Koi and Chen’s Chinese and Sushi Restaurant in Evanston, IL

Last night, I was fortunate enough to go to another one of my favorite restaurants. This may be in my top 3, if not my number 2 favorite so far. I went to a place called Koi, which is located right in the heart of downtown Evanston.

http://www.koievanston.com/home.asp They also have a location in Chinatown but I have yet to go there! On this lovely visit, we ordered edamame for an appetizer, Bruce’s Favorite Maki, and some Sweet and Sour Chicken. The edamame was a huge helping, especially for $4.50. I was pleasantly surprised to see so much of it in front of me. There was more than enough for me to share with my friend. Next it was time to order. I adore sushi, I really do. But sometimes, I get sick of the same old, same old. One of the things that makes Koi so great is the diversity in rolls to choose from. They have the standard sashimi plates, or big platters of simple rolls, but they also have things that are unique! In the past I’ve ordered a Dragon Roll, which was absolutely divine, little on the spicy side but I enjoyed it.

I love trying new things, so we decided to order Bruce’s Favorite Maki, which had lobster, avocado, wrapped in rice, and was covered in the Chef’s Special Sauce, which was kind of tangy, similar to a sweet and sour sauce. I really liked this. The fusion of flavors was on the side of uncommon, but in a good way. Avocado and lobster pair extremely well together, which was probably my favorite part of the roll. I would absolutely order it again.

For the Sweet and Sour Chicken, I certainly can’t complain. Though I loved the small twist they put on it. The sauce was tangy and yet still sweet, which is exactly what I expected. However, they put cucumber in. Now normally, cucumbers aren’t my favorite vegetable, but the crispness brought a new taste into the mix that pleasantly surprised me, in a refreshing way.

Overall, love this restaurant for their imaginative creativity with the menu, and consistent quality of the food that they serve. I wouldn’t come back if I didn’t love it, so that should show you why it’s so great 🙂