1
Chef Otto Phan
Kyoten
2507 W. Armitage Ave., Logan Square

Omakase only?  Yes

Price  $440 on Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday; $490 on Friday and Saturday (includes gratuity; $140 for pairings)

Courses  19

Scene  Rich epicures, rich gastrotourists, and rich regulars hover around an eight-seat bar in a too-large dining room. The multifunction Toto toilets in the bathrooms are a luxe touch.

Highlight  The sardines. Chef Otto Phan orders fresh ones whenever possible. He finely scores the flesh so it ripples on your tongue, revealing the deep store of just-fished flavor in its fat.

Upshot  Phan runs one of the most extraordinary sushi bars in America. He serves seasonal wild fish sourced mainly from dealers in Japan, though he makes room on the menu for domestic delicacies such as West Coast spot prawns. His rice is distinctively bold, and he creates bites that etch in your memory.

2
Chef SangTae Park
Omakase Yume
651 W. Washington Blvd., West Loop

Omakase only?  Yes

Price  $185 (drinks à la carte)

Courses  16

Scene  Picture sushi lovers sitting spellbound, drinking only moderately (if at all), at a six-seat bar. The intimate space, a few pieces of shelved pottery, and one skinny server make this feel like Japan.

Highlight  Akami (lean tuna) topped with negi toro (chopped fatty tuna with green onion). More cuts of toro follow, so you bliss out early and keep going.

Upshot  The ultimate craftsman, chef SangTae Park cuts, forms, and passes out all your favorite nigiri during one exquisite hour. If you want to go large, ultraluxury nigiri (wagyu, foie gras, caviar) is available à la carte. This is the sushi splurge you’ll want again and again.

3
Chef BK Park
Mako
731 W. Lake St., West Loop

Omakase only?  Yes

Price  $175 ($95 for pairings)

Courses  22

Scene  A black-on-silver space, with an eight-seat counter and a few tables, creates the hermetic seal of fine dining. The staff serves the room at once, with balletic coordination.

Highlight  Black cod with burnt scallion ponzu. It makes the case for incorporating hot food into omakase.

Upshot  Local sushi maestro BK Park — of Juno and, previously, Arami — knows his audience. He produces the most Chicago style of all the dedicated omakase spots: The experience is as much about service and spectacle as it is about fish. The way he alternates flights of nigiri with exquisite hot dishes is genius.

4
Chef and co-owner Patrick Bouaphanh
Jinsei Motto
564 W. Randolph St., West Loop

Omakase only?  No

Price  $175 ($85 for pairings)

Courses  18

Scene  In the front lounge at CH Distillery, a sexy, diverse crowd drinks cocktails and eats à la carte sushi. But pass through the noren (hanging curtain) and you enter a handsome Japanese-style dining room with an omakase counter.

Highlight  Whatever is the most unusual. On my last visit, it was sweet, firm white-fleshed beltfish.

Upshot  Chef and co-owner Patrick Bouaphanh and chef Eric Blanck stock the best luxuries, such as otoro, wagyu, and sparkling fresh uni. But on my last visit non-sushi courses — sweet pork belly, raw oysters in a bitter pepper relish — distracted from the omakase presentation. The pro move: Get all the above à la carte, as well as goldeneye snapper, knifejaw, and other rarely seen fish ($11 to $27 for two pieces).

5
Chef Michael Graffeo
Sushi Suite 202
1816 N. Clark St., Lincoln Park

Omakase only?  Yes

Price  $155 ($50 for pairings)

Courses  17

Scene  A ’70s key party vibe. Knock on an unmarked door along a corridor in the Hotel Lincoln, enter a refurbished suite, and move from drinks at the bar to omakase at the sushi counter. If you want to keep the night going, there’s a living room lounge that feels like a space-age bachelor pad.

Highlight  The opening parfait of uni and ikura over rice is all kinds of buttery.

Upshot  The house style involves a lot of unneeded little blops of this and that on top of most nigiri, and some of the fattier cuts get blowtorched and taste greasy. But ingredients such as scallops and sweet shrimp are premium, and the rice is warm and well seasoned.