I recently dined at this delightful Japanese/Thai fusion restaurant, and it was a flavor-packed experience. The Spicy Creamy Tom Yum Noodle broth was rich, tangy, and had just the right amount of heat. The egg noodles were perfectly cooked, and the fragrant aromatics—garlic, chilies, and kaffir lime leaves—elevated the dish. And fav dish was Yakiniku don. The savory-sweet yakiniku sauce tied everything together. It was comfort food at its finest. The Beef Tongue was our adventurous choice. Thinly sliced and grilled, it had a unique texture—tender but slightly chewy. The marinade was flavorful, and the hotstone grill made it even more enjoyable (10/10 for this dish!!)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Alex Aquino
Truly enjoyed this lunch experience. From the drinks, entrees, dessert -- each one had an exceptional angle to them. I ordered the garlic fried rice with wagyu in a stone bowl. The garlic flavor was present but not over powering. Wagyu always works, and the clincher was the crunchy caramelized rice due to the stone bowl. We tried 3 desserts and they all were tasty with different leanings.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pad See Eiw, Crème Brulee
Jessica
Shinsen is a contemporary Thai and Japanese restaurant that I have been patronizing for a few years now.One of my go-to orders is their Yakitori (grilled chicken) Don and Yakiniku (grilled skirt steak) Don. I especially like the soy reduction that accompanies the rice, which I think is house-made and brewed for several hours.Another one of my go-to orders is their Shallot Fried Rice with shrimp. It's unique and not like your traditional Thai or Japanese fried rice. My only complaint is that it comes with only three pieces of shrimp chopped up into little bite sizes. Shrimp fried rice at most, if not all, other restaurants come with at least five shrimps.I also really like their robata skewers. Among the more ordinary skewers are shrimp, chicken wings, and asparagus while their more exotic skewers, if you are adventurous, are grilled chicken gizzard, chicken heart, and pork jowl (cheek). All of the skewers that I have ordered are good. It's a shame, however, that they have removed their pork belly skewer from the menu.My second and final complaint, which I think is really important and therefore want to highlight is the way the skewers are packaged for carryout orders.Every order of skewer is wrapped in aluminium foil and packed in its own styrofoam box, which is wasteful. If they're going to wrap every order of skewer in aluminium foil, then there's no problem with packing them in the same container. I also wish Shinsen would use a more environmental-friendly material rather than styrofoam containers for their skewers. I'm generally not a tree-hugger, but styrofoam is really harmful to the environment, cannot be recycled, and takes an incredibly long time to degrade.I know that Shinsen cares a lot about presentation for their carryout orders, but there are ways to maintain good food presentation while being thoughtful about wastage and the environment. I hope Shinsen can be more conscious about this issue.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Chris VanKula
Loved it. Food was so delicious. Service was perfect.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Black Widow Roll, Crème Brulee, Japanese Wagyu Fried Rice
Armetia Beal
I recently visited this restaurant with my friend. We got there and was greeted by a waitress who took our orders. We then sat there for 30 to 45 minutes waiting for our food and when our waitress finally returned, she asked us how everything was and if we wanted more water. Which obviously caused some confusion amongst us because we had yet to receive any food at all. She then walked away and came back with a check for $60 for the food that we had ordered but never received. At that point, we were so shocked that we just decided to get up and leave without saying anything. We laughed about it on the way out, but the fact that we were completely ignored and forgotten about really sucked.
Service: 1
Catherine Burkhardt
Nothing better on a bone-chilling winter night than a delicious bowl of ramen! The Tantanmen Ramen was sooooo good! We loved everything we had. The service was attentive and polite. We will definitely be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tantanmen Ramen
Curtis S.
I think this is one of the better restaurants I've been to in Evanston. The sushi was good (but nothing special) but the curries were really good. The atmosphere was nice, and BYOB is always a fun twist. I'd highly recommend that folks in the area stop by.
Anthony
One of my favorite sushi places near the city!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Senor Meowzors (Shawn)
Honestly the best Tamarind Noodle and Crunchy Spicy Tuna I've ever
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Laura Ivie
Enjoyed the experience immensely! Came with a friend after a show down the street and needed a quick bite. The staff was warm and the food was delicious. Highly recommend!
Very well done! High quality, tasty, and great service! Great tea options!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jessy K.
Wow what an incredible pan-Asian food experience! I've walked past this place plenty of times in my many years of living in Evanston and never thought to give it a try, but saw that it was a top 20 place to eat in the Northshore, so I wanted to see what the hype was. I ordered delivery for their shallot fried rice and my mind was blown with how incredibly flavorful it was. I then had to go in person to try a few more things because maybe they just mastered the fried rice. I got the red curry mussels and the pad see eiw. Both were incredible. Probably the best pad see eiw I've had 10/10, and the mussels were a definite 8/10. I am already planning on another visit to try more things. I'm just mad I didn't come here starting years ago. The servers were really nice, I saw one person patiently helping a table through deciding on what to order. The restaurant is clean and nicely decorated, and currently is seasonal with a cute Christmas tree. I'm pretty skeptical of pan-Asian restaurants since a lot of them seem to just throw cuisines together and never master making anything. But Shinsen really has it down!
