Orchid Japanese restaurant fills vacancy at Stratford Square

A new restaurant at Stratford Square fills a longtime vacancy and brings variety to the Bloomingdale mall's restaurant menu.

Orchid, a Japanese and sushi restaurant, operates in the space once occupied by Carlos Sweeney's, a popular restaurant that left the mall more than five years ago.

Orchid, with its upscale black-and-white decor, caters to a variety of palates, said Hannah Yi, a manager at the eatery. In addition to sushi, the restaurant offers Asian food and also features dishes from Korea and Thailand.

Owners, husband and wife team Heather and Tae Kim of Palatine, renovated the 68,000-square-foot restaurant that seats 295 people.

"The decor is gorgeous," said Nicole Kneeland-Woods, marketing spokeswoman at Stratford Square.

"It's a place for a nice, elegant lunch or dinner," she said.

Yi added that the dimly lit restaurant features an Asian/Japanese decor.

The owners, originally from Korea, have been involved with their family's restaurants.

The new eatery offers an array of lunch specials. The salmon box, for $10, features salmon teriyaki with sauteed vegetables and bread.

On the sushi side, the Maki lunch, $13, allows the customer to choose from a variety of maki or maki rolls. Lunch includes a side salad and soup.

"There's a wide variety on the menu," Yi added.

Average dinner prices range from $15 to $20. The establishment features a bar and rooms for parties.

Yi, who has worked at Japanese restaurants for 10 years, said customers are pleased and surprised with all the changes.

"When people walk in, they don't expect the urban, modern decor," she said, adding that many often say it reminds them of being downtown Chicago.

The restaurant features an entrance to the outside of the mall.

Mall officials say they are thrilled to fill the vacant space with the upscale restaurant that offers a different taste. Kneeland-Woods said the next restaurant to open will be Bally Doyle, an Irish pub and eatery, to be located across the hall from Orchid. The entertainment-focused Irish restaurant is scheduled to open by mid-February.

"We're trying to appeal to every type of customer. We're trying to bring something different to Bloomingdale," Kneeland-Wods said.

• Kim Mikus welcomes comments at (847) 427-4567 or kmikus@dailyherald.com.