Sumo Japanese Steak & Sushi

Sumo is one of those places you walk into, and right away you cant seem to figure out why the heck they don’t do better business.
The food is very good, everything is extremely fresh, Mr. Sumo, both the owner and chef, is very friendly and loves to talk about cooking (or anything else actually).
I do have to agree with some other reviewers that the service is a bit slow, but Id have to say that maybe its because they are a bit downtrodden? Mr Sumo has done his best to try and run a successful family owned business amongst chains and as you can tell hes probably struggling… but again, why?
I have to blame the strip mall location. Not a bad spot in town but not many people rush to a night of fine dining next to a Dairy Queen and a Dollar Store.
I hope that he does well, given the chance few are disappointed in the food and yes its a bit pricey but I would say prices are on par with many of these Hibachi-​style restaurants, so anyone who has eaten at these types of places shouldn’t be too shocked with the bill.
I say give Sumo a try, you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised, and if you like it, spread the word!

I had really high hopes going here after the fine reviews posted up here, I love these type of restaurants (hibachi, cook in front of you type) and I am a big fan of Rokbonki up off of Dundee. ButRokbonki is often packed and I am not a big fan of being treated like cattle going in and out of a high end food establishment.
So I figured Sumo was worth a shot. Unfortunately it came up short in almost every way.
Immediately walking in I wondered why it was so empty, (went at 6:30 on a Friday night? we were literally the only full table and there was maybe 6 – 7 other patrons in the whole place. It was very clean and didn’t have that greasy feeling/​smell that most of these restarants have.
Wait staff was attentive at first but it was obvious they were short staffed after the intial sit down. Drinks took ten minutes to get too our table to start.
Ordered some sushi (just 2 rolls) as an app and it literally took almost 30 minutes to get it, they even apologized for it taking so long.
The food was appetizing and well cooked but portions were lacking and like I mentioned service was at most satisfactory throughout to whole meal. Our chef was nice and semi entertaining, but i did get a sense he was a bit rushed which didn’t make sense, nobody was even in there?
We had the steak, shrimp and scallops. The steaks were cooked well but rather small in size, and the shrimp were downright small for a 30.00 entrée. the Garlic shrimp was OK.
All in all this place was satisfactory on all levels, but in this price range they really need to step it up, we hade 4 adults and 3 little kids (who shared our 4 meals) and our meal was 260 including tip. That is ALOT of dough!
Well now I know, I will go back to Rokbonki instead, there is a reason they are busy all the time, they have GREAT food (especially the garlic shrimp), bigger portions, better service, and just a better dollar for dollar japanese steakhouse experience.

We love hibachi style restaurants, and I must say that Sumo is our favorite. Mr. Sumo is a great host and chef (he cooked for us the first time we went there). The sushi is phenomenal. Would recommend to anyone looking for affordable high quality Japanese food.

Pretty good sushi, good hibachi, good service. I like sumo alot, but I always go just north to rokbonki.

Alright restaurant but pretty pricey for what you get. I went for lunch and found the service to be pretty slow with okay portion sizes but only average food.

We went to Sumo for my mother-in-law’s birthday (Saturday night, mid-​January, 7pm reservations for 10). Our table was ready when we got there and we were comfortable. Our waitress spoke very little English, but took our drink orders in a timely-​manner. She came back and took our dinner order pretty quickly as well.
Then, the wait started. We were so hungry and it seemed like there was only one chef working and every table was ahead of ours’. Finally, about 45 minutes after we got to the restaurant, our hibachi chef came over.
His name was Dave and he was hilarious! He interacted with each of us as he cooked our food. Admittedly, by the end of the table’s orders, the food was overcooked… but the show was so good, we didn’t mind. He made my mother-​in-​law smile when we sang «Happy Birthday» to her — something that’s, uh, rare when it comes to her birthday. My 10– and 13-​year-​old nephews said they had a good time, as did the two-​year-​old who was eating at the grill next to ours’.
Honestly, the cost was a little much for the food, but Dave and the atmosphere made up for it. I wouldn’t say I’d go back every weekend, but I wouldn’t mind eating there again. Perhaps it would be better to go with a smaller party…

Horrible Sushi! Horrible Steak! Worst food I ever had. Total waste of money!!!

