- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Bento House
Category: Restaurants Japanese Japanese [Edit]
448 Larkin St(between Golden Gate Ave & Turk St)
San Francisco, CA 94102
Neighbourhood: Civic Center/Tenderloin
(415) 931-9988
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 10:30 am - 9:30 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
42 reviews for Bento House
Review Highlights
-
"...pleasantly surprised when we were served tea and miso soup." In 6 reviews -
"The former Cafe Ramind has reincarnated as Bento House." In 3 reviews -
"Large portion of chicken teriyaki - delicious, the sauce is..." In 3 reviews
Loading...
42 reviews in English
-
Review from Jamie C.
5/10/2012
I'm pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed Bento House. From the outside it looks kind of sketch and doesn't seem like some place you'd trust to serve your raw fish, but it's well-managed and unpretentious. When Monica Y. and I went, there weren't very many customers there. We ordered Sushi C and Double Salmon Roll for the two of us and we were stuffed. The prices are so good, it melts my heart. And it's not even happy hour prices - their special rolls are about $9 (compared to about $14 at most other sushi places) and their regular rolls are $4 or $5. They have a good variety of the kinds of rolls they offer. The quality isn't fantastic, but for those prices, I'm not expecting much.
It seems like they serve everyone miso soup, which is so nice. They also gave us a free cucumber salad and free banana tempura for dessert. Not sure why they gave us so much free stuff, but I was pretty happy! The service was a little slow - maybe they felt bad so they gave us the free stuff? But it wasn't so slow that I was annoyed at it at all. And they were all very nice.
I'll definitely be coming back the next time I need a sushi fix!Listed in: Tenderloin Eats
-
Review from Krystle S.
San Francisco, CA
5/23/2012
I'd say it's about on par with airport food (and I'm talking SFO Terminal 1 here, not 2). Ordered at 6:50pm on a Monday night via Grubhub and the food arrived 1hr 40mins later (which was the quoted time so I can't dock them there, but dang - it was a long wait).
As many others have reported, the teriyaki sauce has just one flavor note: very sweet and the quality of the meat (salmon and the chicken) leaves something to be desired. Most of the vegetable tempura pieces in the bento were super starchy (I know, I know, they are starchy vegetables but it was like one bite and you start choking and flailing for water) so we only ate the broccoli and shrimp ones. The salad was a standard cheap-bento salad with the watery mayo dressing, but the miso soup was decent, and I actually appreciated the somewhat small/reasonable portion of rice.
Quantity-wise, I guess it's decent for $9, but I don't think we'll be ordering from here again. -
Review from claudia g.
Cambridge, MA
5/1/2012
Terrible delivery. It took long enough that the food was cold, but the food didn't necessarily taste like it had ever been good. I'm confused by all the good reviews.
Salmon Teriyaki bento box was mediocre - tempura was soggy and bland, and the fish didn't taste so fresh. I also ordered a softshell crab roll, which was really quite gross.
Never ordering from here again. -
Review from WhitePeach s.
San Francisco, CA
5/21/2012
There aren't many japanese places around here and this is one of the better ones for lunch. Bento boxes are good but not sure about the rolls.
-
Review from Myra S.
San Francisco, CA
5/1/2012
So I can really only speak to their fauxshi (veggie sushi) and their ebi tempura roll because I'm not a huge fan of raw fish (*gasp*!), texturally speaking. For sushi delivery they are great. If it's not lunchtime, you might get your order in under 30 minutes, which is phenomenal when you're starving and don't want to plan ahead.
I love their tamago, veggie maki, veggie tempura roll, and their japanese pickle roll (name escaping me now). The rolls are well prepared and stand up to dipping in soy sauce without falling apart (sub par sushi restaurants I'm looking at you).
My ONE complaint is that they don't seem to clean the shrimp for the ebi tempura roll. There is nothing grosser -- ok, that's probably not true -- than staring down at a black spot of poo in the roll which I am about to put in my mouth. It's a deal breaker as far as ordering it again.
