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Bonsai Japanese Cuisine serves traditional Japanese cuisine in a spacious, comfortable dining room, complete with an open kitchen, where you can watch the talented chefs perform their magic. The restaurant's menu offers TEN PAGES of your favorite Japanese cuisine, including several pages of "Specialty," and "Classic" sushi rolls, and even selections for the younger crowd. As with all restaurant reviews I publish, I have no affiliation with the restaurant reviewed, and there is no monetary gain on my part, as I am simply a person who likes to eat, and I love to write-up, and publish my dining experiences.
Photo: It's a little past the 11:00 in the morning opening time on Wednesday, March 23, 2022, and I've arrived at Bonsai Japanese Cuisine to enjoy an amazing lunch, and the taste of Japan, in Roseville. This fine restaurant is located in the Sunrise Point shopping center, located at the busy corner of Douglas and Sunrise Ave, on the east side of town.
Photo: Just after the 11;00 in the morning opening time, I walked into an empty restaurant, but was greeted with a sign listing "Today Specials!" Within seconds, I was greeted by my host, Xia, to be seated, and I requested to be seated outside, on the patio, as today was an amazingly warm 80-degree mooring, which is quite unusual for Roseville in late March.
Photo: As you enter the restaurant, you're greeted with a whiteboard that lists the specials of the day. I must admit that I was truly tempted by the "Ocean's Trio" that was listed on the board.
Photo: The dining room is spacious, clean, comfortable, and decorated attractively. The furniture is mostly booths that comfortably seat four diners, and very widely spaced. The restaurant opened just before COVID hit Placer County and much of the world, so I suspect the virus had an influence on the decor.
Photo: The centerpiece of the dining room is the open kitchen, along with sushi bar seating, where you can watch the talented chefs at work. Several television monitors are on the walls, and were tuned to a variety of programs, including national news. As I arrived just after the restaurant opened, the dining room was lightly seated, but the kitchen was busy, as the restaurant does a very brisk business with to-go orders, as the restaurant is featured among many delivery vendors on the Internet.
Photo: On this late Wednesday morning in March, the temperature was hovering near 80 degrees, and the patio was inviting, so I chose to enjoy my lunch outside on the patio. The patio looks out to the Sunrise Point shopping center, which hosts of mix of various small retail outlets, along with a couple of chain restaurants. You can also look out to busy Sunrise Blvd and watch the endless stream of traffic pass by, but the patio is secluded and very quiet, and a great place to relax and unwind. Back on Tuesday, January 06, 2015, we visited L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, located next door, and enjoyed a great Hawaiian barbecue lunch. Click on the highlight to relive our visit.
Photo: The ninth page of the menu lists "Bento Boxes" in lunch, or dinner versions. I went with a "Three Item" order for my lunch today, as I truly love a variety. Note that the menu offers countless choices for you to customize your "Bento Box" to your individual taste. Click on the image of the menu page, or this hyperlink, to view all TEN PAGES of the menu offered at Bonsai Japanese Cuisine.
Photo: After placing my order, I had a chance to visit the restaurant, and watch the talented kitchen staff in action. My host, Xia seemed to wear two hats, as I photograph him working on take out orders, which seemed to be very popular on this late Wednesday morning.
Photo: The restaurant features an open kitchen, where you can watch the talented sushi chefs at work. You can sit at the counter, which faces the kitchen.
Photo: Sushi chefs and the talented kitchen staff at work, performing their magic, to create the amazing meals offered at Bonsai Japanese Cuisine.
Photo: Shortly after I placed my lunch order of "Bento Box," my appetizers arrived. Miso soup was part of the lunch, along with a welcome surprise of side of edmame and wasabi.
Photo: I was treated to a bowl of "Edmame," which is a lightly salted and boiled soybean appetizer, along with a spare bowl for the discarded bean husks. This was a welcome surprise - along with the small tray of "Wasabi" - as neither the "Edmame" or the "Wasabi" were listed on the menu.
Photo: "Miso Soup" has to be one of my favorite appetizers when I'm enjoying the cuisine of Japan, and I was welcomed with a bowl of this delicious soup, with lots of miso paste and chunks of tofu and seaweed, as a great way to start of my lunch. I recall reading that miso soup is enjoyed by something like 75% of the Japanese population enjoy miso soup every day? I understand, as miso soup is healthy, fulfilling and delicious, and the miso soup served at Bonsai Japanese Cuisine will be sure to satisfy.
Photo: Meet my amazing friendly host Xia, who brought my "Bento Box" lunch to me with a friendly smile. I was very pleasantly surprised, as my lunch arrived in less than 20 minutes after I had placed my order, and I was just in the process of enjoying my delicious appetizers when my lunch arrived.
