Cancel

Open app

Search

Rice Bowl Cafe

3.9 (817 reviews)
ModerateChinese, Taiwanese
Closed Closed
Updated over 3 months ago

Order Rice Bowl Cafe Takeout or Delivery

Rice Bowl Cafe Photos

Business Info

RICE BOWL CAFE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Moderate noise
Good for kids
Outdoor seating

You might also consider

Recommended Reviews - Rice Bowl Cafe

Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
Yelp app icon
Browse more easily on the app
Review Feed Illustration

Reviews With Photos

Dolly N.

How nostalgic! This was my college go-to spot for me and my friends for Taiwanese food and it honestly still lives up to what I remember. Decently sized portions and delightfully flavored. Beef rolls were as good as I remembered--paired with chili oil is a must. Their mapo tofu is a good introduction to anyone who hasn't had it before. Delicate and flavorful--tons of meat! The salt and pepper chicken was my favorite of the night. The service is crazy fast and efficient. It was as friendly as any Asian-owned restaurant can ever be. I felt like we were checked on pretty often. I hope more folks will give this place more love. I remember when this place was packed to the brim but their service/food still makes this for a wonderful dinner

Black bean chicken with egg roll. Very tasty.
Mark F.

The thing that keeps us coming back to the rice bowl is not only the quality of food but it's the quantity. Even the lunch special which I had today, the black bean chicken, is enough food to either share or take home to enjoy as another meal. With the lunch special you also get a fried egg roll and a soup of your choice. My only slight disappointment today was at the egg roll. Seemed a little bit chewier rather than crispier which wasn't as appealing to the palate. The other minor issue was the egg drop soup wasn't its normal goodness. Tasted a little flat. Maybe a little bland even. But still, the deal that you get for the lunch special with the amount of food is hard to beat.

Delicious sesame chicken with great flavor, and the white rice was excellent. Highly recommend!
Brianna H.

Delicious sesame chicken with great flavor, and the white rice was excellent. Highly recommend!

Appetizer
Jessica N.

Okay first of all, the beef rolls were so delightful! Hands down, would come back just to eat those again. The service was friendly and we were quick to get our food! The S&P tofu was more salty than peppery, but it had a good crisp to it which i appreciated

The chicken and broccoli was great! I'm impressed with the carrots and the scalloped edges. It was enough food for a few days to be honest.

Salt & Pepper Fish
Jose M.

This place serves up some of the most amazing food. Family always is very friendly and welcoming. I've had takeout once a month from this place. And when family comes into town, I usually suggest this place.

Beef rolls

See all

4 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 0

28 days ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 1

8 days ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

8 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

6 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

6 months ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

6 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

The Combination Lo Mein & The Combination Fried Rice was extremely flavorful. Decent portions for the price.

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Andy
0
30
16

2 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 1
Photo of L. G.
4
11
13

6 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Ian M.
0
19
7

3 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

6 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 1

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 1

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 4
Thanks 1
Love this 2
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 4
Oh no 1

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

10 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of F L.
3
59
14

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

Page 1 of 21

Rice Bowl Cafe Reviews in Other Languages

Ask the Community - Rice Bowl Cafe

What is the untranslated name of your pork feet noodle soup? The only picture of it on the menu has glare blocking the characters.

It should be 豬腳麵

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

You might also consider

Verify this business for free

People searched for Chinese 13,863 times last month within 15 miles of this business.

Verify this business

CoCo's Cafe

CoCo's Cafe

3.9
(642 reviews)
2.2 mi
$$

The drink offerings are INSANELY awesome! Pengu smoothie is…read morethe stuff dreams are made of. It's got marshmallows, coconut, strawberry and more. Looks like a fluffy cotton candy cloud and tastes like perfection. Love the pot stickers and green onion pie. Buns with condensed milk are another lovely little treat. Steamed dumplings-yes, please. Lo mein is fantastic! There are bountiful drink choices from slushies to teas and milks. Like so many incredible offerings...hard to make a choice. Hands down one of my fave places.