I'd hit it again, minus the shrimp, and I might even tell my friends about it. -
Review from Monica N.
San Francisco, CA
4/18/2012
I've ordered for delivery from Bento House twice and the other night I actually dropped in and ate at the restaurant and all three times were pleasant experiences.
Their delivery is fast and efficient. When we received our orders (both times) the food was still HOT and fresh.
Eating in was exactly what I expected. They were very pleasant and friendly. I've had the food so I knew what to expect but what surprised me is on our way out, Simon ( I don't know if he's just a waiter or an owner) offered us a free shot of Sake. We politely declined because we were stuffed so he said next time he'll give it to us before our meals. Gave us a high five as we were exiting! ;)
The food is really good. I'm not a big fan of sushi or seafood for that matter so I usually stick to the tempura or the different teriyaki plates. The portions are great considering how cheap it is. I think I paid for $8 or $9 for chicken teriyaki and tempura combo and it also came with miso soup and salad.
I highly reccommend this place and will probably suggest this place to my office for our Friday Lunch orders since they do deliver to Financial District. -
Review from Carol C.
Alameda, CA
4/10/2012 1 photo
I bookmarked this place to try their food after reading my fellow yelper's review (ray r.) I know Ray can't go wrong on his reviews.
The price of the special bento box + calif roll is $6.50, instead of $6.25. I bit off on my friend's selection and chose the same thing - the bento box (chicken teriyaki) plus tempura to go for $8.00. It also included miso soup, salad and rice.
The people here were very friendly, courteous and respectful, and they made me feel at home. I was served tea while waiting for my order - something that I did not expect. The young lady who took my food order gave a nickel more on my change. I didn't want them to be missing a nickel on their "till", so a gentleman (Simon?) made the correction.
The miso soup was steaming hot, not lukewarm. I was very content with their generous portion of chicken teriyaki (enough for 2 people) and it wasn't served cold. I couldn't finish the chicken teriyaki, which means leftover for lunch tomorrow. Even though I would have preferred an organic spring mix (salad), the lettuce and tomato salad was fine by me. Missing were the pickled ginger and a spoon for my miso soup, but that's minor detail. (I keep plenty of clean plastic forks and spoons in my desk drawer in a plastic bag.)
Besides the bento box lunches, they also have sushi & sashimi combos. The Chirashi bowl is $12 and has 10 pieces of raw fish: tuna, salmon, white tuna, unagi, ebi and tamago. Other items on the menu include a wide range of MakiMono Sushi Rolls and Sushi Bar Special Rolls. -
Review from Rachel E.
San Francisco, CA
4/12/2012
Yet another late night at the office and this time it was my turn to pick the cuisine :-)
Delivery was freakishly fast! We placed our order at 6:50 and they were standing in the lobby at 7:15... I ordered the sashimi #2 (or B?) which had 2 pieces of 4 different kinds of fish and came with rice and miso soup. Fresh and delicious!
My coworker had the Philadelphia roll and spicy tuna roll and seemed happy with them.
Prices were reasonable and comparable to other Japanese restaurants.
I would definitely order from here again!
Pro tip: ask for extra soy sauce. Only 3 packets were included with our order. (Fortunately I'm one of those weirdos who hoards soy sauce packets in their desk drawer so it was fine.) -
Review from Danny G.
San Francisco, CA
5/1/2012
Delivery: On a Monday night, the food was delivered within 30 minutes. Everything was piping hot, delicious, and the portion sizes were impressive. The delivery guy was friendly. This was among the best delivery I've had in SF, especially considering how cheap it was.
-
Review from Katy L.
San Francisco, CA
4/6/2012
One of those places that you can drive or walk by a million times and not notice.
The staff is friendly and attentive.
Quality sashimi. They have happy hour!
