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3.7 is pretty accurate. Omusubi Gongbei is an onigiri chain with many locations in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Their two locations in the NYC metro area are inside Mitsuwa Market in Edgewater, NJ and in Katagiri Japanese Grocery close to Grand Central in Midtown Manhattan. The location inside Mitsuwa is essentially a smallish stand, when you enter is directly to the back of the store, within the food court section. There's a counter with an assortment of onigiri in a display case, this location is bigger and has a little more variety than the midtown location, though both are geared towards take out since the onigiri come wrapped in plastic and are easily transported in a paper bag. Like most have mentioned before, the nori (dried seaweed) wrapper comes wrapped around the rice ball, so it's moist and not crispy, and the rice could use a little flavor (though paired with fillings it's ok). I'll say the positives are that the size of the rice balls are quite large for the price, it's hard to find this value in Manhattan these days. The fillings are also decently generous compared to some other places. On my most recent visit I got the Bomb $4.50 (cooked salmon, spicy tuna and kombu) and a Cod Roe $2.80 for takeout and both were good for lunch the next day. My other favorites are regular kombu (marinated cooked seaweed), shiso & plum, and chicken karaage.
THE GOOD ---------------- + Ridiculously wide variety of different rice balls for sale here - salmon, spicy tuna, grilled eel, spam, scallop, shrimp tempura and the everrrr popular BOMB (salmon + spicy tuna + kombu) to name a few. + As of 2025, the rice balls are still very, very reasonably priced at $2.50 - $5. + If you want to go all out, get the Bomb or Spicy Bomb rice ball! They'll run $4.50 - $4.80, but so worth it. THE NOT SO GOOD ---------------------------- - Unfortunately, some of the less expensive rice balls can be a little light on the meat (e.g., Chashu Pork) RANDOM OBSERVATIONS -------------------------------------- = On weekends, the line can get a bit long, but you won't wait more than 3-4 minutes to get to the front.
I typically like the rice balls here but the rice to filling ratio was crazy when I went. Got the salmon cause it was the most popular. The filling was tasty. Just wish there was more of it.
I had the rice balls. The spicy tuna and the salmon. It was affordable and very nicely prepared. I think it was pre-prepared too, but so it should be the people there were very nice, and the scenery of the Japanese mall brings out the food.
I was drawn to the ladies making Onigiri in the window. They were so skilled and make the process look so easy. There are so many options to choose from. A lot I've never seen before. I wanted something simple and chose the Curry Brown one. I didn't eat it until later in the day and it was delicious. I shared it with a friend and she loved the simple but complex flavors of the curry, corn and edamame. The price was good for the portion and the taste. I have to bring my niece back she is going to love this place!!! Omusubi Gonbei 595 River Rd Edgewater, NJ 07020 (Review 38 in 2024 and 838 overall)
LOL the bomb should not be $4.80. It was huge because it was just rice. Very little filling--it's probably only popular for its name. It's okay for a quick carb snack.
This is a small corner kiosk inside the Mitsuwa marketplace in Edgewater. They have a large selection of flavors readily available to be picked out. We went on a weekday before noon, so there was no line and went straight up to the counter to order. The lady that took our order was efficient, I was able to communicate with her better in Spanish. They have a nice selection of vegetarian options that are clearly marked by a green sticker on the name. That was extremely helpful, especially when it's the first time here. My friend ordered the tuna mayo and I got the curry brown. The city brown had brown rice with edamame, corn, and curry seasoning. It had a very curry flavor, but since there was not much to hydrate it, it was very dry. I didn't ask for sauce as I wanted to try it as is, but maybe sauce would make this better so that it's not as dry. The price is affordable and reflective of the size, however, as it is rice, it's quite filling. I would definitely come back to try more options and order sauce to accompany it just in case.
It's a restaurant where you can try a variety of onigiri. I tried the tuna and curry onigiri. I loved that they have vegetarian options. Plus, their prices are affordable.The service is good and they also speak Spanish.
The spam is too sweet. Not enough seaweed and the rice ratio is too great compared to the thin slice of hella sweet spam. Oh, how I miss the musubis in the 7/11 in Hawaii
After shopping, we decided it was lunch time. What better than some onigiri? The new limited edition, Scallop Onigiri was advertised on their Instagram page awhile ago and I couldn't wait to try it. Always crowded and packed with long lines but their onigiris are always delicious. Sometimes cold because while it's made fresh that day, it was made earlier in the day and probably had cooled down and sat at the display all day long. Scallop onigiri- while delicious I was expecting abit more oomph. Very tasty tho.
I really like this spot! I go here every time I visit Mitsuwa Marketplace. They've got such a great variety of cooked onigiri, and it's always quick and easy. This time, I tried the spicy chicken onigiri and the shrimp tempura, and both were delicious! The chicken had just the right amount of spice, and the shrimp tempura was perfectly crispy.
