Business Profile: Ziki Japanese Restaurant

Ziki Japanese Restaurant

By Richard Martinovich

College students who survived on ramen probably never want to see another ramen noodle again, but they would be missing out! Those cheap instant noodle packs are foreign fare compared to a steaming bowl of ramen served at Ziki Japanese Restaurant. A heaping bowl of ramen with meat and vegetables on a wintry day warms the soul! There is much to love at Ziki Japanese Restaurant in Portage. You might say Ziki has been on a roll since opening in 2014, with an almost endless selection of sushi rolls. Just scrolling through the menu on sushi is fun with names like Sexy Girl Roll, Out of Control Roll, Oh My God, Mama Roll, and Sex on the Beach Roll! Sushi is a big draw, but so is chicken and pork katsu, a pankocrumb breaded cutlet, served with shredded cabbage. Hibachi means “fi re bowl.” Meat and vegetables are fl amed on a grill, and fl avors seared in to bring out the taste. Specials include shrimp, New York Strip Steak, chicken and calamari. Yakisoba is a Japanese stir fry of noodles, vegetables and thinly sliced meat. Udon soup is a fl avorful broth with thick noodles made of fl our and wheat. Start your meal with “kitchen appetizers.” Gyoza, dumplings stuffed with ground meat and vegetables, are found on many menus in Japan, and are delicious! In Japan you might see a “bento box” at a convenience store: a box container with compartments of different foods. At Ziki they have a Bento Lunch, with meats, rice and vegetables neatly separated. There are other Asian infl uences at Ziki including Thai food like Pad Thai. Bubble tea, a drink developed in Taiwan made of tea and milk, and topped with chewy tapioca balls, has become a popular national beverage. Ziki has many fl avors and toppings. Don’t forget to try the Mochi ice cream, disc-shaped ice cream coated with sweet rice dough!

279 W. Centre Ave - Portage Centre Plaza Portage 459-9166