Butterfly Sushi Bar & Thai Cuisine

Such a fun spot to gather with friends or dinner with a date! Panang Chicken Curry is my favorite in the city, with the perfect amount of heat! You rock, Butterfly!

I’ve been coming here for years and ordering delivery. The new location is really cool and it’s still BYOB. Tonight I ordered delivery — it was here in less then 30 minutes and it is so good. The maguro was perfect — giant, super tender pieces. I have to get the mochi — so good! Highly recommended. It’s easy to call for delivery or use their on line service.

FLAVORS (4 Stars)
Drool. Butterfly sushi was the first place that I have ever tried sushi so it holds a special place in my heart. It may not be the best but is sure a bang for your buck!
Here are some personal favorites, tips & tricks–
(1) Stay away from the Thai Food because their specialty is SUSHI, so stick to that-​DUH
(2) Makis to Order
a. Godzilla Maki (personal favorite if you’re not allergic to shrimp)
b. Spicy Tuna (Don’t be fooled. It’s not actually spicy)
c. Sunrise (WARNING: contains jalapeños)
(3) Vegetarians can enjoy maki too!
a. Avocado maki for a non-​fishy sushi experience.
b. Sweet Potato Maki (comes with a delicious sauce)
(4) Take out/​delivery has a deal if you order more than $ 10 you can get free crab Rangoon or egg rolls. Make sure to eat your sushi within 24-​hours otherwise the rice become horribly dry.
(5) BYOB!!!
SERVICE (4 Stars)
The staff struggles with their English and tends to get a little impatient at times. Regardless, they get you your food in timely manner whether being dine-​in, carry out, or delivery.
ATMOSPHERE (4 stars)
On the weekends, Butterfly Sushi is rather lively. During the week there tends to be a small but constant flow of customers. Definitely a place for all types of demographics
ACCESSIBILITY (4 Stars)
There are multiple locations but the Grand Avenue one is the most customer friendly (…and the food tastes much better)

The service here was horrible. The waitress could not remember what we asked her for, and actually spilled water all over me. They actually messed up our order and we had to have it taken back because there was a hair in our food. Once we got the correct hairless food it was alright. Nothing I would write home about.

I’ve only gotten takeout from this place but their sushi is better than Thais Thai options. My favorite is the ninja roll and summer roll, very flavorful, fresh and for a very good price!

I am on the hunt for a good sushi place in the west loop area, Butterfly, is not it. In short, the food was good (not stellar) and the ordering process was horrendous. The online ordering system was down which I found out once I called and inquired about if my order had gone through. I spoke to two different ladies on three different occasions before finally learning 1) my order had, in fact, gone through, 2) the phone number on their website is wrong, 3) delivery is slow and the driver either doesn’t know main Chicago streets or doesn’t know about Google maps yet.

We’ve had takeout from Butterfly sushi multiple times now, and it’s always been consistently good! From various different rolls; caterpillar, dragon, spicy tuna, tempura to the curry, pad thai, pad see ewe, and fried rice, always have had a positive experience. Even when we dined in with BYOB, the experience was great. Great wait staff, the sushi chefs were really nice and friendly, and wasn’t too loud so we could comfortably make conversation during our meal. Conveniently located in the River West /​Noble Square location, so takeout and dining in are both nice and wasy for the consumer. We’ll be ordering again soon, thank you!
Best,
Charlie

We got takeout — pad see ew and, garlic site fry, and egg rolls and it was horrible all around.
Pad see ew — extremely dry, over cooked, under seasoned, not enough sauce, old broccoli and soggy snap peas
Garlic stir fry — bleh, the baby corn was the best part of the dish, shrimp was fine
Egg rolls — so these were free with takeout, but they were insanely undercooked! The wrapper was pale and practically raw.
By far the worst takeout I’ve ever had. Deserving of zero stars. Will not return or recommend.

I cannot speak for the sushi, but I can speak for the egg rolls and the Cashew Chicken. The egg rolls were worse than those you can by at Jewel. Just seriously bad. And the Cashew Chicken was gummy and without any taste other than salt. Add in the bad rice and I ended up throwing the whole dinner away about 3 minutes into it. I will never order from here again. Just horrible!

I have been coming here with family and friends since before they moved locations over 5 years ago. We love it so much here. You can’t beat the prices. AND it’s BYOB.
It really is perfect for a girls night out, casual dinner, or romantic date night. We probably tried almost everything from the menu and it’s all so great. I love it!
I also love the way they decorate your dessert plates. They really do make your experience great whether it’s s birthday celebration or just a cute little date.
If you order takeout, you get a free order of Crab Rangoon or Egg rolls — just be sure to mention it. I think the minimum might only be $ 10.
This review is for the Grand location but I have also visited the other two locations and loved them as well.

