dishes that I’ve enjoyed thus far are:
Curry Tonkatsu — Practically guaranteed to fill you up.
Chirashi — High quality fish, perfectly made sushi rice, and a good mix of varieties. (I don’t think I’ve been in many places in the US that give you Ama-​ebi as part of the chirashi!)
Various nigiri sushi — Really, all the sushi is quite good. And definitely worth you time chowing down on. In fact, I wouldn’t mind coming back at some point and just sitting at the counter for a nice omasake (though I don’t know if the chef’s do that here).
Verdict: Make it a point to come here for true Japanese food. Nothing wrong with pretty colored fusion rolls with interesting sauces/​ingredients, but this isn’t the place for it. This is for perfectly made homestyle Japanese cuisine.

I give this place 4 stars for the appetizers, 3 for the entrees. Being a Japanese food fan, I’ve tried quite a few in the city. I liked the wide selection of appetizers and they were all pretty good. Highlights were the agedashi tofu and stewed eggplant. The entrees, however, paled in comparison to other places. (Not bad, just not as good.) Love the hand-​drawn menus!

Pretty disappointed to say the least. Ordered the sushi appetizer and the mackerel had a huge black hair on the rice. Ordered the grilled chicken wings with sesame seeds, they came out fried, seasoned with salt and pepper. Also, ordered the pot stickers and they were burnt. I think the kitchen was trying to leave so they fried everything.
The server was very very nice, the chicken teriyaki kabob was great as well as the miso mackerel.
Front of the house were all Asians, the cooks were all Mexicans.
Will not be back.

The restaurant was not busy on the weekday night I came for dinner. It’s a medium sized place with casual décor. Overall, the food and service was good. In addition to the regular menu, there was a small photo album menu that’s filled with hand drawn pages.
Saba Shioyaki /​Mackerel filet grilled with salt $ 14 — This dish was good and came with miso soup, salad and rice. I’m a fan of salted mackerel and the fish was cooked well. However, I feel like I could make this at home since there wasn’t anything special about the fish.
Pink Panther Roll /​Salmon, tomato, cucumber, masago $ 14 — Pricey for the amount of food. The roll was ok, nothing memorable.
Salmon Nigiri $ 3/​piece
Large Asahi $ 7

Food was great had a chicken bento box. Lovely food, great ambiance.
One thing that really bothers me is their ceiling fan. It is extremely dirty and if you sit underneath it I’m sure you’ll get dust on your food.

I used Unilocal to find a new place close to work and ended up here.
Ask yourself a question. How many Japanese business men work in the Elk Grove area to eat lunch in less than an hour and make it back to work? 5? 10? 20? However many it is, they are all here!
Food here is incredible and the clientele confirms the authenticity.
If I you were visiting from another country imagine how hard it would be to find cuisine that reminds you of home in the west suburbs. Bento boxes are great, curry chicken katsu– amazing. Food is pristine here.

Excellent sushi rolls, appetizers, soup and service. Reasonably priced compared to lesser restaurants I’ve been to.
Pink panther and rainbow rolls were our favs. Plenty of options for the less adventurous (cooked and non fish items)
Service was very friendly and prompt. Without being rushed or invasive.
Definitely come back.

I flew into Chicago O’Hare pretty late and decided to visit this spot. It wasn’t far from the airport. The restaurant is not very big and the area was dark at the time I went and appeared secluded. When I walked in, I noticed how small and tranquil the environment was. Their mini picture book was probably the cutest thing I’ve ever seen for a menu. All the dishes were hand drawn, they were cute mini plates and bowls of all the food. This place is very, very authentic. Their sashimi pieces were so incredibly fresh. The takoyaki balls were very good. The grilled hamachi collar was really big and very delicious, it was probably the best I’ve had in the Chicago area. I really liked the egg omelette as well, it was very filling! There was a seared beef dish that came in a very big portion, the meat was a little tough but the sauce was good. Also, the sauce on the grilled chicken skewers was very tasty. I would definitely come back again. I’m waiting for the next time I will be closer to the area and make sure I make it back to this restaurant.

Nice little place with its own lot and reasonably easy access, but just A-​OK for me considering the other talent in the area.
From the not-​as-​helpful-​as-​it-​could-​be hand drawn picture menu for sushi rolls to the just-​OK selection and flavor Kurumaya didn’t have me over the moon.
We started with miso and a ginger salad — standard fare, nothing to write home about. We had 2 pieces of sashimi salmon that were good, but not good enough to cost $ 3 — 3.50/ea. I’d expect something closer to $ 4.50 for 2. After we figured out the hand-​drawn menu we ordered 2 rolls — I *think* a Mexican roll and an Elk Grove roll — both were A-​OK but pretty forgettable, and the rest of the selection didn’t seem all that creative. We finished off with a salted mackerel that had *most* of the bones removed, but was only as good /​slightly worse than one I can make at home with $ 4, 6 minutes, and a broiler.
Service was friendly and pretty prompt.
I have to wonder if the noodle dishes are better or if we came on an off night, but I simply wasn’t impressed at all and felt the prices were just a little high. With all of the great sushi places in the area I can’t see myself coming back unless I was otherwise motivated by friends.

I manage to transport to Japan the moment I walked into Kurumaya. As soon I enter, I am greeted by everyone in the restaurant, if you are Asian, you’ll be blasted with Japanese, if not, then English from the host all the way to the chef. This is always a fun thing to experience as I walk in suddenly nodding and bowing to everyone not knowing what to say.
Japanese service is always first class. I sat at the bar and got a bowl of udon tempura. Before I even know it, it’s already at the table. If I had to redo, I should have tried more appetizers — lots of interesting options which are hard to find in Chicago. A black book with drawings sort of helps you. Great to look and admire as art, but rather have pictures to order from.

Great food!!!
I wish it was more up to date but everything here is delicious.
Only down side is that it gets a bit packed during lunch time.

A nice sit down place and dine in with local Japanese expats from manufacturing firms and closeby businesses. I love the Ambiance and food but the service not so much. The menu is hand illustrated and they even have traditional japanese floor sitting if you want but the checkered table cloth though, makes it look like a little diner. I had Kitsune Udon which is really good to start then the Chirashi is sashimi heaven :-) Freshest cuts of tuna, salmon, unagi and fried shrimp big head. A must try.