Photo: Thanks, Xia, for snapping my photo, as I get ready to enjoy my amazing lunch, complete with appetizers, at Bonsai Japanese Cuisine, located in Roseville, CA. Xia was talented, friendly and welcoming host, and treated me like a member of his family.
Photo: From the "Tempura/Teriyaki" section of the menu, I went with a "Bento Box." All "Bento Boxes" include a side of "Miso Soup," a salad, and steamed rice. You can order two main entrees, or a third "Main" for a couple dollars extra.... I was hungry, so I ordered my "Bento Box" with three "Items," as per the menu description. My three "Items" of choice were "Salmon Teriyaki, Mix Tempura," and" California Roll," which was cut into eight pieces. What a lunch! The small size fillet of salmon was marinated, tender, covered with sweet/sour teriyaki sauce, and grilled to perfection, including grill marks. The fish was simply amazing, as the bold taste of the salmon mingled perfectly with the teriyaki sauce to make a taste sensation. When I took a bite, I was rewarded with a taste sensation and just enough "fishiness" to know that I'd ordered salmon, but... wasn't that the plan? The "Mix Tempura" was a mix of mostly vegetables, with a couple of amazing pieces of shrimp included. The tempura mix included two slices of carrot, two pieces of seaweed, two slices of squash an onion ring, and two large shrimp. This "mix" is truly a tempura lover's dream, as both the veggies and the shrimp were coated with light, flavorful, and crusty tempura, and deep fried perfectly, with just enough frying to make the batter light and crispy, but not enough to make the veggies soggy. Each bite into the tempura mix was rewarded with a "crisp" from the batter, which combined with the veggie or shrimp, made for the sort of experience that tempura lovers dream about. The "California Roll," which is a very common sushi roll on the west coast was your typical "California Roll," as it began with a layer of seaweed, stuffed with avocado, rice with diced crab, and layered with more rice, and cut into eight pieces. This fine sushi roll was served cold - the way it is supposed to be served - and made for THE PERFECT "sidekick" to the tempura and salmon. Don't get me wrong... the "California Roll" was simply delicious, and very filling. For lighter appetites, you could simply order a "California Roll" and it would work for your meal. The small salad was of the pretty standard variety, as it was lettuce, shredded carrot, diced cabbage, dressed in what I assume to be "house" dressing. Is salad part of lunch in Japan? The salad was fresh, and enhanced my lunch, but was forgettable. Lunch included a large scoop of steamed rice, which was your standard variety of steamed, white rice. What more can I say about the rice, except it was perfectly cooked. I dipped spoonfuls of the rice into the small cup of sweet/sour teriyaki sauce, at the center of my "Bento Box," which made for great dipping, and added an extra layer of enjoyment to my delicious lunch. Combine the "standards" of rice, salad, and miso soup, with the unexpected "surprise" of the appetizer of edmame in the lunch of "Bento Box," and add the "Items," in my case, "Salmon Teriyaki, Mix Tempura," along with "California Roll..." and my "Bento Box" lunch was simply amazing! Everything was simply delicious, prepared with skill by the talented chefs, and made from fresh ingredients. Truly the taste of Japan, in Roseville!
Photo: My slice of "Salmon Teriyaki" was grilled to perfection, complete with grill marks, and covered with an amazing sweet/sour teriyaki sauce. The slice of salmon rested on a bed of shredded cabbage with added to the stunning presentation, and to the taste sensation of my amazing "Bento Box" lunch.
Photo: One of the eight pieces of my "California Roll" of sushi, showcasing the layers of rice, seaweed, diced crab, and avocado, when combined, made for an outstanding entree!
Photo: Tempura shrimp, onion ring, seaweed, stuffed with rice, and carrot slices highlight the "Mix Tempura," perfectly battered and deep fried, that made for an amazing side for my lunch. If you love tempura as much as I do, consider ordering the "mix" as you get a little bit of everything, and every choice is simply delicious! The batter was light, crispy and "crunchy," which made for an amazing contrast to the juicy shrimp or veggies, encased in the tempura batter.
Photo: Speaking of "Tempura Mix," after I bit into a section of the rice/seaweed, covered in tempura batter and perfectly deep fried, I was transported into "Tempura Heaven." Such an AMAZING entree! The menu is extensive, the ingredients are fresh, the cuisine is delicious, and the staff is super friendly. Did I mention the dining is both comfortable and conducive to enjoying the fine cuisine and atmosphere? When you're in the mood for the delicious cuisine of Japan, plan on dining at Bonsai Japanese Cuisine, located in Roseville, CA. Bonsai Japanese Cuisine Copyright(c) 2022 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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