Nom Nom Bento opened recently and it’s quickly become one of our new favorite spots in San Diego. The fast-casual eatery serves creative Asian inspired bento boxes and was opened by Craig Jiminez, who is also the executive chef at Supernatural Sandwiches (another one of our favorites).
The restaurant offers four signature bento boxes and the option to build-your-own. One our first visit, we chose three of the signature bento boxes to try. Once we got an idea of what all the different components tasted like, we were ready to build our own on our second visit.
We came in really early on our second visit so I could get a few photos of the interior without people in the way.
Mashed Edamame | Garlic Lemongrass Shrimp | Crispy Shallots and Garlic | Furikake Onsen Egg | Spicy Daikon and Carrots | Toasted Sesame Sauce & Black Garlic Oil
The mashed edamame is one of my favorite things I’ve eaten here. I’ve never had mashed edamame before but now I’m excited to try making my own. The texture isn’t quite as smooth as mashed potatoes, but it’s very creamy and light.
All the bento boxes come with sauteed garlic green beans which are also very enjoyable. The beans have a wonderful garlic flavor to them.
Side of garlic beans
We like the garlic beans so much that we even got an extra side of them. I wish these beans were offered at Supernatural Sandwiches
Chicken broth rice | Korean bulgogi steak | Pickled cucumbers | Sesame wilted spinach | Umami chili sate
This was Mr. K’s build-your-own box. The chicken broth rice was wonderfully fragrant and I liked the firm texture of the rice. I found the bulgogi steak a little salty, but I like how tender and thick the slices of steak are.
Crispy Pork and Shrimp Rolls
These rolls were nicely fried though I do wish the filling had a little more shrimp.
As I mentioned above, on our first visit we tried three of the four signature bento boxes because we couldn’t choose just two. However, we only stopped in to get food to-go. The food got a little jostled in the car and vegetables lost some of their color sitting in the sealed boxes and it was already getting dark when I took these photos, which is why they don’t look quite as nice as our dine-in visit.
Saigon Shrimp
Garlic Lemongrass Shrimp | Chilled Rice Noodles or Leafy Greens | Spicy Daikon & Carrots | Crushed Garlic Chili Peanuts | Crispy Shallots & Garlic | Cilantro Lime Sauce
Seoul Steak
Korean Marinated Beef Bulgogi | Roasted Sweet Potatoes | Caramelized Kim Chee | Sesame Wilted Spinach | Umami Chili Sate Sauce
Shibuya Pork Belly
Tokyo Style Pork Chashu | Mashed Edamame | Furikake Onsen Egg | Toasted Sesame Sauce & Black Garlic Oil
Churro Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich and Strawberry Shortcake Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich
They also carry macaron ice cream sandwiches from San Diego Macarons (just like Supernatural Sandwiches).
Next time hopefully we’ll also save some room to try their malasadas.
Overall, we’ve been impressed with the creativity and flavors of the food offered at Nom Nom Bento. We don’t often dine in Pacific Beach area as I don’t like dealing with the parking and traffic, but we’ve already visited twice in two weeks, which says a lot about how much we enjoy the food. The restaurant is also located just steps away from the beach.
Nom Nom Bento
4658 Mission Blvd
San Diego, CA 92129
https://www.nomnombentosd.com/
I didn’t know about this place! The pictures of the food look amazing. It’s funny as my sister and I always asked why people use ‘nom nom’ when describing food so our friend had to explain it to us (using funny facial expressions).
How was the Umami Chili Sate Sauce? Curious about the taste.
I liked all the sauces I’ve had here so far!