If you are in the area and want sushi, this is the place to go. -
Review from Serena C.
Daly City, CA
3/18/2012
4.5 stars for delivery service. Minus 1 star because I was not given soy sauce for my sushi.
Their delivery service quoted me 1hr but they came within 45m. I was surprised especially with the stormy weather outside.
The rolls were decent. and good quality. Some of the sushi rice was a little too mushy but good for the price they charged. Gave lots of wasabi. The beef teriyaki however were mostly fat ...yuk. Tempura was still crispy when it got to us.
Driver was very friendly. -
Review from Juan A.
San Francisco, CA
3/30/2012
This place is awesome. Everyone that works there is extremely nice! I am always served miso soup and hot tea as soon as I get there. I am also receiving freebies (when it is not super busy) such as free rolls, or desert, etc.
The sushi is delicious for it's price. It is not a place to go if you are looking for really exotic sushi, but amazing nonetheless. Happy hour is totally worth it.
I will always go here first whenever I am craving sushi. Also, I heard that Friday nights it is fun to go there for sake bombs and beers (and sushi of course).
If you live around the area or work around there or just want to go to a chill spot for sushi, this is the place! -
Review from Christine K.
Oakland, CA
4/6/2012
Holy moly are they friendly! Great customer service, 5 stars for that alone. My coworker and I ordered take-out bento boxes from here for the first time today. We were first attracted to the reasonable prices + positive reviews on yelp, but then when we actually went to pick up the food, the super nice manager greeted us and gave us two extra Golden Gate rolls for free AND a seaweed salad! We already had a bag bursting with bento goodies, but then two extra rolls and a salad blew us away. That, and the Golden Gate roll was awesome, perfectly seasoned, tons of tobiko, super tasty sweet and spicy sauce.The bentos had good portions and the miso soup was killer, totally flavorful. The only thing I would take a point off for was that the fish wasn't the freshest I've ever had, but being that it was takeout I'm not going to make it a total deal breaker. You get what you pay for and have to take into consideration that the additional transit time will add to a little less freshness.
Overall, stellar 5 star customer service, great portions and tasty food. I will most definitely go back for sure!!!! -
Review from Rebecca A.
San Francisco, CA
1/14/2012
Great little Japanese restaurant that helped us feel instantly at home. The prices were fairly reasonable and I had no complaint with the food whatsoever. Service was excellent, with very attentive staff and a really nice owner who seems to make a point of catering to the needs of the customers.
We had gyoza, a seaweed salad, regular mixed green salad and assorted sashimi. Pieces of the sashimi were a little on the small side but that was to be expected. Gyoza was decent. Overall a fairly solid affordable spot for a quick fix of Japanese food, especially if you're in the area for a show at the theater. -
Review from Mira L.
San Francisco, CA
3/22/2012 1 Check-in Here
Very generous portions of Teriyaki chicken and the Chirashi bowl is really yummy!!
-
Review from Jennifer L.
Berkeley, CA
2/24/2012
Great solid sushi. Quick, pleasant service that makes an hour lunch break a yummy stress free experience.
Listed in: My favorite places in the TL
-
Review from Mr Bolo B.
San Francisco, CA
1/9/2012
Bento House is a nice cozy little Japanese restaurant, the service is excellent ! the prices are very reasonable, the waitress is very attentive and friendly
I thought the food was tasty, fresh and well prepared.
Bento House is a fun place to get a quick meal, not many Japanese places in this area, it's a small hole in the wall kind of place. -
Review from Katy C.
San Francisco, CA
10/25/2011
Delivery - Placed order at 10am. Estimated time of delivery: 12pm. Actual time of delivery: 2pm.
Not a great way to woo customers is to blame them for not ordering in a particular way (i.e. the night before with items grouped) and then tell them what to do next time. Let me tell you, there will be no next time.
Ordered tofu, spicy tuna and unayaku roll. the only part they got right was the tofu, and it was tasteless and unappetizing.
