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    Zen Bento

    3.5 (65 reviews)
    InexpensiveJapanese
    Closed 11:00 am - 4:00 pm

    Zen Bento Photos

    Business Info

    ZEN BENTO ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Quiet
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Zen Bento

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    Salmon Bento!
    Amie A.

    Great lunch spot for downtowners! I enjoy Zen Bento mostly for its convenience. It's easy to get to (even being in the middle of downtown), the food is tasty, options are wholesome, and the service is prompt/speedy. Perfect for a quick lunch break! FOOD: I usually order either the chicken or salmon bento with ginger soy & z-nut sauce. (Pro-tip: if you're not too hungry, you can order a mini-bento. Same concept as their normal bentos, but a smaller portion and a few dollars cheaper. SCORE!) Out of the salmon and chicken bentos, I'd say I gravitate more towards the salmon. It has a flakey texture, does not have a fishy flavor (praise hands), and pairs wonderfully with the veggies and rice that these bentos come with. SERVICE: This place is pretty straight-forward. You walk in, order, pay, wait, get your food, and go on your merry way. I'd say (depending on how busy a day they are having) from the time you order to the time you get your food, it is about 5-10 minutes. PRICE: The range for a meal without drinks or any of the bells and whistles is about $8-$12. I'd say it's a fair price for the amount and quality of food you get. Maybe not realistic for a frequent lunch spot, but ideal for a here and there treat yourself kinda-thang!

    a bowl of chicken and broccoli
    Jenny H.

    Stumbled upon this place and thought its a nice place to quickly grab some food. I had the Chicken Bento ($8) with kamikaze sauce which turned out just to be sriracha. The lady warned me it would be a bit dry so I got a ginger and soy sauce on the side and I'm glad she recommended it to me. I also swapped out for the brown rice option for 80 cents. I liked how the veggies seemed fresh and not overcooked and frozen, but besides that pretty plain bento bowl.

    people sitting at tables in a restaurant
    Scott U.

    My wife and I just stopped in for lunch, I've got to say we both agreed it was terrible. Have had better meals from the freezer section. Rice was so mushy, must've been in a pot for days. Salmon was falling apart. Tofu and vegetables were very hard. Definitely will not be returning, small drink and two bowls $22 which is isn't that bad. Food was not good.

    Golden curry with sriracha
    Abdullah A.

    Stopped in for a quick lunch. I decided to go vegetarian despite myself and ordered the golden curry. For about $5.50 I got an enormous bowl of rice topped with thick yellow curry embedded with potatoes. Though a little one-note, it really stick to my ribs and I had just a bit under half left to take home. Idk why this is billed as bento though, it was definitely just a rice bowl.

    Salmon bowl and miso soup!

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    10 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    15 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    10 years ago

    So good, fresh, quick! Really great customer service, every visit. Very well run, well organized restaurant. Everything is yummy!

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    12 years ago

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    14 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    15 years ago

    I love their Tofu bowls with the soy ginger! The food is always fresh and fast!

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    10 years ago

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    14 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    11 years ago

    Great customer service, fast, reasonably priced, tasty. Keep it up, gang.

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    12 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    16 years ago

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    14 years ago

    Entirely overrated. The chicken was obviously frozen before and tasted like it. Too expensive for what they are serving.

    Business owner information

    Photo of Rene I.

    Rene I.

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    9 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    13 years ago

    A great place to eat tasty, healthy food with none of the guilt associated with eating out. I love both of their locations.

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    14 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    Page 2 of 2

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    Kyoto Japanese Restaurant - Crab and spicy tuna gunkan

    Kyoto Japanese Restaurant

    3.9(204 reviews)
    2.5 mi
    $$

    I can't remember the last time I was here. It must have been almost ten years. I used to come here…read morealot. The best sushi in Boise. I came here with coworkers or by myself. They knew exactly what I wanted. It was a place for me to come and chill or escape my stressful world. They are my family outside of my family....and outside of my work family lol. I went a couple weeks ago to see if I could surprise anyone, but everything was so different. I was a little stunned, but not surprised because he is probably an elderly man by now. Matthew said I looked familiar, but since I didn't recall speaking with him I couldn't recognize anyone. I had my usual marylin monroll. It was just as delicious as before. Now they have a sushi happy hour, but I didn't want much since I was on vacation. I was told that the business was still within the family. Thank you so much for keeping Kyotos running. I really love this place.

