Bento Asian Kitchen + Sushi, an Orlando-based quick-casual pan-Asian restaurant, announced the launch of a new menu item, mini poké bowls! The new smaller version of this popular menu item debuted on September 17th across all of the company’s nine locations.
Priced at just $7, customers can fill their made-to-order mini poké bowl with one protein, three additions, one topping, and one sauce. There are more than 40 fresh ingredients, and 10 sauces to choose from including traditional items like tuna, salmon, shrimp, avocado and red onion along with mango, pineapple or fried garlic for the more adventurous. Ingredients can be served on top of white or brown rice, mixed greens, or a combination of any two. Fully customizable, Bento’s build-a-poké bowls can be tailored to accommodate most diets.
“We’ve had poké bowls on the menu since day one in the form of our signature spicy tuna/salmon donburi, and then our customizable poké bowls for several years, but right now they are definitely trending as they provide a fresh, healthier option for lunch and dinner,” said Johnny Tung, Bento co-founder. “Many customers wanted to order a main entree, but also have room to try our poké bowls so we recognized the need for a smaller option. We listened and are happy to deliver our new mini bowls.”
With the addition of the mini poké bowls, customers now have new protein options to choose from as well. Teriyaki chicken, spicy tofu and Katsu chicken have been added to the build-a-poke menu lineup so guests have more cooked options alongside the traditional raw ingredients.
The new, smaller-portioned poke bowl is intended for guests that are seeking a healthy add-on to their main entree, or for those looking for a lighter bite rather than a full meal. These mini bowls provide a great way for those who are new to poké bowls to sample the trendy dish.
Just recently, due to the success of the build-a- poké campaign, the company donated $10,000 to Feeding Florida to help bridge the hunger gap in our state. One dollar from each poké bowl order was donated to the campaign with the goal of reaching the $10,000 mark. That goal was reached in less than three weeks with more than 10,000 poké bowls ordered.
Bento has locations in Davie, Gainesville, Tallahassee, Jacksonville and Orlando. The concept features a vast, customizable menu including sushi, rice and noodle bowls, bento boxes, poké bowls and boba teas. With its quick, casual service and affordable prices (most dishes in the $8-$11 range), Bento caters to the constantly-growing “on the go” population. Customer favorites include Spicy Cream Chicken, Teriyaki Steak and the Volcano Roll.
Open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week, Bento offers dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering with new locations opening soon in St. Petersburg, Winter Park and Boca Raton among others.
BENTO Asian Kitchen + Sushi is an Orlando-based quick-service restaurant serving pan-Asian cuisine. With the intent to bridge the gap between the more traditional Asian dining experience, and the first-generation Asian-American palate, brothers Jimmy and Johnny Tung opened Bento Asian Kitchen + Sushi in the summer of 2002. Bento was born as a 2,000 square-foot, 40-seat restaurant in a freshly built plaza a few blocks west of the University of Florida in Gainesville.
Today, there are over nine locations across Florida, and a team of over 500 individuals. With plans of continued expansion on the horizon, Bento strives to remain true to the original vision – to present traditional Asian recipes in a colorful, fresh way – satisfying every appetite one roll, bowl and box at a time.