Also, miso soup--how is it possible to skimp on the miso paste? i mean it costs around $3 for an entire 2 lb tub enough to make 40 servings. -
Review from Mark D.
10/12/2011 3 photos
This is a review of delivery from Bento House.
It was very easy to order from Grubhub..com.
Delivery - The order was placed at 5:40 PM. The estimated time of delivery was 6:42 PM. The actual delivery time was 7:12 PM. At 1 hours and 32 minutes the delivery was both tardy and very long. There was no delivery fee. The delivery person was professional and polite. There was no delivery fee.
Order Minimum - The order minimum is relatively low ($15)
Chicken Teriyaki Don Rice Bowl - It was no longer hot. The overall flavor was the single note of teriyaki sauce. The chicken was tender though. The portion was relatively large.
http://tinyurl.com/3tf...
Tempura - This was pretty good. The tempura was still crunchy. It was pretty warm still. There was a nice mix of shrimp and vegetables.
http://tinyurl.com/3rf...
Miso Soup - The soup was good but not great. It was still piping hot.
Packing - The food was all neatly packed. The chicken don was in a easy to reseal plastic bowl. The tempura was in a plastic clam-shell. The soup was in a tightly sealed plastic container.
Prices - They were very reasonable.
1 Chicken Teriyaki Don Rice Bowl $ 8.00
2 7 Up $ 3.00
1 Tempura $ 6.00
1 Coke $ 1.50
Subtotal $18.50
Tax $1.57
Total $20.07
Overall - The quality of the food was very average and somewhat inconsistent. The delivery time was extremely long. While the prices were good, I do not see a reason to order from them again. The in-restaurant experience may be better. If, at some point, it was convenient, I might give that a try. But I do not think I will order from them again for delivery.Listed in: Mark's - They Deliver List, Mark's - A Taste of Asia
-
Review from Vanessa S.
Civic Center/Tenderloin, San Francisco, CA
3/15/2012
Sort of hit or miss. It's cheap. And most of the servers are nice. One of their servers is kind of rude. My spouse is convinced there was something wrong with his food there today and he felt ill right after eating here. Sometimes their fish is fresher than other times. I got sashimi today and didn't feel sick after. Overall, I think this place is overrated on yelp because it's the only sushi in that part of the Tenderloin. Do yourself a favor and walk 15 minutes to find a better one.
-
Review from Emily D.
10/3/2011
Um... yeah this place rocks. I've been feeling really down lately (probably because I go to law school) but what always cheers me up is a giant bowl of udon. This place has amazing udon. And the give you free popped rice green tea, free edamame, and free miso soup.
I am so stoked to go back and get sushi rolls, you have no idea. Finals grub in the library will never be the same.Listed in: Repeat Offenders, Finals Food in the TL
-
Review from Catherine C.
San Francisco, CA
10/28/2011
I've dealt with LOTS of different delivery places, and this one has been the best so far. I got on the phone w/ them early in the day to place an order for our office, and the man that picked up stated he preferred to take orders over the phone, not GrubHub. Helpful to know.
So, I placed an order. It arrived within 45 minutes like he said it would (he was even early!) Now, I've heard of places giving complementary items for being late, wrong order, etc. But Bento House did everything right AND gave us a complementary California roll! What more could you ask for?
Food is pretty spot on, although I do wish they would separate noodles from the soup on deliveries. Otherwise, the noodles get soggy. The tempura soba noodles I ordered were on par w/ that of most Japanese restaurants in the city. The soup was really subtly flavorful... if that makes sense.
Will order again! -
Review from Lee R.
San Francisco, CA
1/14/2012
This review is a review of their sushi only. Their bento boxes look good and are affordable, but I have not tried them. I really wanted to like this place, as there aren't a ton of nearby Japanese restaurants in the TL.
