Absolutely amazing. The pacing of the meal, food quality, and service was flat out exceptionally.

This place is pretty good! Some of the best, flakiest scallion pancakes I've ever hard in my life. My daughter loved their vegan pho as well. They were very accommodating. The fried rice hit the spot too and it's a big deal to me since I grew up eating it at home. The ambiance was good. Really chill and we got to sit at the window. Only one star off for them not having tofu on Sundays. I'm vegan and tofu is a big source of protein for me. I hope this place lasts and the next time I am in Traverse City, I can get some! read more

We have been coming here for years and always brought visitors, went to celebrate birthdays and special occasions. This place is not the same in several ways. The menu has changed, per the waitstaff and manger, and one of the original owners has left. The fried chicken appetizer is now a glaze instead of the delicious crunchy dry rub and much smaller portions. All the portions were smaller which I could understand, but the quality of the dishes is not even close to the original. The prices have also increased. The waitstaff is still amazing and trying to accommodate, but my first suspicion was being able to get a reservation after 5:00 during the summer. Should have known. read more

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So we have tried this a few times and I have to say the quality has been getting bad each year. Plus this time it was absolutely ridiculous when we ordered the vegan pho and got a meat broth . What's the point of ordering a vegan option if you can't even eat it. So disappointed. read more

The Good Bowl - Tofu pho - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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Went in Sunday night, and it was DimSum. -Pho-Saigon was legit, they did not hat the shrimp spring rolls available. -Spicy pork and shrimp dumplings were good. -Jasmine rice - didn't taste like jasmine rice, just felt like regular long grain rice. -Shumai - pretty bad. Texture felt like grocery frozen, and taste was equally bad. -Bun vermicelli salad was good. -Bun cha was good as well. -boba "bubble tea" do not order - definitely powder mixed in water. Go else wheee for that. Hugely over priced for barely any beverage. Kids didn't even like it. - service was fine, nothing notable. - Ambiance was ok as well. Quiet as it was near closing time. Overall a good little spot if you need a noodle fix, but stick to the Vietnamese traditional items. read more

The Good Bowl - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

We had the Sunday dim sum menu. Food was incredible! And the cocktails are also worth it! Great atmosphere, friendly staff. If you haven't been, you are missing out on one of TC's gems. read more

Had a great experience at the good bowl for lunch today. Really enjoyed my spicy pork bowl. Everything about it was a wonderfully balanced, nice spice and a very generous portion size. The service was fantastic. Never had to wait for a drink to be refilled and the food came out quick. Would definitely go back. read more

The Good Bowl - Spicy pork bowl - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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Delicious every time! We look forward to coming in each Interlochen visit. The cozy atmosphere, attentive staff and authentic food keeps us coming back. read more

Food is great! However your pricing has really gone way up as those are basically street foods, rice and portions at star restaurant cost. Not sure but you might want to lower for the general public. Also your staff never remembers if you've been there or not I've been there and brought friends many times? I like your words of wisdom, but please lower your prices. read more

So much flavor ! Really enjoyed the dinner. Two entrees and a desert. Enjoyed it all.... Will be back read more

Fun festive Vietnamese restaurant. So many good choices on the menu. Our server was helpful and not overbearing. From the Pho to the dumplings we loved it! Nice clean Asian atmosphere read more

The Good Bowl - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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Small restaurant in downtown traverse city. I was expecting better quality of foods but I wasn't impressed much. portion size was pretty small. But I understand that everything is expensive in tourist area. I usually don't drink broth of noodles but it's because food portion was small , I had to drink them to fill me up. Taste wasn't bad but nothing special about. Steamed shrimp dumpling looked like something you can buy at Asian store. At first glance ,the menu looked like some kind of symbols on paper with minimal explanation about dishes they serve. It was a bit confusing to me. I thought it was little unusual design of menu. Server was friendly but never came to refill our drinks. I've dined at many Asian restaurants so I just had a high expectation. read more

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Sunday is dumpling day! We had dim sum, green onion pancake, brussel sprouts, mushroom banh mi, beef pho, pork and shrimp roll, all was excellent! Well prepared, served quickly and with a smile. Ambiance was laid back and easy going. Great place! read more

I am here for dinner on a trip to Traverse City split in order of Brussel sprouts and each ordered an entrée. I have the braised ribs and my wife had garlic noodles. The ribs were excellent as brussels sprouts. The garlic noodles were meh. Service was OK, but not what I would describe as Midwest friendly. I suspect we would go back, however we would order differently. It is a bit pricey for the Vietnamese food with the restaurant. read more