I love a good Boba drink, and this is the place I will always come for one. A friend introduced me…read moreto this wonderful shop. So, I was telling a friend I was looking for a very good Boba place. She suggested CoCo's, and I got the directions. Imagine my surprise, it was next door to a place I go to regularly. I wondered why I hadn't seen this cafe before. The inside was so cute, it had a playful side and a lounge nighttime side, if that makes sense. I can see being here at night. I bet this place is very busy at night. It actually was busy when I was there. I tried to take my pictures away from people. I ordered the Honeydew Smoothie with the Tapioca Pearls. I have to say those pearls stood out. I never had pearls taste so good; they were so tasty and chewy. I was actually stirring my straw, moving the pearls around to get a lot of them at once to come through the straw. Now, granted, on its own, the pearls were coming through, but I think I got a little greedy. I also noticed there are food items on the menu. I saw more than a few entrees I like, and some I want to try. I want to dry the Rice Ball, Fried Tofu with Peanut Sauce, and more. There's so much here to try, and I can't wait. The question is, how did I not know about CoCo's?!

Photos
CoCo's Cafe
Peppercorn chicken
Peppercorn chicken
Taro Smoothie with pearls

See all

Taro Smoothie with pearls
Noodle Alley

Noodle Alley

4.3
(334 reviews)
12.9 mi
$$

I've gotten the Red Braised Beef Short Rib Noodle twice now for take out. The meat is tasty and…read moretender. I will say they used spinach instead of bok choy for the vegetable but I was ok with that. The service is super fast, too. They provide a spicy chili sauce and vinegary soy sauce if you need an extra kick of spice or flavor.

We've been here in the past and knew more or less what to expect. There was no line when we went on…read morea Tuesday at 5pm. Ordering was easy and straightforward. It looked like they expanded their menu since the last time we ate here. We opted for a Shoyu Beef Ramen Soup and a Hot Pot Beef Noodle Soup. We grabbed our water cups and a carafe filled with iced water from their beverage fridge, and chose our table to sit at. We chose a location away from the front entrance, which faces west towards the sun. Our food was quickly brought out to us less than 5 minutes later, and our soups were very good. They have a very spicy broth for their Hot Pot Noodle Soup, which P2 really enjoyed. I was also happy with my shoyu ramen, which I thought was seasoned perfectly. The music here wasn't loud and it was easy to carry a conversation. The interior aesthetics of this place reminded me of a Japanese restaurant, despite this restaurant servicing Taiwanese fare. Unfortunately, they don't sell alcohol here. I would have loved to drink a beer here with its solid vibes. I took off a star because of the blinding sunlight that pours into the space. Each time we came, we had to be strategic on where we sat so that we or our friends didn't have to face the sun. But other than that, Noodly Alley continues to be a reliable choice for authentic Taiwanese food.

Photos
Noodle Alley
Red braised beef short rib noodle
Red braised beef short rib noodle
Hot Pot Beef Noodle Soup *

See all

Hot Pot Beef Noodle Soup *
Dumpling World

Dumpling World

4.3
(255 reviews)
5.4 mi
$$

Having grown up in a household where dumpling making and preparation were treated as a meditation…read moreon perfection, I've been incredibly pleased to see Austin seriously upping its dumpling game. While I've yet to find a Korean joint with a proper Korean mandoo on offer, Chinese varieties are thriving with the likes of Julie's Noodles, Steamies, Lin's and, the subject of my review, Dumpling World. Definitely don't expect ambiance here. After suffering the Triangle's persistent lack of parking, you'll walk into this place and find a really spare, almost utilitarian set up that screams "we mean business." They definitely mean business. I've probably been here a good 5-6 times, and have tried almost everything on the menu. Soup dumplings shine -- my daughter refuses to eat them anywhere else -- and their recently introduced thumb buns, which I think are fried mini soup dumplings, just ooze flavor. More traditional half-moon dumplings, no matter your filling of choice, steamed or fried, never disappoint. Don't ignore the non-dumpling items too. I don't know what the seasoning is in their green beans, but it's ridiculously delicious. You'll never look at green beans or haricot vert the same way ever again. Good, but unremarkable, are the soups and stews. Better to get those at other Chinese eateries. I don't mean to dissuade anyone from those, but did you really come to a place called Dumpling World to eat anything but dumplings? It gets crowded here at times so I recommend trying on a weekday evening. Uniformly, whether it's packed or slow, service is quick and courteous. With dumplings this good, it's clear that humility is one of the key ingredients to their consistency and quality.

