Fresh In The Box

Fresh in the Box had been lying around in my Unilocal bookmarks for a while now, given its four-​star rating, proximity to home and my love of all things sushi. Unfortunately, my high expectations were not met, and the only word to describe our meal here is «meh». We visited on a Sunday for a late lunch. I ordered the spicy albacore roll, and freshness roll, while the husband got the pork ramen. The ambience was simple, the service prompt, and the lady who served us was quite pleasant. I definitely liked the option of brown rice for the rolls and the focus on organic ingredients. An extra star just for that.
However the food left much to be desired. The freshness roll had little or no salmon, and the albacore was strictly ok. The pork ramen broth seemed like chicken stock from a can and nothing like the thick, rich broth that any above-​average ramen demands. While there was nothing really wrong with the food, there was nothing remotely four-​star worthy about it. I’d rather continue to patronize the likes of Sushi Stop and their value-​for-​money offerings, than pay above-​average prices for ‘meh’ sushi.

Finally took the time to give FRESH IN THE BOX a try!! Very welcoming atmosphere. Wait staff was friendly as well. Ordered the Michi Ramen with pork, spicy California rolls w/​brown rice and hot green tea and proceeded to restroom. To my delight I saw that they use Honest cleaning products! Food came shortly after returning. Quick service. The noodles were a great temp but had an unpleasant smell (due to the Pork, maybe). Couldn’t finish the dish. CA rolls were good, fresh and not as spicy as I expected. Green tea was floral and strong but balanced. Ended up trading Michi in for Vegetarian Miso. They removed the Michi from tab without me requesting it which was a nice concession. I will definitely give them another try.

I love this place. The food is well priced/​tasty and Michi always remembers your name and favorite order.

I agree with the other Unilocaler!
Meh is the first thing that came to mind. I ordered the spider roll. My first piece, what ever the main ingredient was weather it was shrimp or crab, it was a big brown burnt piece of yucky-​ness. I literally had to drive to whole foods and buy a 2.00 side of teriyaki sauce to eat it. The pieces were big, it was 16 of them for about 14 bucks. Some were super tough to bite into which made me literally have the swallow the entire piece and others were falling apart. I know that’s a lot to say about 6 pieces but it was the most complicated sushi I’ve had! I don’t know. I wouldn’t try this place again. At least not the spider roll, or maybe it was because I got it to go and they thought I was in a rush so they hurried my order. Not sure. Everyone was nice and the place was clean but my to go order was NO BUENO.
I’ve had and continue to have better sushi at whole foods.

This place was just sort of «meh» for us. The décor of the place is really cute.
Love that they make you take off your shoes and you get to sit on the floor.
Feels really authentically Japanese.
The food was just OK though. I thought the sushi could have been much better cuts.
It didn’t have much flavor.
Also, did not at all like that the specials menu had no prices listed.
Makes it very awkward to have to ask your server how much something is
if you want to get something and don’t want to be presented with an enormous bill afterwards.
It wasn’t cheap either. There’s 2 $$ marks for this place, but honestly, it’s about the same price for Sugarfish and at least Sugarfish gives you prime cuts of fish with beautiful sauces.
I did like that our sashimi dish came with a small side of salad, soup and a small fruit plate.
Once again, «meh».

The house special no carb roll was pretty good. The albacore roll is actually albacore, not canned tuna! Too bad the seaweed salad is no good :/

BOMB​.COM I definitely underestimated this place. Some of the freshest sushi I’ve ever had and it didn’t empty my pockets either. Location was clean service was fast, overall great experience.
My favorite thing about them though was their options that go way above and beyond generic sushi places. Must try the vegan desserts!

Delicious food in gorgeous environment. Service is excellent and professional. Food is uniformly delicious and beautifully presented. The view makes the restaurant a small place.

Pretty good sushi. A bit pricey, though.