Best affordable and tasty food in Mitsuwa Food hall Location: Inside the large Mitsuwa supermarket has a ton of seating Food: My favorites are spam, shiso, and mentaiko. The spicy tuna and spicy salmon are also solid options Service: They are very efficient and check you out quickly. I also like the karage on the side with the rice balls. Sum-up: Solid inexpensive option at Mitsuwa for lunch or a snack.
Huge musubi/onigiri! The best flavor I tried was the spam and egg. The others were also tasty, but the shrimp inside was a little small. They were freshly made and even better warmed up if you brought them home to eat. They're cheap and filling - you can make a meal out of these. They were pretty busy taking orders, so I came back when it calmed down a bit while I waited for my food from another vendor.
This review is only for the SPAM Musubi. First time going here even though I go to Mitsuwa Marketplace frequently. I'm on a SPAM kick right now so that's what I was looking for. Staff was friendly. I originally ordered 1 but got 2 instead. It was really good. I ate one there and the other for breakfast at work. Gonna try some other items next time but will always get the SPAM Musubi. Funny thing, when I was eating there a couple were speaking Tagalog and I understand a little. The husband asked what his wife wanted to eat and she said 3 SPAM Musubi. So it must be good. Glad I was able to try it today. read more
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Gonbei O.
Dear Marc,…
Saying I love this place is an understatement. The meals here are affordable and super delicious. My order came out to just under $25 and I still walked away with a lot of food. My only complaint is that they don't sell soy sauce, but you can easily walk into the supermarket and buy some. The food is always fresh and the employees are very informative when it comes to what each roll has or tastes like. I've been coming here since 2018 and can say they are consistently the best. What's even better is their improvement of the seating area which makes eating here even easier. read more
Business owner information
Gonbei O.
Dear Jen,…
9:30ish AM and should've known better when the other food vendors in the marketplace weren't open yet but Omusubi Gonbei already had so much made and ready for sale! I'm all for being prepared, but it did make me wonder how long ago was it all made? We ordered the eel, charsiu and spam. The eel had a very small piece of eel at the top and the rest was rice. Very little flavor in the rice. The charsiu had tiny little chunks of pork mixed with a lot of rice. The coloring of the pork was so pale it blended with the rice. Again, very little flavor, and I had to wonder if the pork was leftover scraps. Friend ate the spam and said it was one of the worst she's had. I didn't even bother to try it! About $10 for the 3 and definitely not worth it. Disappointing since this was on our list for our foodie road trip. Won't be going back again. read more
Great snack for on the go. Nitamago - seasoned rice wrapped around a marinated soft boiled egg. This was very delicious and my favorite one Plum & Seaweed - excellent mix of flavors. The plum wasn't too sour and the seaweed wasn't too salty. IT was a perfect balance. Eel - this was not good. The eel wasn't as soft as it used to be Spam musubi - more rice than I can handle. Way too much rice in these Spicy bomb - pretty good every time I get it read more
2 years ago
Business owner information
Gonbei O.
Dear Gnarles,…
The first time that I came here with my brother, I was very pleased with the service and the food itself. This time we got two different types of rice balls. Grilled Eel: It seems like they got a little cheaper with the eel here. They give you more rice in the rice ball and not enough eel. Salmon: The salmon seems a bit dry and they also got a little cheaper with the eel as well. They also put a lot of rice in the rice ball as well. The service here is OK and the staff seems to be very friendly. I like the rice balls but I wish they would not be so cheap with the eel and salmon. read more
My mom has a hard time eating since she has a sensitive stomach, but she always requests to go to Omusubi Gonbei whenever we're in the area. Her favorite is the salmon, my dad enjoys the eel, my sister likes the salmon, and I enjoy the kinoko (mushrooms) and the soy marinaded egg with a jammy yolk. It's inside of Mitsuwa where the cafeteria is, and there's always a bit of a line but it moves pretty quick. The service is fast and efficient. There's so many flavors to pick from, so even if you aren't too adventurous I'm sure you can find one you like! read more
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Gonbei O.
Dear Jenny,…
2 years ago
Business owner information
Gonbei O.
Dear Mimi,…
6 years ago
6 years ago
I liked their onigiri, however, just noticed this picture they put up for their customers viewing. Is this the risings sun flag? The Imperial Japanese military flag used in WWll? I gave one star for the flag and if the owner confirms that it has been taken down with apology, then I will revise my rating. read more
3 years ago
Hardly any filling in the onigiri. 97% rice and a smear of filling is crazy. It was very bland too. read more
Business owner information
Gonbei O.
