Loved it here. Server was nice and helpful even though he was the only one in. They have a wide menu - soft tofu soup, bbq, stews and soups, bibimbop, kimbop, fried chicken, pancakes, ramen, fried rice, japchae, a lunchbox special M-F 10-3 and happy 'hour' also at the same time. Beer, sake, soju and other NA drinks. Food came out sizzling hot (as it should) and was delicious! We got soft tofu soup, bibimbop w/pork belly and bbq beef short ribs. Flavorful and filling especially with the 8(I think) ban chan. The least flavor was the pork belly which was surprising but the ribs were yummy! That was enough food for 3 of us. Parking was surprisingly easy for a Saturday afternoon and no wait to get in. Coming back soon! read more

Left Bowl'd feeling satisfied and happy! Ample parking, fast seating, and good service. Went with the kimchi pancake today and a soft tofu soup with seafood and rice cake; the creamy broth was rich and comforting, and needed after a long week. We also got the fish cake kimbap seasoned perfectly. Can't forget the banchan, especially with fresh seaweed! Love bringing friends here for a casual lunch or early dinner in Albany before walking it off on Solano Ave. Will definitely be back! read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

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Tried the Korean food here and Everything was super flavorful and fresh, and the side dishes made the meal even better. Portions were good too. Definitely coming back for more! Would definitely recommend! read more

I was fortunate to come to Bowl'd with one of my Korean friends while living in the Berkeley/Albany area. She was familiar with the different items, while I had only had Korean food a few times. So, she took charge in ordering and showing me how to eat the different foods and in what order. The standout for both of us was the pork belly. Everything was well cooked and seasoned. We were seated not too far from the entrance at a busy time and the noise carried. We were both very hungry though, so there was not a lot of talking. Splitting the bill was no problem, even with a busy service. Workers were on top of it. read more

Been coming her for years. Very good side dishes. And great tofu bimbimbap. The galbi tang is great and the potatoes are good

this place is 10/10 food and service but for all the reviews saying they have a patio or dog friendly patio it's not true just called to confirm there is no outdoor seating read more

Always have friendly and fast service and delicious food here. We appreciate the clearly labeled vegetarian and vegan options. Japchae with tofu and mung bean pancakes are our favorites. read more

Service was amazing and very attentive, 5 stars just for that. They offered wet wipes, cracked our eggs, fixed our table and checked on us often. Food was good, however the shrimp were a bit small in the seafood tofu soups. The restaurant was packed on that Sunday evening but didn't need to wait for a table. A couple of street parking were available near the restaurant. Ended the meal with yakult and lollipops. read more

I'm bowled over by the delicious food served at Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar! Located on the busy corridor that is Solano Avenue which stretches all the way from San Pablo Avenue in Albany to the Berkeley Hills, Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar has been such a long standing success in the neighborhood, so much so that in the time they have been open in Albany, they have two additional locations open up, although one has since closed, but has plans to reopen in another location, and a spinoff in nearby Berkeley. I originally came to this location when it was the trendiest place along the Albany-Berkeley border and lines were out the door. Those heady times have since dissipated, but what has not changed after all these years is the fact that the food being served at Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar is authentic and quite tasty. Since so many other new restaurants have popped up along the Solano Avenue corridor so just finding the time to get here can be a challenge since there are so many interesting places to try, but in the theme of being thankful that you can go home again, a recent trip to Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar proved that everything is just the way I remember it when I visited those many years ago. The fact that they are open all day without any breaks in service should be cause for celebration as finding a parking space in front of their restaurant, and a seat right by their window was easy. The menu at Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar is separated into categories including Small Plates, Rice Cake, Bow'd Wings, Rice Bowls, Over the Grill, Lunch Special, Stew & Soup, Korean Ramen and Beverages. We arrived at a time when it wasn't necessarily lunch or dinner, but luckily it was a weekday, and their Lunch Special which was a Lunch Box or Doshirok, which was served with a choice of BBQ protein, Jhap Chae or sweet potato noodles, steamed rice, vegetable potstickers, and a side of radish soup. With our choice of Bulgogi or marinated thinly sliced beef we knew that would fill us up. Since there were three of us dining today, we really wanted to try one of their Over the Grill menu options and their Beef Short Ribs, which did come at an extra cost versus that of their other proteins, was right up our alley. This entrée comes sizzling on an iron skillet served on a bed of shredded cabbage, a bowl or steamed white or brown rice, side radish soup and the side dishes known as banchan, which are small plates filled with usually raw vegetables prepared in traditional Korean style. We were expecting the banchan items to be brought out first as they are all-you-can-eat, but rather unexpectedly everything was brought out at once with our soup, rice, banchan and two entrées all arriving at once. The Lunch Special was a very hearty meal, with a lot of Bulgogi provided, some of us at the table felt that the beef was a little cooked on the well-done side, but we loved how nicely fried the potstickers were and how surprisingly flavorful the potato noodles were. The real star of our meal was their Korean BBQ Beef Short Ribs, for a reasonable 33 dollars we received a huge steaming hot iron bowl filled with ribs of all sizes. Each was flavorful thanks to the abundance of sauce on every rib which thankfully also covered the shredded cabbage, of which the menu at Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar said was supposed to be served as a ssam or cabbage wrap, but in reality you cannot really wrap your short ribs like that. But when combined with the steamed rice and small brined side dishes, especially the sweet and sour radish salad and the kimchee, it was the perfect meal and one we would all order upon return visit. Our total bill for this meal was $58.68 before gratuity was added in, which was rather reasonable considering how much food we enjoyed this afternoon, and we made sure to devour everything to not waste anything, and most importantly we enjoyed our time there as not many customers were present, which made for quite the peaceful meal, as all the natural sunlight from the floor to ceiling windows came shining through. Here's to the continued success of Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar with three locations coming back online, the only place they can go is up, and I am so happy to see them thriving after all these years here in Albany. read more