Great service and good food! I went here with my mom and grandma because I wanted to try out a new restaurant and had a taste for sushi. I was pleasantly surprised that they have a sushi lunch special. $ 1 soup, salad or nigiri, and 2 maki rolls for $ 8, specialty rolls $ 8. The waitstaff was very prompt and attentive. They were even patient with my grandma who can be very difficult when it comes to ordering :). The rolls were all very good. Not the best sushi I have had but pretty good nonetheless. The soup and salad were delicious. The ginger dressing differed from what one would typically expect at a Japanese restaurant. It had a little bit of a bitter taste to it… but it was good.
I also really liked the atmosphere The inside was really pretty and nicely decorated. The only thing I was not happy with was that it was a bit chilly. I will definitely go back and I look forward to trying the hibachi grill!

What a pleasant surprise. The décor was really beautiful. We went for lunch. The service since we were the only table there, was great. We didn’t see the all you can eat special but ordered the lunch special. The salad was great – ginger dressing was really good and the sald was cold and fresh. Miso soup was served hot. Rolls were good we ordered four different rolls so we could try a variety and we were not disappointed. Will go back to try the hot tables! Wait staff were prompt and friendly.

Once again we put our faith in Unilocal reviewers and once again that faith was amply rewarded with a wonderful dining experience. Sumo is a good distance from here, but I think we’ll be going back because along with excellent food, they boast a polite, attentive and competent staff, and a clean, contemporary space that nevertheless preserves the kind of clean, timeless Japanese ambiance that is so appealing.
The sushi is reasonably priced and very flavorful, and even the standard maki rolls have a bit of a difference. The California roll had a bit of non-​wasabi spice that was perfect, and the spider maki was served with just a touch of a sweet-​savory sauce. The salad dressing was a variation on the now-​classic ginger dressing, with a fruity, slightly bitter undernote as if it had a nice tot of lemon zest in it.
The actual teppan-​yaki show was fun, as always, with the volcano and knife play, but what’s more important is that the end result was excellent. The steak was tender and perfectly cooked, the veggies were crisp but still slightly caramelized, and the yaki-​soba was a nice touch.
But the best thing on the plate? The golden shrimp. Now I love golden shrimp; I could eat the damn custard with a spoon! This golden shrimp was the most delicate I’ve ever tasted While the flavor of the custard stood up well to the shrimp, it never overwhelmed, and the texture was light and fluffy unlike so many others that are like flans. I don’t mind those, but this was delightful in its own way.
A dessert of a small helping of ice cream is included in the combo dinners as is a bowl of soup (not miso) so the price of the entire meal seemed pretty reasonable to me. While my dining companions had Kirins, I opted for tea, and the refills were prompt and so unobtrusive that as I was about to ask for one, I realized it had already been done.
In all, it was a terrific dining experience, and I really recommend that anyone who has grown tired of Ron of Japan or Benihana give this place a try. It’s a fresh and friendly change rung on an old tune.

UPDATE: I believe they stopped doing the All You Can Eat sushi :-(
This was my first time here, and I went for the All You Can Eat (AYCE) Sushi — which is I believe $ 16.99 or $ 17.99 served during lunch Mon-​Friday 1130 – 2 (I could be slightly off). I’ve been to about a dozen AYCE sushi places in the Chicago/​Palatine area, and this is hands down the best sushi I’ve had for AYCE. Almost the entire sushi menu is available for AYCE, and it is really good sushi — even if you were paying full price. It’s not just the basic sushi rolls available, they have a few of the fancy ones that other reviewers have mentioned.
The staff was very friendly, and the restaurant was clean and well decorated. The only reason I am not giving this 5 stars is on the day I went service was pretty slow, and it took a while for orders of sushi to arrive. Perhaps the reason it took so long is they make everything fresh, and really put a lot of effort into it — and it shows. I hope that they expand the sushi lunch special to weekends/​evenings so I can go here more often. Even if the price were $ 25 for evening, it would still be worth it.

