Niu B

One of my favorite Asian fusion spots in the South Loop — Niu B. Great sushi + Chinese classics all in one place. Karaage fried chicken = crispy perfection. Mongolian beef = tender and juicy every time. Spicy Girl Maki is a must if you love salmon. Dynamite and Flamer rolls are bold, fun, and super satisfying.

Love everything about this place. Ordered Cherry Blossom for appetizer, Ichigo roll, Chirashi and Salmon Lover, and they were all very delicious. The fish was so fresh and buttery.. Also if you are lucky to get the seating that faces towards the park, the view gets really gorgeous in the late afternoon :)

Good Asian food, can’t go wrong here. I always get the ramen and chicken. They also have good selection of fruity cocktails.

Stopped in for a late lunch on a Friday. Ordered the Bento Box lunch special and it was plenty of food. The spicy garlic ramen was flavorful. The spicy tuna roll was enjoyed by everyone at the table.

Excellent place for a night out in the Michigan Ave area. I really loved the lychee martini and the lava cake. The sushi was excellent. The tuna tartar appetizer was excellent.

Got the Mango Tango roll and the Honey Sesame Chicken — both were absolutely delicious!! servers were attentive, atmosphere (around 9pm) was nice, and the food was great! Would come back again

I wasn't a huge fan of this. I tried the Tonkatsu Ramen and Wagyu handroll. The truffle soy on the handroll did not have a truffle flavor at all. The wagyu was also tough, not like wagyu at all. The Tonkotsu broth was not savory either. It tasted watery.

I saw Niu B while I was walking to another, and I am glad I changed it up. I had an amazing dinner and time here. I had never tried Takoyaki before, and Niu B set my expectations high! The chicken karaage was amazing too. With the residences attached, it made part of the atmosphere where the staff and regulars are almost like kindred spirits, felt like home.

I only ordered takeout from here, so I cannot yet speak on the ambiance or service. I ordered a deluxe chirashi bowl, miso soup, and the crisp rock shrimp. The miso soup was packaged in styrofoam, but held its heat pretty well for the journey to my house. It was a bit saltier than usual miso soup for my taste, but still tasty. The rock shrimp was delicious - the crispy shrimp paired nicely with sweet, creaminess of the sauce. The deluxe chirashi bowl was delicious! Only $30 on DoorDash, which is a steal for raw fish like this. The salmon wasn't the best quality I've had, but they all still tasted fresh, succulent, and full of flavor. There's also a nice variety of fish in the bowl to make it worth it. I would give this place a 5, especially for the price, but nothing particularly wowed me. I would happily order from here again!

My friend and I hung out by the bar before the bears game playoff with the Rams . It was one chilly night in Chicago but the fans were cheering and upbeat . Our server Benz made me a couple of old fashioneds the first was with a Japanese whiskey which I didn't care for the second. Was my usual bourbon which made me all buzzed and happy . The scallion pancakes were ok..The truffle sauce for the fries was exceptional, for a person who doesn't eat fires I ordered another one .

Not a bad spot. It was one of the few places open on Christmas eve. The staff were friendly and location, prime. We ordered spicy ramen, yellowtail, garlic edamame, seaweed salad, a Japanese whisky cocktail and a glass of wine. We didnt order anything out of the ordinary or too complicated. We just wanted something simple, easy, and close to home.

The Chirashi Bowl was fresh. The white wine was crisp. The miso soup was warm and flavorful. It was a perfect early evening meal in a relaxing setting.

Located just a little over 5 minutes from the convention center, it was an easy location to pick for lunch. This is their second location, have heard about Niu before and was glad to be able to pay a visit, and was not disappointed. Service was fast and effiecient, which was much appreciated due to limited time availability. The order consisted of: Fried rice : $14 - very good espcially with the sauce Vegetarian Gyoza- pan fried steamed vegetarian dumplings $ 8 hot and yummy Fried Vegetarian Spring Rolls - which came with a filling of cabbage, edamame, carrots, mushrooms and sweet chilli sauce. A different blend from the spring rolls I eat normally. Really good. - $9 Btw, if you need without egg, you need to specify at the start of the order. They do have a lunch special Bento Box for $16 which is a very good deal and the meal is just enough for a person, not too much, not too less. Its very neat and tidy, an ambience perfect for a formal occassion. Nice experiance.

