Bowl’d Korean Rice Bar

Absolutely delicious! Better than expected! Menu was a little confusing but if that’s the worst part… WINNING!!!

I love this place! I try to go every time I’m in the area. The seafood tofu stew, beef spare ribs, glazed potatoes, and chicken wings are my fave! The barley tea is pretty good too.

Good experience but food is mediocre. It gets really busy here. They have good service but food wasn’t all that. However, the glazed potatoes is good much more of a dessert. The icy slushed is too sweet.

Bowl’d wings. YUM. To be honest, I haven’t tried much else here other than the wings and the jap chae fried rice. Both are my go-​to when I’m craving Korean food to-​go in Berkeley. I’m hoping to try other dishes if I eat at the restaurant but then again, why fix what ain’t broke? I’ll probably order the same thing even if I eat there.
A little bit on the pricey side, but portion sizes are pretty large.

I happened to be in the area with my sisters and we were starving with a hankering for Korean food. And Bowl’d was close to where we were. I think we happened to have stopped in after the Berkeley Graduation cause it was busy, and there was a large group in front of us.
We stood in the entrance until someone else came in and signed in, which is something we didn’t know we had to to. We waited for 10 minutes and got our table.
I think our eyes were bigger than our stomachs, like most Korean food, its served family style so the portions are pretty big. I ended up with Kimchi Fried Rice with Beef and my sisters got the items from the BBQ menu, pork and chicken. We also got the veggie pancake and the kimbop with bbq chicken.
The friend rice was red, spicy and delicious. It came with a egg on top that I mixed in. It had a lil bit of a sweet taste and the bbq beef just added the tastiness of it all.
The pancake and kimbop were much better than anything i’ve made and my picky lil sister liked all the food, which was a first. With the BBQ’d items, we got banchan, which were a nice selection.
I think the staff were friendly despite the number of people, which is always a good sign.
And with the check they gave us dum-​dum, woot!
I noticed on the way out that they had SAMANCO!!! my fave ice cream, along with some other Korean ice cream selections, which I thought was pretty awesome.

LOVE LOVE LOVE Bowl’d BBQ! This is my first thought when I think dinner in Oakland. The food is hot, delicious, priced right, and you always have leftovers!
I normally get the sizzling bowl with either chicken or steak. I mix it and use the sweet sauce and the hot sauce to flavor my bowl. I am very sensitive to heat so many times I have to wait patiently to let it cool but I just can’t and end up burning my tongue but I don’t care! It’s worth it
I always order the know de dish for my LO. She loves the rice and strawberry. She eats a good portion of it. We also always have to get the chicken — mixed! I love the thick coating and for $ 16 you get a huge portion.
If you are new to Korean food then this is a great starter place. My hub isn’t a big fan of Korean food but he likes this place.
Also their soups are so good! I love the curry base. That’s one of my favs! Everything and Bowl’d is yummy. Give it a try if you can and promise you’ll be back!

In my opinion, this place is better than SPOON. Entrees-​wise, but not sides wise. I was hoping they would have fish cakes as a side in their bonchon, but nope. Oh well. However, the seaweed and pickled radish were good. The kimchi pancake was really good. The kimchi wasn’t empowering. The seafood soft tofu soup is a must get because that broth is going to be so flavorful, it’ll be good with mixed rice. The korean fried chicken is also a must get; if you can’t handle spicy, make sure to get mild because mild is still going to be slightly spicy, but not so much. It depends on your tolerance. The job’s tear was different from what I imagined from tea. It was like an oatmeal porridge that was slightly sweet and not salty. Soo good! AND OMG, don’t get me started on the short ribs. … TENDER and well-​marinated.