Their sushi is inedible. I ordered a spicy tuna roll, spicy salmon roll and California roll, totaling over $15. The tuna and salmon were utterly gross and tasted old and rancid. They did not even attempt to mix the tuna and salmon with the spicy sauce... it was literally a piece of fish, some avocado, cucumber, and some spicy sauce. It's always a bad sign when sushi restaurants serve their spicy tuna with anything other than just tuna minced and mixed with the sauce . If I want cucumber and avocado, I order a California roll or something else... clearly, they were just using it here for filler. Truly, the fish was so awful that I can understand why they use filler. The California roll was mediocre, but at least edible... I guess that's to be expected from any sushi restaurant using run of the mill "Krab." -
Review from Jeanne Y.
7/22/2011
"This is totally NOT the Tenderloin."
First words out of my friend D's mouth. No joke. Coming in from the rancid streets of the TL, Bento House is a nice respite from the craziness outdoors. Directly across the street from the Federal building, professionals come and go like it's their job. Oh wait, it is. :D
In any case, the service was prompt, the place is bustling at lunch, and the food is pretty good. My tempura udon provided a hearty, brain-recharging meal, although it was nothing terribly exciting, I have to say. None of our three choices of dishes were. But, they have generous portions and a very straightforward menu. I have no complaints whatsoever.
This place is no frills, it's clean, it delivers, and it's all around a solid place. And that's sometimes all you want and need. Bento House is a definite plus for the TL, I'd say. -
Review from Susy C.
6/16/2011
Normally this would be a 3.5 but since we're talking the Tenderloin here... Yeah, this is a 5 star Japanese place for the Tenderloin FOR SURE.
First of all, the bento box meals actually come in a bento box!!! Believe me.. I've been to a place in the Tenderloin that serves a "bento box" on just a big plate.
The portions of the food in your bento box are a good size. They do not skimp you like Sushi Hana (uhh, my salmon teriyaki was smaller than a deck of cards there and when I questioned it they said it was ALWAYS that small..lies! Screw you Hana!) It's a lot shitload cheaper than 2g Japanese Brasserie (which is NOTHING brasserie-like at all. AVOID AT ALL COSTS).
The sushi was actually fresh and CHEAP.
Loved the tuna poki because the tuna was chopped into nice big hunks with cucumbers and seaweed salad. The sauce was NOT the usual mix of Sriracha, soy sauce and onions but instead a very tasty Sriracha + sweet chili sauce combination.
Grand opening 10% off promotion going on.
Yes, they deliver and a free California roll is included for orders over $20 (if you're into that fake sushi shit) -
Review from Joji H.
San Francisco, CA
11/24/2011
I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels somewhat "uncomfortable" eating at restaurant alone. I also do not enjoy going to restaurant, order to go, and wait for the food while looking at other customers' yummy dishes. My solution = delivery.
Bento House has been one of my favorite place to order.
I usually order for lunch + dinner. Let's face it....minimum order is $20. Instead of ordering $20 worth of lunch, why not order two dishes and leave one for dinner??
(Order Process = 5 stars)
Well...I use eat24, so of course it's super duper easy and convenient...has nothing to do with Bento House...
(Delivery = 5 stars)
Pretty much every time, the delivery person is different, and pretty much every time, they are real polite with big-o smiles and sincere "Here's your food sir. Thank you and ENJOY!" words. Yeah yeah yeah I know maybe they don't mean it, but it still does make me feel "special". :-)
I live pretty close to the restaurant, so they always come in about 30-40 min, which is a big plus for me.
(Food = 3.5 stars)
Ok, I'm not picky on foods at all. Many of my friends think I have no clue when it comes to "good foods", and sadly they are right. To me, as long as the food is edible and doesn't make me sick, it's ok.
But to give appropriate review on yelp, I figured I have to be a bit more precise and strict on the rating.
I usually order the same thing...Bento Deluxe with Beef Teriyaki + Tempura.
