Review - Fancy Rice Balls at OMS/B

Review – Fancy Rice Balls at OMS/B

19 April 2009 No Comment posted by Kin

OMS/B
Website
156 East 45th St., NY,NY 10017
Mon-Fri 8:00-19:30
Sat 11:00-17:30
Sun Closed

Ah, Japanese rice balls. Even if you have never seen a rice ball in real life, I’m sure you’ve seen them in Japanese animations, that is if you watch anime. What are rice balls? Well, in the cartoons, they’re usually depicted as a triangular wad of rice that’s wrapped in seaweed. Sort of like the ones shown on the left.

Known as Omusubi, or Onigiri, the rice ball originated in and is found all over Japan. They are also popular in Taiwan and Korea. A traditional rice ball is either triangular or oval in shape, and contains a filling inside the center, usually of cooked fish or vegetables. They are popular due to their size for portability and for convenience. For a history of omusubi, head over to the wiki here.

I discovered a store in New York City that specializes in omusubi. It carries a vast selection of rice balls and the prices are rather decent. You have the option of buying the rice balls separately or ordering a set, which contains 3 rice balls of your choosing, and a soup. Some items are excluded from the set though. A set costs $8.50.

The shop is small, and only has about 6 or so small tables. By the time I got there, which was about 3pm on Saturday, the selection was rather limited. It looks like once a certain item is sold out, it’s not replenished. I would recommend going early on Saturday.

Items are selected through the see-through glass, and you get your food and you pay at the register, so there really isn’t any waiting service.

I ordered the eel rice ball, the wasabi wrapped rice ball, and the cod roe rice ball.

The mayo lobster rice ball, the shrimp tempura rice ball, and the football rice ball.

Final Thoughts:

In all, I thought the rice balls were good. While they didn’t blow me out of the water, I like how the presentation adds an extra touch to the food. It didn’t exactly fill me up, but a set of 3 rice balls and soup is perfect for a snack. Especially when you’ve been walking around the city and need an energy boost. Recommended (Just barely)