Was trying to get some jjajangmyun but all the places that serves the dish were closed last night. We decided to check out bowl’d instead and not the Alameda one (they had no hostess and everyone was just waiting around with no sign up list. When she did come, we lost our spot in line) but, the solano one.
We ordered the bulgogi dolsot bibimbap, chicken wings, kalbi, seafood soondooboo jigae and kimchi bokkeumbap. I must say the chicken wings were the highlight of our meal with the perfectly battered crispy chicken; it’s a definitely must have. The dolsot bibimbap was pretty good but the stone pot wasn’t as hot so i didn’t get the crispy cooked rice on the sides just the bottom but, the favor was good and was just missing seaweed. The soondooboo jigae was decent enough but, nothing to write home about. The kalbi and kimchi bokkeumbap were good.
Id come to this location over the alameda one as the prices are a dollar or two cheaper and they are open late. The servers were very friend and attentive they also speak both korean and english. Really liked my experience here and will definitely come back to try their other dishes. Maybe ill give the berkeley one a go.

I love this place! Wonderful open space with generally friendly & attentive waitstaff. Only down side is it is usually super crowded so you may have to wait a bit but it is well worth the wait.
Personal favorites are the vegetable shoestrings, kimbob, beef dumplings (mondoo), chicken wings, & the kimchi fried rice with bacon.

Coming here was unplanned as a nearby restaurant happened to be closed on the day we were heading there.
It’s been a very difficult task finding a decent Korean place north of the South Bay, but it looks like Bowl’d is a good contender even though their food is made a bit for the American palette. It is not quite fusion but yet it’s somewhere in between authentic and Americanized.
I ordered the spicy seafood and beef soon tofu with added rice cakes and multigrain rice and while everything was pretty tasty, I did not find I spicy as all. They do pack a ton of seafood in there, I found some big scallops in there as well as plenty of calamari and meat. The bf ordered their spicy pork that comes with the lettuce wrap, which was a bit disappointing as it was probably the smallest set of cabbage I’ve ever seen in my life to wrap the meat. They gave this delicious bean curd paste that goes with the wraps that I ended up stealing from him and ate it with my rice. We also had a bit of the seafood pancake and dumplings which was nothing special. Service was fine as they gave us what we needed when retested.
At the end, we were given random dum dums lollipops and two yakult, which doesn’t make any sense as we had 6 adults and 2 kids, one being a baby, so I’m sure one of the yakult wasn’t meant for her. Overall, very tasty entrees that lacked a bit of the Korean spice I am used to.

My one night out on the town solo brought me here to Bowld on a recommendation from my homie JC. He promised plenty of good food, and at 8pm-​ish on a Sunday night they were reasonably packed! Obviously not disappointing :)
I was surprised at the amount of banchan placed before me – having ordered the Sizzling Works Bibimbap (with spicy pork and white rice), I wasn’t expecting the whole shabang. But there it was, and very satisfying to boot!
We also opted for a bottle of fresh soju and some Hite.
I’m super grateful that we had an extremely awesome service experience, unlike some others who have reviewed previously. We were very well taken care of, and on the way out they made sure to ask how everything was.
The food: could have used a bit more spice, but that’s just me. It was fresh and lovely and delicious and HOLY MOLY was there a lot of it :)
Great value, friendly folks, a beautiful restaurant overall. I can see why this is popular!

Came here on a Sunday night with a party of 6 and had to wait about 15 minutes for a table. There was not a lot of space for people to sit while waiting so chances are if you come with a big group or if there are a lot on the wait list then you’ll end up waiting outside.
The menu was surprisingly big and has basically all types of Korean food from BBQ, Tofu soup, and even a build your own bibimbap (rice bowl). The menu also shows how to pronounce some of the Korean food and how to eat bibimbap which I thought was pretty neat and informative.
Service was good, our waiter took our order promptly after we sat down, food came in about the same time we had to wait to be seated. The ambience is very nice as its not immensely bright and not too dim.
I ordered the build your own bibimbap and it was about $ 14 which seems a little more pricey than usual. The flavors are there and all over the place. I was struggling to figure out where all these flavors were coming from, but overall it was good. I had some of my friend’s kimchi fried rice and I would definitely recommend getting that instead. The kimchi fried rice was rich in flavor and had a good amount of kick to it.
Parking can get a little difficult, so remember to check the residential areas for parking. I really enjoyed the ambience and would come back here again to try something else.

