Ron of Japan

A neat spot to enjoy some delicious hibachi, with tons of fun decorations, lots of space, friendly service, yummy egg sauce, plenty of parking, and reasonable prices.As compared to other Hibachi spots, I find the food is pretty similar in quality and portions. The overall selection of meat choices is bit on the higher end, with lobster tail, new york steak, sea bass, and other options in addition to the usual steak, beef, chicken, etc. Portion size is fairly generous, though for the price, not the largest that I've seen. In terms of flavor, the standout item here is the egg sauce that is provided pretty generously. The food could have a bit more umami, but still pretty good.The service is not bad, we were served pretty quickly and from friendly staff. The show was pretty basic overall, but this did allow the chef to spend a bit more effort on the cooking of the food. I like the setup of the tables here, as it allows the group to talk a bit easier than other spots with a more rectangular setup.Plating and presentation was fairly good here, as the chef neatly arranged all the different meats while cooking. Items such as the soup, salad, ice cream, pineapple, etc. were presented nicely which did give a bit more of a premium dining experience, in addition again to the substantially decorated interior full of art, bridges, plants, and other items to immerse diners in a fun experience.Overall, good value for a dinner and a show. It's not going to be the most amazing food you've ever had, but it's still done well and you get quite a bit to eat with dinner. I'd definitely choose to go here over similarly priced steak house options which many times aren't as flavorful.

When you're looking for hibachi or teppanyaki restaurants look no further than Ron of Japan in Northbrook. As soon as I stepped inside I was impressed with the ornate decor. You truly feel like you have left Illinois and landed in Japan. There are statues, red railings, aisles and bridges over pond-like decorations. One you get to your table, you are in the proper mindset for a feast.The tables are smaller than at other hibachi restaurants that I've been to. This allows for a more intimate experience. Our party ordered the crown combinations meal, which comes with two pieces of shrimp with egg sauce, chicken soup, fresh garden salad, teppan vegetables, rice, and ice cream. The egg sauce alone is worth the price. Where have you been all my life? I got salmon as my entre option. All of the food was amazing. The price is a little more than other hibachi restaurants, but the food and experience matched the price. I was not disappointed. I will be returning to Ron of Japan!

While visiting Chicago we got nostalgic and took the grandkids for dinner. The service was great and the food was as good as we remembered. Nice space and the chef cooked everything exactly as ordered. Unfortunately the heat from the table was overwhelming especially after the lit a fire on the table. Made for a nice effect but made the heat in the room even worse. Overall we enjoyed the experience. We had shrimp, chicken, steak, vegetables and fried rice. All were delicious.

Well, it would seem that things have gone down hill for Ron of Japan. For some reason, they no longer offer fried rice and shrimp they have opted for fried beef instead of shrimp. I guess it's cheaper. And the soup was not the same either it used to be a consomme of chicken broth with green onions. Now it's more of a tasteless chicken soup. The eggs were scorched and to me, it wasn't worth $300. The service was great I can't take that away from them our server was attentive. And the ambiance was nice we sat with a really nice couple who were engaging and nice. I had the Seabass and it was awful not a season to be found they used either olive oil or vegetable oil to cook it. Whatever it was it was tasteless so I will never order that again. My wife and daughter both had a filet with shrimp and chicken. And the filet was cooked perfectly no complaints there the shrimp and chicken were also Cooked well. So now they put some sort of thick Egg paste on the shrimp and rice when you ask for extra Egg. WTF!!!! So this was the first time we have gone back to RofJ since 2013. Goodness things have changed and not for the better. I was not happy to spend that kind of money and be dissatisfied. Also please pay attention to your check afterward, if you're not careful you may tip more than you should. You tip according to the price before taxes. If you don't pay attention you might find yourself tipping after the final total of the bill with taxes included. I'm giving Ron of Japan the rating they deserve. Sorry do better is all I can say. Beef fried rice to me is a non-starter it tastes more like hamburger fried rice.

This is not the Ron of Japan I used to know. We arrived at 6:30. They put the four of us in the bar area and we waited for 20/25 minutes and nothing! I went up to the desk and asked when we were going to get seated. The man said shortly. Another 15 minutes passed and I went to ask him again. He said the other four people were due and he sat us at a table. We had to wait another 20 minutes to get a chef to get our order and give us our meal. At 7:45 he started! The food was not as I remembered. I love the egg sauce over the shrimp, I'd give it a 6 out of 10 at best. Not a happy experience. The price was $250.00 for the four of us with one beer. We won't be going back anytime soon. Next time, we'll go to Tsukasa in Vernon Hills.

Visited Ron of Japan on a Friday evening. When we got there it was not busy but by the time we left there was already a waiting list. The service was great and our chef was very nice and entertaining. The food was great, had the 7 course seafood combo. Now the egg sauce on the shrimp....perfection. I couldn't get enough. Overall a great experience. The place is clean and the staff very caring.

