Ladybug Asian Grill

Ladybug is located inside the same plaza as Yellow Cow and Yoshinoya. Portions are big and the dishes are priced well. I ordered the Grilled Chicken Salad and it looked better than I expected. While we were dining there, there was a lot of customers that came in for to-​go.
The taste wasn’t bad. It was more like teriyaki chicken salad since they put a tad bit too much teriyaki sauce onto the chicken. I had a fairly pleasant experience at Ladybug.
For some odd reason, later that night I got nauseous and ended up getting sick. Now, I don’t know if it was from Ladybug. But I do know that prior to eating Ladybug, I didn’t eat for 5+ hours other than nuts… so it couldn’t have been anything I ate earlier that day. I won’t be going back to Ladybug for a while since now I’m scarred from my experience.

Our food came really fast! The chicken teriyaki was very good, everything else was okay. Don’t know if i’d come here again though… There are a lot better japanese restaurants around the area.

Love their ahi tuna salad and ahi tuna bowl! If you’re hungry, go for the plates (not the bowls). Really reasonable prices and friendly service. It’s a small place that both locals and nonlocals (including myself) go to on a regular basis so it’s NOT good for large groups. Nonetheless, I’ve come for sit-​in and to-​go and they do their best with the staff they have. Limited seating, but never super busy. Just a great simple restaurant if you’re looking for some yummy and affordable Japanese-​American food!

The Poke Bowls here get 5stars. Tuna is fresh and Poke flavor is perfect. We also love the Chinese chicken salad.

Great customer service the Chinese chicken salad is the bomb their dressing is to die for

Best Japanese family takeout joint in the South Bay! The Ahi Poke bowl is HUGE and fresh and so delicious — definite value! Ladybug chicken is tasty and the teriyaki grilled salmon is yummy. Love this place!

Wanted to try something new in the area and saw they offered a variety within a combo. I ordered the Ladybug Fried Chicken + 1./2 Sushi Roll Combo Plate w/​Miso Soup. The food was pretty good. Their Mac Salad was a little bland but adding some pepper fixes that up. Fried chicken was a little different from other fried but good. No bones which was perfect since I was eating in my car. Had a California Roll which was good too and they even gave me some pickled ginger to go with it. I think I will go back for 2nds or to try something else.

This review is based on Tara «Butter Fish» Miso Yaki. The seasoning and silky smooth texture of the fish is a pleasantly surprising dish for this little take out place. Five stars!

Love this place when visiting my old hood. Try the Ahi Poke Bowl and Kalbi Beef plate. Katsu chicken plate is great too. You won’t regret it. It’s very a reasonably priced restaurant.

Cutest little restaurant tucked away in a corner of a not too well known plaza. I wanted to try something new and was craving poke while at mitsuywa so I Unilocaled poke and this place popped up.
My brother and I were greeted upon walking in, seated immediately, and handed menus to browse over. In the meantime our server brought out miso soups and water. MISO SOUP was good. Probably one of the best ones I’ve had. Plenty of tofu chunks and pieces of seaweed. Broth was very flavorful but not too salty.
I decided on Getting the AHI POKE BOWL as well as ½ and ½ SUSHI COMBO. My brother went with the FRIED CHICKEN COMBO.
AHI POKE BOWL consisted of generous portion of sushi rice on the bottom with a nice portion of Poke on top. The tuna itself was perfect. Fresh and had a great seasoning to it, not too salty and not too bland. I added furikaki rice seasoning on top to perfect it and almost devoured everything. 4 ½ stars***
½ and ½ SUSHI COMBO. I went with the ½ spicy California roll and ½ spicy tuna. Now these rolls are pretty darn massive. They’re about twice the size of your average roll so it’s pretty filling. Quality wise the ingredients tasted very fresh. 4 ½ stars****
FRIED CHICKEN COMBO– my brother really like this. I didn’t get to try it but visually it looked really good and the portion size was great for the price.
Service was great. I love it when mom and pop shops actually care about not only the food they put out but the customer service the provide. I definitely left very full and satisfied and will come back.

You know the place is authentic when old Japanese people eat here for lunch on a Sunday.
My friend had told me about this place, so I needed to come visit. Parking was easy in the plaza. It’s located right in the corner.
Upon walking in, you could feel the décor really setting the mood. It wasn’t crowded, but there were a few groups and the servers were speaking to them in Japanese. A TV was playing in the background with those day shows that no one would ever watch on purpose.
We ended up both ordering the ahi tuna poke bowl. The food came out almost instantly. A+ for speed. First was the classic miso soup. Tasted fresh and of good quality, and especially nice on that chilly day. By the time I finished my soup, the bowls had arrived.
The first interesting bit I have to point out is the bowls have a sort of vertical handle sticking up on one side. I’ve never seen someone hold a bowl like that, but I find it ingenious! I was so much in awe that I hesitated for a second before taking the bowl out of my server’s hands.
The tuna was beautiful. Lush texture. The sauce wasn’t overpowering, although could have been slightly less salty. Cucumbers, a must and a plus. Also they had this wonderful black seaweed, I believe, that brought a nice contrast in texture. It’s the little things that really just bring a dish from great to amazing.
The service was kind, and I definitely left satisfied and pretty full from the size of the portion. I would definitely come back to try more of the menu!

