A Bento Box of goodies

Jim and Nancy do not disclose the fact that they will review a restaurant before they attend, ensuring their reviews are unbiased and uninfluenced by their position with the Sun Day.

Ever have a yen for a good Bento Box? Ever have a yen to find out what the heck a Bento Box is? Your yen will be satisfied at the Sakura Japanese Restaurant in McHenry. (We promise this will be our last yen reference.)

One of our loyal readers wrote suggesting we review this restaurant. Since we are servants to you, the good citizens of Sun City, we finally got around to investigating it. As usual, the restaurant is in a strip mall and smaller in size. On the inside, however, it is bright and airy with large paper umbrellas hanging from the ceiling. Nancy loves when they put those little paper umbrellas in her adult beverages, but if she were to have a drink that could handle one of these umbrellas, she would be the one hanging from the ceiling!

This establishment has approximately 16 tables, a small bar area, as well as a sushi bar that can seat six people. The waitresses were all very cheerful and made us feel like one of the regulars. The menu is extensive, with offerings ranging from Sushi, Teppanyaki, Tempura, and standard Asian cuisine. There is something here to please everyone’s palate.

For appetizers, Jim had a sushi Spider Roll ($7.95). This was fried soft shell crab, avocado, cucumber, and a spicy sauce. It was the largest roll of this type that he’s ever seen, and the presentation was a work of art.

Nancy’s appetizer was the Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura ($7.50), which consisted of two shrimp, and one each of mushroom, broccoli, sweet potato, onion ring, and zucchini. Of course, she had to have it “her way,” so she opted for only broccoli and onion rings.

Now to explain what a Bento Box is. It is a sectioned box that holds the various goodies that come with your entree. Kind of like a Japanese T.V. Dinner.

For our entrees, Jim ordered a Steak Teriyaki Bento Box ($18.95). This came with your choice of soup (he ordered the Hot and Sour Soup) and a salad with ginger dressing. It also included Tempura shrimp (2) and vegetable Tempura (4), a California Roll, and steamed rice. Fried rice was an up-charge of $1.50, and he decided to splurge a little. That was a lot of food to consume, even for Jim. If you decide to order this, be prepared to “pig out.”

Nancy had the Teppanyaki Seafood Combo ($21.95) of shrimp and scallops. This was served with Chicken Noodle Soup, salad with ginger dressing, steamed rice, which she also changed to fried rice for an extra $1.50. Since they give you both soup and salad, plus a large entree, Nancy had to take half of her dinner home.

If you like sushi or tempura, this is THE place for you. It has great food presented beautifully at a reasonable price. The drinks also looked very yummy. I never saw a bartender go to such lengths in making a drink, they were gorgeous!

FYI: Handicap accessible and take your time between ordering courses since your food arrives quickly.

All of these goodies cost us $68.80, Arigato.

Jim’s take: I’ve found the best Spider Roll ever and their tempura is awesome. I can’t wait to try their Shrimp Tempura Roll. It was a tough battle, but I managed to finish my entire meal.

Nancy’s take: This is hands down the best tempura I’ve ever eaten. I can’t wait to go back for more! Is it just me or is Jim starting to look like a Sumo wrestler? I’m just saying….

Have comments or restaurant suggestions for the Dining Duo? Send them an email at thediningduo@gmail.com.

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