By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
June 18, 1995
If you live in the suburbs, you know how difficult it can be to find good ethnic food without driving to Chicago. That was a complaint Bonnie Ma heard many times from friends and customers. So when the restaurateur decided to open another Midori – which specializes in Japanese cuisine – she selected northwest suburban Mount Prospect as her site.
“A lot of my customers lived in Chicago and then moved out to the suburbs,” said Ma, who also owns Midori on Bryn Mawr Avenue in Chicago. “And they kept telling me how it would be nice to have a really nice Japanese restaurant in their own neighborhood. I saw that there was a need for one.”
Located inside the Old Orchard Country Club, Midori caters to a clientele ranging from hungry golfers just coming off the course to sushi fans on the hunt for a good meal.
Everything is not as it seems at Midori. Ma, who emigrated from South Korea 26 years ago, adds Korean touches to traditional Japanese fare. Besides the standard miso soup and salad that accompany meals, Midori also serves an assortment of side dishes, including fresh mushrooms and green beans topped with hot sauce. Look for Japanese kimchi, a tamer version of Korea’s spicy cabbage dish, too.
“I work downtown and eat out at a lot of Japanese restaurants,” said Megan Lieberman, enjoying an order of California maki. “But I’ve got to say that this place has impressed me. At most Japanese restaurants, I have to spend a lot of money if I want to leave full. But here, they give you so much stuff that you never leave hungry or
broke.”
Added her sister Laura Harper, “I used to consider Japanese food a luxury, but now I have it at least once a week here.”
A beautifully decorated restaurant and bar, the 1½-year-old Midori almost looks out of place in the boxy country club. Filled with lush plants, the restaurant eschews plastic tablecloths for fresh white linen. And diners sitting near the sushi bar can watch the chef prepare the food.
Patrons have their choice of ordering many dishes either in Japanese or Korean style, the latter being spicier. One of my favorite meals is the chirashi ($12.95), which is sliced assorted fish over seasoned rice. The Korean style comes with fresh vegetables and a hot sauce that you mix together with the rice and fish.
An excellent time to check Midori out is between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. daily (they’re closed Monday), when it offers $7.95 lunch specials. Diners have their choice of the chicken teriyaki and vegetable tempura combination or the sushi special, which includes five pieces of assorted sushi and four pieces of futo maki (which is made from squash gourd, black mushrooms, eggs, cucumber and fish powder wrapped in seaweed). Both include miso soup, side dishes and fresh fruit.
FYI: If you plan on bringing people who’d rather eat a hot dog than tempura, Midori can whip up burgers, steak sandwiches and fries pronto.
But what a waste that would be.