SUMO… the word says it all, grandeur, prestige, living large… yes this restaurant does exemplify a few characteristics that you could equate to the ancient tradition of Japanese wrestling. As soon as you walk in you have a TV to the left playing SUMO wrestling, it may not be live but it is SUMO wrestling, never mind that the video tape is on a constant loop, noticed this later, hey wasn’t that i saw like 20 min ago. I wont take any points off for that, it is after all a restaurant and not a sports bar. The décor is very soft, the one thing you notice is the space, everything is nicely spread out, so you definitely don’t feel restricted like you would in other Japanese restaurants. The tables are large and include the grill where they cook your food. Its always a nice touch to see your food cooked live in front of you, i mean who really knows what goes on behind closed doors. The seating is very comfortable and the table and chairs were just the right height, for me at least. The service was friendly and prompt. We ordered the Sushi and steak. The paintings on the wall are very neat, and yes the Japanese lamps and the red décor almost make it romantic feeling. So yes good place for a date. You can also sit on the sushi bar, i would recommend that if you’re just there for the sushi. The chefs come around and cook on the table top grill in front of you. They do make it slightly interactive but not too obtrusive, doing some neat tricks with the knives and food, good for entertainment purposes. Another thing is that if you’re not there as a group you might have to share a table with others, depending on how busy it is. This can be both a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how you look at it. We shared the table with a family of three, they were nice and we got along fine. The soup was excellent, just the Miso you were craving for, the tofu in it delicately soft. With most entrees the soup, yaki soba and veggies are included. So the chef then cooks up your food, the noodles, the yaki soba all fresh go straight from the grill to your plate as does the steak or shrimp or whatever you ordered. The family we were sharing the table with had shrimp, and they did look good, they were more like tiger prawns not the small shrimp. The steak was excellent, we asked for teriyaki sauce on it, and the chef did a great job. My sushi plate came in too and that was delicious I had the combo and everything on it was fresh and the plate was also very well decorated, my compliments to the sushi chef. All the fish tasted great. Make sure that you do get the horseradish and ginger sauce as it compliments the meals very well. I like the design of their menus, very solid makes you feel like you’re actually holding something not a flimsy piece of cardboard paper. I would def go there again, and might even get to see some brand new sumo wrestling.
Their website is currently down, you can view their menu on
The price was also very reasonable for this kind of restaurant. Enough said 4 good stars for me.

This is my favorite Japanese steakhouse in the chicagoland area. The atmosphere is amazing, very airy and welcoming, the food is outstanding & the staff is always friendly and accommodating.
I suggest it to anyone for a first date or a girls night out — def. worth the trip to the burbs.

The superb décor caught my eye as I walked in: brightly painted walls, wall sconces, paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling, the tables, the sumo wrestling on TV (hahaha), and the general layout of the restaurant itself. We were seated in the back room (the bright orange room!) which was very quiet and nice.
Our waiter was very friendly and personable (I wish I caught his name), as well as the rest of the staff. They seemed happy to be there, which is the impression one should always get from the staff.
The food — great! Sushi was good, as was the salad, chicken teriyaki, fried rice, and vegetables (which all arrived in a beautiful plate and sprinkled with a few sesame seeds). My mom and her friend shared a golden (covered?) shrimp dinner and really enjoyed it as well. The soup was good too, but my tongue is still burnt from the hotness of it (I ate there last night).
Only a few other diners were in the restaurant, though, which is a shame, because I’m sure places like these are often overlooked when nestled in a strip mall. I hope this place continues to impress and stay for a long while, though! Overall, we really enjoyed the meal and I would come here again!

