Japonais Restaurant   

600 W Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60610
312-822-9600
www.japonaischicago.com

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The long-awaited French/Japanese fusion effort from the Mirai Sushi founder Miae Lim and Rick Wahlstedt of Le Colonial has arrived. The trendy River North space lives up to its billing with two expansive dining rooms decorated in a '70s art-deco-meets-Far-East theme, complete with leather backless chairs and palm trees. Until the weather turns unpleasant, diners can sit on the canopied deck at river walk level and watch boats sail by on the Chicago River. The cuisine by Chefs Jun Ichikawa (Mirai Sushi) and Gene Kato (Ohba) is full of sushi and European cuisune fusion. Specialties include: "Le Quack Japonais," a smoked duck with hoisin sauce, mango chutney and mushu wraps presented whole at the table, then carved back in the kitchen; A 7-spice Kobe beef prime rib in hollandaise sauce; and "The Rock," a thin-sliced New York strip cooked and presented on hot rocks. For the less adventurous, there's surf and turf and baked king crab. For starters, try the Yaki Yaki, sauteed shrimp, squid and asparagus in a special sake garlic sauce or pan-seared lump crab cakes with soy mustard sauce; Japonais also offers a full selection of maki rolls, sushi, sashimi and daily fish specials if you want your Japanese a bit less fused.