It's pretty tasty and to be honest I don't have any complain whatsoever. But, just to be "picky enough" to review, the miso soup comes with the meal is...umm....well, let's just say it tastes like a hot water with a tiny bit hint of miso flavor in it.
Like other reviewers were saying, the Udon or Soba probably needs to have soup and noodle separately packed. Soba noodles tends to absorb liquid pretty quickly...so by the time it arrives, it tastes...pretty bad.
I love their Albacore Tataki (white tuna seared w/ ponzu sauce....although the menu says "panzo" sauce...small typo doesn't hurt), which is really refreshing with light dressing drizzled over white tuna and shredded Daikon radish.
They actually use pretty fatty meaty shrimp for the tempura! ...not a kind of shrimp which you keep on biting the outer layer and goes "where the heck is shrimp??"
(Extra = 5+ stars)
So here's what I love the most.
Their minimum order for free delivery is $20.
They give you free California Rolls for order of $20 or more.
YES, it means you get free delivery AND free California Rolls every single time when you order the minimum order!!
It is definitely a win-win situation.
===
Overall, I think Bento House is one of the places you can count on more than average food with sincere politeness and of course freebies. ;-) -
Review from Stephanie L.
Berkeley, CA
10/30/2011
I have been here twice for lunch and was able to make it in and out within an hour. I have ordered the teriyaki chicken bento box and various sushi rolls. Both tasted okay and could have been better. I got tired of the teriyaki chicken after awhile.
The last time I ate here, three of us ordered simple California rolls. Two of us got our rolls promptly but our third friend did not get her roll until 15 minutes after us. We weren't sure why there was a delay, although the waiter did apologize.
What I like about this place is that it is affordable, it's busy but I have never had to wait for a table at noon, and they have a wide selection on the menu. I think it could approve on taste but I would be willing to come here again to give it a third try. -
Review from Leah E.
San Francisco, CA
5/23/2011
The former Cafe Ramind has reincarnated as Bento House. It has opened today.
The owner came out and was very friendly. He invited us in and told us that it's "no tax" during the opening week. My heart was set on Tofu Banh Mi at Saigon, though, so I told him next time.
The menu is extensive:
12 appetizers
10 salads
Noodle Soups (udon or soba)
Bento from $8 to $12
Donburi Rice Bowls
10 Sushi and Sashimi Combo including Chirashi for $12
Nigiri, handrolls, makimono sushi rolls
Lots and lots of Specialty Rolls with names like Winterwonderland Roll, UFO, Gold Gate, Milano roll, etc.
They also deliver.
I think Bento House is Chinese owned but I am not complaining. The TL needs a decent Japanese restaurant. The inside looked sparkling clean. You will find a lot of typos on the menu which is kinda cute.
Give this place a try and you tell me!!!
3 Stars for adding a Japanese restaurant on Larkin.
(Don't worry. I'm planning to eat here and will update my review. For now, I'm neither a hater or a fan, so I think giving this place 3 stars is fair.)Listed in: Heartin' the TL, The Sushi Diet
-
Review from Candace F.
San Francisco, CA
6/11/2011
Another restaurant that delivers. A co-worker grabbed a menu for me and we decided to order in one day. Their prices are very reasonable now, but I'm sure they will raise prices once people get wind of this place. I shared a Chirashi bowl and Bento w/Teriyaki beef & tempura with a friend and I was full. We gathered enough orders ($20 worth) to get free 6-piece California roll. The delivery was fast - came with salad and Miso soup. They packaged the order well and the food was still warm when we received it.
The Chirashi bowl came with a lot of rice - more than 1 person can finish. The fish was sliced thin but there were a few pieces of each kind of fish. For the price of $12 - you can find no better deal. The Bento box came with a decent amount of beef and it was tender. Nothing special to note about the tempura except that it was crispy and there were at least 5 pieces of veggies and 1 shrimp.
