Aja Sushi & Bento

Did a lap around the food court trying to decide what to eat. It was around 6:30pm and noticed a huge bento sale sign. Most of the bentos were $ 5.99 plus tax. They still had a pretty decent selection. Most of them had a choice of starch and meat.
I picked up a crispy garlic chicken and spam musubi bento. The spam musubi was flavorful. The rice was sticky and did not fall apart when biting into it. The garlic chicken was crispy and delicious.
Not a bad deal considering most of the other food places charge almost double that amount for a bite to eat.

We spent a total of $ 8 for two sushi rolls that were very satisfying for a light lunch. We ate here a couple of years ago also and enjoyed our meal in the Ala Moana Food Court.

Cyndy’s Bottom Line: Great place to grab a bite to eat when shopping at Ala Moana.
*Good selection of bentos
*The crispy garlic chicken bento was so flavorful and delicious. Served on top of rice and a few pieces of daikon and broccoli.
*The grilled salmon & crispy garlic chicken was so delicious. The salmon was cooked perfectly and well seasoned.
*There are also entrees for making a plate lunch.

This place pumps out some wickedly good food, especially for being in a food court. They’re located at the Makai Market Ala Moana food court to be exact, right next to Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.
They sell mostly Japanese food with some Korean mixed in. It’s prepackaged bentos or you can create your own plate. It comes with white or brown rice, entrees, and banchan. Their banchan is fabulous. I tried their choy sum, long rice, taegu, and daikon. They were all yummy especially the daikon. They sprinkle some kind of spice on it that gives it a different twist.
For my entrees I got the shoyu chicken, garlic chicken, and roast beef. The roast beef was just slightly overcooked. It was hard around the edges but soft in the center. It must be from sitting in the warmer. The gravy that they poured over it was on point, creamy and savory. The shoyu chicken was marinated all the way through and fully cooked in the middle. I hate it when I bite into a piece of chicken and it’s pink in the middle. The shoyu sauce had hints of garlic and ginger to it. My favorite entrée was the garlic chicken. It’s cut up into pieces, marinated in a house sauce and deep fried. The sauce was a balance between sweet and garlicky. It’s deep fried to a crunch and just so good.
They give huge amounts of food. The 2 – 3 entrée plate can feed two people. It comes with three sides and rice. I get stuffed from the mini plate, which comes with two sides and rice.

I ordered the Korean Jabchae noodles with Korean fried sweet chicken. Man it was über delicious. With taxes it costs $ 6.80 and while waiting in a long line I took some pictures of other bentos and foods that looked awesome and very presentable.
The owner was very awesome and I loved her customer service. She always smiled to each and everyone one of her customers and to me as well. I felt welcomed and comfortable.
I gave my money in coins usually quarters and she was fine with it. I had paper bills but didnt want to carry heavy coins and she was so nice and said not to worry. I was only missing a penny but she said not to worry again and she got it and instead of paying $ 6.80 I paid $ 6.79 haha! I love her…
Regards the food, bento size is legit. Looks presentable and appealing to the eyes. Good for those who are really super hungry. The chicken was the bomb and burst good flavor and the crunchiness makes it perfect. The sweet potato noodles, I always wonder how Koreans make it color yellow… I know they use Sesame Oil and Soy Sauce but I think they also use something like Jabchae sauce… I dont know what it is but it really tasted good.
Normally I make Jabchae at home and its easy but this Jabchae she had was so yellow but delicious. My money is worth paying it. Thanks to the owner. I will always come back again.

More specifically, I would rate this place 3.5 stars.
I ate here on the last day of my September trip to Hawaii. It is located in the Ala Moana Center food court center. Finding a seat here can be hard, as this food court gets very busy. Food here was good for a food court place and prices were okay. I bought the crispy garlic chicken which was flavorful, but some pieces were too hard to eat. The ones that were good to eat were crispy with a yummy garlicky sweet sauce. I also bought spam musubi which I thought was all right. I had eaten so much spam musubi in Hawaii that this particular place did not stand out as special. They have lots of bento boxes. I like that everything is packed into a box that is sealed well because it makes it easy to buy food here and take it somewhere. They have seafood items such as fried fish and fried shrimp. Most dishes come packed with rice. They also have vegetarian bento boxes. The workers seem nice when I bought food. They take both cash and credit. If I was in Honolulu again and at Ala Moana Center, I would come here again.

