Ora Sushi

-Grubbing in Chicago  
BYOB Sushi in Andersonville

You know for someone whose diet is as diverse as mine I don’t eat as much sushi as others seem to do. There’s a couple reasons for this - 1) it’s an expensive habit, especially omakase 2) to me sushi is a warm weather food meaning I crave it when it’s hot outside. I do eat sushi but mostly during the warmer summer months like right now. Lots of couples I know have their own “sushi spot” they go to when they want some nigiri and or rolls but we did not until earlier this summer. During the first heat wave of the year we decided we wanted sushi and I made the call to check a spot long on my list thanks to some tips from people I know that eat lots of sushi. Enter Ora Sushi in Andersonville.  

Locals Favorite in Andersonville

Ora is stationed on the corner of Clark and Hollywood. I was tipped off by a friend in the food world who eats lots of sushi at different price-points and Ora is one of his favorite places in town. He’s also a big wine guy and lives north and Ora is BYOB and located further north so those two factors play a role in his love for Ora but first and foremost is the sushi. First thing I liked when peeping Ora’s menu was it’s tight - meaning it's not over the place. It’s a single page with no more than 20 options listed among appetizers, nigiri, and rolls. I avoid sushi spots that get packed with groups due to the fact they’re cheap and have other stuff, choosing to leave those places to recent college grads in need of a spot to celebrate a group birthday or the likes. Ora is more personal than those places as it’s fairly small and only open for dinner so no lunch deals, no ramen or Thai food, or any of that other stuff. 

Crispy Tuna Rice

Ora is all about the sushi and it’s offered at a fair price-point. For ex. the crispy tuna rice is only $10 and it’s as good as any others I’ve tried, then again tuna crispy rice is always pretty good. The version at Ora is a bit smaller than others but it’s got a delicious relish made up of finely diced tomatoes, onion, and kimchi radish. We always start with that before moving onto our favorite thing on the menu - Beni Toro aka seared salmon belly. It’s a piece of seared Scottish salmon belly resting atop a small ball of rice but it’s truly one of my favorite bites in town this time of the year. The salmon just melts in your mouth. The searing of it really brings out the flavor. It’s so good we always get a second round. 

Beni Toro at Ora

After that we always get two or three rolls of “Makimono” which is a Japanese term that can refer to sushi rolls or, more broadly, rolled items. I know that some sushi purists frown upon these but some spots do them better than others and Ora would be one of those spots. We’ve gone thru all the rolls we want to try and they’re all good but there’s one that really stands out. The Hotate Volcano roll is made up of Cajun bay scallops over shrimp tempura, cucumber, scallions, lemon, sweet soy, crisp scallions. It’s a terrific combination of flavors with the crisp burnt scallions really bringing it all together. This is my favorite roll in town right now and another one of my favorite bites during these dog days of summer. 

Hotate Volcano Roll at Ora Sushi
(cajun bay scallops, shrimp tempura, cucumber, scallions, lemon, sweet soy, crisp scallions)


Wasabi Tail at Ora Sushi

(fresh yellowtail, chopped yellowtail, avocado, cucumber, bacon salsa, scallion vinaigrette) 


Sake Tataki at Ora Sushi
(seared salmon, softshell crab, cucumber, avocado, onion soy vinaigrette, sweet soy)

Ora Sushi
5701 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60660
(773) 754-8750