Yugen
Yūgen is a modern-day fine dining restaurant. Led by Chef Mari Katsumura, the menu features contemporary Japanese cuisine showcasing a balance of ingredients in their simplest form.
The idea carries over to ambiance and service, presenting a poised equilibrium of all aspects - food, design, and hospitality.
Our 10 course tasting menu is offered at $205 per guest our 5 course $110. Optional beverage pairing is available for $135 and $70. Please note in your reservation your preference.
***Please note that reservations are not accepted for Kaisho. It is available to walk in guests on a first come, first served basis only.***
The food, service and atmosphere were top notch.
We had a wonderful time at Yugen! The food was incredible; each dish was beautifully presented, perfectly prepared, and delicious. The wine pairings were surprising and exciting. On top of it all, the staff was warm and personable while presenting professional service. Can't wait to come back!
This dinner was AMAZING. My favorite was the Sake pairing it is a must try!
Sommelier was excellent
Food was great
Restaurant was too quiet
Great restaurant. Very unique. Will go there again soon.
The service at Yugen is impeccable. The presentation of courses was pure art. Each course was delicious and unique. We were seated with a view of the prep kitchen and then treated to a tour. I would have liked to experience the wine parings but the cocktails were far too inviting to pass up. I will be back!
Dining was spectacular. Every item from 10 course tasting menu was out of this world delicious . They deserve 2 Michelin stars . I personally could give them 3 if I could . Thank you. We want to come back soon again.
Fantastic food. We went to the same spot when it was Grace. I prefer Yugen. The food is amazing!!
Wonderful service, excellent food.
The food was outstanding, and the service was on par with some of the best restaurants in the city! I loved it and will be back! Our favorite was the Halibut with the kasu honey glaze with fava bean puree!
Outstanding in every aspect. Superb creative cuisine. Terrific wines paired perfectly with each course. Don’t miss out on this very special restaurant!
Yugen is an elegant, extraordinary experience. The food is a marvel.
The best dining room in the city. The food is great and service is top notch.
Food was amazing, ambience and music was great too. Will definitely be back
Total multisensory experience, each dish was a new adventure and better than the next. The service was impeccable, and they even invited my boyfriend and I back into the kitchen to take a photo!
Food and wine/sake pairings exceeded expectations by far. The composition of each course was harmonious without being overzealous. Fantastic service. Knowledgeable and amiable staff. Thanks for a great meal!
We had a delicious dinner there for my wife's 50th birthday. Surprisingly, the dining room was quite empty - we were the only table occupied for most of our meal. We chose a table with a view of the open kitchen so that we could watch each of our 12 courses being prepared, which we quite enjoyed. The food was outstanding, without a weak course. I particularly like the crab rice and the cookies and cream, chef's riffs on some old favorites. The sake pairing accompanying the meal was outstanding. I gained a new appreciation for the different styles of sake, and the pairings were great. Service was attentive, but not fussy. The wait staff was engaging and made for some delightful conversation,
We had the 10 course tasting menu with wine pairings. Absolutely outstanding meal, wine & attentive, friendly service. We felt welcomed & look forward to our next visit.
Elegant restaurant with top quality food and service. Must do wine or sake pairings with food.
Anniversary dinner for ourselves with son and his girlfriend. Beautiful space. Exemplary service without pretense. Extraordinary food: flavor, plating. Great sommelier. All around wonderful experience.
Lovely evening! They were incredibly kind and added the soup dumplings from Kaisho to our tasting. The staff was amazing and incredibly engaging and friendly!! My partner adored the unique wine pairing y and I loved the adventurous playlist. The food was amazing as were the unique plates! Bravo, a wonderful replacement to Grace which was lovely, however, I think the design of the space better suits this cuisine. It wasn't gimmicky like Grace or Alinea.... Just amazing food and a wonderful staff.
