The food was good, but waited for more than one hour when there was less than 10 people. Well, it seemed like the ordering system was buggy and went wrong.
Daniel B.
I prefer the San Jose location. The parking here is horrible! The service was so-so. We approached the girl at the counter and she wasn't very welcoming. It was the middle of the weekdays, in the afternoon, and they were out of a ton of meats. We wanted to order the Kahuna plate and thankfully the chef in the kitchen was able to substitute some meats in order to give us the Kahuna. They didn't have ice on this hot day and it seemed like a very dirty establishment. It wasn't as well kept as the other location. I liked that they had a ping pong table and a huge chalk board! The indent in the middle of the tables were odd so it was difficult to share the food. The food was overcooked and dry. It definitely was not good at all or even comparable to the other location. It's a scary walk to the bathroom, but they seemed fairly clean. I am giving an extra star to the chef who went out of her way to recreate us a Kahuna plate! But I would not come back here again due to the quality of the food, lack of things in stock, service, cleanliness, and location.
Stuart B.
Aww man, I'll definitely come here more regularly. I came on Saturday afternoon. I had a chance to meet and chat with the owner - he was super chill and friendly. He was nice enough to let me sample several beers. I ordered chicken and short ribs with macaroni and rice! Hella good! I added an egg which is not on the menu but he made an exception. They offer ribs and the owner said it's a hot item. So, I definitely will go back to try this dish! The food came out in about 10 minutes. I couldn't finish all of it so I took a doggy bag. Street parking was easy but don't count on it, especially during the week. Ok, this restaurant is relatively new and rare for Berkeley. Give em' a try, I'm sure you'll love it!
Craig Y.
I love the food at this place. And when it is available, the ribs are incredibly awesome. The problem is this place is so inconsistent that it is hard to recommend it. The first two times I called to order ribs they ran out and this was early afternoon. Which means they didn't even have enough for their dinner rush. Any business that cannot order enough food to supply his customers on a regular basis is one that is hard to rely on. FOOD: The food is great! I love the chicken even though there is not enough sauce, and I love the ribs. Have not yet tried the Kalua pork, but looking forward to it someday. They have good Mac salad and good rice which believe it or not is not always the case. So in terms of food, this place is highly recommended! SERVICE: Horrible. Not the staff who are friendly but the restaurant as a whole. Running out of not just one dish but multiple dishes? Before dinner? Because they filled someone else's huge order? Great way to drive away customers. Then getting my order wrong. Then having a phone that doesn't work. Wow. And not just for a day but I called a week later and their phone lines were still down. COST: Good if you order there. Horrible if you use GrubHub which is the only way you can order now that the phone doesn't work. The uocharge is RIDICULOUS! The food is so good I'll probably come back but not very often.
Laura Ferranti
One of the best places close to the university to eat healthy food (e.g., a rice ball with meat and veggies)
Calvin T.
TL;DR: great meat quality, decent portion size, pricey menu I'm not often on Northside, aside from classes, so I rarely eat in this area. A friend told me about this spot that I had no idea was there, so I went to check it out with her. Although my meal was tasty, it was fairly pricey for its portion size and contents. The seating area is much more accustomed to a bar than it is a restaurant, if that makes a difference in your experience. I really enjoyed the meat quality, so I may come back in the future, but I believe there could be better options elsewhere. I ordered the kabli short rib combo plate with rice and macaroni salad. KALBI COMBO PLATE (3/5) - Super tasty meat! Tender and juicy - Boneless on the day I went, no complaints here - Lacking vegetables like most Hawaiian BBQ dishes I've had - Portion size was enough, but pretty high price tag ($13+) The service was nice, but a little bit slow since it's connected to a bar. I'm all about supporting local businesses, so I could see myself returning. However, even with the great food, the price is pretty high for what you get, so I may not come by often. Worth the try if you love Hawaiian BBQ because a lot of people seem to approve!
Bella Fica
I enjoyed my chicken bowl and hard apple cider pint. I felt the food was fresh and the service was just fine. I would come again for the food and bar.
Ellen Hibdon
They have good food, but it is meat heavy. The atmosphere is also good.
ë´
Prob one of best BBQ place i've been to for it's large portion size and also the taste + nice atmosphere
Annie Z.
The interior is dark but has an energetic, lively ambiance to it. There is a ping pong table next to the dining tables. The ping pong table adds to the casual, fun vibe of the place but at one point a ping pong ball almost landed in my plate...yikes! [ Chicken and Kalbi Combo ] The portion size is HUGE! The combo plate comes with two scoops of rice, a scoop of macaroni salad (or green leaf salad), and a ton of meat. Roughly half of the platter is meat. I personally liked the chicken better because it was easier to chew. The Kalbi was flavorful but hard to get off the bone.