This place is located nearby so it's convenient for last minute orders. Let's hope the prices don't skyrocket and quality remains the same. -
Review from Debbie G.
San Francisco, CA
2/3/2012
Ok, not the best sushi I have ever had, but sometimes you just want cheap(ish) sushi - the basics (do not go here for exotic, super high quality sushi).
I did read reviews and was very nervous about delivery time and warm sushi (gross), so I ordered through Grubhub (love them) because I know if it did not arrive on time Grubhub calls on my behalf and if it is horrible they usually give me some kind of credit for my trouble.
I ordered at 6:20 on a Friday night (tonight) and it arrived at 7:19pm. It actually arrived 2 minutes before the estimated time so I was happy. I can deal with an hour delivery time, no problem.
I ordered: Walu sashimi (it was cubed which I found a little odd), but good. Sushi: Maguro, Ebi, Sake and a California Roll. All acceptable, good "fast food" kind of sushi. A nice amount of soy sauce, ginger and wasabi was offered and I will mos def order again when I am in the mood for cheap(ish) sushi. -
Review from Adam R.
San Francisco, CA
6/1/2011
A co-worker and I had a great set of lunches for a reasonable price at the new Bento House. The have been open for about a week and they seem to have their act together. (I usually try to give a new place a month to sort things out.) I had the chicken teriyaki bento box lunch, which was brimming over in food. The chicken was moist and delicious and the teriyaki sauce was not too sweet. The miso could have had a little more punch, but that's my personal taste. Unlike many spots, they do not serve dyed ginger... the ginger is a natural color. The staff are enthusiastic and friendly, and eager to make a good impression, which they did. My only suggestion for the owners would be to dump the Kikkoman soy sauce in favor of a natural soy sauce.
I too was sorry to see Cafe Ramind go, but I am delighted to have another decent spot in the hood. -
Review from Joseph N.
5/24/2011
I loved Cafe Ramind, so I had high hopes that their replacement would be good. Thankfully my first meal at Bento House (or, BenTo House, according to their menu) was solid.
I ordered a House Bento Box with chicken teriyaki. The normal price is $8 + tax, but for the grand opening I paid $7 total. For this I got:
- Large portion of chicken teriyaki - delicious, the sauce is excellent and they do not hold back.
- Mixed tempura - also delicious, the amount of batter is perfect and even though I took it to go it was still crispy when I ate it.
- Miso soup - nothing special, but I am not a huge miso soup fan to begin with so look for other reviewers' comments.
- Salad - a small amount of lettuce with a sliver of tomato on top and no dressing. I wonder if they forgot something here, it was disappointing.
- White rice - plenty of it to go with the bountiful chicken provided.
Overall it was a very tasty and hearty meal, worth $8. That's a little steep for lunch in this area but I think Bento House will do well.
The interior is clean and pleasant, there are lots of tables in the main sitting/waiting area as well as a small sushi bar with 4 stools. They also have a back room with additional tables that you can't see from the front.
Service was very friendly and the food came out pretty quick, although they forgot to include napkins/utensils when they packed my order.
They have a reasonably extensive sushi menu as well, which I am going to sample next time I go there (so, probably tomorrow). I have high hopes but not expectations; decent sushi in this area would be a godsend. -
Review from Ray R.
San Francisco, CA
12/5/2011 1 Check-in Here
i honestly have nothing bad to say about this place. i did not give Bento House 4 stars based on the authenticity of the food but rather i took into account: food, service, and value.
there was a special in the dooway, $6.25 for a bento box + cali roll. but i opted for a bento box plus tempura ($8). jill got the weekly special which is basically a rotation of 2 types of rolls for $10. we also got a tempura appetizer which is $6 and feeds 2. the place is small and luckily we got there when we did (around 12pm) cause it filled up real quick. i was pleasantly surprised when we were served tea and miso soup! our waiter was busy but checked with us every so often to refill our tea. the food was fresh and came out at a decent time.
you've got to understand that there are 3 other "japanese" restaurants in my area and they are either wayyyy too pricey for lunch, the food sucks, or the service is bad. Bento House, I'm happy to report, doesn't have any of those issues. -
Review from andrew s.