I had a pretty bad experience the first time I came here a year ago and never came back but I was in the mood for Korean and thought I’d give this place a try. Came at a weird hour and there was nobody there. You would think that the service would be spot on but it wasn’t. Had to wave down our waiters for every single thing while they were busy folding napkins/​utensils tables and tables away. They didn’t check up on us at all which was really disappointing and reminiscent of my last time here.
Aside from that, food was great. Tried their bbq plate and got the spicy pork belly which comes with banchan, side of rice, side soup, cabbage and some sauce for the cabbage. Also got the seafood pancake which I highly recommend. Food was solid. Banchan was solid. My bf and I were stuffed and were able to take leftovers home.
I hate leaving a tip for people who didn’t service me at all but that’s what you’re supposed to do around here… I’m not sure if I’ll come by again. I’ll drive the extra 15 mins or so and go to the other Bowl’d in Oakland where the service is better even though the food is pricier.

You can get basically all kinds of Korean food here! I really like their BBQ flatfish, which is really soft. And the tofu soups are good as well. I’m also favor of their self-​made sizzling stone bowl. You can choose either to have the stone bowl or regular bowl, and also the protein (beef/​salmon/​pork/​rib/​spicy pork belly, etc). You can have white or mixed grain rice as well. Most dishes come with a bowl of rice (white or mixed grain).
And ask them for more side dishes if you want more!
They gave you lollipop when check out :)

I am sowl’d for Bowld ! Ha, get it? :)
I’ve come here since it first opened a few years and it has been consistently good with fantastic service !
From the tofu soup, chicken wings, bibimbap, and their jap chae, Ive tried an assortment of their menu and it has always been good !
This time around though, I did think the tofu soup was sort of too salty for my liking (got the beef & seafood), which can definitely be balanced out by eating rice (nice that you have the option of getting either white or their mixed option).
I also thought the renown delicious, crunchy chicken wings were too saucey for my tastebuds … But again can be balanced out with rice, but you’d have to order it separately. Still a definite must try appetizer though !
Their additional little assortment of side dishes always excite me although I noticed this time around they didnt have their DELICIOUS HONEY GLAZED CRUNCHY potatoes … But maybe that’s because I noticed it was added as an appetizer ??
Anyway ! Good restaurant to get some yummy Korean food in ya belly. Bit pricey in my opinion, but most Korean restaurants are :(

A solid 4.5 stars (but I round up because I’m hella friendly like that)
We came here for dinner on a Wednesday night. When we got there, it wasn’t too busy (which changed when we finished dinner, as there was a queue forming at the front). We were seated promptly. The place was very tidy and bright.
We ordered from the ‘over the grill’ section which is your choice of meat + rice (purple or white) + soup (just a simple radish soup) + bonchon + ssam (boiled cabbage and bean sauce)… all for $ 16 (if you order the galbi, it will be +$ 3) which is really not a bad deal. Normally for dinner, you end up paying closer to $ 20+ for an entrée. We ended up ordering the unmarinated pork belly. We also ordered a kimchi pancake and the famous deep fried potatoes.
The bonchon does not come out until the rest of your food comes out (like the main entrée), which is kind of annoying. But, this is nitpicking. Just be warned if you came in starving like I did. Kimchi pancake came out first. Was delicious — was craving it for a full 24 hours afterwards. When the pork belly did come out, they didn’t bring any sauces. That’s fine, because upon request, they provided the salt+sesame oil. Personally not a fan of the ssam because I prefer having that crunchy fresh lettuce contrast with the chewiness of the meat.
Deep fried potatoes take an extra fifteen minutes so they came out last. We were both super full by the end of the meal, that we could only eat a few. It comes in a pretty huge bowl. The breading is delicious and the sauce is delicious. It comes with tongs so you can flip the potatoes to evenly coat them in the sauce that sits at the bottom. Of course, we couldn’t finish it so we got a box to go. The coolest part is that they SEAL it. Its pretty freaking legit. First time I’ve seen that and I am a fan.
Total bill in the end came out to around $ 30 + tip.
TL, DR: highly satisfied, would come back again.