Very cute and small place with friendly service and good food.
Food:
–Kalbi short-​rib combo + ½ California roll with no salad and extra mac salad and miso soup (or choice of soda). I didn’t really like the miso soup; it was salty.
— Chicken Katsu Plate came with rice, salad, and Mac salad. It was really crispy and crunchy. :)
Ambiance:
Very casual but comfy. Chairs have cushions and they decorated for Christmas. :)
Worth a visit. :)

After an appointment early in the morning, I was hungry for something good that was nearby and open around 10:30 a.m. I checked my bookmarks and found that Ladybug Asian Grill would open at 11 a.m. (in about 15 minutes) so instead of waiting for a Hawaiian restaurant down the street (already been there and done that way too many times, haha), I opted to wait in front for the Ladybug to open while reviewing their folded menu that was neatly displayed on the door frame.
As I stood outside, the nice Ladybug server opened the door early for me to come inside and place my order. I sat near the front next to the large window as it was sunny and warm. The sun and the hot miso soup that was included in my order was served within five minutes with the side order of mac salad and it was a good way to start the meal as the air was cold outside and I settled in and looked forward to the ahi tuna poke bowl… and that came out within a few more minutes and the feasting began. Oishikatta and ono… my hunger was quickly satisfied.
There were many choices that all sounded good to me… sushi rolls; tofu, chicken and seafood salads; chicken, short ribs, salmon, tuna and eel bowls; various combo plates (which include fountain soda or miso soup); various plates and special seasonal plates subject to availability… the back of the menu lists many combination family packs, sides and catering menu.
They have been operating since 2006. Owner /​operator Japanese-​Peruvian Pablo Arakaki has a long history of restaurant experience, including Eboshi Ramen, Azuma Izakaya Restaurant, Mishima Restaurants and Happa Restaurant.
My server was a very nice lady but she did not have spots like a Ladybug… but I forgot to ask the origin of the restaurant name, it could be her nickname… will have to remember to ask the next time I’m there.

What a «find»! Everything was fresh and served attractively. The servers were friendly and attentive. The poke was perfect, the curry was flavorful, the short ribs were delicious. We will return.
We came back for Saturday lunch. Totally different cooking and serving crew. Restaurant less than half full. Servers were prompt with menus and beverages and took our orders as soon as we were ready. Then… we waited and waited. Server came back to tell us they were «out» of curry. So we waited a while longer.
When our meal was served, we found everything to be yummy. Guess the cooks don’t work so quickly on the weekends, but they still could k good food.

Came here for a late lunch on a week day and the place nor the plaza itself was very busy, which is nice for all of us that are on a time crunch for lunch.
Highlights
— Spicy Tuna Bowl: very good! the spicy tuna tasted fresh and I like how they don’t use mayonaise like some other places do and the tuna was actually spicy to my liking! *I also requested brown rice instead of white rice as a healthier option
They provide good service, quality food and reasonable portions at good prices. I also tried the Ahi Poke Bowl, which was okay, but nothing spectacular. I think there’s a lot of poke places in the South Bay area so if you’re looking for poke specifically, I would venture to one of those places. However, if you’re looking for somewhere to eat for lunch, with a variety of lunch options and combinations, I would recommend this place!

We found this place by default a couple of years ago. On our first visit, we simply asked one of the patrons for a suggestion. He said, anything you want, you will not be disappointed. He was right! Now lady bug is at the current location. We love it here!

Awesome poke bowl! Fresh, spicy and had a lot of
Poke in it! The chicken katsu was really good, too. Great service!

cannot tell too much, I was not impressed by the food.
I also do not know if it is me or the food but I got a stomach ache after eating there:
I cannot finger point the business, and it is not the purpose of my review.

I went here for the salmon bowl. I thought it was like a Salmon Sushi Bowl. It was a grilled salmon :(that was my fault.
The Salmon was GREAT! crispy skin, good sauce. but the presentation was so plain. Rice, Salmon, thats all nothing fancy. No Garnish. Worst off i called in and they forgot to make it so they made it when i got there and i had to wait another 15 minutes. At least it wasn’t expensive.