Went here with my mom and Japanese dad at 6pm and no one else was there. Calming, clean, beautiful lighting and décor (lots of pictures of sumo wrestlers and a tv playing sumo matches as well, haha) and friendly staff (though they are Korean, heh). I ordered Dragon rolls and they were amazing. Now it’s one of my favorite foods. We also ordered the Rock ‘n roll sushi which even my dad had never tried before, and we loved it. Also a teriyaki chicken dinner, which came with a delicious soup (like miso soup), delicious vegetables and the chicken had a great flavor too. Even my dad, who eats all kinds of Japanese food frequently, said their food quality is very good. Came in beautiful dishes too. By the time we left there were at least 20 — 30 other people.
For anyone who wants really authentic, delicious Japanese food, definitely check this place out. A hidden treasure.
Also, they don’t serve lunch anymore, only dinner.

Absolutely my favorite resturant in Palatine. I would recommend this resturant if you’re looking for a nice Filet.

Visited at 6:15 on a weeknight. Very few people around. Service was very slow at first, which I presume was to try to fill up our hibachi table prior to starting the cooking. The portions were good — garlic shrimp excellent. Filet and veggies were somewhat bland for a japanese restaurant, though cooked just right. Décor and lighting nice and clean. However, the music sounded like a japanese Gloria Estefan song from 1987 — over and over again. I would go back to try the sushi, but I prefer other locations for my teppanyaki.

Got here at 8 on a Saturday and the place was pretty dead, just a couple tables. The service was decent, I would hope it would be with the small amount of people there. The décor is really nice and it’s alot bigger than it looks from the outside. I like how they keep true to the «sumo» theme by playing sumo matches on the television.
I ordered edamame to start and never got it until our server brought our entrée. She said that our order got «jammed in the machine» but I still wanted it, so we had it with our dinner. I ordered the spicy tuna roll (lots of spicy sauce on top), the shoft shell crab roll (so good with the warm crab inside), and the sumo roll (tuna, salmon, crab and whitefish with fish egg) — they were all amazing! Top it off with a bottle of Sapporo and I was in heaven.
There was also a couple at a cooking table and we watched the chef do his thing, but we were disappointed because he really didn’t put on much of a show. Maybe it was because there were only two of them there? Anyways, I will go back there again for more sushi.

Sumo is a great addition to Palatine, which desperately needed a high-​quality sushi restaurant that doesn’t charge outrageous prices. «Mr. Sumo» is a wonderful host, and the sushi and sashimi that he and his staff create are fresh, tasty, and presented beautifully. The prices are reasonable for the quality — especially if you go at lunchtime and order one of the lunch specials. I recommend the sashimi platter.
Mr. Sumo handled one service issue and one misunderstanding in an extremely generous way, which I think is significant. First, I ordered my usual sashimi platter for lunch, and when it came out it looked like less food than I was used to. Mr. Sumo explained that the pieces were larger and simply placed on a smaller plate. Still, he brought me six more pieces so that I would be satisfied — no extra charge. Later, the server forgot one of my special orders for a piece of anago, and when I mentioned it, Mr. Sumo brought me the two most amazing pieces of anago I’ve ever had — on the house, no charge. So if there are a few service issues to work out, at least Mr. Sumo knows how to make up for them, when necessary.

This was a great first experience for us, thanks to Justin W. s review we decided to come here for dinner tonight. This restaurant exhibits a great atmosphere when you walk in. Beautiful walls, very clean look, not a single spot anywhere. You can smell the food from out in the parking lotw and it smells very good. We ordered the Udon soup and Ikura. Both which were excellent, my parents enjoyed the fact that the cost was not very high and they really stuffed themselves full. The tables are very highly wheelchair accessible and even in my TDX-​SP (powerchair) i was able to use the tilt system up to 10 degrees.