Kitaro Grill & Sushi Lounge

This is our local sushi spot. Best sushi in the area. Chef John (owner) goes out of his way for presentation and flavors as if he was in a downtown five star restaurant.

If you want high quality, delicious, innovative Japanese food, KITARO is THE place to go. Being Japanese, I have been to many Japanese restaurants that specializes in sushi, and nothing comes close to Kitaro’s.
You may first think, why go all the way to Lemont? It’s so far away. But, from I 88 & I 355, it’s a 20 minute drive.
Chef John has over 20 yrs of preparing Japanese food and takes his creativity to a higher level. Although you can get the standard Japanese appetizers, do not miss the crab cake (made with real crab). At other restaurants, crab cakes are heavily breaded. Kitaro’s crab cakes are so light, beautifully presented on a bed of spring salad greens which along with the decorative sauce makes a appetizer/​salad combination that easily feeds 2 people. Other favs are the brussel sprouts (& I normally like brussel sprouts) grilled calamari, but be sure to check out the specials of the day.
Kitaro’s maki rolls whether they are signature, house, or traditional, (e.g. California rolls) are beautifully presented, very creative (e.g. fresh mango on the outside or avacado on a maki roll) & always uses real crab, the freshest fish & ingredients. If sashimi or nigiri is your favourite, Kitaro’s nigiri is served the traditional way, a small amount of vinagaed rice w/​a piece of raw fish that is ¼″ thick & overlaps the rice.
Kitaro has other food if sushi is not your thing. I will not take more room to talk about their desserts, but their mango cheesecake was heavenly. Of note, every day Kitaro has a daily special, full bar, and if you join their email list, you will receive coupons for $ off your purchase. Carrie, the host, and husband to Chef John, along with their wait-​staff will make your lunch or dinner memorable. Whether you dine in, carry out, or order a party tray. You will not be disappointed eating at KITARO’S restaurant. P. S. They even have classes in how to make maki rolls.
L. Yamamoto

Hidden gem! Some of the best sushi in the southwest burbs. The service is always stellar, the sushi chefs are very skilled. I wish this place was busier… They have earned it. Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed!
Try the magic tuna… It’s the best!

One of my favorite spots for some fresh, delicious quality sushi. Always great service complimented with pretty waitresses makes this my go to sushi restaurant.
Favorite rolls: White Sox roll, Chicago Bears, Kitaro Crunch and their spicy tuna roll.
Favorite appetizers: spring rolls, edamame and fried lobster.
They run a great special on Monday nights where you buy one roll and get the second signature roll half off! Do yourself a favor and check this place out if you haven’t yet.

DIRTy. Not worth the food. I would personally give this place the worst rating.
The food is over priced and talking with some previous employees i know its not worth what they give you. They will serve people based on if they know them. My friend talks to the owner so when she gets food to go they will always stuff her to go box. And when i get food they give me the bare minimum so i think thats unfair. The floors are sticky and dirty. My daughter picked up her napkins or chopsticks multiple times having hair on it. Ive heard the lead woman server (might be part owner) talk about most people who come in from that specific town. So being paranoid at what the owners will say about me as im eating food is not the best.

My favorite restaurant in Lemont! Their sushi is fantastic. This place ranks high on my list of favorite sushi restaurants… And I’ve been to a lot. You wouldn’t expect it, as this restaurant is located in a strip mall and doesn’t look like much from the outside. Give it a shot, you won’t be disappointed!

Johnny the owner is a really nice guy he also eats at our restaurant. and he told me to try eat at his place. so at my day off me and my fiancée decided to visit kitaro and first impression was good. the atmosphere is great and ambiance is good. so we were seated right away. and we immediatley take a look at the maki rolls. and ordered the kingkong and godzilla roll. the price is a bit over priced but. i consider the fact that maybe its a highend restaurant the sushi came out great and we loved it. definetly be coming back again.

Love it! We’re new in lemont and it’s our new go to. I would compare it to some of the other places around here — Burr Ridge, Orland, Oakbrook.
You can’t compare sushi to sushi in California or Hawaii. But for local, this is amazing!
Thanks for also having great deals and specials :)

I have eaten at the best sushi restaurants in the United States. This place is just as good as any of them. I think the sushi is excellent. I will state I have had are the basic Maki rolls. I am not a fan of House rolls, I prefer simple sushi rolls. This restaurant is very good.

Kitaro is popular with people that have only had sushi there.
Quality: 6 out of 10. Their sushi is just below average compared to good sushi places. Not fresh, rolls are not unique, and flavor is nothing to die for.
Price: 2 out of 10. Horrible prices for what they give you. About $ 18 for a roll with five small pieces. Since their sushi quality is not good that price is really high.