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Our office orders lunch from here once a week. Food is great but consistency of what you get through doordash varies. Sometimes comes with all the fixings, awesome! Lettuce, ssamjjang, soup and sides. But sometimes a lot of these things are missing :*( still great food but when you get your lunch and items are missing its never fun. Will add 5th star for consistency later. Because we will still order from here. read more

Had a recent family dinner here and it wasn't too busy on a rainy Monday night - great for us. I noticed the clean, modern and bright ambiance, accommodating friendly servers, and fresh high quality food. Loved seeing the complimentary Banchan dishes came out too. It's always nice to find restaurants that are vegan friendly, especially for Korean BBQ, so hubz doesn't feel left out. We ordered: -Tofu dolsot bibimbap with multigrain rice (made vegan by omitting egg) -Fried chicken wings (so good- we could have gotten another order) -Shrimp tempura - it was ok but nothing special -Spicy pork belly dolsot bibimbap (nice kick) -Bulgogi dolsot bibimbap- it was fresh and nicely portioned because I had leftovers -Beef noodle stew Everything was very tasty! Only con is how $$$ the menu has gotten through the years. read more

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Great service, very nice staff and amazing food. We always get the bibimbap with the multigrain rice because it's soooo good and fun to eat out of the hot pot and of course delish kimchi and other side dishes that they refill for you. One of my favorite restaurants tho I don't get to come as often as I would like. Food is consistently good and never disappoints. I would love to try other things but I just love the bibimbap too much. lol. read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Hot rice bowl - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

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Heading out for a late lunch, we stopped off at Bowl'd. There were only a few tables booked at 4:00, but the place was open with all tables set and ready for business. Our waiter took our order and the food was out pretty quickly, and kept coming. He was also a very efficient waiter- since I lost a chop stick at one point and he had a new one to me before I could locate him to ask! We had KFC wings, of course, potstickers, Jap chae noodles with spicy pork, kimchi fried rice with chicken, Poki bowl with salad greens. It all looked and smelled great, so my kids jumped in quickly and the photos are not of the dish as served. It was all great and there was a lot of it. We took the noodles and rice home for a second meal. If you're hungry for great Korean food, this is the place. I'm eager to try their grilled dishes next round. read more

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Enjoyed a meal with my homegirl here, on a nice sunny day. The service was great here! The food was so yummmy as well. I got. soft tofu soup, we shared a creamy ttkeboki, and my friend got the spicy ramen. Love that bon chon was still included, so it was so much food! read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

Very pleased with this spot for some high quality and comforting Korean food! I miss SoCal Korean food, and I think this location hits it spot-on with affordable prices. Had dinner here with a friend on a cold weeknight. We were surprised at how crowded it was, but the wait was not too long. We ordered the tofu stews and spicy ramen (very delicious and flavorful). Highly recommend the freshly fried soy-glazed potatoes. They are WORTH IT. Friendly service and lovely welcoming interior. I'll be back! read more

