Fresh Catch Poke Co. — Restaurant in Town of Amherst

The great things: Fresh, healthy food that tastes great! I have ordered pick-up several times, and dined-in once. The prep is consistent, and the folks I have interacted with at the counter have all been nice and helpful. They also have a very thorough and user-friendly online ordering that I have used (even for large orders) and it's very convenient! The atmosphere is bright, simplistic, open and 'sunny'. Definitely more for casual dining or take-out than say a date night vibe.

The potentially not-so-great things: Even when you eat-in, everything is served in a plastic bowl. They present as a very green business, but unfortunately my town will not recycle the container, so a reusable 'real' bowl at least when eating there would be a nice option. I just ate there with a friend. She ordered a regular sized bowl, I ordered the large portion (lunch for tomorrow becuae its much too big to eat in one sitting IMO), and we shared a combucha. The total was $38.00, which is a little pricey, but I guess has to be balanced with the quality of food served. Also, I'm personally not a huge fan of the implication that a tip should be given for behind the counter service. When you sign for your receipt, it's a very in-your-face approach to give a tip, which could be a personal thing for me but I always feel pressured to give one in that type of situation. When there is no table service offered, I just think a tip seems unnecessary and a bit bold to even indicate, so I wish they would remove that.... in the same type of scenario it would be just like the behind-the-counter folks at Subway expecting a tip. But...

I had high hopes for this place. The design and ambiance was very attractive. The staff were very kind. I originally went just for the chicken teriyaki bowl, which was good and it satisfied my craving. I also got the Maine lobster roll and the traditional açaí bowl. Comparing to an açaí bowl I got at the Squeeze Juicery down the street, this one is smaller, the smoothie portion wasn’t as flavorful, you get less toppings, and the price was $2 more. The Maine lobster roll was disappointing. Having lived in Maine for 4 years, this is not like any Maine lobster roll I’ve ever had. Maine lobster rolls are simple with cold lightly dressed big chucks of lobster and a squeeze of lemon on a buttery toasted roll. The only thing that reminded me of a typical Maine lobster roll was the price ($29.25 market price). I felt robbed paying for this lobster roll that was over-seasoned with maybe Old Bay Seasoning, the lobster chunks were so tiny, the bread was slightly stale and not toasted in butter, and the chips offered the same Old Bay flavor which wasn’t pleasant to bring the whole meal together. Kudos to having the right kind of roll and the couple bites of Mac salad...

I've been here about 5 times now including the grand opening a few weeks ago. Super thrilled that a Poke place has come to the area. I'm from the OC - California where Poke is everywhere so I'm somewhat of a purist when it comes to authentic Poke bowls. I've kept coming back here hoping they would work the kinks out, however, the bowls are just okay. It's relatively fresh, avocado is sometimes brown but the quality of ingredients has been for the most part good. My major complaint is the greens mixed with rice, price and the sauce. I've never tried any of the non traditional ingredients, however, every time I eat here I want to provide some input on what they can do to make it better. The greens are way to thick - should be spring mix, the price WOW, i order a regular bowl and walk out paying almost $20 with no drink. I love the clear plastic bowls but I wish I could get a regular soda or green tea. The sauce is ok -- would love it to be more spicy and be mixed into the meat for more flavor. Kudos to the owner for opening up this place, I was told you might be adding Acai bowls in the future. Thumbs up...