Fantastic fine dining experience. My hat goes off to the chef, the sommelier, and the entire staff for going the extra mile. Worthy of at least 1 Michelin Star but there is potential there for 2. We were thrilled to see that they did not change the decor of the former restaurant, Grace too much. The duck, the foie/uni, and the beef jerky were our favorite bites. We also loved the wines from Austria and Portugal. The music was superb...the instrumental version of “Still Dre” was a risky playlist move, but it somehow worked perfectly. We also agreed that the bread and butter at Yugen was the best bread and butter we have ever had anywhere....and we have dined at some of the best restaurants around the world.
The pairings were great. The service was also great.
The food is not elevated. Of the 12 courses in the experience at the time, there were only 2 that were memorable. Most were forgettable or were not something I would want to experience again.
Yugen was out of this world! One of the best dining experiences of our lives.
My wife and I were both nervous about visiting Yugen to celebrate her birthday because it's relatively new but carries the price-tag of an established, world-class restaurant. We need not have worried. Yugen's food, service, hospitality, wine, cocktails, food, food, and food made it a (relative) bargain, even at its steep price.
I don't eat any meat, shellfish or octopus, which meant the kitchen had to substitute for essential parts of about half of my courses. At some restaurants, this would convert standout dishes into ordinary ones, but not a Yugen: From start to finish, they hit the target. In particular, the trout/salmon course was divine, four distinct sauces exploding with flavor around one of the most succulent morsels of fish I've ever consumed. Bread service brought us a roll and green butter suitable for Olympus.
Our lead server (Clarissa) paced our meal appropriately, kept us well-informed, and generally charmed us. Ditto for sommelier Denise Collins and beverage director Olivia Noren, each of whom shared her wisdom during frequent visits to our table. My wife and I shared a wine flight and adored the majority of what we tasted.
If our experience was any indication, Yugen deserves all of the plaudits it has received - as well as Michelin stars.
The most amazing restaurant in Chicago I've been to in years
the food was wonderful. I wish that they would do 7 larger dishes verses 11 smaller dishes. the wine and sake pairings were nice but were hit and miss.
Wow, the entire experience was simpy amazing. The space, the service, the wine pairing, the food... we were blown away. I would be shocked if Yugen doesn't receive a Michelin star or two. I would highly recommend this special experience to anyone.
Overall very excellent experience, very impressive cocktail and desserts, but food itself is a bit too salty
Amazing service and great experience over all. Nothing earth shattering here with the food but every
Great place with huge potential. Our server Carissa (among others) was awesome. As with the food, it was good, I'd place it below Oriole, Acadia, and Everest, but with some flavor adjustments, it can get there.
Yūgen has high ambitions, which is evident in their food, wines, and service. They do deliver at a very high level and their food is definitely up there with many other world-class restaurants that one been fortunate to dine at. It is a young team and they still have room to grow. It will be interesting to continue to watch and eat at Yūgen over the coming years to see where they end up as they do speak and act like they belong in the ranks of world-class establishments.
Amazing! Love it
Fantastic experience- from food to wine pairings to service, everything was top notch!
Expensive, but creative menu of Japanese fusion courses. Interesting wine list. Service was near perfect.
The quality of the food and service was exceptional. Really enjoyed the wine pairings as well. The different flavors in each of the courses were wonderful.
Unforgettable experience for a celebration - my husband I went here to celebrate my birthday. The tasting menu was phenomenal, difficult to pick one favorite dish! Cocktails were also smooth and delicious. Wonderful staff all around (reception, serving staff, etc); truly one-of-a-kind!
Amazing through and through. If you’re wondering if you should go, the answer is YES! It’s a completely wonderful dining experience from beginning to end.
Superb culinary & dining experience!
We had an amazing meal at Yugen. I did the sake pairing and my husband did the wine/beverage pairing. Both were excellent. Every course was beautiful, inventive and delicious. I would love to return and have everything again. Chef Katsamura and her team have created an excellent restaurant.
Truly an exceptional dining experience! The food was inventive and so delicious, the plating was beautiful, the wine pairings were on point, and the service was truly beyond compare. We cannot wait to go back again for another special occasion!