Pretty simple stuff. Also the only place (or almost the only place) that serves vegetarian dishes in the food court that we will eat at.
I always get the tofu and veggie stir fry mini bento with choice of two vegetables. Pretty good but they do give too much rice and not enough of the veggies and tofu. Since this is practically the only thing we can eat, it is the only thing we have ever tried so cannot compare with other items. It is all pretty tasty. I really like the choy sum although it is nasty when stuck in your teeth. :)
Seating in the food court can be a nightmare, but in this corner, I have almost always found a seat. So that is a plus. I really try not to have to eat at the mall because of the limited choices of wholesome food but when it cannot be helped, we come to Aja.

Nice place tucked in the back of the food court. Bento portions are just right. I got the Saba bento with spinach and takuan. The rice portion was perfect and good quality rice too! The saba filet was very tasty and they had a good selection of sides. About the same price as a bento from Shirokiya but I like how you can choose the sides. I would go back!

When I’m not commuting around for work, I’m often near the mall. Aja Sushi is my go to spot because the garlic chicken and spam musubi’s are good and cheap. If it weren’t for those two reasons alone, I wouldn’t come here. The workers are usually nice with the exception of one who is always pissed off. I can’t figure out why but she’s always mad. Your lines are long and people enjoy your food. Cheer up lady. Great food for a spot in the food court.

I used to frequent the ala moana medical building location but now that they moved into the food court, I have a place with a few vegan options that I can count on when I forget my lunch at home! Today, something told me I should go there for inari and japchae. I got there and squealed when I saw that there was a new VEGAN entrée! Tofu veggie stir fry! It’s sweet and tangy and I feel like a normal person ordering a bento that fills me up. Choosing my two sides takes me back to when I would easily order whatever I felt like as an animal eater. It seems trivial, but if you’re a vegan, you understand how great that feels. Kudos to my new favorite lunch spot when the jamba juice line is too long!

Sub par greasy food. The fish and chicken were visibly greasy but I ended up going with the garlic chicken thinking it was a safe bet.
I was mistaken. The chicken was fried to oblivion and was hard to even chew. The edamame I got as a side was cooked well and not too salty and the brown rice was ya know… rice.
Overall I probably might go back for those little beef and veggie wontons.

It’s one of those nights when I didn’t feel like having the usual. A fun companion decided to take us to Ala Moana Center. I don’t usually frequent the Ala Moana food court but when I do, AJA doesn’t fail to touch the good part of the tummy. I absolutely love that I get to have Japanese and Korean in one spot.
Their selections comes with pre-​made bento items as well as a separate part for seafood, and other meat items. I love the sides and vegetable options to choose from. Their menu is bright on the screens making it easier to make your selection along with Unilocal reviews! A companion and I decided on the $ 6.99 mini bento. This comes with 2 sides, rice (black/​brown), and a choice of meat. There are plenty of size options for additional cost. My chosen items are the white rice (I didn’t want to choose the healthy option tonight), Garlic chicken with long rice noodles and corn for my sides. AJA gives a generous portion for the «mini». Their garlic chicken is fully flavored and crispy. I loved the fresh veggies and long rice noodles with shoyu. This is especially worth it after a long day from work.
You can find AJA adjacent from Cheeseburger Factory.

We’ve bought food here before and thought it was pretty decent. Their most popular item is their garlic chicken. Tonight, we picked up a bento from them that includes garlic chicken and salmon. It turned out to be quite a disappointment… in fact, it was barely edible. The garlic chicken was hard as a jawbreaker and the salmon was dry as jerky. Okay, maybe I exaggerated a little, but you know what I’m talking about. Both items were overcooked and have probably been sitting out on the counter for some time. Won’t be back anytime soon…

Bad service. My sis said the roast beef is really good so I went here, Sunday, about 6 pm. The overhead menu says ala carte hot items $ 3.99 — or some price close to that. Asked for roast beef, ala carte and the stoic faced lady said «no, we don’t sell that ala carte»…and nothing else. So stupid. If you want to price it higher, do that. The food is there, cooked, ready to go. I would think because you want to sell it. And I was the only one there. But I guess I was wrong. So I left.

I bought two AjaPacs and two drinks that came to a total of $ 29.17. I got the shrimp tempura, garlic chicken and mandoo; the other plate was the garlic chicken, mandoo and meet jun. garlic chicken is always great and the rest of the bento too. Only bad thing about my experience (today) was that there was a feeling of being rushed when it was not busy. And they didn’t want to give me mandoo sauce unless I paid for it. I had a bento that came with sauce. MY bento did not, and it had mandoo in it so I’m not clear on why I had a hard time getting my sauce. I spent practically $ 30 for a meal so I don’t understand why I got sassed about it. I have to give three stars just because of the customer service. I’ve came here before and I have never had that force of attitude before.