Needed a quick lunch after doing some work at a nearby cafe and discovered this spot just down the street. It's a pretty big Korean restaurant with a lot of seating inside but because it was a weekday lunch it was pretty empty. I got the spicy pork belly bibimbop and my sister got the beef kimbop. The bibimbop was so delicious it had a ton of veggies and the pork belly was some of the best I've ever had! It had a ton of flavor and wasn't too fatty either. The kimbop was also really good it was huge so there was definitely leftovers right there. It looks like they have a ton of other classics on their menu so I'm excited to come back and try them! read more

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Omg. I always order bibimbap to-go from here, but I've never ordered anything else. I dropped in around 3:30pm on a Tuesday to have a birthday lunch with a friend. The restaurant was pretty empty. It was only two of us and we decided to order mainly appetizers and an entree to share. We didn't expect it to be a lot because appetizers are usually pretty small. However, when they brought out the food, our mouth dropped! The portions were huge!!! We were definitely not going to finish all of this lol. We ordered: Small Plates/Appetizers - Spicy Rice Cakes (Tteokbokki) with added cheese: the bowl was as big as the kimchi fried rice entree!Huge portions! So good with the added cheese! -Gimmari Tempura: My friend was excited that they had this on the menu. She's only had the frozen ones from the grocery store lol. I've never had these before, but it was quite tasty! It came with a side of dipping sauce. We thought we had waited for it to cool, but the inside was still super hot lol. Came with 6 small pieces. - Korean Fried Chicken Wings (8pc): Now when it said party wings and beer underneath the description, I was thinking small wings like Wingstop ya know? It came in a big metal bowl the same size as the spicy rice cakes and kimchi fried rice! I'd say they were much bigger than appetizer style/party wings. It was super crunchy, sticky, sweet, and "spicy" (not really spicy)! It was so good!!! I love KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) and this did not disappoint! There is only one flavor and you can choose no spice, mild, and spicy. Entree - Kimchi Fried Rice w/beef: My friend and I both agreed this had to be one of the best kimchi fried rice we've had! There was so much flavor and texture and you can really taste the kimchi! Sup Again, super big bowl not meant to be eaten alone! So glad we did family style on all these dishes lol. I really like how the dishes came in metal bowls to keep the food warm. Overall, I am super excited to come back again and bring my bf and others! My friend said this was a great spot and that she'll be back again! read more

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Cant give enough praise for this place! Great ambiance! Great food and service! Soooo good! I always take my family or friends visiting there! Cant go wrong! read more

Beef is too sweet. It was like beef candy. The volume was big so it's a good deal but beef is too sweet

Food was pretty good this time and service was good. Prices are not cheap. What irritated me is that their tip suggestions are based on post tax value when I really think it should be the pre-tax value. It just seems greedy and makes me want to tip less. read more

Food: 5/5 Service: 5/5 Ambiance: 4/5 Vibe: - helpful and friendly staff - quiet neighborhood Food: - FILLING - Jhap Chae (5/5) loved the flavors of the sweet potato noodles. Got mine with bulgogi. The combination of flavors will keep u engaged with your meal. Not good to eat if u wanna look cute lol. - get the large beer for $9 read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Jhap Chae - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

Nice place to sit down and eat. I recommend sharing a couple things - serving sizes are fairly big. I always like the soft tofu stew, the jap chae (obvi) and the seafood pancakes. I'd say to only get the seafood pancakes if you're eating at the restaurant, they get soggy real fast but are so good fresh and crispy dipped in the sauce that comes with it! read more

The food was delicious! The service was excellent and we really enjoyed the whole experience. We will be back!