Dear Mariah,…
8 years ago
Musubi! Musubi! Japan's rice meal is here in Edgewater! Location: It is located inside Mitsuwa Supermarket.The interior is food court type, so you order, pay, get your food and find your seat. The store has a glass screen that you could see the person making the Musubi, very clean. Service: the service was fast, you just have to point what you want and they will give it to you. Take out or dine in! Food: Well nothing compares with the musubi I ate in Japan. Here, I tried SPICY TUNA: it is good, but a lot of rice for the amount of tuna. MENTAIKO: which is a spicy cod roe, still huge amount of rice for small amount of roe. Both of them are tasty, I just wished the rice was not that thick. Price rating: 2 out of 10. Very cheap! 1 or 2 dollars per musubi! I will come back to try other musubi. Get the spicy tuna! CASH ONLY! read more
If you want a light snack while you're shopping around Mitsuwa, this is the place. You can get a variety of onigiri and also fried chicken and the prices are very reasonable. Another perk is that they do take credit card unlike some of the other places inside the food court. If you are looking for onigiri to go, I would recommend getting the prepackaged ones inside Mitsuwa supermarket as the seawood won't get soggy, I definitely feel that you need to eat the ones from Omusubi right away as they are already assembled and the rice is warm. read more
3 years ago
Business owner information
Gonbei O.
Dear Pete,…
Coming to Mitsuwa there are so many choices for food to choose from. One that stood out was Omusubi Gonbei. My friends and I love onigiri Japanese rice balls. There were many varieties in the window to choose from. I made the mistake of waiting until almost the end to grab them to go. The majority of the onigiri were swiped empty. I decided to get the Jako and Tako onigiri. They both were delicious and full of flavor. This vendor is cash only like most of the others in Mitsuwa. I would go back again to try other flavors, but I would head back earlier to make sure I can try other flavors. read more
5 years ago
I usually like going here, but today I was disappointed. There is nothing wrong with taste, but the portions have gotten significantly smaller. I believe the omusubis themselves have decreased in size, but more importantly, the amount of stuff they put inside has decreased dramatcially. I'm eating way more rice than chicken/oyster/etc. Not really worth the money anymore. read more
Was extremely disappointed with the food here. As I got super excited to try authentic rice balls and miso soups here, I was left with full disappointment. As the rice balls on display looks really good, they're LITERALLY RICE balls. I ordered an shrimp tempura rice ball and as I bit into my rice ball, I found myself with mouthful of just rice and seaweed. There's way too much rice in each rice ball and not what I expected. I also ordered a miso soup from here because at the cash register, they advertised that their soup was made from fish broth. Little did I know when I took a sip of my soup that it tasted like msg similar to the ones you would get at any Japanese sushi restaurant. Would not recommend anyone to come here. read more
I realize that I may not be fully satisfied with the topping to rice ratio, but I still find myself coming back here and this may just be the authentic way of making onigiri. The chicken here is great and I tried the clam soup (just miso soup with clams) as well. I also like that this place takes credit cards and is not cash only like some other stalls at mitsuwa. read more
This place mostly deserves a high rating because you don't find Musubi frequently enough in NY/NJ, and because they are key in making the wait for ramen at Santouka tolerable. This should be your first stop at Mitsuwa if you are coming for lunch. It serves as both a good little appetizer, and as a great thing to have while you wait in the epic line at Santouka Ramen. They have a wide variety of different flavors, which all looked great. We went with the Spicy Tuna ($1.90) and the Grilled Eel ($2.90), and both were quite good. The rice was a little bland, and there was a bit too much of it, but for that price you can't really complain too much. This is a definite must try for a great snack typical of the delicious food you can find in Japan. read more
10 years ago
They have takeout menus by the register, so I grabbed one to look through prices and when I tried to order they "don't do those specials anymore." Maybe throw out your flyers then? I feel like a ruder customer would have yelled and made them honor their prices, but I am not that kind of person. They sure do make you honor their cash only sign though! I did order a Spicy Tuna and a Spicy Cod Roe (Mentaiko...looked it up) and the rice balls average around $2 and they are huge. They are like giant delicious sushi rolls. They have a good combinations of rice and fishy flavor and 2 are very filling for a cheap price. I just personally didn't like their sign switching and yeah cash only is annoying. When I come to Mitsuwa again, I won't be quick to come to this food court option when there are so many others. This just had the shortest line. Coincidence? read more
If you like onigiri, and at great prices, then this is the place in the area. Located within Mitsuwa marketplace, along with the market itself and other shops of yummy food, this one is probably the most budget-friendly option there as well. But just because it's the most budget-friendly choice there doesn't mean you're settling for it. Great food, gentle prices, friendly service. Go and enjoy! read more