A friend and I were craving asian food, and Niu B was one of the top recommendations according to yelp. And i must say, they did not dissapoint. They were crowded, but we must have came just in time as we got what seemed like the last table there. If you're a type of person to not like sitting close to people, you might as well get over that phobia. The seating isn't claustrophobic, but you definitely be able to hear the other tables' laughter and gossip. Think cheesecake factory small table seating if you've ever been there. Our server was very nice and familiar with the menu which is nice when trying something new. I opted for the wonton soup (of which i ordered 2 servings, since one only came with 3 dumplings) and edamame as an appetizer. The edamame was sooo good. Seasoned to perfection. And the wonton soup was nice. The broth could have used a little more seasoning, but soy sauce did the trick quick. It has a somewhat nutty flavor to it, which was kind of nice. Overall apps would get a 10/10 from me. And they also weren't too shabby with the pricing. Considering most places in Chicago that I visited seemed to be overpriced, this was right up my ally. For dinner I was torn. There was so much on the menu, which for me, is sometimes overwhelming. So i just decided to get a simple roll. it was good, nothing fancy, and a little on the small side in my opinion, but overall i'd definitely recommend this place.

Incredibly poor experience. I paid for an hour and a half parking expecting to spend a good amount of time here and try a few things on the menu considering it was my first time. I arrived at 4pm advertised as happy hour online. It took 25 minutes for her to take my order. I only ordered 1 lychee martini and then asked for a menu to look at the food. There were only 3 small tables there when I arrived, everyone was closed out and tended to. By 5:12 with 3 new tables in and STILL no service I asked for the check. The new table was serviced with iced cucumber water while I only got room temperature tap water. How ridiculous and disappointing.

Decent sushi but the quality and selection were unremarkable. Service was incredibly slow and our glasses consistently went dry. This was not a good lunch spot as our dining experience neared 2 hours. *Deluxe Chirashi: unfortunately the kitchen was out of uni so I was given extra scallop. Compared to other chirashi bowls, the variety and freshness was underwhelming. I would have preferred more fish instead of the thick layer of spicy tuna and tobiko. The spicy tuna was heavily seasoned so I couldn't taste the natural meatiness of the tuna. The sweet shrimp was soft but I wished it came with more than a piece. The crab was overly processed and shredded so I couldn't appreciate the sweetness. The salmon toro was fatty but it was only a bit better than the average cut. The rice was seasoned well but the bowl was missing the mentioned dried nori. *Spicy Maki: chose the salmon and cucumber combination. The ratio of salmon to cucumber was ideal. The spice component only came from the drizzle of spicy mayo on top. Decent for a typical maki roll. *Salted Caramel Crunch Cake: a bit expensive for a slim slice of cake but it was a good balance of sweet and salty. The caramel layer was perfectly gooey. The toffee crunch added contrasting texture. The custard was thinly applied so there wasn't a represented creamy element. The seafood was average at most and there should be greater emphasis on the fish. The prices were a bit too high for the quality and flavors received. Additionally, the insanely slow service cut into our day and you would think a restaurant specializing in raw seafood would be quicker.

Prior to a concert, a friend and I stopped by Niu B for a quick happy hour dinner & drinks. We each got a drink, and a roll, and we shared two apps. Gyoza: 4.5/5 - crispy, hot, delicious. Served with ponzu and some sort of sauce similar to sriracha. Scallion pancake: 4.5/5 - warm, flaky, goodness. Served with soysauce and the same sriracha sauce. Roll: 5/5 - crunchy, refreshing and delicious. No notes. Drink: 3.5/5 - tasted like a bit like a watered down / flat ginger ale and rum Overall: the meal was delicious, and the server was kind. There was a bit of a wait between the dishes and we waited a while for our rolls - despite there not being many other patrons -- but it was happy hours so we kind of expected that. All in all, would come back!

Had Valentine's Day dinner here. I loved it and would highly recommend! I ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen, Godzilla Roll, Chicken Fried Rice, and Lychee Martini. The Godzilla Roll was the star of the night! I was extremely impressed by how large the roll was given the price and it was honestly some of the sushi I've had in a while. The ramen was also great, a classic flavor. The fried rice was a low light, it was on the blander side and needed lots of soy sauce to make up for it. The martini was strong and delicious! It was a little too dark inside but super romantic and a slightly upscale vibe. Our server was kind, no complaints there. Overall a great dinner- I am glad we stumbled upon this place on our trip.