So for us this was a dichotomy. The beef ribs and Mac salad were tasty. I ordered half grilled pork and half chicken. I got all grilled pork. They forgot my kaluah pork so we reminded them and took it to go. Both my beer glasses and my plate were dirty with food stuck on them But I was starving so I ate everything and didn't mind. The owner was personable and his employees were super friendly. Our overall impression is he's still working out the kinks of the new business. It was an experience but there will be no return visit.
Ty C.
I'll do 4 stars. My first bite of the beef strips was horrible. Luckily that was the only bad piece of meat in the whole meal. The first piece was tough and I couldn't do anything besides chew it. The rest of the meal was tasty and I would go back again. I got the beef strips and kalbi combo plate. It comes with two scoops of rice, one scoop of mac salad (next time, I'll do two scoops of mac salad). I think next time I'll do chicken and kalbi combo. The quality of beef is better than most hawaiian bbq places and the serving size is large. The dining space is large and there is also bar seating and a pretty good beer selection. The beers are pretty expensive in my opinion. They have quality beers, but $7 or $8 a pint is a little steep for me, but to each their own. My review didn't take into account anything beer related, just providing some info. The cashier was cool and service was fine. He was actually really informative to some people who came in who didn't know anything about Hawaiian bbq. I think hh is from 420 - 7, but I wasn't clear on what happy hour provides. You might want to call for details if you are interested.
Miss F.
I had low expectations walking in on a Saturday morning. A couple of people in the bar, nobody in the back where the restaurant was supposed to be?? A nice fellow behind the bar told us we were in the right place and guided us through the menu. I got bbq chicken and my bud got the beef two ways. You can get steamed veggies and salad instead of mac salad and rice if you want. Wow! All meats were grilled to perfection. Her beef was medium with nice pink in the middle, usually it's a cheap cut they overmarinate and overcook to hide the thrift, not here. My bird had that crispy char of burnt sugar and soy, on soft thigh meat, it was heavenly. Kitchen looked clean and the cooks were nice when we thanked them. Dining room was a little dirty but maybe a party the night before? Loved the sauce selection on the tables. I love sauce and there is never enough. Not a problem here. We will be back. Rode home with that satisfied feeling.
Rodi Torres-Gavosto
Come here for over priced bad "island" BBQ. Though service was relatively quick and staff were friendly. Portion size for the side of fries was giant perhaps to compensate for the fact that they were so burnt that I would have rather eaten cardboard. I look forward to seeing the next place to try to establish itself in this revolving door of a location.
The food was good, but waited for more than one hour when there was less than 10 people. Well, it seemed like the ordering system was buggy and went wrong.
I prefer the San Jose location. The parking here is horrible! The service was so-so. We approached the girl at the counter and she wasn't very welcoming. It was the middle of the weekdays, in the afternoon, and they were out of a ton of meats. We wanted to order the Kahuna plate and thankfully the chef in the kitchen was able to substitute some meats in order to give us the Kahuna. They didn't have ice on this hot day and it seemed like a very dirty establishment. It wasn't as well kept as the other location. I liked that they had a ping pong table and a huge chalk board! The indent in the middle of the tables were odd so it was difficult to share the food. The food was overcooked and dry. It definitely was not good at all or even comparable to the other location. It's a scary walk to the bathroom, but they seemed fairly clean. I am giving an extra star to the chef who went out of her way to recreate us a Kahuna plate! But I would not come back here again due to the quality of the food, lack of things in stock, service, cleanliness, and location.
Aww man, I'll definitely come here more regularly. I came on Saturday afternoon. I had a chance to meet and chat with the owner - he was super chill and friendly. He was nice enough to let me sample several beers. I ordered chicken and short ribs with macaroni and rice! Hella good! I added an egg which is not on the menu but he made an exception. They offer ribs and the owner said it's a hot item. So, I definitely will go back to try this dish! The food came out in about 10 minutes. I couldn't finish all of it so I took a doggy bag. Street parking was easy but don't count on it, especially during the week. Ok, this restaurant is relatively new and rare for Berkeley. Give em' a try, I'm sure you'll love it!
I love the food at this place. And when it is available, the ribs are incredibly awesome. The problem is this place is so inconsistent that it is hard to recommend it. The first two times I called to order ribs they ran out and this was early afternoon. Which means they didn't even have enough for their dinner rush. Any business that cannot order enough food to supply his customers on a regular basis is one that is hard to rely on. FOOD: The food is great! I love the chicken even though there is not enough sauce, and I love the ribs. Have not yet tried the Kalua pork, but looking forward to it someday. They have good Mac salad and good rice which believe it or not is not always the case. So in terms of food, this place is highly recommended! SERVICE: Horrible. Not the staff who are friendly but the restaurant as a whole. Running out of not just one dish but multiple dishes? Before dinner? Because they filled someone else's huge order? Great way to drive away customers. Then getting my order wrong. Then having a phone that doesn't work. Wow. And not just for a day but I called a week later and their phone lines were still down. COST: Good if you order there. Horrible if you use GrubHub which is the only way you can order now that the phone doesn't work. The uocharge is RIDICULOUS! The food is so good I'll probably come back but not very often.
