Oishii Bento

Katsu don was good. It might be too sweet for someone, but for me it was just right.
However, it took around 15 – 20 minutes for this menu. I’m not sure whether it was an average time for here, or just for this dish.
I will go back here again if I’m not in rush.

I wish I tried this place sooner! I’ve been wanting to try Oishi Bento for a long time but we always ended up going somewhere else instead. The prices here are incredibly reasonable, the food is to die for and the service is so quick. It’s more of a take-​out place, so the space is very small but there are a few tables upstairs if you’d like to dine in. I really like that there is a decent menu of Korean and Japanese dishes. My husband and I ordered the bulgogi bento and the chicken katsu bento, which were both delicious. The bento boxes included some gyoza, pickled radish, perhaps japchae, rice and the main entrée. Oh, not to mention you get a choice of a side: soup, salad or kimchi. The bulgogi was a shredded beef that had a little sweetness. The katsu chicken was a (very large) breaded and fried chicken cutlet, with a tangy, savory sauce on top. Both were amazing and fresh. I like the bento boxes because you get a little variety but they also have bowls, which don’t include the little extras. They also have a variety of sushi which I’m really excited to try during my next visit. We will definitely be back!

I visit Pittsburgh every 3 weeks and was looking for some food Asian food. I www walked in and loved this place. Vast and fresh menu, good service and many traditional Japanese and Korean foods. Reminded me of one of my favorite little finds in Tokyo.

Oishii Bento is irreplaceable! I haven’t found anything quite like it on the east or west coast. It’s quick, inexpensive, delicious, and comes in large quantities. My favorite go-​to is the spicy pork bento.

A bit pricier compared to the other Asian restaurants on the street but the quality is definitely higher and worth the price. Most people order either a bento or a bowl dish. None of these options are bad and the food is good. The place is lacking in the sushi department though and it’s pretty cramped so takeout is a good option.

Black clouds filled the sky, thunder rumbling in the distance. Or was that my stomach? I was running low on energy and knew it wouldn’t be long before I was completely spent. I needed sustenance and Sushi Boat was going to provide it to me. I left my respective place of sanctuary and hit a desperate lurching walk up the street. It wouldn’t be long now. Just a little further. As I turned the corner and saw the unlit store front, I knew all hope was lost. I ran towards the store and pounded on the glass, screaming, begging to be serviced. But it was of no use. It was closed down and I was poop out of luck. The Boat had failed me. I fell to my knees as the strength left my legs and closed my eyes, visions of Buffalo Chicken Rolls and other traditional Chinese cuisine dancing before my eyes as I slowly drifted into unconsciousness…
…I awoke to the sound of laughter, drifting lazily towards me, and cautiously opened one eye. Across the street, standing out starkly against the inky black of night, was a brightly lit window topped by a glowing neon sign. I tried to make out the name. Oishii Bento? I made my way across the dimly lit street and opened the door into a world of light and colors. Inside were several large screens flashing ads in Chinese, a kindly looking woman in traditional garb standing behind the register, and a group of schoolchildren standing off to one side, chatting about Dota or drifting in some Oriental dialect. It appeared I had somehow been transported to China. Was this a vision or some cruel quantum mishap? I didn’t know, but I did know that I needed to eat, and fast. I approached the counter and ordered the «Teriyaki Chicken Bowl» and the «Philadelphia Roll» (both traditional Chinese dishes) and took a seat. After several minutes, my meal was ready. I took my bag from the kind old women and used what little Chinese I knew. «Cao!» I said, using the Chinese word for «Thank you» and walked towards the door, smiling to myself as I thought about what that old woman would think about the polite, young Westerner who had magically appeared in her little store. The stories she would tell! Then I stepped out the door…
…and suddenly I was back in Oakland! I gasped, the harsh city air filling my lungs with the toxins they had become so accustomed to. Was I dreaming? I spun around, but the restaurant was gone. Yes, a dream then. Nothing more. Then I looked down. I was still holding the bag of steaming food. Dumbfounded, I sat down there in the middle of the street and ate the best ******* meal of my life, silverware and all. Later in the life, doctors would tell me I had experienced what is commonly referred to as a psychotic breakdown, that I’d imagined it all. And sometimes I agree. But deep down, I know that the kind Chinese woman and the Oishii Bento shop are just off somewhere helping someone else like me. Maybe we could have been together. In another time, another place. But not here… Not now.
⁴⁄₅ clams. –TV