Good late night thai dishes; but, nothing to rave about. Maybe it’s because I’m not a Thai fan, or that I live in LA and can get the real stuff; but, this place is a «chain-​feel» and could use some major rehauling of both the menu and the staff. The staff is nice, don’t get me wrong, but again, I would revamp everything. Thing Big, Butterfly, think about competing against the best, not just what’s in the West Loop.

Vietnamese spring rolls were beautiful but could have had a little more protein in the filling. Tom Yum soup was delicious but I would have preferred it to be presented better with a little more kick. Tom Yum in my experience is usually spicier. AND sushi was for the most part very good.
I refuse however, to rate this place lower than 5 stars because of the absolutely stellar Fresh Salmon Nigiri or ‘Nama Sake’. It’s $ 2.50 a piece and each piece is huge with a unusually generous, thick piece of fish sat on top of the rice. Bravo butterfly!

By far the best veg sushi I’ve had in Chicago. The sweet potato roll is soooo good. Plus they’ll sub tofu or any veg for any of the meat rolls! Delicious!

Butterfly had a great a few Asian cuisines. We started with the Vietnamese rolls which tasted great and the sauce that was provided with them was fantastic. All the ingredients tasted extremely fresh.
After that we ordered the the Tom Yum soup. The soup looked a bit darker than most Tom Yup soups I’ve had. It was also a bit sweeter than I expected and I would have liked it if it was a bit more spicy.
The sushi we had was fantastic. Very large portions and very flavourful. The Nigiri was especially large and tasted extremely fresh.
I liked the ambience, the music and the service a lot too and if the soup was better, I’d probably have given it 5 stars.
I’d definitely come back here.

I have to admit something: I get Butterfly Sushi almost every week. That being said, I haven’t set foot in the restaurant in 5 years. Living in Gold Coast, their delivery is super consistent and easy, especially with their native online ordering system. Their prices are also pretty reasonable and their maki and sushi are equally good.
Love the crunchy spicy tuna (must get if you like spicy tuna in general).

It is a great place for sushi and Thai food, great combinations. I ordered Fire Dragon Roll and it was very delicious with their special spicy sauce. The Panang curry was just perfect, not too sweet, this curry works best with a warm steam rice, yummy.
The food portion here I can finish, not too big and just perfect. The price range for this place is $ 11-​$ 30, great price point. I love the vibe and the colorful décor, cool bight orange wall with a modern light all over, very modern and beautiful.
Loud music and upbeat, it made my dinner was very exciting, lol I really liked that. This place is so different than a topical Asian restaurant. Very fun and different. The parking was very challenging, but I was a lucky charm last night. Some of the peeps circled around for a long time, I saw they walked in after I had my sushi roll. Well, at least they made it in there. lol
This place is a «BYOB» we brought a pack of beer and thank god, I had my own bottle opener. The service was good but a few times that I had to wait for a while, they were very busy last night, well, it was Saturday night so I’m complaining. I was very satisfied :)

If I could leave this establishment no stars I would. My group and I (4) have been standing here for 50 minutes waiting for a table. Why would you say no reservation is needed and that there’s no wait when we called?! What is even more infuriating is that they’re sitting people who came in after us.
All I’m saying is that the food better make up for the lack of service because if it doesn’t, I’ll be updating my review… if I ever get to sit down.

Told us 30 min wait it’s been over 50 min now still haven’t been seated. They kept giving our table of 4 to other people. Service is slow. Called them earlier to make a reservation and they didn’t take any. To only get here and they have a list of reservations. Services are slow and the worst I have seen in Chicago. I wouldn’t even leave one star but I had to, and the measly one slice of cheesecake, cut in two pieces doesn’t change my perspective or experience. The service at the table was just as slow and they tried rushing us out as soon as possible which only made me take my time even more.
Just wanted to add how rude and unprofessional the hostess was dealing with this situation. She even came by our table to set up the adjacent table to us and was basically yelling and slamming the menus down at another Coworker. I don’t think I will ever visit this location ever again. Management needs to look at their staff and reevaluate who they have working for them. They are the face people see at the door and it is and will ruin their business.

