Credit Marisa Lync
4 places
The Best Bento Boxes in LA
About the list
From the team that brought you SUGARFISH, KazuNori is a handroll bar that specialises in fresh fish, perfectly warmed rice, and salty seaweed for the ideal hand-filled bite. The group recently rolled out a Toro Tataki bento box that includes sustainably-ranched Bluefin from Mexico, and is packed with sushi rice, nori strips, salmon eggs, cucumber, and more.
Ima is actually a sukiyaki and shabu-shabu restaurant in Beverly Hills, which makes their bento boxes that much more exciting and unique. Here, you’ll find bento’s littered with A5 wagyu beef in a range of styles and flavours. The bento’s change all the time, all but ensuring a new takeout lunch experience with each visit. The one constant – A5 wagyu that melts in your mouth.
During the height of the pandemic, Thai chef Nan Yimcharoen turned her home into a bento-making factory, with elaborate, gorgeous, and delicious bento boxes for take-out. The success has now turned into a brick-and-mortar bento shop opening in Virgil Village. The three-layer boxes are good for 2-3 people and include a dizzying array of sashimi, sizzling wagyu, pickled veggies, and so much more.
The name Gozen is a portmanteau of Go and Zen which roughly translates to ‘five good things’. That ethos also translates into stunning, geometrically shaped bento boxes that highlight the ‘good things’ with excellent sake, water, meat, seafood, and vegetables. As you unveil each box, you’ll be thrilled to discover dishes that are steamed and raw, that include noodles, sashimi, smoked duck, and even a wagyu katsu sandwich.