San Francisco, CA
1/25/2012
if cheap, good sushi is what you're after, this is your place. true, there is no nod to responsible fishing, but it's cheap, the workers are so damn nice it hurts, it's chill (very important quality in any larkin street establishment), AND they've given us free stuff every time we've been in. like free rolls, sake, salads - sometimes stuff i'd never even think to order.
awesome staple in the larkin street corridor of cheap eats. good work, guys. -
Review from Gigi M.
Castro Valley, CA
6/15/2011
I ordered Tempura Udon for lunch. It was pretty good. The broth could have been a bit tastier. The service is very friendly and fast. I always had a full cup of tea. The place is very clean too.
I will go back and try the sushi. This place is a welcome addition to the restaurants in the T-loin.
I wish I could give them 3.5 stars, I think that's a better indicator of this place. -
Review from mindful g.
San Francisco, CA
11/24/2011
What's good:
- not the best sushi, but pretty good, considering great prices for the simple rolls, nigiri and sashimi. and sometimes that's all you want
- Entrees are reasonably priced
- not only was my Amebi (raw shrimp) cheap, but it was also served with the heads deep fried (tasty - give it a try!)
What's bad:
- rice is a little too heavy and chewy for my taste, so I personally would stick with the sashimi
- the fancy rolls (not my cup of tea anyways) aren't as reasonably priced in comparison
- I haven't tried the entrees yet, but my friend had the udon and thought the broth was flat
- the two times I've been there, they didn't have uni (and $5 would be a good price for uni!) The second time, I tried to order Masago and they didn't have that.
Overall:
Not exactly a place I'd go out of my way often to go to (maybe if they actually had Uni, Ikura or Masago I would), but better fish quality and better liked than my previous go-to cheap sushi places Kitaro/Kiki's (unless you want the cheap fancy rolls). If you're in the area, check it out.
Great for:
- cheap sashimi
- people who work/go to school/get drugs in the area
- when you're in the TL and don't feel like Vietnamese or Thai -
Review from Dana L.
San Francisco, CA
7/25/2011 2 Check-ins Here
My coworkers and I decided to try this place out because another coworker of ours recommended it to us. It's about a block away from where we work, so we figured "why not?".
The place is very nice and tidy, and the workers here are super nice! I don't remember what my coworkers ordered, but I ordered the dynamite roll--it was well presented and delicious as well! The waiter also gave us a free California roll on the house! The price of the rolls and bentos are cheap! Look out for their daily specials. :)
The only flaw about this place is that it is only open on weekdays and closes at 3:30pm making it hard for me to bring my friends to try this place. -
Review from Spencer C.
San Francisco, CA
11/6/2011
We ordered at 12pm and we are still waiting for our food at 2:15pm. The restaurant keeps telling us they'll check with the driver, but no word yet.
-
Review from S.E. J.
San Rafael, CA
7/26/2011
They deliver in a timely manner. The food is fresh and reasonably priced. The service is great. For orders (delivery) over $20 you usually get an extra order of something on the house. The cucumber salads are yummy. I always order the Sushi A combo and it is very filling. Generous portions and extra wasabi and ginger.
-
Review from Komal B.
San Francisco, CA
10/19/2011
I was craving sushi at about 8:12- but didn't want to go anywhere...luckily these guys deliver. Not only were they here within 30 mins- but the everything I ordered was tasty and its CHEAP. I appreciate a nice sushi spot as much as the next guy but to be honest when its delivery I'm ok with less fancy sushi so long as it still tastes good. Also their soups are pretty good.
You can order delivery directly through their website. And they throw in some free stuff! WIll definitely order from here again