When I was a little kid, I always used to see ladybugs around. Whenever I was playing in the grass or something, they would just be pretty much freakin’ everywhere. Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever seen one under a microscope or in a close-​up in a ten-​page foldout of «National Geographic», but those guys and gals are SUPER CREEPY. If you want nightmares for the next week-​and-​a-​half, then go Google «close-​up ladybug» right now. Go on, I’ll wait.
…Why did you do that? WHY? I told you it was creepy. Ugh. So gross.
But the reality is, ladybugs are awesome. They’re super helpful for the plants around us; I mean, they eat aphids and all that jazz, right?
Why am I talking about ladybugs? Well, I just wanted to share my infinite knowledge about Coccinellidae. See that? That’s the FAMILY NAME of ladybugs. That’s right, they’re a FAMILY of BEETLES. LadyBEETLES doesn’t sound so fun, does it?
No, but really, the reason why I went on that big talk about ladybirds (that’s right: these guys have like a trillion names) is because this place is named after our lovably creepy friends. And, much like its namesake, Ladybug Asian Grill looks really awesome (on Unilocal), kind of interesting (when you walk in), but then ultimately ESSENTIAL (when you eat).
Let me explain. Gardena is pretty much a city I haven’t figured out yet. Whenever I’m in the area and feel like some exploring, I usually end up in Gardena because it’s close to like everything. Okay, that’s not true, but I AM always around here for some reason. Basically, finding the gems in Gardena is pretty tough on Unilocal.I also have no friends in Gardena, or… You know, friends in general… Okay, this got depressing.
Anyways, I came here after reading the great reviews and having a hankering for some good ol’ FRESH fish. I knew what I wanted before I even walked in, and that was some spicy tuna with rice.
Walking in, I first noticed that there were no customers. THIS IS AWESOME, actually, because that’s sometimes when you know you’ve found an absolute jewel. Or, of course, sometimes you just hit a place that is horrible. Thankfully, this was not the latter.
When you walk in, it doesn’t really SEEM super Japanese. There’s some music in Spanish playing and the vibe is, I don’t know, worldly? Don’t let that trick you, though. GO UP TO THAT COUNTER AND ORDER.
Oh, well, go up there if you want to take it to-​go. Sit down if you want to eat there, which is what I did. The kind waitress/​cashier gave me a menu, and I ordered within seconds. Then, to my amazement, the food came out in minutes.
WOW, it looked incredible. The miso soup was nice and hot and solid; like, I don’t know, it was one of those miso soups where nothing was wrong with it. You know what I’m talkin’ about. And if you don’t, I completely and utterly failed you as a reviewer. And the bowl – oh boy, the bowl. That sucker was a ton of food even though I thought that the pictures made it seem measly and inadequate. This is the importance of putting something for a sense of scale in your pictures, like a banana (I guess that’s the popular thing to do these days).
The spicy tuna was, true to its name, pretty spicy. I love the Scoville scale, and it was perfect in that it was only enough to linger a little. I have seen plenty of restaurants totally overdo it, and it just ruins the tuna. Additionally, the consistency was incredibly good. The cucumbers perfectly contrasted the tuna with their watery goodness, and – come on – just look at that high quality picture I took. Don’t the colors work out marvelously? Of course they do. Of course. Oh yeah, and the freshness was clearly there, and every single bite was straight from heaven or whatever secular alternative analogy you have.
While I was sitting down, about three or four families came in to order take-​out. So I guess tons of people do that. Keep it in mind, buds.
The waitress was pretty attentive even though she was running the show (except for the cooking; there were some guys handling that) herself. I was happy with the service, and they made me feel at home.
Parking outside is in a plaza, and it’s shared with some other restaurants and a Korean pool hall. It was somewhat full but I managed to find a spot. I would imagine it’s not that difficult usually, but I guess if it ever IS full, I did see some adjacent neighborhoods you could give a shot.
Overall, the meal was really, really good. It was a super pleasant experience even though I haven’t quite figured out Gardena yet. With this place, though, I feel like I’m one step closer to solving the puzzle.
Oh yeah, and LADYBUGS. HOW GREAT IS THAT?

Got the Kalbi Short Rib Plate… which comes with some macaroni salad, a miso salad, and of course rice.
Kalbi was super tender and delicious. Had a good portion. I paid like $ 12.
The interior of the restaurant is cute, with tons of different ladybigs all over the place in the form of staplers, and salt shakers, and random knick-​knacks.
Would love to come back at night during dinner amd see the interior then.

I’ve been a fan of Ladybug for a few years now because they consistently provide fresh and tasty food. I’m not a creature of habit but I always lean towards their Fried Chicken plate. The marinade is both sweet and salty and the batter is light like tempura. The plate is also very generous but I never leave a crumb on it because every bite is as savory as the last
The Ahi Poke salad is another favorite of mine. The fish is so fresh and the Miso Vinaigrette is great for dipping the Fried Chicken too.
The staff is friendly and service is quick. My drink was refilled 4 times during lunch without asking once. That’s good service in my book. Come here for lunch and take what’s leftover for dinner or vice versa. Try to count all the Ladybug decorations spread out throughout the restaurant. It’s part of the charm of this place.

I love this place. Where else can you eat a huge delicious meal for under $ 10??? Not many places.
Ladybug does a LOT of takeout, too. So if you’re not in the mood for eating out, why not pick up and eat in?!
Their kalbi short ribs are delicious, as well as their chicken teri, katsu (chicken or pork), and Ladybug fried chicken. What really makes this place great is their mac salad… talk about outstanding! And their service is equally as impeccable: friendly and caring staff.
If you’re craving some Asian food (Japanese/​Hawaiian), DEFINITELY try this place out.
(Oh, and if you’re a South Bay local, look for coupons that pop up every once in a while in the newspapers.)