Niigata Onigiri — Restaurant in Warsaw

I must admit that I had three false prejudices before visiting this place.

The prices : Considering the huge size of the onigiri and the quality of the rice, it's worth paying the price of 15 PLN per piece.

The clientele : I don't usually go to any Japanese restaurants for Japanese expats. But I was actually very surprised to see there were many queues of young Polish people. At least during my stay, 100% of the customers were locals who were enjoying onigiri/ rice balls.

Eating in : Someone seemed to have misunderstood or just mentioned their former shop in another location, there are actually 12 seats and 3 tables and 2 counters for eating in on the 1st floor above the kitchen and counter. It's quite casual and relaxed, like a fast food restaurant.

Besides, I wondered why someone in a review knew the name of the Polish owner, but I found out that it was the name of the Polish owner from the message card on the windows which mentioned that this place was broadcast on a Japanese TV show. I was also surprised to see a name on the menu, namely "Bongo", which reminded me of the very famous onigiri restaurant very near where I used to live in Tokyo, in Otsuka. It was nostalgic for me to see that name. And I realised that this place made onigiri in the same way as Bongo. I was also very impressed to see that the Polish owner had enthusiastically researched the menu at many places in Tokyo according to her website.

I hope this place will be dedicated to spreading the new culture of eating rice balls to the locals in...

I have lived in Japan for some time and I was frequently having onigiri as a snack or for breakfast. I had very high expectations for the place that has such excellent reviews. I am not an expert in the field, but I know that the rice should hold its shape. Unfortunatelly, it was not prepared correctly and the onigiri was crumbling while I was eating it. In my opinion it was a huge mistake. Moreover, I have found a piece of shrimp shell in my ebi onigiri. The taste of sauce for the shirimp one was not much to my liking, but it is just a personal preference. The tuna mayo filling was not made with the Japanese mayonnaise and did not taste like the ones that you buy in Japan. I also prefer a thicker nori for my onigiri, this one was really thin and not so tasty. On the other hand, the packaging is professional and keeps the nori apart from the rice, which...

Niigata Onigiri brings an interesting concept, replicating the feel of a Japanese convenience store (konbini). The interior design is well thought out, creating an authentic and cozy atmosphere. However, the quality of the onigiri doesn’t fully match the price. The rice texture is slightly too firm for my personal preference, and the flavors could be better balanced. While the variety of fillings is a plus, some combinations feel a bit underwhelming. Overall, it’s a nice spot for a quick Japanese-style snack, but there’s still room for improvement in taste and texture to fully...