After being in Pittsburgh for the past few years, Oishii has become a comfort food haven for me. It’s a small little restaurant in Oakland that nearly always has a huge crowd that’s flowing out the front door.
From Kalbi to Chicken Katsu bentos, I can’t really complain. The selection here is centered around Japanese/​Korean cuisine and includes sushi, bentos, noodles, and more. I haven’t found anything I don’t like on the menu, especially because I can easily try something new every time.
The service here is always efficient and kind. Recently, I phoned in a take-​out order that wasn’t written down and sent to the kitchen. However, the cashier quickly made sure that my order was prioritized and that I’d get my food ASAP. I really appreciated her attentiveness to my issue and her effort to fulfill my order.
The parking situation near here is pretty difficult, but there is a parking lot you can enter on South Bouquet St. that takes quarters!
Overall, I’d highly recommend Oishii to anyone. If you want honest comfort food, this place will not let you down.

This will probably always be busy and filled with college students, but they have solid sushi and are a great place to get side orders of things when getting delicious, delicious chicken wings at Chick’n Bubbly next door.
If you get a lunch bowl to go, or eat upstairs in that dining room. Space is very limited and it’s basically a take out place, but it is very worth it. Wanna grab a quick lunch to carry back to the office? This is definitely a great place to go for quick sushi in Oakland.
Oh, and you should get a green or barley hot tea with your order. It’s so calming and warm to enjoy on a stressful chilly day (as Pittsburgh days often are — chilly that is).

We came here for lunch, btw it’s basically right across from UPMC Presby, the whole street of Asian restaurants are right there!
This place had a great atmosphere. There were Koreans and Asians everywhere, and that’s when you know it’s good.
Everything comes in takeout containers, and you can go upstairs to eat.
I got the bulgolgi bento box. It had chapchae, rice, 2 fried mini dumplings, kimchi, and BULGOLGI. Also comes w a side of salad or soup (I think)
It was delicious. It was hot, and tasted like home cooked Korean food.
I approve and will definitely be back
(Also, you can get $ 0.50 off any BUBBLE TEA (YESSS) next door at Chicken Bubbly!

The food is delicious and you can get a discount for the drink next door. The beef Y… bowel is good.

First time, had the bulgogi bowl and oishii roll here. Having traveled all over the world and eating amazing Korean and Japanese food, this place is good and quite fair. Not great, but for the value I’ll come back and try some other dishes.
You order your food downstairs, service is good, menu is not too big and perfect I think. You can take-​out or go up stairs to eat in. It can be quite busy due to the college scene. There are two other sushi restaurants right across from them too and this seemed to be the popular one.

I ordered the bulgogi bowl. As someone hailing from Bay Area, California, which has a large Asian food scene, I was highly disappointed by the beef. The meat was poorly marinated and seasoned, and as a result, was dry and flavorless. Furthermore, the bowl was largely rice. Only plus side was that it was fair-​priced for the amount of food you receive.
Perhaps I went at a bad time, as it was early in the afternoon. The credit card machine had poor reception, which required me to pay in cash. Not the best experience, but will likely come again to give it a second chance.

I ordered the Veggie Bimbimbap! The kimchi and pickled vegetables were very flavorful, and the hot sauce came on the side so you can choose how much you want to order.
The actual restaurant itself is very small, and the upstairs conditions aren’t that great; all the chopsticks had splinters and were pretty old. This wasn’t the best that I had, but it definitely wasn’t the worst either.

Aside from the moderately long wait for food, this place is great. Just plan ahead, time wise. The prices are very fair. Americans, I recommend for you to step outside of your comfort zone and order something aside from the teriyaki chicken or something along those lines. The spicy pork bowl is very good, if you like a little heat. The bentos are always great because you get a little bit of a few things.
The upstairs dining room is always filled with Asians, which is a dead giveaway that the food is good. While eating today, I heard Thai, Chinese, Japanese and Korean all being spoken. That shows the diversity of the menu and that truly, anyone can find something here.
4 stars.

Sushi for lunch is healthish right? obsessed with their sushi burrito!!!
Wow! I would never have thought this little sushi place would be this good!
I think it is very creative and interesting when it comes to there meals and specialty rolls… I’ve seen their menu a «Sushi Burrito» ! um hell yeah i’m gonna order that! it was so yummy and filling… just eating ONE roll and i’m good till dinner… they put a good amount of fish in their sushi… which makes everything extra yummy… they have complementary hot tea… which goes great with your meals! i would definitely come back and try their Korean food!