Were starving after enjoying wine country and happy to stop by this place for dinner. I liked that we didnt have to wait for long for them to pull tables together for a party of 9. We were able to order pretty quickly and the food came out quickly as well. It didnt taste super authentic Korean but it was still enjoyable. I liked the dorasot bibimbap and tofu soup along with their tempura. Would recommend this place! read more

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Love it here! Forgot to post review earlier when I came but this was my first dine in experience since COVID began. Great, comfortable atmosphere. Service was quick and pleasant. What I remember most is the food. Delicious, numerous options that I loved. Enjoyed the filling bbq salad, banchan options and shrimp tempura. Nice portions and heavy on the flavor. Definitely one of my top spots for Korean bbq! read more

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The first time I went was OK. But I went back today and the service was truly lacking. Food was tasty enough and the interior is decent, but it didn't seem like the wait staff had their act together. read more

We were trying every restaurant on Solano Avenue and once we found this one, we stopped the search. This has been our go to restaurant since 2014! read more

Super expensive for the quality of food. I was disappointed in the lack of flavor on the beef bulgogi bibimbap. So many Korean spots in the bay, you don't need to spend this much for mediocre. read more

Ok but who knew this place was really good?! I went in not really having much expectations, however, this blew me by surprise. Can I just say that the beef short ribs are amazing! The flavor along with the tenderness from the ribs are sooo delicious. I couldn't stop eating them, and ultimately wanted more. My nephew loved it too, and reached right over and took the last one lol. The sunny side up egg was a nice touch, mixed with white rice. I don't really eat the sides that they bring, but it was nice to have as an option. I would def go back, the service was good and they were quiet busy. However, I do not recommend bringing a toddler. read more

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Really happy with the dining experience here! Reasonable prices and great portion sizes. Every dish came with rice and we got to pick between white rice and mixed grains rice. The soondubu had a generous amount of seafood. The meat in the galbitang was so tender and well flavored. Every dish also featured a different type of vegetable (zucchini, radish, etc.). The soup perhaps had some MSG but that is expected. The fried egg in the bibimbop had perfect consistency, but personally was a huge fan of the sauce. It could also use some more beef. The only thing that was subpar were the sides, which were not extremely fresh or appetizing; even the kimchi tasted funny. Would recommend this place! read more

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The first meal of 2022! My family and I came to Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar for lunch. Although service was a little slow today, the food was delicious, and I'm grateful that they were open on New Years Day. I've only had kimbap once or twice in my life and have wanted to try it again. So for lunch, I ordered the Kimbop with Fish Cake. The kimbap came with eight pieces and was packed with assorted vegetables. The fish cake was light, chewy, and had a nice kimchi flavor. The menu stated it was spicy, but I didn't find it. My family ordered their entrées, and they shared family-style. I had a few bites and found everything fresh and tasty--especially the banchan. Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar is an excellent place to get Korean food that offers a variety of choices. The food is consistent with decent portion sizes, service can be a hit or miss, and parking is street or residential only. It's great that they have multiple sister restaurants around the Bay Area. read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Kimbop with Fish Cake - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

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Its still a great local restaurant. A wide variety of choices and usually busy. I was in the mood for spicy food when I felt a touch of cold weather outside. Nice how the my daughter new this would be a great choice for the foodies in our house. Nice to have another Yelp Elite here visiting. Coming inside, I liked how the place was decorated. Not to busy and no plastic trappings like some restaurants. It was all about the food today. My wife was hangry to get this party started. The water arrived with the waiter and our order was in. It came out fairly fast. I had the bulgogi chap Chae, my wife went safe with the regular bulgogi, and my daughter had the kimbap. We were hungry so we dove in. Three happy faces at the table as we attacked the food. It was delicious. We ate like it was the last meal. And there was some leftovers for everyone. (Me ... lol) read more

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You'll be BOWL'D over by the food at this Korean rice bar! I really tried to stop myself. Bad jokes aside, this review is overdue for a restaurant I love coming to! I came here pre- and during pandemic (can't wait until I can say "post-pandemic...") and I'm happy to say the quality didn't suffer. My favorites here include the Korean fried chicken wings and the Bibimbop. Service is quick, the food is good, and they have two single restrooms (gendered). I was happy to find they had a big changing table in the women's restroom. I do wish they had a little more variety on the banchan but that's just me. This is a solid choice for Korean food in the area! Parking may be a little challenging on solano, but there are plenty of residential streets as well if you don't mind a little bit of a walk. They also have a lot of drink options on their menu I've yet to try. That'll be something to try at my next visit so I can update my review along with my sense of humor. read more

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This place is a staple in the Albany community & been around for some time now. Service has always been decent, some staff friendlier than others. Not as poppin' and crowded as it used to be in the years that it first opened, but still has a strong menu with a variety of great dishes. I most recently tried their rose tteokbokki and it was super flavorful. Can be pretty pricey but the portions are large. read more