I’ve worked at the Ala Moana Pacific Center for over 3 years now and I can’t believe I haven’t tried AJA until now! Man I’ve been missing out. Perhaps it was easily overlooked because Aja is tucked away in another corner in the Food Court, near the Coffee Bean and Cinnabons, and I usually make my rounds starting from Jamba Juice and completely miss Aja… but now I feel the need to share my love for my new favorite Food Court restaurant!
The great thing about Aja is they are always making fresh food and replenishing food, unlike some of the other places in the Food Court that don’t look as fresh… They pack a lot so I feel like it is a good deal, especially since a 3 choice can be split between me and 2 others lol. Aja has local/​Korean/​Japanese/​Filipino food ranging from Shoyu Chicken, Pork Adobo, and Shrimp Tempura, as well as pre-​made bento’s and spam musubi’s to go.
My faves/​recommendations:
–Garlic Chicken: My personal favorite is the Garlic Chicken. If you ever tried Mitsuken, I feel like it is a close alternate to their chicken. Perfect flavor, boneless, crisp, juicy chicken. I am salivating as I’m writing this lol.
–Shoyu Chicken: Tender, juicy chicken (with bones), a local favorite that Aja does well.
–Shrimp Tempura: I don’t know what it is but it seems like every time I come to Aja for lunch, they are always putting out a fresh batch. So it always seems fresh and perfectly battered (not too much batter). Sometimes I get the shrimp as part of a 2 or 3 choice, or order it on the side (3 piece for $ 4.something).
–Pork Roast: My brother loves this, the meat is really tender and the brown gravy is rich. I think its good at first taste but a little salty after a few bites, but that’s just me.
–The Banchan: If you get the 2 choice, they give you 3 sides but in the plate. If you order a 3 choice, they give you 3 sides but in a separate container. I like their choi sum, chap chae (sp?) and cold tofu. But they have all the typical Korean sides.

I’m definitely a fan of bento boxes, so the fact that Aja offers to create your own bento boxes is enough for me to give this place FIVE stars. (On top of that, the food is wonderful.)
I got the mini bento, which is actually a lot of food for a small container. I ordered panko fish on top of brown rice along with two sides of tofu and corn. They give out good sized portions and also offer tons of other main and side options, like kimchi, salmon, spinach, and edamame.
I love this place. The line goes by quickly, the service is wonderful, the waiters are kind, and it’s quite cheap for a lot of food! Aja is a great place to eat. I’d definitely come back again.

The food is great, try the mini bento $ 5.49 special sale at 5: pm. They must have sold 500 plus bentos today this 4^th of July 2015. They do have large and medium size bentos too. Try it you will not be disappointed

I grabbed a three item bento to share with Cam the other day. For $ 13.99 you get three hot items and 3 vegetable sides. We got the shoyu chicken, garlic chicken and meat jun as well as Taegu, chap chae and Kim chee cucumbers. I enjoyed everything but the shoyu chicken and cam liked everyone but the lady who worked at the register lol.
The garlic chicken was really good and I would definitely come back to get more of that and the Taegu. They have already made mini bentos as well if you want a decision made for you.
I really want to try their tempura but I guess I’ll do that some other day. The lady working the hot food side was really nice — the older lady needs to work on her customer service.

My wife and I have been eyeing this place for months while waiting for a chance to try it out. I’m giving them 5 stars and I’ll explain why in a few seconds.
Location: Ala Moana Center Food Court… way over on the Diamond Head end. Its away from the bulk of the food court vendors.
Korean: Just to be clear. There is some crossover sometimes between Japanese and Korean food here in Hawaii. But to be honest this place is 90% Korean.
Food: There are some pre packaged musubi and bentos on the counter ready to be picked up. The rest of it is Korean. Pick your hot meats, rice, and 4 cold side dishes for about $ 10. The garlic chicken speciality is a strong 5 Stars! If we didn’t try the garlic chicken it would have been 3 to 4 stars from us overall probably.
Heart and Soul: But the other thing that bumped Aja up to 5 stars is this. I witnessed customer service that was above and beyond while I was sitting at the table facing their counter. I spotted this one very small lady enter the food court doors with head to toe heavy dirty clothes and a security officer right behind her. She went right up to the Aja counter and handed them a note which had her order written down. The staff looked at it and prepared her order without hesitation. The lady paid cash after digging through her bag. She went and sat down not far from us and ate her food. There were some obvious mental health issues at work here. I was impressed at the compassion showed by the staff at Aja. They served this poor troubled soul just as if she were a regular customer. They could easily have waived her off and had security escort her out. Customer service with kindness is as good as it gets!
Vegetarian: There is always one meatless vegan option and most of the side dishes are vegetables. So it is worth looking at Aja to see what they have for the day.