The food was definitely 4 stars but the service left something to be desired.
Food: We had the Yum Talay salad, which was phenom! I love all types of seafood & it was a mix of shrimp, mussels & some mini scallops. Spicy! So be prepared to chug water ;) Also had Chicken Satay & Vietnamese spring rolls. We shared a mixture of their meat dishes & the Fire Dragon roll, which was delish! I frequent many sushi places in the city & I was not disappointed with the menu items we chose!
Service: This place gets crazy busy on Friday night at 7pm. We had a reservation for 3 people, but one of our members was running very late. The host clearly was seating other tables without their full party but since it was taking quite a bit of time for a table for 3, we opted to be seated at a table for 2. An hour later, when a table was clearing out next to us, I asked the host if we could put the two tables together since our last member was on her way. She said to tell her when she arrived. It was boggling since every other table in the restaurant clearly was being seated while waiting for other people to join them!
Would definitely visit again, but probably not on a crazy Friday! People love this joint!

Five years later and I’m still obsessed with this place; however, I tend to go to the Butterfly on Madison which reminds me very much of the one on Grand before they remodeled. Overall, this place still my favorite!

Yes, it’s cheap. But, the quality of the sushi is not so great. The fish is not the freshest and I don’t like the way they cut their fish. There’s an art to shape, ratio of fish to rice, etc., and they just don’t have that skill. Very difficult to communicate with the staff.

BYOB is a plus! The sushi is pretty good but inconsistent. I have been to all 3 locations. I have done eat in, pick up and delivery. The sushi is sometimes fresh and others times just OK. It tends to be a little rice heavy and sauce heavy. This is fine for when I need a sushi fix but not my first choice.
I have not eaten the Thai food here, only sushi.

It’s BYOB, which I love and you will spend around $ 35for a couple big rolls and an appetizer. I’m dead serious! This place rocks! The sushi is fresh and rolls are interesting, service is prompt and they turn over tables quickly which leads to a reasonable wait time.
If you are looking for a five star Michelin restaurant, this isn’t it. But if you are looking for a good sushi spot with nice atmosphere that won’t break the bank, this is your new place!

I had chicken pad thai, crab rangoon and shrimp/​veggie tempura — all really good.
Portions are big too, so leftovers will happen.

I’ve been here a few times now and our last experience on Saturday was fantastic! The veggie tom yum soup is delicious-​the perfect blend of sweet, spicy and savory. We ordered three sushi rolls which were all very nice as well.
What made the experience for us was the customer service. Our server was very efficient and attentive. When we told her we were there to celebrate my husbands birthday, they brought out two deserts! The mochi was fantastic and came with an assortment of flavors. The other desert was some kind of vanilla cake that was a little crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. It also came with ice cream, whipped cream and fresh berries. Heaven!

I normally stray away from places that mix ethnic cuisines — Thai + Japanese, but boyfriend and I were craving Thai and randomly came cross this place while searching online. Unilocal pictures looked decent and prices were fair so we thought we’d give this place a shot. Good thing we did, b/​c the Thai food here exceeded my expectations. My expectations weren’t high to begin with, but the meal hit the spot. PLUS, it was super close to our place like less than a mile, and they deliver! Not many Thai places deliver to our place, so that’s an extra star! Website was also very intuitive, good work. We only ordered Thai so i can’t speak about the Japanese food. We tried:
Red Curry with Chicken and pineapples — very saucy, just the way i like it
Tom Kar — excellent
Pad Thai w/​chicken — good
Two more stars for awesome food.
Ok, now this is where i give out an extra star for delivery b/​c this place breezed the test. I usually ask for limes and hot sauce and ³⁄₅ times, restaurants will charge me extra or forget something… or give me lemons instead. Not only did they get the order right, but they hooked me up w/​tons of lime wedges and hot sauce for free. LASTLY, they delivered under the quoted time frame of an hour which gets them to 5 stars! Cheaper than most Thai places in the River North/​River West area.
Warning: i honestly can’t think of anything. I’ve only tried this place once, and loved it. I’m claiming it as my ‘go to’ place for Thai delivery.

Great BYOB sushi restaurant. Fair prices, great locations, fresh and clean tasting seafood. Chill environment and great for a first date. Clean bathrooms and friendly staff. I recccomend this place!

Good food, quick service-​just what we wanted for a quick early Sunday dinner. They accommodated my request for a veggie roll. Overall food was delicious. Deducting 2 stars as they had very loud trance music making it difficult for me to have a conversation. They also had some door upstairs that kept opening causing us to freeze on a cold January night (it was 11 degrees) that night!