I recently tried Niu B in Chicago for the first time through DoorDash, and overall, it was a pretty good experience! The fish was incredibly fresh, and the quality really stood out in both the Salmon Lover entrée ($32) and the sashimi platinum set ($54). My personal favorites were the pepper seared salmon, which had the perfect smoky kick, and the Chicago Summer Roll ($16) which is salmon, avocado, masago, and mango wrapped in soy paper which was refreshing. I also tried The Flamer ($18) which was a bundle of tempura shrimp, more shrimp, cream cheese, spicy crab and jalapeño that's then topped with salmon, white tuna and tobiko that's baked and topped with even more spicy mayo, unagi sauce and scallions. It was the perfect amount of salty, fresh, and flavorful. The only miss for me was the Cherry Blossom appetizer. The big ole jalapeño chunks added too much crunch and overpowered the texture, so I'd skip that one next time. It's gorgeous, though. Despite that, it was a pleasant meal and I'd absolutely order from them again.

This place is really cute - they accommodate huge parties and it's really centrally located. That being said, the service was slow and our food came out incorrect. The food itself was also quite bland and not as up to par as you'd expect nicely spice Asian food to be. The dessert was really good and our server was kind but I am big on food flavor and this did not hit the mark.

Was out shopping in the loop with my girlfriend and she suggested we stop in here to eat. Usually my philosophy is to find restaurants to experience the joy of new food and new experiences. But we were hungry so why not. I'll preface this by saying, we ordered basic chicken dishes (sesame and general "tsao"), not ramen, so I can't assess them in that realm. It seems popular so maybe they're doing something good? If you're like me and prescribe to the philosophy of eating out for the new experience, do yourself a favor and take a 10 min uber to Chinatown, and grab something there. The food here reminded me of a place my friends and I would get in college, for 1/5 the price. I remember it being much better too. You're paying for convenience here. Same flight: good Gyoza: ok Chicken: nah

Seated within minutes at the bar. Bar staff was great and attentive. Helped answer my questions and made recommendations. Ordered the Mongolian beef with white rice and broccoli it was amazing. For drinks ordered the dragon fruit mojito it was okay but I think next time I'll try a different flavor.

One of my favorite happy hours in south loop! The service is fantastic, and you can always find seating even if you walk in. The restaurant is very aesthetically pleasing with a lot of natural light, which I love. The $10 ramen is a STEAL and they even have a mushroom broth one for vegetarians! I also really enjoyed the lychee martini and the prices are incredible. I already cant wait for my next time here!

When I went to Columbia I was here almost everyday. Ramen is some of the BEST and the sushi is great. Great vibe and nice staff (the owner.. I miss her, she was so kind to me ) You are missing out if you haven't been to NIU B. I wish I was closer to the city to enjoy this gem. I crave it all the time..

Great happy hour deals! Flavor was average but good overall. Service was really great, they were attentive. The decorations inside the restaurant were festive and simple!

Unlike some of the reviews, service was great for us, which was surprising because we came during Lollapalooza weekend. Water was always full, they came to check up on us frequently, and they answered any questions we had. Our food also came out very quickly! The food was pretty good too! My favorite that we ordered was the salmon, chicken karaage, and edamame. The salmon was fresh, juicy, and flavorful, and the karaage was nice and crispy, but didn't taste oily. The tonkotsu I had wasn't the best I've had but it wasn't the worst either. I added chili oil to mine which made it taste a little better, but still nothing crazy. Overall, a cute restaurant that serves good food.

I will make this short and sweet...all the food we ordered- sashimi, soup, rolls, etc...everything tasted great and fresh. However, the taste of food doesn't make up for the horribly slow service. It took forever to even get an initial drink order, which should have warned me about the rest of the evening's service. The restaurant seems short staffed, the servers ignored you when you tried to flag them down, and when you did get their attention- they didn't even adequately take down everything you wanted to order. Between slow service, missing orders, and lack of attentiveness- this place isn't worth it.