Hell, yeah! I like this place. Good for groups. Everyone order something and pass it around the…read moretable! The spicy and sour dumplings are the bomb. Way better than the soup dumplings (which are really good!). You can't go wrong with the curry chicken and potato pot stickers. Tan-Tan noodles were really good. The only side you need is the garlic box choy - it's pretty f'n awesome! Service is attentive and friendly. Ask questions and the staff will steer you in the right direction. And...did I mention this place is REALLY affordable! Can't go wrong!

Photos
Preparing orders
Preparing orders
Pork and mushrooms soup dumplings
Pork and mushrooms soup dumplings
Dumpling World

See all

Dumpling World
Sweet Chive

Sweet Chive

4.2
(347 reviews)
9.0 mi
$$

Tasty spot with Taiwanese food and Sushi! We enjoyed everything we tried (in order of favorite to…read moreleast favorite): Fried Chicken Pancake Slider with Pork Belly Claypot Beef Lu Ro Fan with Purple Rice (!!) Fried Kabocha But the way, that was a lot of food for 2 people even two hungry people but it as great to have the variety and try so many things on first visit and something tells me the mains will be very good tomorrow too! Service was friendly, and cool thing is that in an effort to be environmentally friendly, you get 10% off if you bring your own takeout containers! Also woman owned and operated. Definitely a very chill vibe - kind of artsy with murals/old Austin.

THE BIG: Taiwanese restaurant located in East Austin right off of East Cesar Chavez. Essentially a…read moreconverted house with modern themes. Limited parking in the back, street parking mainly. THE BLACK AND WHITE: We came here with a few friends after enjoying Zilker botanical garden. It took us a while to get seated, even though there were barely anyone inside the store. When we got seated, it took about 10 minutes for us to get water, which was odd. For food, we got the Beef Noodle Soup, Pork Belly Noodles Soup, Lu Rou Fan, szechuan, Bon Bon Chicken, and Zhajiang Mein. All were alright and the service was very stressed even though there was no one in the restaurant. THE FINAL BAMBOO: The damage done was around $100 for everything. Flavors were alright, and service could've been better. If you're craving taiwanese and in the East Austin area, this can soothe that itch.

Photos
Interior
Interior
Jian Tofu (Vegan)
Jian Tofu (Vegan)
Sweet Chive

See all

Julie's Noodles

Julie's Noodles

4.3
(825 reviews)
2.2 mi
$$

Julie's still hits. Got here at noon on a Sunday, about half full and filled up while we were…read morethere. Parking can be difficult but not an issue if you just wait a bit for a grocery shopper. Time to Order: 5 minutes for appetizers, 12 minutes for dumplings and soups Crab and Pork Soup Dumplings: 5/5 still fantastic Black Fungus with Onions: Nice and light, like a little salad with pickled vegetables. Nice and crispy. The good old Hot Spicy Stew #25: 5/5 still incredibly filling and they're so generous with meats! I keep forgetting to ask for swapping the glass noodles with their regular hand pulled noodles, would do that. Friends had other noodle soups and enjoyed them all, as I thought. Julie's is still probably one of the best noodle shops in Austin. Amazing value, amazing service.

We originally wanted to try the ramen place in the same plaza, but it was fully packed and there…read morewere no seats left so we came to Julie's Noodle instead. You order first and then sit. There were water, bowls, utensils, and sauces in the lobby for anyone to grab, which was nice. We ordered their cucumber salad, beef noodle soup, and lamb noodle soup. Cucumber salad was 2/5. It wasn't the authentic smashed cucumber salad, the flavor was missing something, and I mean, for $7 or $8, you would think it would be amazing....it's not. Pretty disappointing, I'd much rather have my sister's over these. Beef noodle soup was meh. Nothing special. Broth was very simple, like they just added salt and that's it. Meat was cooked very well. My soup came with 1 piece of lettuce, weird.. Lamb noodle soup was the same as the beef noodle soup; it did come with the black fungus, seaweed, tofu, and some vermicelli clear noodles, along with their handmade noodles. Made sense why it was only $13.95 for the noodle soups. It's reasonably priced probably due to not being authentic, though, I wouldn't pay more than $10. They had handmade noodles, which many people do like. However, their noodles were very bland, along with their soup. I didn't find anything special here either. Maybe I'll get their dumplings or fried noodles the next time we come, but it's a no for me.