We happened upon this restaurant on a Monday when most local restaurants are closed in the winter. I had heard great things about the Good Bowl and was happy to try it, and even happier when I got there and found that it was Dim Sum day! (Saturday and Sunday) I loved a dim sum restaurant in Chinatown in NYC, and despite not having the dim sum cart, the menu was extensive, the food was delicious, and the cocktails were imaginative and also delicious! The service was quick and attentive. The atmosphere was cozy. We have returned a couple of times and love this place! read more

Food was delicious, everything else was down hill from there! Service was suspect! If you had a reservation they were attentive if not well you were kind of on your own! read more

I ordered a Chicken Bamn Mi for pickup on my way back to my hotel room from the hospital It was ready at the time they said it would be and was very tasty. I want to go back for a sit-down meal, maybe some fresh spring rolls and Pho Tai read more

The Good Bowl - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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Have been going to Good Bowl for years. The food is great and the service has typically been good. Our most recent visit, however, we carried out and they forgot an item we ordered (spring rolls). Having noticed only when I got home, I called the store and left a message about the omission. When I got an email survey I filled it out and mentioned the missing spring rolls. No call back or any acknowledgment of their error. So, if you carry out, check the order before you leave! read more

We actually planned to eat at a different restaurant on Front Street. But it was Sunday evening and a few restaurants were closed. We found this place towards the end of the strip. So glad we decided to keep walking! Upon entry, you order at the counter first then find a table. A server brings out your food to you. We ordered the papaya salad, brisket pho, and chicken wings. The salad was so refreshing! The wings were super crispy. The pho broth was very flavorful and it had lots of meat. Cool vibe and decor - bicycle hanging from the ceiling, bar that seats about 8, several table tops, chalk board hanging on brick walls... They donate a part of their proceeds to charity! read more

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They serve up some darn tasty Vietnamese food here -- I'd particularly endorse the crispy cod, the crispy ribs, the gai lan, and either the spring or summer rolls -- but I'm sure there is much more here. The flavors are lively, balanced, and satisfying -- even after a 15 minute drive home in a sack full of takeout boxes. One of my better Traverse City meals this year. read more

This was a wonderful lunch stop. The service was pleasant and food was good and to top it off $1 is donated for each new customer. I had the pho Saigon and it was very good. I was able to sit at a bar along the windows and people watch while I ate. It was probably a little uncomfortable for the people eating right outside but oh well. If I was in town for more than a day I would stop again. read more

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The food at the Good Bowl is just fantastic and fresh Vietnamese. We always look forward to it! The problem is that almost every time we have visited - maybe 10 times more so- the service has been slow to the point of staff apologies and comped items. We want the restaurant to be here and we want it to succeed. But we hesitate to recommend it and will only come again when we have an abundance of time and patience. read more

We had high hopes. It was a total let down. As the more recent reviews indicated, we wanted to love them but we couldn't even like them. The online menu was outdated with no beef at all and the summer rolls are vegetable or tofu (no shrimp). It's at the end of the main strip so there's no parking. We paid for a local inexpensive parking lot. We had a wait an hour to just get the food and it was soooo sub-par. First, understand that you need to wait in line and then order at the counter (there is not real table service). You can apparently order to go on the phone (if only we'd realized that). There was very little rice and noodles (the cheapest part of the meal, as another reviewer points out) - so sparse that we were all very hungry after eating. So once you get past the skimpy serving of starch, let's get to the "meat" of things. The summer rolls were gross with tofu (look at the photos - that yellow striped item is the tofu not grilled zucchini and it tastes about what it looks like). We wanted shrimp in the summer rolls (it's even listed on their website) but they told us the menu was outdated and our choices were vegetable or tofu. If you ran out of shrimp then just say that! The well-reviewed ribs and shrimp were so heavy and gross that I didn't eat the rest. There were 6-7 ribs and they were tender but not crispy. The ribs were covered in some goopy BBQ sauce that is unforgivable. At $17 for the salt and pepper shrimp (also kind of unhealthy whether deep fried of pan fried) for 5 "large" shrimp - ok, so that's 5 shrimp so that's $3.40 per shrimp with a less than a cup of cooked rice. Given this poor quality of food, wait time and difficulty to pick up, I can't believe the restaurant will stay in business long. They're riding their old good reviews. If you want really good Vietnamese food for a great price but do not expect ambience, go to TC Vietnamese which is an 8 minute drive away. read more