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Walked past Bowl'd while getting boba at Nomi Tea and knew I needed to try this place - I DON'T REGRET IT!! Highly recommend! Food - 5/5 - Ordered: Beef (Bulgogi) Dolsot Bibimbop, BBQ Beef Kimbop, Beef Short Rib Stew, Soju Bomb (Bottled Beer & Peach Soju) - I love Korean food & the beef at Bowl'd tastes so good! The Beef Short Rib Stew was my least favorite and was overpriced at $24.99. - Suggestion: save money and order the Soju Bomb deal for $15 (1 soju bottle is $13 alone) Vibe - 5/5 - Great place to have dinner with a friend! Went on a Saturday night, and it was packed - was lucky that there was 1 table ready in the front. - Super clean & great lively atmosphere! Customer Service - 5/5 - The servers were kind when taking our order and were helpful with suggestions (since the Korean beer bottles were out). - They were slow giving the bill (it was super busy so understandable!) read more

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Hands down the BEST Korean spot that I've tried in the bay area! I say this specially because of the variety of vegetarian options that they offer! The taste was just perfectly balanced, not too hot, not too sweet. The sweet & spicy Korean chicken took the cake for me, the sauce was just delectable! The perfect balance of spice, sweet, & tangy! My other personal favorites were the kimchi pancake, which came with a killer dip! And the Ram-don, we ordered it without the beef, and it was delicious, I could not stop eating it! Service: great service! The waiter took our order with so much patience and attended to us with utmost care. 10/10 service! My friends also got the tofu soup bowl with noodles and they really liked it as well - I am blanking on the exact name of that dish. Overall: already planning to go again! read more

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Popped in with some friends on a Saturday evening for some takeout! There weren't too many people eating when we walked in (it was around 5:30pm), but the restaurant definitely felt very warm and welcoming, especially because it was pretty chilly outside! Since the weather called for something hot and comforting, we each decided to order a soft tofu stew (I went with a mild spice level because my spice tolerance is embarrassingly low). Each stew comes with banchan and your choice of white or mixed grain rice. I believe only entrees come with banchan, since one of my friends just decided to order spicy rice cakes with cheese, and it did not come with banchan. We had a little bit of time while waiting for all the orders to be ready, so we decided to visit a boba place down the block, and when we came back, all our orders were piping hot and ready for pickup! The stew came in the standard tall plastic takeout tub, and everything was delicious and perfectly filling. I will note that the firm tofu in the banchan was VERY spicy for me personally, but my friends who had a higher spice tolerance didn't mind the spice level, though they were not the biggest fan of the taste. Overall, I would highly recommend, and I will definitely be back if I am ever in the area!! read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Soft Tofu Stew (w/ seafood), banchan, and mixed grain rice - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

Always love it here. Absolutely LOVE their bibimbap and their unlimited banchan! The street is very cute, I love walking around after read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - unlimited banchan! - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

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I've always seen this place but never stopped in to try it out until I was close by another business shopping. My friend told me that it was good so we went in. It wasn't to busy so we sat down right away. I ordered a appetizer Shrimp Tempura. It wasn't tempura style it was just the regular shrimp breading but they were good. My friend ordered the Spicy Beef stew and I ordered the spicy ramen. The food came out pretty quick. If you order these make sure you wait a few minutes before eating because they're hot temperature wise. My ramen was delicious, great broth, and it was a perfect spice. My friends stew was really good too, the beef was tender and the stew had just the right amount of spice. I'd go back and try other items. read more

Bowl'd Korean Rice Bar - Spicy Ramen - Korean Near Me - Albany, California

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Bowl'd is one of our go-to spots for family dinners in Albany. The Bibimbap is delicious with generous portions, and the purple rice is a nice touch. We also enjoy the variety of banchan that come with each meal. I do miss the myeolchi they used to serve - they were my favorite, and I hope they bring them back. I tried one of their soups once, and it was delicious, but enough to feed four at least. It is usually pretty full with families and the servers are tolerant of kids being kids. They switched the decor up couple of times my favorite was the giant utensils they had on the wall, but that was several years ago. They do use a lot of plastic packaging, which I wish they'd reduce. But overall, the food is great, and we're happy to keep coming back. Good takeout too. read more