The star rating is misleading. i would actually give them 4 stars for their food, but the 3 stars is for the service. One of my pet restaurant peeves is when your entrée is brought to you within 5 minutes of receiving your appetizer, and this place does this constantly. When a restaurant does this, it automatically makes you rush with your food. This evening for example, we deliberately placed our appetizer order first and waited to place our entrée order, but this still happened. I have even asked the waitress not to bring our entrée until we were finished with the appetizer and I was actually told, «sorry the kitchen is working fast today». Really? Not my problem. Frankly if it wasn’t for the fact that my husband loves sushi we wouldn’t come here. That being said, our options in this area are limited for sushi and their food is excellent. Too bad they can’t get their timing better.
It’s good for kids, provided they like sushi. No traditional kids menu ala chicken fingers and fries.

Disappointing. I will look past the 35mins it took to make four basic rolls as it is lunch hour but to have a repeated customer wait in the lobby for 10mins to even be acknowledged is unacceptable. An apology was never issued.
Now let’s talk about the «spider» roll I ordered. Should have been called a tempura roll instead. Absolutely no crab in it what so ever. It was half burnt, my dog wouldn’t even eat it. The eel was tough and did not taste fresh. If you are a sushi restaurant and your basic maki rolls are not even edible, there is definitely something wrong. I could have stopped at the Jewel next door for a tastier California roll.
I have taken out here quite a few times, but today topped the cake. I tried hard to enjoy this place. It is unfortunate that I will not be returning and I wasted $ 30 dollars, which I’ll probably see in my toilet bowl shortly.

Very good lunch special, food made to order so expect to wait at least 30 minutes when they are busy if you’re placing take out. Impressed

An UNBELIEVABLE rip off. Ordered sushi takeout and two of the rolls we ordered didn’t even closely resemble or include the ingredients listed on their menu. SO expensive for the quality and quantity of the food. Will be making the drive to Darien for Chiba (best sushi I’ve had in the suburbs) from now on.

The sushi here is incredible!
My husband and I have tried sushi at many different restaurants and the sushi here is amazing. It’s very fresh and flavorful. Sushi in general can be a bit pricey so I recommend going during their happy hour (buy one roll, get one ½ off).
Their fried rice is also very delicious which includes grilled, fresh vegetables and it’s not greasy. The staff is pleasant and the décor is not what you would expect in a suburban shopping mall. This place is a great place for a romantic dinner or for friends just getting together.

I just moved to Lemont and this is def my «go to» place when I don’t have dinner made. Kitaro Monster is so far my favorite.

Can only rec carry out. Weird service on a Tues. night. Almost rude and possibly with lack of manager. Not happy to see me. Do not recommend Crab Rangoon. Not freshly fried… weird interior texture. I do recommend summer roll and kitaro monster, but ask for light on all «sauces». I can’t vouch for anything «raw».

Always a pleasant experience at Kitaro. The waitstaff is attentive and polite. Ingredients are fresh. They’ve recently updated the menu a bit… Adding some new combinations. Give the house sangria or plumb wine a try, you won’t be disappointed. I personally recommend the Lemontster, Kobe beef, Ocean Drive and Pepperjack rolls. Chef specials are unique — like the «bacon bomb» with shrimp tempura, bacon, avocado, blue cheese and sriracha. The owners here really take pride in their restaurant and like to personally thank customers and seek their feedback.

Today my girlfriend and I came here to have dinner, it had the most beautiful décor we were really excited to get seated. We finally were sat after five mins the wait staff was hanging out in a booth near the rear of the restaurant fooling around with some guys that didnt have the appearance of being part of the staff. The miso soup was awesome then came the rolls we ordered. The funny thing is the restaurant was completely empty and our order was messed up. Our waitress was gone and didnt come back to the table untill we were almost finished. I have never been so dissatisfied with the presentation and the sushi was lacking in flavor. I wish i could give this place negative stars. If your looking for good sushi, I would not go anywhere this place.

This place is amazing! We had been here before and always enjoyed it but I am not a sushi fan so Kitaro was never on our top 5 list — until now! We had just about had it with Thanksgiving leftovers and after spending the day decorating for xmas, thought Kitaro was a great neighborhood choice for a drink and something light to eat.
We were greeted by our excellent server, Penny who recommended the Asian Pear Martini and it was outstanding! Not too sweet, not too strong (but strong enough), it was the perfect start to our meal. And Penny was so helpful, friendly and energetic — she made our visit so enjoyable.
We ordered the California Maki and Spicy Tuna and both were delicious. The Miso soup and the Vegetable Yakisoba were also wonderful. Then, instead of dessert we ordered a Cucumber Martini — believe me, this place knows how to do Martini’s!
I loved the cozy booths and upscale ambiance in Kitaro — add the great food and service you have a 5 star experience right in my back yard.