Restaurant Review: Andersonville’s Tanoshii Sushi a delightful, fresh experience
First things first: What does tanoshii sushi mean?
According to Table22.com, in Japanese, tanoshii means ‘delightful’ or ‘pleasant.’
And at Andersonville’s Tanoshii Sushi, which also operates a West Loop location, this casual BYOB restaurant, featuring creative sushi rolls, bento boxes and other Japanese fare, has been serving the best sushi in Chicago for over 13 years.
Most importantly, their culinary philosophy mirrors the growing trend towards a healthier and balanced lifestyle, pairing fresh proteins with fresh vegetables and housemade sauces.
They were recognized with an OpenTable Diners Choice Award recently, likely because, as Tanoshii Sushi ‘s website notes, “Every bite is a story crafted with Passion and Share with Joy.”
Start with their signature FISH AND CHIPS with spicy tuna mix, avocado, pico de gallo, and tobiko (flying fish roe.) Their SEARED TUNA SALAD is like none other, with seared tuna sashimi, spring mix, and sweet onion sauce with white peach balsamic dressing. Another colorful starter is HAMACHI CARPACCIO…five pieces of yellowtail sashimi with cilantro, serrano fried garlic, sriracha with ponzu yuzu sauce. MISO SOUP is a classic soybean paste soup with seaweed, tofu and scallions. KAISO pairs a seaweed salad with ponzu sauce. TAKO SALAD enhances the seaweed salad with ponzu sauce (a citrus-based vinaigrette) by topping it with Octopus Sashimi.
Not to be missed are Mike’s Special Rolls. FRESH WASABI ROLL is filled with hamachi fish, avocado, cucumber, crabstick, and fresh wasabi sauce. SALMON TRUFFLE is a mix of salmon, avocado, cucumber, crabstick, white peach balsamic, sesame, and chill truffle honey. SPICY mixes snapper with spicy tuna, avocado, cucumber, crabstick, mango balsamic, and spicy mayo sauce. As Rachael Ray used to say, “Yummers!”
MAKI ROLLS include the ANDERSONVILLE with shrimp tempura, crabstick, cream cheese unagi, cucumber, and avocado. Their RAINBOW ROLL has California maki, topped with assorted fish, while their CATERPILLAR ROLL pairs shrimp tempura with crabstick, cucumber, and avocado. RED CATERPILLAR has spicy tuna, crabstick, cucumber, and avocado, hile UNAGI pairs a fresh water eel with cucumber. ALASKAN has fresh salmon, avocado, and cucumber.
As one TripAdvisor reviewer said, “The BEST way to experience Tanoshii for two people is to order signature ‘fish and chips’ appetizer and 3 Mike’s special rolls. (Chefs choice).”
But…don’t miss their entrees, including CHICKEN TERIYAKI, with grilled chicken, salad, rice, Miso soup and two pieces of Gyoza (Japanese dumplings). VEGETABLE UDON SOUP is a meal in itself, with udon noodles and vegetables. CHICKEN KATSU is a chicken breast cutlet, served with vegetables, rice, and Miso soup.
HIBACHI DINNERS includes your choice of CHICKEN, a seven-ounce FILET MIGNON, a seven-ounce SALMON, or SCALLOPS.
Where appropriate, Dean’s Team Chicago recommends leaving room for dessert. Here, you can choose from FURUCHEESI, with fresh fruits and New York cheesecake in a sweet rice crispy maki, MOCHI ICE CREAM is available in your choice of strawberry, chocolate, vanilla, green tea, or red bean. Or a most unusual BANANA SPLIT, a mix of cheese cake, banana, Rice Krispies, wrapped with soy paper, topped with whipped cream, chocolate drizzle and strawberry.
Other reviews were equally positive.
“TANOSHI sushi restaurant is a must-visit! The sushi is fresh and the service is top-notch😍!!! All the staff was so friendly, attentive, and made sure everything was perfect. You can tell them really cares about the customer experience. We’ll definitely be coming back!”
Tanoshii Sushi is located at 5547 N. Clark Street. They are open Monday-Thursday, 11am – 9pm, Friday-Saturday, 11am– 10pm, and Sunday from 1pm– 9pm. Reservations are recommended, and are available on Open Table by clicking here.
Alison Moran-Powers and Dean’s Team Chicago