My favorite sushi spot! So glad I moved west to be closer. The brown rice sushi is so good and they are always so nice. Don’t forget to get the iced green tea!

I just love this place. So unassuming. So tasty. Such a great neighborhood spot that I frequent embarrassingly often.

All I can say is «WOW» after the take out I ordered last night! This is some of the better sushi I have had in long time. Some friends had highly recommended Fresh in the Box to me a few months ago and I am kicking myself for not trying it sooner. My reviews is a 4 because I can;t comment on what eating there is like yet since I ate at home (by the way I give dining on my couch a 5 out of 5 in case any of you are wondering). With Fresh in the Box, everything I ate was top notch! First off all the fish was fresh and tender. It melted in my mouth and nothing had that «I have been sitting out just a little too long» fishy flavor. I started off with the shrimp tempura, the yellow tail, and the salmon avocado rolls. The salmon was as tender as the freshly cut avacado with it. I know, you are probably hating me right now because you are getting really hungry reading about the freshness of the food… bear with me.
Needless to say those three rolls filled me up. Unfortunately the temptress that was the beautiful caterpillar roll still sat before me. My and stomach said «NO!» but my heart said «YES!!!» I couldn’t bear to let this potentially great roll sit in the fridge and lose any of its freshness. Mustering up the strength, I managed to find a small pocket of room in my stomach to fit this in. Delicious just like the rest! I definitely want to go there to try their Ramen and dining there itself, who knows.

I have been a fan of the healthy food and the lovely people who work at this place for several years now. I recently hosted an event for 40+ people and thought it would be best to leave the cooking to the pros. I had catering by Fresh in the Box… BEST DECISION EVER! So efficient, so tasty, so affordable! From the quality to the presentation… the caterers even wore kimonos! It was a big hit. I will definitely do this again for my next event!

Although Fresh in the Box is located in a questionable LA strip mall, don’t let its location fool you! I ventured here based on positive Unilocal reviews, and was pleasantly surprised.
Food: Ramen! Sushi! Vegan cake! For the most part, the food at Fresh in the Box is Japanese, with interesting flairs like kombucha and vegan desserts. I have tried many of their rolls, and my favorites are definitely the rainbow roll, spicy salmon roll, and their special no carb roll. The portion of fresh fish is generous in the no carb roll, which makes me not miss the lack of rice. The quality of fish has always been very good, and their rice never stale. The roll+salad combo is also great deal for lunch or dinner– try the spicy seaweed salad!
Service: Very nice people, and prompt takeout even at busy hours! I have had positive experiences both dining in and taking out. The owner has helped me multiple times, she’s always smiling and making sure her customers are happy!
Ambiance: As mentioned before, this restaurant is located within a strip mall on the busy Washington Blvd. There is a free parking lot, but don’t expect to find an empty spot– it can get busy. Inside is a bit of an eclectic, casual, homey vibe. Don’t expect much from the décor, you go here for the food! Also, there is no AC, so dining here on a hot day may be a little uncomfortable.
If you’re looking for a casual, affordable sushi/​ramen joint that is high quality, try Fresh in the Box!

Yay happy I finally got to try this place! It’s been on my radar ever since I saw a picture of their no carb roll on Unilocal and it looked so delicious! Came here with my friend after doing the Baldwin Hills stairs — a worthy reward :)
FOOD:
— no carb roll — this was delicious! You get 4 huge pieces and it’s so refreshing and the cucumber gives it such a nice crunch. It can get a little messy so I recommend you just picking it up with your hands lol
— spicy albacore roll — also very yummy, we got this with brown rice — love that there isn’t an extra charge for that!
— small pork ramen — this was pretty yummy too. Noodles and broth were good, but the chasiu wasn’t very tender
— pork katsu — instead of the cutlet being fried as one big piece and then being sliced, this was sliced and then fried. The breading is very crispy and fried so I wasn’t a huge fan — too crunchy and not enough meat
SERVICE:
Super friendly and fast — there was only one guy working and he was great!
VENUE/​PARKING:
Place is well lit and on the spacious side for a Japanese restaurant, it definitely filled up with more people as we ate. There’s a small parking lot that they share with the other businesses, but there were several spots open when we got there. NOTE: They do not have a bathroom for customer use :(
Prices are reasonable and there’s a variety of items on the menu, would definitely come back!

