Open long before the days of Chicago's trendy sushi spots with minimalistic, clubby decor, Wilmette's Akai Hana built a following on providing great fish, plain and simple, without the pretense of a hip restaurant. Located in a strip mall, Akai Hana won't wow anyone with its ambiance, with a childish ocean mural covering one wall and a largely wooden interior where the floors, booths, tables, chairs and partitions look like they all came from the same tree.

But what will wow you is the quality and sheer selection of food. Akai Hana offers 40 different appetizers as well as even more maki, nigiri and cooked, Asian-inspired entrees than you know what to do with. To start out, try the agedashi-dofu ($6.25), a deep fried piece of tofu with scallions and hot sauce (because anyone who eats bean curd surely wants it thrown in the frier...). If raw fish is in order, Akai Hana's special Hawaiian roll, with tuna, avocado and mango, can't be beat. Entrees, which are served with miso soup and rice, are a good substitution for the squeamish and, with an average price of about $15, are more reasonably priced than the sushi.

If you really love Akai Hana, its incentive system will reward you for coming back over and over again. Every dollar you spend equals a point, and prizes range from a chopstick set for 200 points to trip for two to Las Vegas for 20,000 points. If you're feeling talented enough to roll your own, stop in the Sea Ranch next door, a fishmonger that offers raw salmon, tuna, sea bass and the like.

Centerstage Reviewer: Laura Brown