Bangalore has suddenly become cooler, thanks to a Bento box delivered to your doorstep! Now we can eat sashimi and sushi at home in our pajamas – the deliverance of couch potatoes and Netflix addicts. Shiro is pioneering the trend and I tried a couple of their offerings this weekend. I reckon I’m off to a great start!

If you don’t know what a Bento is, you can read up about it here. For the lazy folks – it’s a box/ dabba filled with Japanese food. A traditional bento holds rice, fish or meat, with pickled or cooked vegetables. The Shiro version is pimped up with a lot more stuff. But before I get to what’s in it, let’s cross the logistics hurdle. They use Swiggy to deliver – so first thing you need to do is check whether you’re in Swiggy’s delivery radius. YES – you get the Bento, NO – you can cry copious tears in your bathroom. Reality bites…deal with it.

So what’s on the menu? Six Bentos on offer. Makimono Bento (Veg and Non Veg), Donburi Bento (Veg, Chicken and Seafood) and the Sushi, Sashimi and Makimono Bento. We tried three of them and 50% of the menu should be enough to give you an objective review 😛

Packaging: The Bento comes in a compartmentalized plastic tray with a clear lid. There’s even a nice little groove that holds the chopsticks. The paper wrapping around the tray announces that it’s from Shiro and they write your order on top of it. Clean, utilitarian and on closer inspection, nifty touches like a banana leaf base for dumplings and a separate mini container for the dipping sauces.

Food glorious Food: It’s a well balanced meal, honestly. You have your warm dumplings, a nice little salad, your main course and accompaniment. A little something sweet would have just been perfect, but let’s not get in over our heads. The quantities are more than sufficient to leave you feeling satiated without feeling like a bloated whale.

Sushi, Sashimi and Makimono Bento: This one is the crowning jewel, if you are a sushi lover (also a health freak). You get a Tuna and Scottish Salmon Sashimi, Tuna and Prawn Sushi and a choice of 2 Makimono rolls. I picked the Spicy Salmon Negi and the California Roll. The other options were New York and Spicy Tuna. Served with Daikon (radish) slivers, chef’s salad, pickled ginger, wasabi and soy – it’s really a fantastic lunch option. The quality of the produce was excellent though I reckon the delivery time from the restaurant to my house (about 50 mins) made the sashimi go a little … limp. But seriously, no complaints on the quality of the seafood which is of paramount importance if you’re going to be consuming raw fish.

Veg Donburi Bento: The vegetarian main course options are actually quite lovely. I chose the Stir Fried Vegetables with Chilli and Basil. Your other options are Mixed veggies in a black bean sauce, Korean Chilli Potatoes or Korean style Tofu and veggies. I got some Hibachi rice to go along with it – smoky and delicious with pieces of shitake mushrooms. Two dimsums and the chef’s salad of julienned veggies rounded off the meal.

Seafood Donburi Bento: I did a double take looking at the size of the prawns. Three jumbo prawns in hot bean sauce complimented the udon noodles with peppers. The Prawn hargow dimsums were gorgeous as well as delicious and the tangy chef’s salad provided the necessary punch in between.

Price: The Veg options are priced at INR 445, Non Veg options INR 495 and the Sushi, Sashimi and Makimono one at INR 625.

Verdict: Order a Bento to satisfy your sushi cravings at lunch. No one else is doing it! And because it’s Shiro, you can trust that you’re getting a quality product. And if you plate it like me, you can even host a fancy sushi lunch at home 😛

Shiro (Bento Delivery by Swiggy),

222, 2^nd Floor, UB City Mall,

Vittal Mallya Road, Bangalore 5600001

+91 80 49652888

Cost : INR 2000++ for a meal for two w/o alcohol

Mall Parking available.