I recently visited Chicago, and Niu B was conveniently located near my hotel on the corner of S Michigan Ave and E 9th Street. I was immediately impressed by the menu and the lunch special. The lunch bento special is beautifully presented. For $15, it includes miso soup, an entrée (I chose the honey sesame chicken), a portion of rice, California maki, and a green mixed salad.I also added a crunch roll to my order, and it was made to perfection. Regarding the ambiance, this location is very intimate, and the embellishments are beautiful. I'd say, perfect for solo or group dining. The chef are so immaculate as they prepare the rolls. So if you sit bar side, you're able to see firsthand experience of them creating the signature rolls. Additionally, the restaurant was busy, so the service was a bit slow. However, my dining experience was so peaceful. If I'm ever back in Chicago, I'll be stopping again!

We were seated quickly even though we didn't have a reservation. The fried chicken ramen was very flavorful and was great on a cold night. It's a quick walk from the Hilton and Marriott (Meridien Essex) hotels. Friendly service goes a long way.

Got takeout and found it was solid, around a 3.5/5. Dragon Roll - 4/5. Nice eel flavor, good crunch. Tomago - 4/5. Simple, well executed egg sushi. Scallion pancakes - 3.5/5. Solid, nice fry texture. Gyoza - 3/5. Solid, nice fry texture. Mango Tango - 2.5/5. A bit on the bland side, the fish didn't feel so fresh Vegetarian Maki - 2/5. Quite bland.

I was headed to another restaurant nearby but walked by Niu B and thought it looked cool inside, so I ate here instead! I happened to have come in during happy hour so I got an enormous bowl of tonkotsu ramen for $10, which was warm and filling. I also ordered a spicy tuna roll from the regular menu and was impressed by its freshness. There were drink options for happy hour too but I stuck with water. I ended up getting into some good conversation with the table next to me, and service was fast and friendly.

Great assortment of sushi options, we tried half the rolls on the menu it seemed like and there truly wasn't a bad option. Plum sake was amazing too! Highly recommend for anyone craving affordable sushi. Fantastic service as well!

I really love this place. It's just a short walk from school so I can pop in for a late lunch in between classes or on my way to the Metra. The food has always been great. I usually pop in for a cup of soup and some appetizers and either a roll or a meal to take back with me on my way home. Service has never been an issue. Prompt and friendly. And the restaurant itself is really lovely. Great spot to people watch across the park if you sitting by the windows.

If you're looking for a good sushi place in Chicago, I would definitely recommend Niu B! I am not a fan of sushi, so I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was at NIU! Good service and great food!

Terrible service 1hr to get a sushi roll Food was panda express level at best Overpriced by far

Niu B is amazing! Great staff, amazing food and good prices. Several vegan options. The mushroom ramen is divine! They have an amazing happy hour Monday- Friday from 4-6pm

The food was good. I want to be sure to share that. The food arrived about an hour after we were seated. Another table seated after us was attended to, and served, well before we were. We were literally getting up to leave when a server arrived. She was unapologetic about the delay - because she had a large group inside. That didn't help. I left 15%. That is quite low for me. I'm a 20-25% person usually. I'm giving a 3 star, but I do not recommend.

we were starving and started eating before taking a picture haha! Very big menu and great space. We loved the size of the spicy tuna and tuna hama. The rainbow roll could have been slightly bigger. We had two appetizers as well. Service was quick!

Great meal! Service was fantastic, the drinks were good, and the ambiance was perfect. My only complaint was they were out of the wagyu beef entree. My dining companion is Filipino and raved about her chirashi. I had teriyaki chicken with buttered veggies and it was tasty. We also enjoyed scallion pancakes.

Good quality, but the selection of fishes wasn't up to our sushi snob standards! This will not be a repeat for us, but the quality was good and the location 100 yards from our hotel was unbeatable! If you are staying on Michigan Ave in the South Loop, you will not be disappointed, although you may not be wowed.

Food was good I had chicken ramen and it was fantastic. The other person had the kung pow chicken and said it was simply "okay" The service is pretty good. Heads up an extra side of rice is 3$ and they also charge a restaurant surcharge for anything added on the check which was a bit surprising. Restaurant is quiet and clean

Great service and solid ramen! Went back a second time for the maki and it hit. Love the little bar atmosphere. Fun find!

This amazing sushi/ ramen place is located in south loop near Grant park. Tried their California rolls, vegetarian maki rolls, ramen, old fashioned and coconut mojito. Restaurant is very cozy and servers are very nice.