One of the best places close to the university to eat healthy food (e.g., a rice ball with meat and veggies)
TL;DR: great meat quality, decent portion size, pricey menu I'm not often on Northside, aside from classes, so I rarely eat in this area. A friend told me about this spot that I had no idea was there, so I went to check it out with her. Although my meal was tasty, it was fairly pricey for its portion size and contents. The seating area is much more accustomed to a bar than it is a restaurant, if that makes a difference in your experience. I really enjoyed the meat quality, so I may come back in the future, but I believe there could be better options elsewhere. I ordered the kabli short rib combo plate with rice and macaroni salad. KALBI COMBO PLATE (3/5) - Super tasty meat! Tender and juicy - Boneless on the day I went, no complaints here - Lacking vegetables like most Hawaiian BBQ dishes I've had - Portion size was enough, but pretty high price tag ($13+) The service was nice, but a little bit slow since it's connected to a bar. I'm all about supporting local businesses, so I could see myself returning. However, even with the great food, the price is pretty high for what you get, so I may not come by often. Worth the try if you love Hawaiian BBQ because a lot of people seem to approve!
I enjoyed my chicken bowl and hard apple cider pint. I felt the food was fresh and the service was just fine. I would come again for the food and bar.
They have good food, but it is meat heavy. The atmosphere is also good.
Prob one of best BBQ place i've been to for it's large portion size and also the taste + nice atmosphere
The interior is dark but has an energetic, lively ambiance to it. There is a ping pong table next to the dining tables. The ping pong table adds to the casual, fun vibe of the place but at one point a ping pong ball almost landed in my plate...yikes! [ Chicken and Kalbi Combo ] The portion size is HUGE! The combo plate comes with two scoops of rice, a scoop of macaroni salad (or green leaf salad), and a ton of meat. Roughly half of the platter is meat. I personally liked the chicken better because it was easier to chew. The Kalbi was flavorful but hard to get off the bone.
Restaurantji Recommends
So for us this was a dichotomy. The beef ribs and Mac salad were tasty. I ordered half grilled pork and half chicken. I got all grilled pork. They forgot my kaluah pork so we reminded them and took it to go. Both my beer glasses and my plate were dirty with food stuck on them But I was starving so I ate everything and didn't mind. The owner was personable and his employees were super friendly. Our overall impression is he's still working out the kinks of the new business. It was an experience but there will be no return visit.
I'll do 4 stars. My first bite of the beef strips was horrible. Luckily that was the only bad piece of meat in the whole meal. The first piece was tough and I couldn't do anything besides chew it. The rest of the meal was tasty and I would go back again. I got the beef strips and kalbi combo plate. It comes with two scoops of rice, one scoop of mac salad (next time, I'll do two scoops of mac salad). I think next time I'll do chicken and kalbi combo. The quality of beef is better than most hawaiian bbq places and the serving size is large. The dining space is large and there is also bar seating and a pretty good beer selection. The beers are pretty expensive in my opinion. They have quality beers, but $7 or $8 a pint is a little steep for me, but to each their own. My review didn't take into account anything beer related, just providing some info. The cashier was cool and service was fine. He was actually really informative to some people who came in who didn't know anything about Hawaiian bbq. I think hh is from 420 - 7, but I wasn't clear on what happy hour provides. You might want to call for details if you are interested.
I had low expectations walking in on a Saturday morning. A couple of people in the bar, nobody in the back where the restaurant was supposed to be?? A nice fellow behind the bar told us we were in the right place and guided us through the menu. I got bbq chicken and my bud got the beef two ways. You can get steamed veggies and salad instead of mac salad and rice if you want. Wow! All meats were grilled to perfection. Her beef was medium with nice pink in the middle, usually it's a cheap cut they overmarinate and overcook to hide the thrift, not here. My bird had that crispy char of burnt sugar and soy, on soft thigh meat, it was heavenly. Kitchen looked clean and the cooks were nice when we thanked them. Dining room was a little dirty but maybe a party the night before? Loved the sauce selection on the tables. I love sauce and there is never enough. Not a problem here. We will be back. Rode home with that satisfied feeling.
Come here for over priced bad "island" BBQ. Though service was relatively quick and staff were friendly. Portion size for the side of fries was giant perhaps to compensate for the fact that they were so burnt that I would have rather eaten cardboard. I look forward to seeing the next place to try to establish itself in this revolving door of a location.
A good place for a beer with friends.