Leilani Asian Fusion

Review summary

1. K

   Kristin

   Chicago

   33 reviews

   vip
   4.0

   33 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 3

   First time there before the Paramount Theater. It was a cold evening and the restaurant was freezing! Many people had coats on especially near the door. The ceilings are very high so heat doesn’t seem to reach the eating area. I can see this is problematic for the diners. We were initially seated behind the hostess stand and all other tables were full. We had coats on and continued to be cold so when we saw people leave in the back, we asked to move. We were accommodated and the hostess was very pleasant. Out waiter greeted us warmly though it is a standard script, as we heard him 2 more times say the same thing with other tables. We prefer more organic, natural introduction. His favorite word which he repeated was “absolutely.” After awhile, we thought it was kind of funny. So, for the food and drink…upsells in drinks must be their thing. My husband spent $29 on his 3oz dry martini. He was charged for each 1.5 oz and an extra charge for “dry”( vermouth). We questioned why he was charged double for 1 drink in the bill and he explained that it was a double 1.5 oz pour. They don’t tell you what you’re getting into and this was obviously their strategy. We have NEVER paid that much for a martini, even in the most expensive of cities, let alone Aurora, IL. This was truly a complete scam. My “mai tai” tasted nothing like a mai tai. It was lychee forward and I didn’t like it much but paid $16 for it. We ordered 2 small plates and one rice dish to share. Korean bbq wings (6), was generous and delicious. The walnut shrimp (5) was just the right amount of heat and tender shrimp. Though it was very good, we prefer PF Chang’s walnut shrimp. The beef rice dish was hearty and good flavor. We took some home since it was a generous portion. The menu has some nice offerings and as we left, we saw some beautiful looking sushi rolls. We took a peek downstairs in their bar/speak easy and looked like a chill place. We’ll return but will order wine or beer and ask to sit in back.
   

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2. S

   Stephanie

   Chicago

   3 reviews

   5.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   A great restaurant addition to the area! We loved the ambience, the service was great and food excellent. Our family especially loved the potstickers and crispy spicy tuna. We will definitely be back! Highly recommend.
   

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3. P

   PJ

   Chicago

   5 reviews

   vip
   5.0

   5 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Great new restaurant! Everything we ordered was delicious and cooked to perfection!
   

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4. M

   Marianne

   Chicago

   16 reviews

   vip
   1.0

   16 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 3

   Service sucked. If I could give this review a negative star it would be a negative 10. I would pass this restaurant by and pick another. Will never go again. Party of 6 automatic 20% tip. First entree came then a 1/2 hour later next entree came. It took around 1 hour for our whole table to get served. They didn't clean off the appetizer plates until we piled them up at one end of the table. They even forgot some of our order. Expensive. WORST service I have ever experienced.
   

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5. K

   Kathryn

   Chicago

   14 reviews

   5.0

   14 reviews

   Dined 4 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 5

   The only complaint we had was the bar order was very slow. The drinks were great . The food was exceptional with a nice presentation. Great atmosphere and would definitely return
   

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6. A

   Anna

   Chicago

   2 reviews

   5.0

   2 reviews

   Dined 7 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Excellent food and service. Went for lunch and was able to order anything from the dinner menu as well.
   

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7. M

   Michele

   Chicago

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on November 23, 2024

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Loved the food. Great service, so friendly. Highly recommend.
   

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8. K

   Kathy

   Chicago

   3 reviews

   vip
   2.0

   3 reviews

   Dined on November 23, 2024

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   Food was pretty good but service was terrible. To start, there was a long wait for drinks. Then we ordered two appetizers. A very long time passed between when we ordered those, and when our drinks finally arrived and we ordered our entrees. I specifically asked the server if the appetizers would be coming out soon, before our entrees, as I HATE when restaurants end up serving you them right at the same time. She assured me it wouldn’t be an issue as we had ordered them quite a long time before ordering our entrees. Well, one appetizer came out, with two of three entrees at almost same time. One diner waited another 10 minutes or so for their meal, and second appetizer finally arrived at same time as last entree. We also had to ask for knives, and one entree was skirt steak, and one was salmon and asparagus. Don’t know how we were supposed to cut it. In addition, skirt steak tasted good, but was all sliced up already. Strange way to serve steak, and of course all the juices had already come out before even being served. Calamari and dumplings were good. Also, the only gluten free desserts on menu are sorbet or ice cream. Diner who needs to eat gf tried to order either one, and was told they have none, of any flavor of either dessert. Except the lava cake for the other diners at our table arrived topped with ice cream. So weird and kind of ridiculous to have server swear they were all sold out of every kind and flavor when there it was, on top of the cake. Restaurant comped the second appetizer and 50% of the entree we waited so long for (we didn’t ask-they offered this). It’s not enough to make me return and try it again. Oh, and our reservation was for 5:30. Can only wonder what it was like for diners more in the middle of busiest hours. Service needs a lot of tweaking. Felt like it was one issue after another.
   

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9. C

   Carolyn

   Chicago

   8 reviews

   vip
   2.0

   8 reviews

   Dined on November 21, 2024

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 4

   Definitely not as good as our first visit. Portions inconsistent. Wine pours ridiculous for the price. The restaurant is freezing. My dinner was cold and took forever to get that fixed. My dinner portion was almost 1/2 the size from our first visit. So incredibly embarrassing taking our friends after raving about this restaurant only to have every aspect substandard. I can’t imagine we will return anytime soon.
   

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10. A

    Alan

    Chicago

    13 reviews

    2.0

    13 reviews

    Dined on November 21, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 5

    The appetizers and drinks were fantastic. The main meals were cold. They arrived at four different times for four people, and the service was very very very slow. They said they were short staff, but they should’ve compensated for it. We were there almost 3 hours for a meal of four people.
    

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