The ambience is really nice here! I like that the tables are individual as some habachi places are bigger tables with multiple parties. The restaurant did not fill up on a Saturday night. We were told that sushi was not an option as there was no chef. Our chef was nice but did not do any tricks or anything like other places do for entertainment. We thought the food was just okay. It needed more flavor and it was costly. I expect it to be more with being prepared in front of you but it seemed even higher than that. They also up charge you for fried rice made with ground beef, etc. I will say the waitress made it clear though. They do a nice presentation and song with ice cream for birthdays.

Dec. 2023 Update - We made reservations for a party of 4 for dinner, which was easy to do online and was immediately confirmed via email. It was a late-evening reservation, so the place was already starting to wind down with only a few other tables still active. We were seated very quickly, but we still had time to snap a few group photos. The ambiance is still excellent, and the staff keep the place clean and in good repair. The front of the house staff and our server were very friendly, provided us everything quickly, and helped us take our order (several people at the table had questions). Everyone got their drinks in a timely manner, and they were very generous with the "liquid fun" in their pours and blends.Our appetizers arrived quickly, and were pretty good. The salad was simpler than in the past, but their carrot ginger dressing was as delicious as ever. Their soup is a little less savory than in the past, missing some of the oniony and mushroomy notes I'm used to in the clear broth (compared to previous trips and other teppanyaki steak houses). Still delicious, but also still a downgrade. Our chef arrived, cordially greeted us, and prepared the griddle with a fancy fireball. He then proceeded to prepare all of our food.All of the food was competently prepared, but with less theatrical flare than usual as well as a little slower than I'm accustomed to from Ron of Japan and their local competition. For a last-shift-of-the-night dinner reservation, I'm used to getting a little less show, but this was VERY no-frills. I don't mind terribly, but I could tell the rest of the people at the table did miss some of the showy spots (the onion volcano, the smokestack, trick cuts, egg spins, etc.). All of our food was prepared well, and he customized everything upon request (we frequently enjoy extra golden sauce on our rice), but there was no multitasking which slowed down preparation. Most other teppanyaki chefs can juggle at least two or three items on the griddle at once. The stir-fried veggies, the fried rices, and each of the main courses were all done individually. This stretched out the process more than usual, and also meant some people had completely finished their entire meal by the time others were just getting served their main course (mine in particular as they did all the seafood last). It's a little bit of a letdown, but at least everything was perfectly prepared and delicious (though maybe a little oilier than in the past).Our most recent Ron of Japan trip was probably my least favorite so far. We've had multiple dinners in the past 6 years, and I feel like each subsequent trip after mid 2017 would be marginally more lackluster. Their sushi - which in fairness isn't their specialty - has also marginally declined in quality. None of the trips were bad, and there is some leeway granted for the two trips shortly after they re-opened from lock-downs; but I observed many of the complaints posted by other Yelpers happening gradually over the last 6 years. None of these problems are insurmountable, and I feel like the Ron of Japan experience is still a little above average compared to other smaller teppanyaki restaurants (thanks in large part to them having a much bigger and grander location). I sincerely hope they address the issues, and bring their service up to match the excellent ambiance of their restaurant - especially at the slightly higher-than-average prices they charge. There are a few teppanyaki restaurants in the area that offer solid competition (two Bennihanas, Sarku, Kobe, and Todoroki), which could easily surpass them if Ron of Japan doesn't work on improving these issues. As well, there are a few that are currently a fair bit better in the area (Tsukasa, Hanakawa, and Rokbonki) that I will likely go to instead until Ron of Japan improves. I've been to Ron of Japan more than all their competitors - possibly even combined... I have fond memories of their prime service from just 7 ~ 8 years ago, and they are very conveniently located (they are also the most handicap accessible). I hope they can turn this decline in service around soon.

Gerald was great at cooking, was very entertaining and funny. Gerald was great to talk to. this place is awesome

I made a reservation for 6 PM arrived at 6:05 when I got there I told the host that I have a reservation. He was like go to the bar he bar didn't ask my name or anything. When we were finally seated about 20mins later the Cook (he came 20 more minutes after we were seated, by this time our drinks were empty from waiting) was obviously catering to the other family and not us. They seem to be a little racist in here because the other people at our table were white men, and they clearly got more food than us, which is crazy because, we were paying too so why not treat us as equals and then on our way out before we could make it to the exit the host (the guy who greets you when you come in and directs you to the bar etc). DEMANDED A 20% tip... tipping is supposed to be optional not mandatory AND IS BASED OFF OF SERVICE they DID NOT deserve a $28 (that is what we paid them) tip but they got it. We will never be back. I'll try the downtown location before I everrrrr come back here. My fellow black and brown people should AVOID THIS PLACE.