Ellie G.
Amazing food, service, and decor. My friend and I got sushi and another friend got a noodle dish. This is a must try if you have not been. I am so glad we had this for our monthly dinner club. Everything was amazing!
Victoria W.
Wow this was one of the best dinners that I've had in the Chicagoland area in a long time!We ordered the following dishes:Pad See Eiw: 5/5. Flavor was delicious, the roasted pork on top was very well done. The noodles are medium thickness noodles and not as wide as the traditional pad see eiw noodles are, but I did not mind this as it was still delicious.Shallot Fried Rice with Shrimp: 5/5, delicious, not too garlicky, the shrimp was a perfect protein choice to complement the rice.Crispy Spicy Salmon Maki: 4/5. This had a good flavor, and you would enjoy this if you like crunchy sushi rolls. This was deep fried on the outside so it was very crispy. I couldn't taste too much of the salmon as the predominant flavor was the crunchy outer layer.Skirt Steak Skewer: 5/5. This was super tender and perfectly cooked. Multiple people at my table voted this as their favorite item on the table.Chicken Thigh Skewer: 5/5. Also perfectly cooked and a crowd favorite at the table. The skewers were surprisingly a stand out item from the dinner.Black Dragon Maki: 4/5. The presentation was amazing and the taste was good. The predominant flavor of roll however was the shrimp tempura as the cut of eel on the top of the roll was pretty thin.Red Curry Mussels: 5/5. Very nicely done and served with 5 small fluffy green scallion buns. There's a lot of delicious curry left at the end so we paid for two extra bowls of white rice to scoop up the curry.Overall the food was amazing and I would definitely come back in the future. Honestly the quality of the food was so good that it felt like we were eating from a tasting menu at a Michelin star restaurant. If I could give any suggestions for improvement, I would say that the service was a little on the slow side and customers had to wave down the waiters at times for drinks, orders, the check, etc. So I would say, don't come here if you're in a rush but definitely set aside 1.5-2 hours to enjoy a nice, leisurely, and very delicious meal here.
I recently dined at this delightful Japanese/Thai fusion restaurant, and it was a flavor-packed experience. The Spicy Creamy Tom Yum Noodle broth was rich, tangy, and had just the right amount of heat. The egg noodles were perfectly cooked, and the fragrant aromatics—garlic, chilies, and kaffir lime leaves—elevated the dish. And fav dish was Yakiniku don. The savory-sweet yakiniku sauce tied everything together. It was comfort food at its finest. The Beef Tongue was our adventurous choice. Thinly sliced and grilled, it had a unique texture—tender but slightly chewy. The marinade was flavorful, and the hotstone grill made it even more enjoyable (10/10 for this dish!!)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Truly enjoyed this lunch experience. From the drinks, entrees, dessert -- each one had an exceptional angle to them. I ordered the garlic fried rice with wagyu in a stone bowl. The garlic flavor was present but not over powering. Wagyu always works, and the clincher was the crunchy caramelized rice due to the stone bowl. We tried 3 desserts and they all were tasty with different leanings.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pad See Eiw, Crème Brulee
Shinsen is a contemporary Thai and Japanese restaurant that I have been patronizing for a few years now.One of my go-to orders is their Yakitori (grilled chicken) Don and Yakiniku (grilled skirt steak) Don. I especially like the soy reduction that accompanies the rice, which I think is house-made and brewed for several hours.Another one of my go-to orders is their Shallot Fried Rice with shrimp. It's unique and not like your traditional Thai or Japanese fried rice. My only complaint is that it comes with only three pieces of shrimp chopped up into little bite sizes. Shrimp fried rice at most, if not all, other restaurants come with at least five shrimps.I also really like their robata skewers. Among the more ordinary skewers are shrimp, chicken wings, and asparagus while their more exotic skewers, if you are adventurous, are grilled chicken gizzard, chicken heart, and pork jowl (cheek). All of the skewers that I have ordered are good. It's a shame, however, that they have removed their pork belly skewer from the menu.My second and final complaint, which I think is really important and therefore want to highlight is the way the skewers are packaged for carryout orders.Every order of skewer is wrapped in aluminium foil and packed in its own styrofoam box, which is wasteful. If they're going to wrap every order of skewer in aluminium foil, then there's no problem with packing them in the same container. I also wish Shinsen would use a more environmental-friendly material rather than styrofoam containers for their skewers. I'm generally not a tree-hugger, but styrofoam is really harmful to the environment, cannot be recycled, and takes an incredibly long time to degrade.I know that Shinsen cares a lot about presentation for their carryout orders, but there are ways to maintain good food presentation while being thoughtful about wastage and the environment. I hope Shinsen can be more conscious about this issue.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Loved it. Food was so delicious. Service was perfect.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Black Widow Roll, Crème Brulee, Japanese Wagyu Fried Rice
I recently visited this restaurant with my friend. We got there and was greeted by a waitress who took our orders. We then sat there for 30 to 45 minutes waiting for our food and when our waitress finally returned, she asked us how everything was and if we wanted more water. Which obviously caused some confusion amongst us because we had yet to receive any food at all. She then walked away and came back with a check for $60 for the food that we had ordered but never received. At that point, we were so shocked that we just decided to get up and leave without saying anything. We laughed about it on the way out, but the fact that we were completely ignored and forgotten about really sucked.
