Obento-Ya Japanese Bistro

Rating:

After running a wholesale sushi operation for a few years, Kjersten and Mie Winters decided to try their hand at the restaurant business. They have succeeded with their charming Obento-Ya Japanese Bistro. Kjersten is a former Marine who fell for the food -- and Mie -- when he was stationed in Japan. The two of them turn out a menu that's roughly divided into three parts: bento boxes, sushi and robata. The bentos, a refined version of a school lunch tray, feature some kind of simply prepared protein (ginger-marinated pork, grilled salmon, sake-glazed cod), steamed rice, a tossed field-greens salad, a small bowl of piping hot miso soup and a scoop of mashed potato salad. It's big eating on a small budget; most full-meal combos fall in the $7 to $8 range. There's sushi, too, and it's fine, but what's really appealing are the robata: a few ounces of meat, fish or vegetables, skewered and quickly seared on a small gas-fired grill. There are several dozen choices, and, like tapas, they're a great way to eat; just keep ordering (prices average $2.25) until you're stuffed. I like the flavorful chicken thighs, the rich bacon-quail egg combo, the tender mackerel, the marvelous chicken meatballs, all served with tasty house-made sauces. Soups are another highlight. One frigid night I warmed myself up over a hearty beef broth filled with slurpy ramen noodles, tangy green onions, a few long and colorful strands of seaweed and flecks of sesame. Oh, and you really can't take a seat at the bamboo-lined bar without ordering the fantastic pork-shiitake dumplings, each bite brimming with a sharp ginger accent. Somehow the Winterses shoehorned their hip-looking restaurant (Kjersten, a former engineer, designed it himself with the aid of a software program) into its tiny storefront, squeezing 30 or so seats, a 10-stool sushi bar and a cheerful college-age staff into a space smaller than a Winnebago motor home.