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The restaurant gives some of their profit to charities. I always appreciate when businesses do that. The staff was great. We commented on how the dividers between tables adds a more private feel otherwise it would feel like a diner style. They might have been put up for covid but I think they should stay. Thai tea with boba was refreshing. Summer rolls had a lot of cilantro and greens. But shrimp was excellent. We didn't like the dumplings , the meat and the flavoring was off to us, but I'm not sure if that is our palettes or something about them that needs to be tweaked in the recipe. My friend got the salt and pepper shrimp I would go back just for that, it looked amazing. read more

The Good Bowl - A stir fry with brisket and shittake mushrooms very delicious. - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

It's one of those places where you order at the counter, get a number to put at your table, then they bring your food out when it's ready. We ordered the pho and tofu bun. The pho broth had good flavor but there wasn't much meat or noodles. The bun was only okay because it didn't have enough flavor. read more

The Good Bowl - Pho - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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The place was already packed when we came in, and for that brief moment they were a bit understaffed. The waitress who takes orders was stuck making some of their fancy beverages, and the line was being held up. They are an order at the counter and sit down with a number place, so this was not good. However, she made it back before things really started piling up. But by then, most of the seats in the place had been taken. So when it was our turn, we were lucky enough to get just about the last three seats. If not, it looked like she was going to turn down taking eat-in orders for a few minutes, until someone departed. Kind of a tough model to run by, but I guess it works if the food is good and people will wait for it. Not a ton of seating so I can see this problem happening frequently. Maybe that's why there were so many people coming in for take-out lunch orders too. We got our order in promptly. They have a pretty straightforward simple menu with not too many choices, which makes everything easy. Mostly Pho, some other vietnamese classics, and banh mi, and a selection of appetizers. I ordered summer rolls with shrimp and a kaffir lime chicken banh mi sandwich. Two rolls came on the summer rolls plate. They were huge, with a quarter slice of a cucumber, shrimp, lettuce, cilantro and basil. Cucumber was a little awkward to bite through, maybe a finer cut on that would have been easier to eat. Very generous portion, but they were definitely lacking in the herb department (cilantro and thai basil) which is what I really want to enjoy when I eat a summer roll. The peanut sauce was good but I've had better; looked just squeezed out of a bottle maybe, only flavor of really smooth peanut butter. I like mine with some coconut milk, some heat, and maybe some curry/lime juice/sweet in the background. Definitely one-dimensional and too "lab-flavored" as like to say, it just didn't feel that home made, half a point off for that. The banh mi sandwich was great. Deliciously grilled chicken with powerful kaffir lime flavor, great aioli, julienned carrot and daikon, on a soft roll. I was hoping for maybe a more baguette-experience, but the roll was it. The Pho bowls were huge and filled with steaming broth, meat, whatever you want. Overall, a good dining experience and I would go back. read more

The pho was not authentic enough.. came in a very small bowl with a big price for it and then you had to ask for all the sauce and vegetables, meat etc... I was not impressed!! Would had preferred to have gone to a real Vietnamese restaurant!!!! read more

been here several times and it never disappoints! Charming small restaurant with kind staff, quick service, and great food! Both Sunday dim sum and the regular menu offer a wide range of options and everything is delicious. Great vegetarian options as well. Highly recommend! read more

We wanted Vietnamese pho and try it. Not Vietnamese pho we had many places we went. And don't know if they understand Vietnamese food.

The bubble tea here is decent, though not extraordinary. The drink was a bit too sweet for my taste, and the wait time was longer than expected. Service was friendly enough, but overall it felt just average. read more

Food was just ok. Lacked seasoning. Pho was served with everything already in the bowl rather than fresh veggies on the side which is customary. Took most of it with us so I can fix something out if it at our place. I had several bad pieces of lettuce in my salad and asked for something else because I was sick of picking them out. I was made to feel like it was me who did not like the greens, rather than acknowledgement that there on my napkin was a pile of way past wilted discards I pulled out. Ditto the bib lettuce in the spring roll plate- rotted edges. Spring rolls were again, meh. Tofu had an odd taste. Maybe from the grill No point going back. read more

Highly recommend The Good Bowl. We were deciding between here and another local Vietnamese restaurant. Tried here bc it has kids options. Our 6 year old loved the noodle bowl. He is typically very picky. I also had the Bun bowl and the ribs we shared. Oh my! The ribs were incredible. Some of the best I've ever had! Ever. My husband had the special which was spicy. A good spicy. My oldest had a rice bowl. He enjoyed the egg on top! Staff was very friendly and the restaurant donated towards a charity of our choice. To date they've contributed $144,351! We are just traveling through but would come back here in a heart beat! Thanks Good Bowl. Keep doing what you are doing! read more

