The Verdict
MOMOTARO is the Boka Restaurant Group's West Loop Japanese izakaya on West Lake Street whose yakitori programme, Japanese whisky selection, and design-forward interior communicate what the Japanese izakaya tradition looks like when one of Chicago's most accomplished available restaurant groups applies its specific design intelligence and culinary knowledge to the Japanese bar and small plates format. The yakitori programme whose specific charcoal grill preparations communicate genuine knowledge of what the Japanese skewer tradition requires; the Japanese whisky programme whose specific selections communicate genuine knowledge of the Japanese spirits culture; and the West Loop Lake Street setting whose restaurant corridor energy communicates the most commercially sophisticated available Chicago izakaya context.
The Japanese izakaya menu at Momotaro reflects the Boka group's specific approach to the Japanese culinary tradition: the yakitori and small plates programme whose quality communicates genuine knowledge of the Japanese izakaya culture; the Japanese whisky and sake programme whose selections communicate genuine knowledge of the Japanese spirits and beverage tradition; and the West Loop design intelligence whose specific aesthetic communicates a restaurant whose physical environment is as seriously considered as the food.
Why It Works for a First Date
Momotaro's West Loop design-forward Japanese izakaya and the yakitori programme — the Japanese whisky, the Boka hospitality intelligence, the Lake Street energy — creates the first date that communicates genuine knowledge of where Chicago's most design-serious available Japanese izakaya experience is practised.
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