Photos
Julie's Noodles
Spicy Pot
Spicy Pot
29. Chinese Shredded Potatoes Salad

See all

29. Chinese Shredded Potatoes Salad
Lin Asian Bar & Dim Sum

Lin Asian Bar & Dim Sum

4.2
(1.3k reviews)
8.6 mi
$$$
Locally owned & operated
Family-owned & operated

This is definitely one of my favorite places in Austin for Asian food and soup dumplings…read more Definitely need to make a reservation because this place is small and always packed. When you arrive, everybody is so nice you give them your name and they get you seated right away. I ordered a drink called a signature tingling Daisy and it was so good. I definitely could've had so many but I was driving so you gotta pace yourself. We started off with the soup dumplings, which are just phenomenal. It's a must when you go. Also, for appetizers, we got the spicy cucumbers which were divine and a hot and sour soup, which was perfectly balanced and not watery. We also got a beef fried rice and let me tell you that rice is so soft and delicious. You literally dream about it the next day. I also got the pecking duck which is delicious there the skin is nice and crispy and the meat on it taste so good. We also got the Kung pow shrimp with cashews, which was delicious and the pieces of shrimp were gigantic. We also got the green beans which is were delicious. I love ordering green beans when they're cooked just like the ones I posted in the photo. Then for dessert, we got the chocolate mousse which is that little dog cake. I know it's so cute and they made it a little hard to eat because you feel bad in a weird sense. It was delicious now I will say when cutting it and realizing the inside had a raspberry filling, made it a little more crazy cause it looked like blood, but it was still so good. This place is definitely an awesome staple and a must visit when you're in town or just always go and have food there whether it's date night or friends catching up or anything in general even on your own.

I made a reservation for two on Resy and discovered when we got there that it was for the bar for…read moresome reason. This could have been my mistake but I don't remember any choice in the matter. The greeter wasn't very friendly and borderline surly when I asked for more details about how to not book the bar in the future. Didn't get any explanation but fortunately, we won't have to worry about that... The food was just awful. We ordered 3-4 types of dimsum (onion pancake, soup dumplings, chu shou, fried shu mae) and three entries (orange beef, eggplant and their take on ma pao tofu) for the best tasting experience. The curry sauce for the onion pancake was probably the most flavorful dish of the night sadly. The onion pancake was way way over fried-- hard as a rock. If that's their take on onion pancake... well, it's just wrong. The soup dumplings were passable but a bit doughie and the filling was full of a lot of noticeable coagulated fat -- not clear and broth-y, with light surface droplets of oil as all delicious broths. My wife enjoyed the chu shou -- I found the filling much too overcooked and tough -- difficult to eat with chop sticks. Like a tough, overcooked meatball. The fried shu Mae were just plain inedible. My wife and I each ate one and left the rest. The included sauce was basic and too heavy. And again, over fried. There was a huge delay between our apps and our mains, like 40 minutes or so. Various bar staff apologized. It wasn't a big deal, we were in a good conversation and they were super busy but our mains were not at all worth waiting for. Small portions. WAY over sauced. WAY too salty. WAY too sweet. No distinct flavors at all. The ma pao didn't seem to have any Szechuan pepper at all. How do you miss that ? The plating of the eggplant dish was really creative but I don't eat with my eyes and it came with no instruction -- my first bite was just flavorless steamed eggplant cube -- second was mixed with one note sauce. One of the better mains IMO but it was still gloopy and pretty gross. Wife did not enjoy it. The orange beef was essentially just six or seven cubes of tough, fatty beef covered in over-the-top bitter orange peel. We each had a cube and left the rest. Honestly, give me Panda Express any day over this abject failure of a restaurant. Austin needs more Chinese but if it's anything like this place, forget it. I'd rather spend a 4h round trip to Houston and go to even a mediocre Chinese restaurant than endure another meal at this place. What a waste of $165. Edit: I wish I was making this up but I literally had to pull over to throw up on the side of the road on the way home. The food did not sit well with me. I have no underlying health conditions, am not on any medicine that would have this as a side effect and only shared one beer with my wife. It was just a very, very, disappointing and gross meal.

Photos
Outdoor
Outdoor
Lin Asian Bar & Dim Sum
Lanterns inside

See all

Lanterns inside

Rice Bowl Cafe - chinese - Updated July 2026

Loading...
Loading...
Loading...