How did I not see the vegan bento offering on their tock page before?! Is that new?
Ugh I follow them on Instagram but never saw that post…stupid algorithm 
I hope they continue this past August.
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I snoozed and they sold out, of course (I’m on the waitlist 
). Sooo looking forward to peeps’ reports.
n/naka x porridge + puffs
really loved this n/naka x porridge + puffs ekiben bento collaboration. chef phan can really turn up the flavor yet still keep everything in balance.
and now @PorkyBelly’s power rankings, sponsored by @rlw:
1. shrimp tempura spring roll, numbing calamansi ponzu
i could eat 10 of these, the calamansi ponzu was a brilliant complement for the spring roll. and the nori and rice paper mashup really worked.
2. panko-fried calamari with makrut
expertly fried and i really liked the addition of the makrut to give this another dimension.
3. grilled pork meatballs with leeks + lemongrass
4. porridge - koda farms heirloom rice, dos pueblos ranch smoked abalone, nori oil, lacto-fermented verjus
the porridge reminded me of lumpy mashed potatoes, in a good way.
5. sweet potato + kabocha salad
this was surprisingly good, sweet, creamy, crunchy.
6. yuzu-grilled local kanpachi
7. tarragon gooseberry cake, passion fruit swiss meringue
just a hint of tarragon @TheCookie, and nicely balanced with the sweet meringue.
8. louat agar + elixir
play on vietnamese thach?
9. shiso-pickled egg
10. braised beef rice spaetzle, five spice dashi, burnt onion oil
shout out to the herb slaw and p+p pickles
as with any n/naka meal, a second bang is required, per protocol.
https://www.foodtalkcentral.com/t/kato-extended-tasting-menu/5737/109?u=porkybelly
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Looks so good! Sorry to have missed it. I was on the waitlist and kept getting teasing emails from n/naka thru Tock saying “There may now be availability“ but when I clicked on it said “Sold Out”.
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next release is saturday at 10am, set your alarm.
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don’t know how they consistently get these orders in. shrugs.
this collab looks soo good. love the rice paper nori combo with that spring roll and use of all these southeastasian herbs to the japanese fare.
last time i traded a loaf of homemade sourdough as thanks for the Hayato bento. Speaking of which, baking another loaf or 4 soon if you can get me one of these pp n/naka 
@PorkyBelly
btw, that jelly is not just agar, its has konjac as well… its soo good and refresshing.
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Ahh did not know that, brilliant collaboration.
I should learn to bake. 
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Thoughts on it compared to your other N/Naka bentos? I was slightly underwhelmed when I got the standard bento with sushi, but I have a major soft spot for Porridge + Puffs, so I really want to try and snag one of these.
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ROFLOL 
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Lots of F5s
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- Time.gov
- Multiple devices
- Log in beforehand with credit card info locked and loaded
- Practice on restaurants you don’t care about.
- Don’t think just book
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I agree, I was a little underwhelmed with n/naka’s standard bento, but I thought this collab was a lot better, just a lot more flavorful.
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one time slot still available
Got the n/naka x Porridge and Puffs bento tonight and experienced some highs and lows.
Kicking off with the bento–far and away the best bite is the shrimp tempura spring roll. I was so bummed there was only one of them as I dunked the second half in the numbing calamansi ponzu. Other standouts were the grill pork meatballs (great flavor coming through with the lemongrass) and the assortment of pickles.
The calamari, sweet potato and kobocha salad, and grilled kanpachi, were solid, but sat comfortably in that middle tier. They were well executed and did their jobs well, but didn’t wow me. The beef spaetzle was okay 
The abalone porridge though was a big miss as it unfortunately tasted almost burned. Maybe the smoked abalone just overpowered it, but thinking back to the version that Porridge and Puffs delivered last Friday, it couldn’t stand up. I’m not sure if others had the same experience, but I loved it before, and was very disappointed with it tonight.
Thankfully I had the tarragon gooseberry cake and loquat agar + elixir to fall back on. Both of them were outstanding–especially the cake.
All in all, it was definitely better than my previous n/naka bento, but wasn’t an all around banger like the Porridge and Puffs set meal.
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