It was a beautiful space and the staff was friendly. We were excited to try the mushroom ramen and tofu rice. The tofu rice was bland and the ramen broth wasn't the best. There is so much potential here; the recipes just need a revisit.

The sushi here is super fresh and delicious! They do some interesting flavor combos here. One of the nigiri pieces had lemon pepper seasoning on it which is not a typical flavor profile from traditional Japanese salmon nigiri. One of the salmon sashimi pieces came with skin, which is something I also haven't seen too much. But the sashimi was very generous and fresh. The prices are bit on the $$$ mark, my friend and I split a karage appetizer, two soups, and the salmon delight and each spent about $30. The wonton soup was really comforting. There were slices of ginger in there and the shrimp wontons had whole pieces of shrimp in them. Highly recommend. Service was friendly, fast and efficient. This was a great meal for anyone doing activities near millennium park or CSO.

They had a private party in there so the change of atmosphere and noise was not their fault. However they don't really have a true private party area so if you see the back area full- just know you have to walk through this party to use the RR and it can get loud. The food was great, as well as the service. Short walk from the Hilton. I would eat here again next time I am in Chicago.

We had dinner at Niu B while visiting Chicago. We were craving ramen and it was conveniently located within walking distance from our hotel. There is minimal parking on side streets. I suspect it mainly serves tourists and visitors. We were able to walk right in and get a table for three on a Saturday night at 8PM without a reservation. It has an open seating area with exposed kitchen and sushi bar on the side. We ordered the Red Dragon Sushi Roll for appetizer. It was very good and the tuna tasted fresh and not fishy. We all had the Kimchi Ramen. Overall, one of the best tasting ramen I ever had. The broth with bits of kimchi was delish. The chashu pork was very tender. I wish there was more than just 1 small slice. A 2% surcharge was added to the final bill .

The best sushi spot in chicago! The sexy mexican and the godzilla rolls are amazing. I've been here a million times and i refuse to order anything else they are that good. Although it is a little expensive it is 100% worth it. It's normally busy in here but not too busy you can't get a table. Could not recommend this place more!

I visited this restaurant during lunch hour. The service was friendly, and they even served water with cucumber, placing a pitcher on the table. There was plenty of seating, and the place was very clean. The chirashi bowl was worth the price for the amount of food ($26 at the time of this review). Each piece of fish was thick-cut, and the two types of masago complemented the fish and rice perfectly. The Flamer roll was more delicious than the Dynamite roll, though both rolls were baked. The texture of the Dynamite roll was a bit mushy due to the spicy tuna filling. I will definitely come back if I get a chance to revisit Chicago and try other items on the menu.

Great spot. Easy to get to. Chill atmosphere. Great food. Very friendly staff. Definitely recommend.

Service was poor to say the least. Come prepared to have to flag down your waitress/waiter when you want to order, when you need soy sauce, and when you want to pay. The restaurant was half full, yet the waitresses just stood around and gossiped. They even went and sat in a booth and nibbled on dumplings and chatted some more. Prepare for them to not write you order down (which makes someone with food allergies nervous). Like other reviews have said, food was pretty good but the service was so bad it made me not want to come back. Restaurant manager needs to get a handle on this place.

The sushi selection was fresh & amazing. The ambiance was ok but they seem to seat Ike to seat the non-Asians in the very front of the restaurant which lacks ambience b/c someone jn the twosome OR 1/2 of the party will face Michigan Ave. Not great at night. Service was attentive but not overly helpful; did not automatically bring soy sauce despite ordering sushi & sashimi, only brought when we requested

So let me start by saying the food was actually very tasty but the service was not ideal in my opinion. We came in at 6 pm on a Sunday, right before the dinner rush, and ordered a deluxe chirashi, hot and sour soup, and a pear martini. Pear martini was strong lol but it's fine. The hot and sour soup that I forgot to take a pic of was delicious but it was a small cup for $8. I thought it would atleast be a small bowl. I'm from Southern California and even there I can get a cup of soup for about $5, but ok fine. Then for the chirashi, spicy tuna is not premium. I got 4 thin pieces of salmon sashimi, 3 thin pieces of scallop and one piece of ebi. The other stuff is just tobiko and roe. I have had so many deluxe chirashis where they put a good amount of sashimi. It tasted really fresh but I feel like it wasn't worth it. The last thing that really brought this review down was the service. The group that came after us got their food served first. It does not take 30 minutes to bring out chirashi. Not only that but the hot and sour soup didn't come out till we were halfway through the chirashi. Soup is usually always first. They served soup to the group that came before us too. It was the first thing they got. Our server kept attending the table next to us but not really checking in on us. Idk I was just disappointed overall, so I wouldn't come back.

