Shakou - Barrington

“Really delicious and unique sushi rolls! I’ve never had a roll with black rice before but it was incredible! The rooftop has a great vibe and a wonderful view of the sunset.”

“Great food and great service! Bartender Pat is awesome — super friendly and attentive. Highly recommend!”

“Food was great but prices were very steep compared to what I’m used to on the east coast. This place is great though and the sushi was delicious. They have a small bar area if the restaurant is full. We made reservation on Resy and didn’t have any issues being seated immediately”

“Lots of variety on the menu, from Japanese to Korean. The atmosphere is nice and the sushi is decent, but spending nearly $100, I definitely expected better quality sashimi.”

“Shakou – Barrington, IL 🚨 WARNING: Don’t Waste Your Time or Money Here! 🚨 Review Title: Absolutely Terrible – Worst Experience Ever! I don’t even know where to start — Shakou Barrington was hands down one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. We ordered sushi, braised short ribs, and fried rice, and every single dish was a complete disaster. The food took forever to come out, and when it finally arrived, everything was ICE COLD. Not just lukewarm — cold. It honestly felt like our meals had been sitting in the kitchen for a long time before the waitress finally brought them out. The braised short ribs were awful — completely drowned in an overpowering soy sauce flavor. I understand they’re made with sweet ginger soy, but this was so salty, bitter, and unbalanced that it was hard to even take more than one bite. The sushi tasted old and lacked any freshness, and the fried rice was bland, greasy, and flavorless. To make things worse, the service was just as bad as the food. Our waitress was nowhere to be found, seemed distracted the entire time, and clearly didn’t care about providing even the bare minimum of customer service. No updates, no apologies, nothing. The only thing that was even halfway decent was the calamari tempura appetizer and the sauce it came with — but that was the first dish we got, and everything after that went completely downhill. This was our first time coming to Shakou Barrington, and it will absolutely be the last. For the prices they charge, the quality and service are a complete joke. ⭐ Final Verdict: If I could give ZERO stars, I would. This place was a huge disappointment from start to finish. There are far better Asian restaurants in the area — skip Shakou and go somewhere else.”