Bowl’d has quickly become a Solano staple, serving up hot and spicy Korean soup and steamy rice dishes. This definitely feels like the Korean comfort food you’re craving when it’s cold outside or you’re under the weather.
My two friends and I decided to go family style so we could try more dishes. The first thing they offer you is iced water or hot tea. Get both! I love their tea. It’s extremely earthy and delicious. We also got a carafe of mango soju. It was odd that we tried to order the yogurt/​kefir soju, but the waitress recommended against it. Yogurt soju is one of my faves, so I was a little disappointed, but took her recommendation. The mango soju was okay. It tasted like mango crush soda mixed with soju. I’d rather have the yogurt soju I’m familiar with any day.
Appetizer: Seafood pancake
This had good flavor. Lots of octopus chunks and scallions. The edges were the favorite with the most crispy area. Next time I think I’ll try the kimchee pancake. This was good, but lots of octopus.
Entrees:
Curry Ramen: probably the only dish I wouldn’t order again. It was so spicy. The noodles were fine, but I prefer mine a little more al dente. They were chewy and soft. One of my friend’s did enjoy it a lot.
Kimchee fried rice: Took home the prize for dinner last night. Delicious and served with a fried egg on top. Yum! Perfectly spicy without being too spicy that you can’t taste anything.
We ordered ours with beef. Definitely recommend ordering this!
Sizzling bibimbap with mixed grains and bulgogi:
This was definitely the lightest and healthiest dish we ordered. Loaded up with daikon, cucumbers, carrots and other vegetables. I like the mixed grains a lot (purple grain rice). Chewier and nuttier and way healthier than white rice. I like to throw in all the banchan (sides) and mix it up. Not sure if that’s how you’re suppose to eat it, but it’s tasty and adds some heat. This was also great mixed with the spicy kimchee fried rice since it has no heat. Also, let the rice sit in the sizzling stone bowl for a while. It makes the rice touching the bowl nice and crispy!
Bonus points: Kimchee and fermented foods packs lots of probiotics!

I am so passionate about this restaurant. I am Korean and grew up eating Korean food.
This is the place I go to eat Korean food before a long journey where I know I won’t be eating Korean food for awhile.
This is the place I take my non-​Korean friends who have little to no experience with Korean food.
This is the place I take my Korean family if we are in the area craving Korean food.
I am never one to order kalbi out at a restaurant because homemade kalbi is the best and restaurant kalbi is usually overpriced and not worth it. Not so here. I totally recommend these BBQ short ribs! I also recommend the spicy BBQ pork. The BBQ chicken is pretty good as well.
The seafood pancake has generous helpings of seafood. The bacon kimchi fried rice is a little sweet and too oily for my taste, but it is still tasty.
Soup-​wise, the samgyetang (stuffed ginseng chicken stew) is actually really good. The soft tofu soup is pretty good as well. Pyeongchang soondubu on Kimchi Row in Oakland is the best, but I don’t discourage people from ordering this from Bowl’d.
Based on the banchan they serve, I would say anything that you order at Bowl’d will likely be good, if not great. It’s pretty authentic and I love the interior décor.
Parking can be a little tough, but there are usually spots in the residential areas as well. I highly encourage Korean food novices and veterans alike to try this place out. Also, even on the busy days, the wait is not too bad (maybe 20 mins max).

After being stuck on the freeway for over 10 hours due to a mudslide, and walking the thin line between hanger and just complete belligerence, this place was a life saver. We got there when they were just about to close and they almost turned us away, but thankfully they seated us and served us up some delicious bowls in no time.
To be honest, I was so hungry and in such a bad mood that I can’t remember the details. What I do remember though was that the food hit the spot harder than you could imagine. The service was fast and efficient at getting much needed food into my grumbling stomach!

So spacious and clean! The service is great as well.
Order the dolsot bibimbap with mixed grain rice.