The sushi is amazing for the price. Best sushi I've had that didn't leave a dent in my wallet. Solid drinks too

Pretty lack luster in both quality, execution and taste. Lots of soggy, flavorless and strange flavors for very straight forward Asian cuisines. Here are the dishes we ordered from best to least best * Japanese fried rice ($15) - honestly tasted a lot like Chinese house (yang zing) fried rice. Light, not oily, chicken breast was dry, there were random zucchini wedges but didn't detract from the dish. No soy sauce, sauce or sesame oil flavor it was more of a "spiced yellow egg fried rice." Open to ordering again. * Mango Tango sushi roll ($15) - was decent. 10 pieces. Surprisingly a hearty portion of fish in each piece. The mango had a very strange artificially sweet & over ripen mushy flavor & texture - did detract from the dish. Two pieces of tuna, four pieces of avocado, two piece of shrimp, two piece of salmon. From this dish and onward would not order again. Family hated the mushy, over ripened flavor. * calamari sticks - very strange but didn't hate it. Soggy tempura, thick calamari slices (slightly chewy), and topped with a really strange thick teriyaki gravy sauce. * gyudon - yummy. kind of plain. the chef went a little heavy handed on the vinegar so after a few bites it was way too sour. * sweet potato tempura sushi roll - on the menu it just said sweet potato tempura, we didn't expect it to come in a sushi haha. It was really soggy, mushy when combining mushy tempura + potato with sushi rice. The sweet potato wasnt even sweet. Hard to eat 8 pieces of it. * tonkatsu ramen - just ok. Ramen soup tasted like an Americanized chicken stock base, not the worst but had an off funky flavor. Soup was a bit more oily than the chicken karage ramen soup. * chicken karage ramen - glad the chicken karage was served on the side to the ramen. Chicken was extremely dry, the batter was a deeper darker batter than tempura but yet again was very soggy. Ramen egg noodles tasted on par to grocery store instant egg noodles. Ramen soup tasted like an Americanized chicken stock base, not the worst but had an off funky flavor. * takoyaki - truly disappointed and grossed out. I love takoyaki and even if it's bad I can still somewhat enjoy it for just the flavor itself. However this was probably one of the worst takoyaki I've ever had. A huge soggy mayo ball with no octopus inside. The "cream" inside was absolutely horrendous and hard to stomach. No one wants to eat a Mayo bomb ): ------ Pretty shocked that after all the dishes we ordered at this restaurant, we only mildly liked one and the rest were pretty shocking in terms of execution. Would not come here again. Ambiance and aesthetics was pretty but not enough to make me think differently about the flavor and execution.

Mediocre fish quality & terribly slow service and unprofessional attitude from the staffs. We were there for our Saturday date night dinner & the place was barely half filled. We were seated immediately, but the server came by 10 minutes later with "Call me when you're ready to order", without proper introduction of her name. The Soy sauce tray were dirty, so it was an interesting start of the meal. We ordered 12 piece Combination Sashimi plate & Deluxe chirashi bowl. Sashimi plate was decent, but White Tuna didn't have to be included as one of their 4 choices of fresh fish. Then came out the deluxe chirashi bowl which was terrifyingly bad quality. 1 piece of Ama Ebi, 1 piece of tiny Uni, 4 pieces of half cut Tuna, and crabmeat, spicy tuna nonsense etc. I've never had such chirashi bowl in my lifetime, it's beyond joke for Japanese cuisine. I'm concerned how Chicago Japanese restaurant quality is descending at such fast pace. Management need to do something before everyone figures out this place is a joke.

I waited 30 extra minutes for my takeout while the manager kept just walking around ignoring me (and other customers in same situation) without apologizing or offering any sort of updates. Maybe try saying "hey sorry, blah blah" instead of avoiding eye contact. Then the food wasn't that good. Avoid!!