Get this for delivery and at the restaurant. Their sushi is so nicely decorated I don’t want to ruin it by eating it!
My favorite dishes are the pad see eiw and Penang curry — must get with tofu for the vegetarians
Came here for a birthday party and they can accommodate big groups

Just so happen to be looking for a place to have lunch, extremely happy to have come across this one place. Went there for lunch had some sushi and some Thai dishes, was not disappointed. This is a must try. I will say I’ve had better Tom Kha soup though. Will return for the sushi.

Poor Customer Service! Food is great and very cost effective but the service is horrible. I’ve been here twice and on both occasions the service was horrific.
Example: When being waited on its important to take our order correctly regardless of the language barrier. If the order is incorrect it is the duty of the waiter/​waitress to correct it. Not blame the customer…
When placing an entrée on the table and realizing that it was in deed sent to the wrong table, it’s not sanitary to take it away and place it on the correct table especially when it was sitting on the wrong table for 5 minutes! It’s FLU SEASON! How the hell do I know that they were not coughing or sneezing on my entrée. When I asked to have my entrée replaced they insisted on charging me twice!!!
I would not be returning!!!

My friend and I came for lunch on a Sunday afternoon. The place had cool, funky décor and a rocking soundtrack. I definitely felt the bass! We were seated fairly quickly and had great service throughout our visit.
We ended up sharing the Khao Soi and Penang noodles. Both were super flavorful and had a good kick. The Penang noodles were super big and squishy. They really got coated well by the sauce. The Khao Soi had a good flavor as well, but I didn’t like the crispy noodles as much. The only thing I really didn’t like was the sweet miso eggplant appetizer we shared. I was expecting something more like dengaku, so the miso glaze was disappointing. The eggplant was also quite undercooked.
It was a good experience overall. I would consider going back if I were in the area. Just keep in mind that the tables can be a bit tight quarters.

We live a 3 minute walk from here and go all the time!!! Whether you eat inside, on the patio in the summer, or take it to go, Butterfly is the best sushi in west town and probably the best sushi in Chicago. We’ve tried Friends Sushi downtown and a few other in the area– all were more expensive and not nearly as good.
I would recommend Butterfly to anyone who likes affordable, high quality sushi in a casual BYOB setting. It’s a hidden gem and almost never has a wait… So maybe I shouldn’t be telling you…

On a whim, we decided to try BSBTC since it is pretty close to where we live and they were open late on a Saturday night. We arrived at about 9:30pm and there was plenty of seating.
The restaurant décor is warm and inviting, upscale appointments in the décor lend to an intimate atmosphere and the layout uses the space well.
The service was on par, and at times above average, for what we have experienced in the neighborhood and the food was timely; the sushi came out rather fast, which was surprising.
It was a cold night so I ordered Miso soup and Mussaman Curry with tofu to warm body and soul. The Miso was on point and as expected. The curry was amazing! I judge the restaurant’s quality by their ability to make good curry and Butterfly passed with flying colors. The warm coconut milk curry was silky smooth and well balanced. The flavors of cardamom, nutmeg and peanut burst as soon as it hits your tongue. The first few spoonfuls were one of those moments where your eyes cross and roll back as you fall back into the chair; it was THAT good. The vegetables and tofu were done well but there were a few cuts of onion that were still tough; almost like the layer closer to the skin that stays chewy when cooked.
The price point was inexpensive considering the portion size — all three of us had plenty to bring home. Miso $ 2, curry $ 9 and a grand total for the table was $ 56.
There is no doubt we will be back and will be bringing all of our friends here!

I come to Butterfly every couple months when I work in the area (and have been for years). My favorite dish is the Pad Thai. They use the wide noodle which is far better than the thin ones so many places use now. The carry out portion is huge! There are other good things but I need my Pad Thai from here whenever I can get it!

Yes… they serve sushi. When is shushi ever bad?
I’ve dined in once, but typically get takeout for convenience. Everything is tasty, but I personally think it’s a bit overpriced for the quality. Come here if you are just craving some sushi/​thai. Service is fast and pleasant, and the restaurant itself if very nice.

This is a solid place for BYOB and good americanized thai and sushi. My only compliant is that it was quite cold in the restaurant. I purposely ordered a Thai fried rice because it was warm dish along with a couple of maki rolls.

Our go to place for Thai food. We’ve both dined here and have had many take outs. Take outs are always as good as it would be dining in. Food is fresh, full of flavor and entrees are large. We’ve had a couple sushi rolls last time we dined at the bar– their sushi is also very fresh and tasty.