I used to think that after I graduated and moved out, I’d never come back to Oakland. If Chick’n’Bubbly wasn’t enough to keep me in the area, there’s no better old friend than Oishii Bento.
I either get the Chicken Katsu bowl (over rice), or a bento box with either beef or chicken. I hear the sushi isn’t bad, but I can’t come here and not get a bento box – pickled vegetable, fried dumpling, rice, meat, and your choice of soup, salad, or kimchi. The world would be better with more bento boxes.

I was seriously craving some Korean food, so I’m super overjoyed that this place exists! I went on a weekend trip with a couple friends to Pittsburgh and we decided to stop here for lunch. The place is a little small, and really great for takeout, but they do have an upstairs area for seating. Service is polite and friendly.
They offer a variety of different foods, from bento boxes to bulgogi or galbi bowls, to bibimbap, pot stickers, or even sushi!
I went for the bulgogi bowl, because it has been ages since I’ve had one. (It was absolutely delicious.) My friend ordered bibimbap with beef, and since she couldn’t finish it and I’m the resident food receptacle amongst my friends, I got to have that too, and it was equally as wonderful. :] (Portions are awesome, but I just eat a lot, haha.)
The prices are reasonable, and food is ready fairly quickly. They give you a receipt with an order number when you place your order, and you can either stay downstairs to wait, or sit upstairs until your number comes up on the screen. (We went on a Saturday afternoon, and the wait wasn’t bad at all.
(I love the hot barley tea in the corner by the window!)
$ 5 minimum for credit card purchases, and you get a discount if you take in your receipt to get bubble tea next door!

Ah, Oishii Bento. It’s a pretty decent place to eat — in fact I think they’ve improved over the years. I say this since I ate here as a student a couple times, and I remember not being super impressed by the sushi and thinking that one of the bowls I ordered wasn’t that great. There just wasn’t a lot of flavor or freshness in any of the meals I got back then.
These days the sushi at least is massively improved in my book. I picked up their Caterpillar roll and Red Heat roll to go recently and really liked both. The fish was of a reasonable quality even if it wasn’t the freshest fish ever, and the topping and sauce combinations in both rolls were pretty tasty too. So while Oishii wouldn’t make my admittedly snobbish list of the top 5 best sushi places, I do think they now offer reasonable and fairly tasty sushi options.
Something I appreciate now that hasn’t changed since I was a student is the prices. My latest meal cost a bit more than usual here but hey, I ordered two of their pricier rolls — what do you expect? It’s reasonable to assume that a student ordering one roll or some sashimi and soup could get a good deal for their sushi fix. And I did get pretty large pieces of sushi in my last order, so at least I got what I paid for quantity wise.
Granted, it took a long time to get the food, but I did stop in during their dinner rush. Eating and picking up food anywhere in Oakland during the student dinner rush takes a long time. Oishii is admittedly one of the smaller places you could hit up for some grub, so during the dinner rush in particular there’s practically no room for the crowd that gathers downstairs that’s ordering and getting their food. I remember that there’s an upstairs dining area that was pretty «meh» — it’s a place to sit but it’s not exactly a fine dining area.
I’m giving them 3 stars since I can’t quite say «yay I’m a fan!» and I wouldn’t go out of my way just to eat at Oishii — but hey, the food is decent and I’d consider stopping in again in a pinch, so that’s worth an a-​ok in my book!

I was excited to check out this place because of all the rave reviews. I went with a couple people and we all liked what we got. One of my friends is Korean and he goes there often, so to me, that’s a good sign.
There’s not much ambiance, but we were getting stuff to-​go anyways. We waited about 10ish minutes during the evening. I got the bulgogi bento. It didn’t look like much, but I ended up having some leftover bulgogi so I guess I would describe the serving size as generous. I wasn’t super impressed by the food, but it was tasty and I’d go back some time as it’s a good balance of speedy take-​out and freshly made food that tastes authentic and flavorful.

This is my go to sushi place in Pittsburgh — it’s reasonably priced, and the food quality is high. I’ve been coming here for years, and actually prefer it to all but the priciest sushi places in town. I’d recommend the red heat roll, caterpillar roll, California rolls, unagi bowl, and spicy pork bowl. I pretty much bounce around those options with some inari thrown in once in a while. They also have great party platters which are a good deal for three or more people.
My only complaint is with the wasteful takeout packaging which is used (to a lesser extent) even for eat in meals. Lots of plastic and, if you eat in, styrofoam goes to waste. I’d love to see actual dishes, or at least more thought put in to how much packaging is really required. How about adding a recycling bin at the minimum?