Komeya No Bento — Restaurant in San Francisco

I should preface this review that this place is more like a drive-thru, so my expectations were much lower than a dine-in Japanese restaurant, where I expect reasonably good service and delicate food—one of the characteristics Japanese cuisines are known for, in addition to great variety, among others. But it is still Japanese, so naturally I expect at least some degree of good service, and some variety of food which is delicate. With that said, I was utterly disappointed with my experience.

Yes, they were still “soft” opening. Yes, they hired a Japanese employee at the counter who could speak reasonably good English so communication wasn’t a problem. Yes, I expected the prices to be comparatively high, given its location and that it being Japanese. Yes, I expected that the bento (lunchbox, or a better translation would be to-go box) to have food which was mostly, if not all, cold. And yes, the place seemed reasonably clean and uncluttered, if not entirely welcoming, evident from the high seats they offer to customers.

However, what I was really dissatisfied with was their service and food, which in my opinion, are the two most important things when it comes to rating a Japanese restaurant.

There was a group of three people who bought some food, taking photos and uploading online, essentially promoting for the store for free. I get that advertising is important for business, but that shouldn’t be the reason that I was completely ignored.

That is, the lady behind the counter (who seemed to be the owner also) kept giving ideas to the trio so they would promote the store more; she completely ignored the order I placed and paid for at the kiosk right next to her (so there was no reason that she couldn’t see that a new order has been placed).

Furthermore, when I inquired about my order, she was completely engrossed with the trio, and I had to show her the receipt from my phone, so she would ask the kitchen staff to actually start making my food. This was simply unacceptable service, especially at a Japanese restaurant, even if it was a take-out eatery.

When I finally got my order, I left the eatery and thought to myself, at least it looks pretty good, delicate and with a good variety. But the best time to rate the food was shortly after it has been served, when it was still “fresh,” so I found a place nearby and started consuming it (especially because I ordered raw salmon, I couldn’t wait until I get home to consume the bento, just for safety).

Unlike their service, about which I was unhappy but could at least understand from a business point of view that promoting a business is more important than losing one customer (I was the only one there besides the trio), I simply couldn’t understand how they could offer this quality of food and still call it Japanese. That is, none of the food, and I really meant, none, tasted good, delicate or fresh. This isn’t to say that they were really not fresh, or that they tasted awful: no, it was acceptable as far as food goes—I didn’t get sick or anything, and I was at least less hungry. It is just that I can’t really call this food Japanese, lacking the important characteristic I associate with Japanese food, namely being delicate—not in taste, not in the way in which it was made.

In short, I felt the food has been premade long ago, kept in the fridge, and simply reheated (microwaved?) before it was served to the customer. I guess if it weren’t for what they claimed “Heart-Crafted,” and that nothing in the bento reminded me of my experience with Japanese food in general (delicate, and typically fresh, if not super fresh), I wouldn’t have been so disappointed. Like I said, at least it has some variety 😊. I still wouldn’t compare this food to Mickey D’s, but I was just wholly dissatisfied.

Therefore, imagine my amazement when I asked around and found that there is usually a line...

This is the beautiful, most well-presented to-go bento box I have ever seen in my life 🌉 This specific box was the Salmon In Truffle Soy, which was Norwegian Raw Salmon in truffie oil and house made yuzu soy on a bed of yummy sushi rice, Japanese potato salad, roasted grape tomato, deep fried sweet corn, pickled cucumber, and beans sprouts! The salmon was soooo delicious and fresh, and it was just the right flavor! It wasn’t too salty or fishy, and the texture was just right! The side dishes were great too! The corn was actually really cute, but I didn’t flip it in the picture to show it’s true beauty because I was in a rush haha It was really interesting because it was a piece of corn with the skin still firm and together, which I’ve never really eaten it like this before, and it was pretty cool! Honestly, it’s really nice to see a place put extra care and attention to their placement and presentation even though the food is packed to-go because literally no one really does that and everyone just packs food in those basic styrofoam/plastic containers :P If you’re curious, the box was like, a really really thick paper material or like a light kind of wood hehe It was pretty high-quality for to-go food! The matcha here was also really good and high-quality as well! It had a rich flavor, and it definitely is on the top tier level of matcha! The sea salt foam was perfect and was milky! The mango syrup at the bottom tasted really fresh and authentic too! I waited about 30 min in line, and another 20 min for my order haha so just be patient! Make sure you have a good parking spot too because some people attempted to park right in front of the shop thinking it was going to be a quick trip 👀 If you’re curious, the 2 boxes and 2 matchas were a little over $50 haha Overall, this was such a nice experience, and the workers work very hard to get all the orders out! Even though they closed at 6:30pm, there were still 20-ish people outside in line, but they were gracious enough to take everyone’s...

Came here on a Saturday afternoon. I pre-ordered everything online to avoid any waits or lines. They email and text you when your order is ready. We scheduled the order to be ready at 5:30 and it was ready at 5:40. Staff was very friendly and everything (bento boxes and drinks) was packaged securely to go. Unfortunately, it was too crowded there to eat (they only have a few small tables and it's a very small restaurant), so we ate the food at home.

The matcha drinks were great. I LOVED the strawberry matcha latte. They add a matcha foam to the top, which is unlike other places that do strawberry matcha lattes, so it was pretty nice. The ratio was just right and the strawberry was very fresh. I also go the mango matcha latte, which was similar and just as good. I wish you could adjust the sweetness on them, but unfortunately you can't. The regular matcha latte, which we also ordered, was also really good, but I like the fruity drinks a bit better with the foam. I would definitely order drinks here again. Pricey, but worth it. They use Marukyu Koyamaen matcha powder (Isuzu, I think), which is great for lattes and is a well-known brand for high-quality matcha in Japan.

The bento boxes were good, but I honestly preferred the drinks. I got the chicken katsu and it was fresh and very tasty with the sauce they give. The sides were okay. I liked the corn and the Japanese potato salad the most. My boyfriend got the duck, which I honestly enjoyed, too. I was skeptical about it, but it was pretty good (a bit chewy, though).

I might try the salmon dishes next time. But I will definitely be back for the matcha drinks when I'm in the area, especially the strawberry...