13 years ago
If you're not in the mood to wait on the long line for Santoka ramen, this is a good alternative. The rice balls are fresh as they are made on the spot. Something about the rice in these rice balls that makes them so tasty. They have a combo meal that includes a salmon ball, spicy tuna, and 2-3 pieces of fried chicken. The fish is cooked. The spicy tuna one had a bit too much mayo and not enough tuna, but the salmon one had a nice flavor. You are in luck, if you catch a fresh batch of the chicken. They have a slight crisp and are seasoned well. Also the eel and the wasabi/sweet bean curd wrap are tasty as well. The service here is much friendlier and always seem have a smile, compared to the cold and emotionless staff at the other shops. This place is a good choice for a snack or lunch. read more
Omusubi Gonbei specializes in Omusubi, or rice ball. They open earlier than other restaurants in the Mistuwa food court, so if you get there too early and hungry, you can try these guys. It is interesting how gourmet rice balls are becoming popular, who can justify their high price point for rice balls nowadays with its good demand for them. This place, like all the others in Mitsuwa, is cash only. They have ATM machine if you forgot to bring cash. They offer many varieties of gourmet rice balls, and they are made with Japanese seaweed. They all looked really good, it was not easy to choose. We tried The Bomb, Cha-Shu-Pork, Fried Oyster, Spicy Tuna and Mentaiko. They were all pretty good. It is a nice size, not too small, with good amount of fillings for most of them. I did like their gourmet rice balls, I liked the big size, and I thought the quality was high. I can see the price point of their items are not so bad when you consider the size and quality. I would like to try more of their rice ball creations. read more
My husband and I ordered the Bomb ($3.80) and the second most popular, spicy tuna ($1.90). Both are outstanding. They're huge! I was honestly expecting much smaller so imagine my surprise when I saw two large balls (OK, one us actually triangular). We tried the spicy tuna first. The simplicity of this triangle was very nice because it showcased the delicious spicy tuna. No soy sauce needed. The next one was The Bomb. That had layers of flavor that took you on a wonderful taste journey. The combination of salmon, Tina and Kombu mixed with salty radishes was there to fulfill all your taste buds ranging from sweet, salty, crunchy and moist. How did they do all that? Basically they're like hand tools but done in a different shape. Ingenious. Will be back to try other things. read more
5 years ago
Amazing place to get spam musubi. They have so many choices of onigiri available and it's all freshly made. I love the spicy bomb, spicy tuna, and shrimp tempura onigiri. This is one of my favorite places in edgewater and in mitsuwa marketplace. read more
Business owner information
Gonbei O.
"Dear Marc,…
Get the SPAM onigiri! I saw this in the case today and it exceeded my expectations. Other than that I love their Salmon, Spicy Tuna, Spicy Bomb, Bomb and Shrimp Tempura Onigiri. Anytime I'm in the area, I make sure to get these treats and bring em back with me home. I haven't tried anything here that I didn't like. If you go later in the day, some of the varieties will run out! Remember it's cash only!!! I tried one of their bottled teas today as well and it complimented the rice ball nicely. I will always come back~ read more
6 years ago
Now considered my reward for waiting on line outside to get into the shopping center & shopping for unnecessarily needed groceries, the rice balls taste like a hug. The best I've had, the rice is wonderfully flavorful, perfectly cooked and shaped, and the balls have just enough filling to be a treat. I usually get a bomb with something else I'm curious about. Never disappointed & makes snacking in the car a shopping grand finale. read more
Well, my review won't be an informative as Mick's but yeah I like this place. And I hate it that Italian Tomato is GONE! They had the best spicy cod roe pasta. Even better than 'On the bridge' restaurant in San Fran. Anyways, i'd come here and pick out anyone of these rice balls to go along with my meal from either santoka or santoka (I always get ramen when i'm here). The rice triangle from the supermarket is around 2 bucks but the rice balls here are fresh and bigger. Might as well spend the extra 0.25 cents and upgrade your meal/snack. read more
I was very disappointed with the onigiris that I got from here. The rice wasn't warm even though I ate it right when I got it and the rice to filling ratio is very off. There was a very thick layer of rice with little filling inside. The flavors didn't go through enough to the rice either so a lot of it was just plain rice and tasteless. read more
Onigiri is really easy to eat as it comes neatly wrapped in seaweed. Unlike sushi onigiri can come with any form of protein including chicken. That is good if you don't like to eat raw fish. I went for the spicy chicken. And it was really spicy. I loved it. read more
Located in Mitsuwa is this incredible freshly made Japanese rice balls! Hey have so many types of fillings & flavors! I loved the spicy tuna, spam musubi, eel, & salmon one. Def a great snack to eat there for to bring home! read more
More info about Omusubi Gonbei
595 River Rd
Edgewater, NJ 07020
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(201) 402-3779
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http://www.omusubi-gonbei.com
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