Bento Cafe

I stumbled along this place on a rainy and very crowded Saturday late afternoon, and was immediately taken in by the warm atmosphere and extensive choice on the menu, so much so it took me more than my usual time to take the menu in and after shortlisting my favourites, I made my choice - an aubergine smothered in miso paste (I forget the name of this dish), and a bento box with a main part of salmon teriyaki. Both delicious and great value for money. My friend ordered a bento box also but accompanying this was vegetable tempura which admittedly was not the most tasty of dishes as there was a strange texture to the batter and though it didn't feel too heavy, it left a strange aftertaste and tere was too much of it. At the end of the meal I was happy to see they took orders for taking out food as well, and we ordered some very tasty lychees to go.
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Daisy Crane
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Saturday, January 06, 2007

Well, I'm most certainly glad i found this place, and while i agree that the staff may not be the most attentive in the world i would much prefer that to the hovering type and yes the weapons on the walls are odd(including a plastic flintlock of all things) but frnkly they serve the best sushi i've ever had at a reasonable price, i personally recommend the platters, saves all that agony choosing
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Richard Demery
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Having lived in Japan, I was most impressed with the quality of food on offer. In particular it was great to be offered really fresh well made sashimi and sushi at an affordable price. I have paid far more for a similar meal that was no better at Sumosan in Mayfair! This place blew it away in terms of value for money. It really is a good place and I would highly recommend it. However if I were to have a one gripe, it is that the place does lack a bit in terms of authenticity. None of the staff who server us spoke more than a few words of Japanese and although the menu did have plenty of fantastic authentic Japanese dishes, they also had a lot of random "fusion" type dishes. This isnt to say that they were bad, just that if you are looking for a full on Japanese culinary experience then this place is a little bit misleading. Still, very oishii!
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Dave K
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 10
Sunday, October 29, 2006

This resturant is amazing! The food is fantastic. There i a good selection of sushi and they have a choice of dishes if you do not like the idea of sushi. I would highly recommend having the sushi as it is so fresh. If you are trying it for the first time, try it here. The atmosphere is lovely and everyone is so friendly and give you a warm welcome.
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, October 18, 2006

My favourite restaurant. Unfailingly good food, great smiley service, reasonably priced. The spicy tuna handrolls are my favourite, or try the spider (soft-shell crab) maki for a real treat. The green tea and sesame ice cream are also awesome. I have brought a lot of people here who haven't fancied eating raw fish, but who have quickly been swayed. In any case the menu is vast and there is much more on offer than just sushi and sashimi. They also do home delivery if you are feeling lazy.
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Saturday, August 26, 2006

Having written a good review of this place following our last (and only) visit, we were back

After recommended the place to a friend who had her after-drinks birthday dinner here on Saturday night. Very satisfied to confirm that all 8 guests loved the place. Food was again superb, and

The service was very good. Can’t really beat the cod, nor the value for money. Bill with 3 bottles of

Chilean Sav-Blanc + a good quality (so I was told) bottle of Saki, came to a fantastic £22,50 p/h incl.

Service. None of us went hungry!
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J & Dee
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Monday, August 21, 2006

All the other reviews of this place are Totally overrated! The service is one of the worst kind you could imagine for a Japanese restaurant.

The food is really so-so...

but dont even try to put it in the same league as Nobu or Zuma.. you'r making a mistake.

Really, it is ok for the prize you pay.

but dont expect any nice + smiley place from the boys and girls in the rest.
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O.....
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 6
Thursday, August 03, 2006

i love it! simply the best restaurant in town!!!!!!! the best japanese. staff lovely, food amazing, the fish is very fresh, and the salad so crunchy!!! amazing tamago, tempura simply heavenly... well, there s no bad food there. and its cheap. compared to that horrible buffet sushi in covent garden for 13 pound (which then became 20), this is truly smashing! BUT now they have introduced a mandatory 10% of ur bill that u have to pay to the stuff.very bad. i used to leave tip, but i hate when they force me to give money. also cos if u spend 100 pound (if u are with 10people) then u spend a lot.nasty.hope they stop doing it.
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sarah
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Saturday, July 29, 2006

BENTO CAFE IS NOW MY ALL-TIME FAVOURITE JAPANESE RESTAURANT!

After dining there for the first time tonight, I'll have to stop myself from going back several times a week since it's walking distance from my flat! Will definitely recommend it to everyone who loves fresh tasty Japanese food that doesn't cost a bomb.

Most notably, the GRILLED BLACK COD WITH SWEET MISO SAUCE tastes absolutely divine, much thanks to the other reviewers for recommending it! A bit steep at £11.50, but for 3 very tender tasty chunks it is worth every penny.

Was also thrilled to find that the California Temaki Handrolls (my absolute favourite type of sushi) contained generous amounts of fish roe (the tiny orange ones) aside from the typical crabstick, cucumber and avocado. Not bad for £2.80. The Unagi Handroll was lovely too, as was the Ebi Tempura Maki (6 pcs for £4) and California Maki (6 pcs for £3.50).

Truly amazing food at very reasonable prices... I have paid much more to eat much less in places like Sakura, Bento will be my haunt from now on!
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Samantha Tan
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Saturday, July 01, 2006

oh my god this place is fantastic! i thought nothing could beat asakusa, which is really nearby, but my boyfriend and i were really blown away by the food here.

the black cod was absolutely SUBLIME (we have had the one at Nobu too, and we couldn't really tell the difference!) and the sashimi was the best either of us have tasted for a long time. i wouldn't agree with the comment before about the service either; it was really efficent and friendly. the sesame ice cream was also absolutely fantastic!

anyone who has been to asakusa will know how amazing the food at bento cafe must be for it to beat asakusa, because the food there is also amazing. i have to say though, it was more expensive.

so i wouldn't call it a cheap eat (the bill came to £67 inc service) but we did have loads of food and some sake, and the black cod was £11.50 all on its own. however, i think you could get away with having some sushi or noodles and not spend much at all.

we can't wait to go back there.
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Anna
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Thursday, June 29, 2006