By Sasha Moedt (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: October 9, 2013
31962 South Fraser Way, Abbotsford
Hours: 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Prices: Up to $11.95 for lunch boxes, $16.95 for dinner boxes
As soon as I walked in, my first thought was that Hi Lunch Box is the kind of place I could eat in at. The decorations weren’t overly tacky (in the way sushi places can be), the music was pleasant and quiet, and the seating was fairly private for such a small establishment – screens are set up right between tables. Hi Lunch Box definitely knows how to do homey. Not fancy, not a dive, but just a place you can be comfortable in. It is even located in the same building as a laundromat, and I thought I could smell a whiff of detergent now and then – home sweet home.
When a sushi place serves complementary edamame, it’s a good sign. It was heated up nicely – this shouldn’t be difficult for some restaurants, but sometimes I get bowls of edamame with pockets of still partially-frozen areas.
Prices aren’t awesome – are they ever at sushi places? But spending under $15 for a celebratory lunch isn’t a bad deal. I always order a California roll, miso, sunomono, maybe some tempura, and then something a little more exciting and new. This time I ordered a “Rock & Roll” – a roll from the special roll menu that has deep fried smoked salmon, shrimp, crab meat, avocado, and cucumber. I shared with my friend, and we had more than enough of our fill.
The miso ($1.50) and sunomono ($3.95) came out first. I like my miso with lots of tofu and rich broth; Hi Lunch Box definitely lived up to my expectations. While I’d recommend going for miso as a starter, I can’t say the same for the sunomono. Sonomono is made with sugar and rice vinegar – it should be very vinegary. This sunomono hadn’t marinated well, and it tasted sickly-sweet and pretty unpleasant.
The California roll ($3.25) was good; the center filling was creamier than usual, which I found interesting. The portions were nothing to complain about; Hi Lunch Box doesn’t skimp. I ordered yam tempura ($6.95) and there was more than enough to share. It was hot and crisp, not quite as light as I’d like, but not terribly heavy or soggy either.
The Rock & Roll was a six out of 10 on the scale of special rolls. The smoked salmon took over the flavor a bit too much, and it was very meaty. I enjoyed the sauce overtop, though, and the rolls were stuffed with flavor and filling. I’d be very interested in trying Hi Lunch Box’s other special rolls.
Our server was a little shy, but not so much so that she left us waiting for her. I was there for a birthday lunch with a friend, and I opened my gift fairly early on – two nice bottles of liqueur (Bols and Sourpuss). The server seemed pretty cool with letting us have those bottles out in the open. I wonder what she would have done if we’d tried to pour ourselves a drink!
All in all, a thumbs up for Hi Lunch Box for nice atmosphere, moderate prices, and hefty portions.