Service: 1
Nothing better on a bone-chilling winter night than a delicious bowl of ramen! The Tantanmen Ramen was sooooo good! We loved everything we had. The service was attentive and polite. We will definitely be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tantanmen Ramen
I think this is one of the better restaurants I've been to in Evanston. The sushi was good (but nothing special) but the curries were really good. The atmosphere was nice, and BYOB is always a fun twist. I'd highly recommend that folks in the area stop by.
One of my favorite sushi places near the city!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Honestly the best Tamarind Noodle and Crunchy Spicy Tuna I've ever
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Enjoyed the experience immensely! Came with a friend after a show down the street and needed a quick bite. The staff was warm and the food was delicious. Highly recommend!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Lovely evening " byob". Excellent food, excellent service. Tempura shrimp - fabulous!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very well done! High quality, tasty, and great service! Great tea options!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wow what an incredible pan-Asian food experience! I've walked past this place plenty of times in my many years of living in Evanston and never thought to give it a try, but saw that it was a top 20 place to eat in the Northshore, so I wanted to see what the hype was. I ordered delivery for their shallot fried rice and my mind was blown with how incredibly flavorful it was. I then had to go in person to try a few more things because maybe they just mastered the fried rice. I got the red curry mussels and the pad see eiw. Both were incredible. Probably the best pad see eiw I've had 10/10, and the mussels were a definite 8/10. I am already planning on another visit to try more things. I'm just mad I didn't come here starting years ago. The servers were really nice, I saw one person patiently helping a table through deciding on what to order. The restaurant is clean and nicely decorated, and currently is seasonal with a cute Christmas tree. I'm pretty skeptical of pan-Asian restaurants since a lot of them seem to just throw cuisines together and never master making anything. But Shinsen really has it down!
Amazing food, service, and decor. My friend and I got sushi and another friend got a noodle dish. This is a must try if you have not been. I am so glad we had this for our monthly dinner club. Everything was amazing!
Wow this was one of the best dinners that I've had in the Chicagoland area in a long time!We ordered the following dishes:Pad See Eiw: 5/5. Flavor was delicious, the roasted pork on top was very well done. The noodles are medium thickness noodles and not as wide as the traditional pad see eiw noodles are, but I did not mind this as it was still delicious.Shallot Fried Rice with Shrimp: 5/5, delicious, not too garlicky, the shrimp was a perfect protein choice to complement the rice.Crispy Spicy Salmon Maki: 4/5. This had a good flavor, and you would enjoy this if you like crunchy sushi rolls. This was deep fried on the outside so it was very crispy. I couldn't taste too much of the salmon as the predominant flavor was the crunchy outer layer.Skirt Steak Skewer: 5/5. This was super tender and perfectly cooked. Multiple people at my table voted this as their favorite item on the table.Chicken Thigh Skewer: 5/5. Also perfectly cooked and a crowd favorite at the table. The skewers were surprisingly a stand out item from the dinner.Black Dragon Maki: 4/5. The presentation was amazing and the taste was good. The predominant flavor of roll however was the shrimp tempura as the cut of eel on the top of the roll was pretty thin.Red Curry Mussels: 5/5. Very nicely done and served with 5 small fluffy green scallion buns. There's a lot of delicious curry left at the end so we paid for two extra bowls of white rice to scoop up the curry.Overall the food was amazing and I would definitely come back in the future. Honestly the quality of the food was so good that it felt like we were eating from a tasting menu at a Michelin star restaurant. If I could give any suggestions for improvement, I would say that the service was a little on the slow side and customers had to wave down the waiters at times for drinks, orders, the check, etc. So I would say, don't come here if you're in a rush but definitely set aside 1.5-2 hours to enjoy a nice, leisurely, and very delicious meal here.