Create custom Poki bowls
by JOANNA LEI
Offering a wide selection of fresh fish on their authentic Hawaiian menu, Poki Go encourages customers to try something that is both healthy and delicious.
When entering, customers are greeted with a polite welcome and plain interior. Other than a few Hawaiian posters and stickers, the walls are bare.
Similar to other eateries, customers wait in line and choose what to put in their poke bowl, or they can choose from the premade menu, which includes the salmon, tuna, cooked mix and fresh mix bowl. Choices include a regular bowl for $8.99, and a large bowl for $11.99. In a regular bowl, three scoops of fish are included, but in a large bowl, five scoops are available.
For the base, choices include brown rice, salad and chips. Fish options consist of tuna, octopus, cooked shrimp and scallops. Selections for the sauce are ponzu, house sauce, spicy mayo, wasabi mayo, sesame creamy and sesame oil. Spicy sauces are labeled Loco 1, 2 and 3, with Loco 3 the spiciest. Toppings consist of tomato, ginger, cucumber, seaweed salad, pineapple, jalapeño, cilantro, red onion, edamame, wasabi and nori, which is sliced paper-thin seaweed. An extra scoop of fish is $1.50 and an extra scoop of a topping is 50 cents.
On a recent visit, a regular bowl with white rice, spicy salmon, octopus, albacore, soy sauce, avocado, crab meat, green onion, sweet corn, masago (fish eggs), furikake (seasoning consisting of dried fish, sesame seeds, seaweed, sugar and salt) and nori, looked unbelievably colorful and appetizing. The salmon gave heat, the avocado had creaminess, the green onion added crunch and the masago displayed a bright orange color; everything mixed together in an explosion of flavor. Every bite had bits and pieces of something delicious and bold.
Serving a wonderful combination of fish and offering quick and friendly service, Poki Go is a great place to eat because of the numerous variations when creating a bowl. Poki Go is located across from CVS Pharmacy at 137 N. Montebello Blvd, Montebello, and is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Visit pokigo.com or call (323) 477-1535 for more information.