This places deserves five stars for breaking into the vegan sushi market with high quality and tasty dishes. I hope this place continues to grow so that we can see some of them in the east coast!
Would definitely come again when back in California.

Fantastic little spot.
I had the No Card House Roll which was delicious. I also had the crispy rice with spicy tuna which was also so yummy!
Small dining room with good lighting and a nice ambiance. Good for 2 people or a nice little solo adventure.
I will be back for sure!

Fresh and cheap! They were pretty full on Saturday night and only had two wait staff, but they were really hustling and the food and service were both very fast.
I think they don’t have an alcohol permit, so
you can’t have a drink with dinner, but overall a really awesome spot.

Venue:
This is a small restaurant located in a shopping center on Washington Blvd. in Los Angeles. There is a small parking lot for the entire shopping center and street parking on Washington.
Admittedly, I have never eaten here. Every single time that I have been here I order take out. The restaurant has indoor seating as well as a couple of outdoor tables. It’s spacious and clean. There is a TV on the wall. It’s a casual and quite ambiance.
Food:
Obviously, this is what keeps me coming back. First, my take out is always perfectly packaged. Nothing ever spills, which happens when you get soup take out. On this day though I decided to get a Calorie-​Mate Box. You get a choice of an entrée, salad and rice (brown/​white)
I decided to get the Teriyaki Organic Vegetables
Tofu Salad
…and brown rice
as you can see it’s packed in a «box» that’s perfectly sectioned. This is HUGE. Ever since I was a baby, I’ve had this insane obsession with separating my food. I absolutely hate my food touching. Even more, I hate my cold food touching my hot food. I don’t like my salad drenched in dressing or my food drowned in sauce. (I’m not picky at all right?) So, this box is perfect.
The veggies were crunchy and they looked fresh. The rice had a nice texture and was cooked just right. The tofu salad was also fresh and light. It doesn’t look like much food. In fact, I was even worried that I wouldn’t get full. It was enough.
Service:
They are always friendly on the phone. I’ve never been placed on hold for ages. the employees are always friendly. Most importantly my food is ready, when they say it will be ready. They package it perfectly and always give you utensils and napkins. More people need to know about this place because it is definitely a hidden gem.

3 out of 3 visits have resulted 5 starts for excellent service and food quality!
I’m so glad that gems like Fresh in the Box exist. Its places like this that justifies Man’s existence on earth. Okay that last part was a stretch but here is why you should try FITB…
Service:
Super friendly and attentive. My drink is never half empty and I am checked up on so that I always feel warm and special AWWWWWWWE.
Food:
For the price its a pretty good deal. The portions are a really good size and loaded with flavor and yes freshness. Its not all fish, chicken and beef either… FITB also pushes organic ingredients and is big on a vegetarian selection as well. My personal favorites are the Low Carb Salmons roll (see pic) and the Spicy Shrimp Tempura roll in brown rice MMMMM Bomb Dot Com! Ive got my mind set on the curry plate for my next visit.
Miscellaneous:
Maybe Ive been lucky but its not been too packed here at lunch and Im okay with that. FITB seems to have its share of regulars and now Im gradually becoming one too. This place also breaks away from the saying that «location is everything.» Nope. This was tricky to find the 1^st time around for me cause its shoved in a corner of a tiny strip mall. Also… and again I’m citing dumb luck… parking can be tricky but I assure you that its worth the effort.
OVERALL:
By all means DO stop by Fresh In The Box for a quality fresh meal. Ay los watcho