FOOD - Bentoya, Japanese Fusion, Edinburgh
So you know you like Japanese food, but you like Chinese cuisine too, perhaps a little Thai food thrown in the mix and well basically, you like Asian food. Here’s where Bentoya steps up the the loud speaker and announces it does Japanese Fusion.
It’s here that you can get some of your favourite dishes like Gyoza (Chinese), Ramen (Chinese) alongside some oh so good well known Japanese dishes like Sushi, Poke Bowls and Katsu Curry.
REVIEW OF BENTOYA, EDINBURGH - JAPANESE FUSION CUISINE
Nestled on Bread Street, just off Lothian Road in Edinburgh is where you will find Bentoya. It’s size is very deceptive as it looks like a small intimate restaurant from the street but once inside you will see that it extends further back with additional seating downstairs. The decor is understated with light wood being the feature and tatami like seating placed along the back wall! The lighting is a soft with a warm glow.
We asked for the dishes to come out when ready as there was no particular order we wanted to eat them in. First to grace the table was the Tuna Tataki (£7.90), seared tuna with a homemade miso dressing. For me, this was the best dish of the night, but then I am a massive Tuna fan and would eat it every day if I could. The miso dressing had marinated the tuna making it extra silky, and added the ideal balance of salty sweetness.
Chicken Yakitori (£4.90) was delightful. Four skewers of sweet glazed succulent chicken. Not a crumb was left!
There are five pages of Sushi, Gunkan, Roll Sushi, Maki and Temaki to choose from; with fillings of prawn, tuna, salmon, eel, avocado and soft shell crab to name a few.
This was the Crunchy Ebi Roll (£9.90) with prawn tempura, avocado and cucumber roll with mayo, eel sauce and crispy fried onions. Mmmm seriously crunchy.
I can never see passed Gyoza when they are on the menu. Two Gyoza (£5.20) types on the menu - Chicken and Vegetable and just Vegetable. They arrive all joined together by this incredible lattice work web of crunch and it’s served lattice side up. I flipped it over and then snapped each one off.
The Karaage Chicken (£5.90) for me was a disappointment just because I am use to them being more gnarly, and battered fried strips of chicken rather than large chunks that look like balls of chicken. These were large boneless pieces of chicken. To be honest they tasted lovely, but they just didn’t meet my expectation of Karaage Chicken.
We did order two mains. One was the Chashu Pork Ramen (£10.90) with all the trimmings and the Teriyaki Chicken Donburi (£9.50).
The ramen wasn’t as flavourful as we had hoped and with two thin slices of pork, it wasn’t the best ramen we’ve had but I’d still give it an 8/10.
The Chicken Donburi was great with lots of bean sprouts and pepper ontop of warm sticky rice with lots of teriyaki sauce. Lovely.
Bentoya, is a great wee spot for some great Japanese fusion food. The place has an authentic vibe to it and the staff are super friendly but not in your face. There is a large window so you can see into the kitchen and the aromas that come from the kitchen will make your belly rumble with hunger.
Whether you are there for a large bowl of Poke, or Ramen, on a date night like the table behind us or just out for a nice meal with friends or family, and if you are wanting to support local independents, then choose this over a chain.
Bentoya, 13 Bread Street, Edinburgh, EH3 9AL www.bentoya.co.uk
My Spoon Award : Silver Spoon 8/10
I was invited by Bentoya to review their menu.
Food and drink were complimentary but the views are very much my own.