Eat Athens: Asian restaurant adds spicy wings, Korean BBQ options to the downtown scene

From city employees out on their lunch break to concert-goers looking to grab a bite to eat before the show, the opening of a new downtown Athens restaurant carries with it the possibility of becoming a reliable favorite. And when the cuisine is designed to be hot, fast and flavorful, the attraction increases.

Bento Stop opened on May 4 at 142 W. Clayton St. in the space previously occupied by Wing Zone. Open from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and noon to 9 p.m. on Sunday, Bento Stop offers quick-service Korean BBQ, chicken wings and more.

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Bento Stop is owned by local restaurateur Linda Ni, who also owns Bubble Café on East Broad Street. With Paris Banh Mi directly across the street and Shokitini just a two-minute sidewalk trip away, Bento Stop joins a growing section of downtown where fans of Asian cuisine are spoiled for choice. Where Bubble Café focuses on bowls, soups and drinks, Bento Stop's offerings can be seen as an extension of that menu.

Walk-in orders can be placed at Bento Stop's front counter or at a touch screen kiosk right beside it. In keeping with the Japanese bento tradition, the meals are served in sectioned trays with the largest space reserved for something from the entree menu and three smaller spots for side items. Utilitarian in appearance compared to the creative presentations generally associated with bento boxes, the idea of sampling different kinds of food remains.

If wings are your thing, the cooking time is somewhere between 10 to 15 minutes, and Bento Stop's menu starts at $7.99 for a six-piece and goes up to $19.95 for a 16-piece. Though traditional crispy, dry lemon pepper and teriyaki wings are available, Bento Stop also has sweet spicy, soy garlic and snow cheese flavors. If the Korean hot sauce is anything like what was in the Banner-Herald's order, prepare to get scorched.

During our visit, we ordered the $11.95 spicy Korean BBQ chicken bento box with fried dumplings, fried rice and stir-fried rice cakes called ddukbokki (referred to as tteokbokki on Bento Stop's online menu). The chunks of meat in the BBQ were small but plentiful with a bedding of cabbage, broccoli and carrots underneath, and the sauce was mild. The ddukbokki had the chewy consistency of pasta and was coated in a super spicy red sauce. The Milkis Korean soft drink we ordered provided a much-appreciated rescue from the heat.

To check out Bento Stop's full menu, visit bentostopathens.kwickmenu.com.

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This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Eat Athens: Bento Stop offers quick service Asian cuisine