    My boyfriend and I went to Kyoto for Valentine's Day. We decided to eat at the sushi bar since we…read morewere definitely in the mood for sushi. We got a couple of rolls along with Nigiri and both of them were delicious. The waiter was very attentive. You will feel a little more tucked in by the sushi bar, but it gave us a bit more time to be intimate with each other. Can't speak about the hibachi, but we will definitely consider Kyoto again in the future for sushi

    Photos
    Kyoto Japanese Restaurant - Onion volcano

    Onion volcano

    Kyoto Japanese Restaurant - Shrimp and salmon

    Shrimp and salmon

    Kyoto Japanese Restaurant - I appreciate the walk way between the two buildings

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    I appreciate the walk way between the two buildings

    Genki Takoyaki - Chicken Karaage cooked to perfection. Juicy tender on the inside and crunchy on the outside.

    Genki Takoyaki

    4.2(16 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $

    I'm very happy the Genki food truck exists! I have fun finding them staged around Boise and…read moregrabbing some delicious takoyaki. It's rather difficult, if not almost impossible, to find delicious, authentic Japanese cuisine in the Treasure Valley. This small food cart is an Idaho gem. I've tried several of their food items, however this review will focus on their namesake dish, takoyaki (octopus ball). For those who don't know, takoyaki is a popular Japanese street food with bits of chopped octopus and dough inside a slightly crispy shell garnished with takoyaki sauce. I was very happy with how similar the snack tastes to the ones I've had in Japan. Genki serves these in 6 pieces ($6) and there are several sauces available. I like to top mine with sriracha to add a kick. It's a wonderful mid evening snack! My only complaint is on a couple visits I found my takoyaki to be rather old tasting, like either the oil hadn't been changed in a while or the octopus was overdue. It's happened less times than more so I'll still continue to eat this unless it becomes more frequent. Genki use to be very active on the Street Food Finder app but this summer they seem to limit their postings to Facebook and Instagram, so if you want to find them you'll have to go either of those routes.

    Nice to see a little exotic flavor in the Boise food scene. Fresh Takoyaki made right in front of…read moreyou, and quick. They have octopus and BBQ pork, which I had never seen before. Of course I had to try both. 6 dumplings made for a big snack or a small meal. I would have preferred them slightly more crispy, but that's an easy fix if you ask. Topped with bonito flakes, Japanese mayo, and teriyaki sauce for a nice mix of savory and sweet flavors. The pricing doesn't make a whole lot of sense: $4 for 4, 5$ for 6, $7 for 8. Sort of de-incentivizing ppl from going for 8. Just a thought.

    Photos
    Genki Takoyaki - Ice cream sundae!

    Ice cream sundae!

    Genki Takoyaki - Takoyaki

    Takoyaki

    Genki Takoyaki

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    Raibu Sushi Bar - Raibu Roll

    Raibu Sushi Bar

    4.5(61 reviews)
    0.5 mi

    Raibu is a small, but upscale sushi restaurant in the Boise Co-op shopping Center, downtown…read more It's a new Boise gem. I enjoyed it so much, I hesitate to celebrate it on this platform, for fear of it becoming so popular that it becomes difficult to get a reservation. The staff was kind and inviting, eager to please, and at the too of their game. They were quick to seat us and get our drinks, happy to help is understand some of the ingredients, and offer recommendations. We started with Chicken Karrage, then ordered some Signature Sushi Rolls. I went with the Keiko roll, even though I was a bit concerned about the spice (I asked them to take out the jalapeños). It was incredibly delicious. The full flavor hit me right away, and the heat got me at the end. Not unbearable though. I ate the whole thing! My husband thoroughly enjoyed his North Ender Roll, then we got the Mochi in three glorious flavors. Mango, green tea, and strawberry. Strawberry was my favorite. I'm so thrilled to finally have a high-quality sushi bar in Boise!!!

    I made a reservation for dinner for 6 pm. My friend and I ordered a round of drinks, 2 appetizers…read moreand 2 entrees. At 7:26 pm, our waitress brought us the bill, without asking if we wanted dessert, which we did, and then proceeded to announce that, "there was no rush but that they had to make room for another reservation at 7:30 pm."We had 4 minutes to pay and leave!! We asked to speak to the manager and she confirmed that we only have a certain amount of time for our table "per the reservation policy". She then offered to move us to another area. We didn't. She then informed us that she was going to re-read the reservation policy, to see what the customer sees when they make the reservation. That famous policy never mentioned the 90 minutes allotted for each table, I have since checked. It's clear that they care more about turning the tables over as many times as possible than making sure the customers are having an enjoyable dining experience. We are never going back.

    Photos
    Raibu Sushi Bar - Interior

    Interior

    Raibu Sushi Bar - The North Ender Roll & Stanley Roll

    The North Ender Roll & Stanley Roll

    Raibu Sushi Bar - Hot and Cold Sake, Shishito Peppers

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    Hot and Cold Sake, Shishito Peppers

    Zen Bento - japanese - Updated September 2026

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