The Good Bowl - Ribs - Vietnamese Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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our party of 5 ate dinner here for the first time tonight. delicious food with good range of options. we especially the ribs, brussels sprouts, and vegetarian spring rolls! We will be back. read more

Great food with a relaxed atmosphere. The food doesn't always look super flavorful, but it IS! Family friendly and nice service! read more

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Vibes were great Serves great Mushrooms hitting Cocktails hitting But wats with the bike over the window? It was all we talked about on our walk home read more

We were pleasantly surprised to find they were serving dim sum at lunchtime on a Monday, so we really lucked out. We got to try a bunch of different dishes and they were all delicious. Plus cocktails and bubble tea at reasonable prices and very nice service. Highly recommend! read more

Walk in to order or get a table. Small dine in area, but they do text the wait list. We stopped in 5:30pm on a Wednesday. Waited 15 minutes for a table and rather long for our food. Order at the counter, water self serve, food brought to table. Dumplings tasted good but not warm? Salt and pepper shrimp were delicious, rice was sweet, side of veg was very spicy. Beef stir fry was good but covered in cilantro (not expecting or didn't read well) and my niece has that issue where it tastes like soap. Sam portions for the price. Great location. Friendly service. read more

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I'm a pho-natic, having grown up with the stuff, so I'm always on the hunt for That Superior Bowl. We had a lovely dinner, with great service and a pleasant atmosphere. I think this outweighed the fact that the food ranged from mediocre (dumplings) to good, but The brussels sprouts, which seem to be on every menu in the entire county, were great. They come with a sort of nước chấm dipping sauce at the bottom of the bowl, meaning that you can enjoy as much or as little as you want if that's not your jam. But the pho saigon was just sort of whatever. While some spots will place too much emphasis on the noodles (like the entire bottom half of the bowl is noodles), I tend to think that this is better than not having enough noodles. Volume of ingredients was overall good, and their setup also provides all of the ingredients already in the bowl (as opposed to brought out separately). I'd go back and try maybe the wings and the cauliflower on the starters menu, or possibly the banh mi. The Vietnamese ribs look amazing but they seem like an involved affair. Again, it's hard for me to give less than four stars for a dining experience that was, overall, an entirely pleasant evening-- even if the food wasn't all stellar. read more

Last month I reviewed the Little Fleet in Traverse City, MI. At that visit I opted for Vietnamese street food from the aptly-named "Good on Wheels " food truck. In speaking with the friendly person who took my order, I learned that the owner of the truck also owned a restaurant about a block down the street called The Good Bowl. Now, on my next visit back, I had to try it, and my daughter and I went for a late lunch/early dinner. The place seems very popular, as it was almost full at about 2:30-3:00 on a Wednesday afternoon. We started out by sharing the Crispy Brussels Sprouts ($11.00). They were nicely fried with shallots and tossed in nước chấm (a Vietnamese dipping sauce made from a base of fish sauce with garlic and chile - not fishy, think instead of semi-sweet with a little kick), then topped with scallions. The serving was plenty to share. A very tasty dish! My daughter opted for the Bun Xao with beef, which is a stir-fry of shredded beef ribeye over a bed of fresh rice noodles, lettuce, cilantro, seasonal greens, ginger, daikon (winter radish), scallions, nước chấm, and peanuts ($16.00). I tasted it and the beef was very tender and flavorful and the ingredients blended well. I had the Vietnamese Crispy Fried Pork Ribs, which were 7 ribs served with jasmine rice, peanuts, thai chilis, fried shallots, fresh Vietnamese herbs and side of nước chấm ($18.00). The ribs were meaty and tender, but not fatty, and the flavor was excellent. As far as drinks, they do serve cocktails, as well as wine, asian and local craft beer, and cider. I opted, however, for the thai black iced tea blended with asian coconut milk, boba & sweetened condensed milk and my daughter had one of their locally-sourced sodas. The service there was prompt and friendly. I should also note that they dedicate $1.00 from every entree to charity (you choose the charity off of a list they have). Overall, it was a great experience and I can't wait to get back there to try one of the other good-looking entrées! read more

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Was pleasantly surprised to find Vietnamese food place in Traverse City. Came here with family and got the pho, summer roll, rice bowl, and bubble teas. Pleasant service and satisfying food! The bubble tea comes as Assam Black vs Jasmine Green, to which you can add various flavors (somewhat reminiscent of Quickly or Tpumps) and toppings. Portion size is reasonable for code and taste will sate the palate for Vietnamese-food cravings. read more