For a while, nobody seemed to know what was going into the new double stall in Aberdeen Centre’s food court.
Now we do.
Taiwan Bento 101 has FINALLY opened, taking over the corner where the arcade used to be.
A Noms Magazine community member (Jessho) caught it on its first day open last week, so we headed over to see what it was all about.
Here is the part that got us.
Taiwan Bento 101 is ACTUALLY from the same team behind MYST, the spot with locations in Burnaby and Vancouver’s Kerrisdale.
The bowls and cutlery still carry MYST branding, maple leaf logo and all, and a few MYST items have made the jump onto the menu.
But this brand leans Taiwanese, built around bento boxes, side dishes, and beef noodles.
Bentos run from about $13 to $17.50, with options like Hakka scallion oil chicken, Taiwanese salt and pepper fried chicken, and a deep-fried pork chop, plus a row of beef noodle soups and dry noodles.
Every bento comes with two sides and a soup, and you pick your two sides from five options displayed right at the till.
On the staff’s suggestion, we went with the Hakka Style Pork Knuckles Bento and chose the fried tofu and egg.
A cold wintermelon tea was an extra dollar, and the whole tray came to about $19.
That is a little steep for a Richmond food court, where your dollar usually stretches further.
The pork knuckle came glossy and saucy on the side. Slightly tougher than we expected.
The bowl had a big mound of rice and the toppings we picked out ontop, but overall nothing on the tray really jumped out.
I found it just decent, not amazing.
It is their soft opening, so we are giving it some slack, and other community members told us they enjoyed their meals, which points more to early consistency than anything else.
One heads up: when we went, they were cash only.
The food court is also mid-shuffle, with Man Ri Sung relocating from its third-floor restaurant down to the old Haojiyao stall by the washrooms.
Taiwan Bento 101 joins a wave of recently opened Richmond food spots like DollarBOBA, HE Made, and Pho 19.
For more new and upcoming food spots in Metro Vancouver, take a peek at our tracker here, and subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.
Address: Aberdeen Centre food court, Richmond, BC