Momotaro

Come Back Better: What Your Second Visit to Momotaro Should Look Like

If your first trip to Momotaro left you eating well but slightly overwhelmed by the room, the menu range, and the whisky board, good news: the second visit is where this West Loop restaurant clicks into focus. You know what to order now. You know how loud it gets. The question is whether the return trip justifies the $$$ price point and the effort of securing a table in one of Chicago's most consistently packed dining rooms. The short answer is yes, provided you come with a plan.

Momotaro earned a Michelin Plate in 2024, which positions it firmly in the tier of restaurants worth going out of your way for without yet demanding the full-tasting-menu commitment of a Michelin-starred evening. At $$$, it sits below the $$$$ bracket occupied by Chicago's most celebrated tables, and that gap in price does not translate to a gap in ambition. Executive Chef Gene Kato runs multiple kitchens within the same building, producing a menu that spans robata-yaki, sushi, and composed Japanese dishes under one roof. That scope is exactly what makes your second visit more productive than your first: you know which kitchen to lean into.

What to Focus on This Time

If you spent your first visit sampling broadly, the return trip is the moment to commit. The jidori kimo, chicken oysters grilled from the robata, has long been one of the kitchen's most talked-about preparations. They're worth ordering again. But the dish that rewards the informed repeat visitor is the ebi uni maguro nigiri: only ten portions are available per evening, which means you need to flag it early in the meal rather than treating it as an afterthought. The una-kyu maki is the lower-stakes version of the same logic, a cleaner, more focused order that holds up well across the menu's broader range. The beef tsukune sliders in bao from the robata-yaki remain a reliable second act.

The whisky selection, displayed on a retro departure board, is worth a more deliberate look on a return visit. The imported Japanese whisky range is one of the more considered bar programs you'll find in the West Loop, and it pairs better with the robata dishes than most of the cocktail list. Take the time to ask about current pours rather than defaulting to whatever's easiest to order.

Why the West Loop Needs This Room

Momotaro is a Boka Restaurant Group property, and it carries that group's signature investment in physical space. The dining room is designed to an ambitious spec, the upstairs private dining room styled like a mid-century corporate boardroom, a detail that makes it one of the more interesting private event options in a neighbourhood that leans toward open-plan industrial. For the West Loop specifically, this matters: the area has accumulated serious restaurant density over the past decade, and a restaurant that can credibly serve a date, a business dinner, and a large group from the same building without feeling like it's hedging is doing something operationally useful.

For the neighbourhood's regulars, Momotaro functions as an anchor in the way that only a few Chicago restaurants manage: it's formal enough to justify the occasion but not so precious that you can't drop in for counter seating and a few dishes at the bar. That's not a small thing in a city where the gap between casual and destination dining is often wider than it needs to be. If you're building a night around the West Loop and want to stay in the area rather than heading downtown, Momotaro is the strongest Japanese option on this side of the river. For a different register of Japanese dining nearby, Kumiko goes deeper on cocktail-forward Japanese influence, while Gaijin focuses on Japanese-Mexican crossover. Neither covers the same ground as Momotaro's robata-and-sushi breadth.

If omakase is your preferred format for Japanese dining, Omakase Takeya and Itoko are worth comparing, but both operate on a more intimate counter model that removes the group-dining flexibility Momotaro offers. For a more casual extension of the Momotaro experience, The Izakaya at Momotaro downstairs is worth a separate visit in its own right. It's a different room with a different pace.

Booking and Timing

Momotaro is consistently packed, which means booking difficulty is moderate but real. Plan at least two to three weeks ahead for weekend reservations. The private dining room upstairs is a separate booking path and worth exploring if you have a group of six or more. Counter and bar seats offer some flexibility for walk-ins or last-minute plans, but do not rely on this during peak hours. If you're targeting the ebi uni maguro nigiri, note the ten-per-evening limit and arrive early in the service rather than mid-meal.

How It Compares

Against Chicago's wider Japanese dining options, Momotaro occupies a useful middle position: more ambitious than a neighbourhood izakaya, less specialised than a pure omakase counter. If you're deciding between Momotaro and one of Chicago's $$$$ destination restaurants, the calculus is direct. Smyth and Alinea operate at a higher price point with a more singular vision; they're better choices if you want a full progressive tasting experience. Moody Tongue is the stronger pick if wine or beer pairing is central to your evening. Momotaro wins on breadth, group-size flexibility, and the ability to accommodate different appetites at the same table — a practical advantage that the tasting-menu format at most $$$$ venues cannot match.

Compared to Kasama or Next Restaurant, Momotaro is easier to book on shorter notice and offers more flexibility in how you structure the meal. It does not attempt the conceptual ambition of Next's rotating format or Kasama's Filipino-rooted tasting menu. What it offers instead is a well-executed, high-variety Japanese dining experience at a price point that leaves room for whisky and dessert without restructuring your budget. For most groups, that trade-off is the right one. For context on how Japanese dining at this level compares to Tokyo's own high-end restaurants, Myojaku and Azabu Kadowaki in Tokyo represent the benchmark the kitchen is working toward.

Pearl's Take

Book Momotaro if you want a Japanese restaurant that can handle a group with different appetites, serves one of Chicago's better imported whisky selections, and delivers Michelin-recognised quality without demanding a $$$$ commitment. Come with a specific dish list, order the ebi uni maguro nigiri early, and use the return visit to go deeper on the robata menu rather than covering the same ground as your first trip. For more on where to eat, stay, and drink around Chicago, see our full Chicago restaurants guide, our full Chicago hotels guide, our full Chicago bars guide, our full Chicago wineries guide, and our full Chicago experiences guide.