I've ordered a couple of items here already and it's really good for the most part! Except this day was not the day. The new addition item was bland! The papaya salad! I was soo shocked how bland it was. I barely taste the dressing, the pineapple, just bland. They did messed up on my chicken banh mi because, unfortunately, I'm not allowed to have any pate during pregnancy. But they did make it up and I was very pleased. The sandwich tasted good even without pate! Overall the service was fast and friendly. The prices are fair and there's always options if looking for cheap eats. Until then they will see me again!
Kiet TT
The wok fried beef dish I ordered tasted great and all the flavours were perfectly balanced. The staff are friendly. Price is a little on the high end though.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dave G
This place is not very good about dietary restrictions and will not work with you to accommodate. Also, they do not allow substitutions - so if you cannot eat a component of your meal, they will not accommodate. The food itself is good though.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Peggy L.
Ordered a bowl of garlic butter parmesan lomein noodles with pork - garlic butter Parmesan itself bring some surprise element to a Chinese dish. It was enjoyable and filling! Love to see some fusion and it didn't over empowering the lomein noodles. I'd love to try other flavor to see how it turns out. The price wasn't so bad for amount of noodles and meat in a bowl! Service was quick and friendly as the cashier was very welcoming as we were deciding on which dish. The Block itself was packed with people and good vibes as they were here to socialize and grab a quick bite or a quick refreshing drink.
Casheta L.
Balo Kitchen has the best Pork Belly I've ever tried! Seasoned and cooked to perfection. The staff was nice and friendly! The restaurant was clean and cozy.
Jen H
I got the laksa curry noodle soup and they only gave me half the broth. I like this soup, but not getting stiffed on half the order that costs $25.
Orquidea R.
I can't believe i haven't been back, I'll blame it on not having time, cause this place is so worth it. The pork belly bowls are just full of flavors and the fusion of taste makes for every dish a plus to order. This place is in what I like to call a food hall named The Block. It shares space with other vendors so you do not always find a place to sit, therefore I mostly take my food to go. The service is pretty quick and employees always have a smile,
Selka J.
The food is always good here. The place is like a food hall with many different places. So one has more options. Love The Block!
Shinobi Tekken
Food was ok but service was terrible. Messed up one order and forgot to put in the other order until we inquired after 15mins. Owner lady was rude about messing up the order and was clearly did not have a good system to manage orders.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Garlic Noodles
Diana S.
I love this place every time I go. There's always at least 5 things I want, mostly based off what I see on other people's plates as they walk away. This time we tried the chow fun, with basil and pork belly. The pork belly was perfectly crispy and melted in your mouth like butter. The street corn- I'm undecided. The corn itself was small and felt overcooked. The flavor was interesting- almost just like Mexican elote... couldn't quite taste too much of a different Balo flavor. Always would recommend and go back.
Bala Kitchen used to be my 5-star go-to place at The Block when they opened a few years ago (before COVID). A flavorful, unique menu so consistently good that your tastebuds were in for a treat no matter what you ordered. Their crispy Brussel Sprouts with caramel fish sauce and Laksa Curry Noodle Soup were two of my favorites. At some point during COVID, I noticed the brussell sprouts were way saltier than before--too salty for me, so I started gravitating to other places. I went back earlier this week after a long absence and decided to go for the Laksa Curry Noodle Soup that used to be such a creamy, flavorful medley of broth, noodles, vegetables (bean sprouts, cilantro, scallion, and fried shallots) plus pork belly or the chicken, shrimp, tofu combo. Balo, what happened? The broth was more watery and less flavorful. The noodles were basically like overcooked, instant ramen. I ordered the chicken, shrimp, tofu combo. But the chicken tasted like--boiled chicken and the tofu was tough on the outside (overcooked?). I don't know why, but all three were relatively tasteless, like they hadn't had a chance to soak in the broth or something? And if there were any vegetables in there, I don't remember seeing them. To top all that off, my spice level 3 was definitely more level 2 compared to what I remember. I don't want to give up on Balo Kitchen so easily. Maybe I could try the thick vermicelli noodles and spice level 4. Also, I remember being able to add bok choy, but I don't know if that option is still available. I'm just not sure I want to try the LCN Soup again with Kimen Ramen and other great ramen places nearby. I may try some other menu items though to see if any of them are as good as I remember.
Lindsay F.
Roti fried chicken tacos blew us away. Chicken nuggets pretty tasty. Wings really good! Spicy basil chow fun was so good, the mild was only ok when i went a different day.
Quentin Bishop
They flip the iPad with the annoying tip screen after they take your order. My friend and I ordered the same thing, he left 10% tip and I left no tip. His food is ready in 5 minutes. My order gets "lost" and 30 minutes later when everyone else is done eating my order is ready.
Food: 3
Anthony Constantino
WARNING and BE AWARE!!!This place has good food; however, CHECK YOUR RECEIPT!!!I would give more stars but this is ridiculous!I clicked 'NO TIP' and my receipt still showed a tip. That's the 2nd time, YES!!! The second time now! I called them out on it and didn't have an explanation.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 2
A B.
Balo is going to be a new staple restaurant in the area for me! It's located in The Block, which is this nice food hall in Annandale. I ordered the chicken cutlet with rice and it was delicious! The chicken was a perfect crispy texture, the curry sauce was yummy and flavorful, and the portion size was HUGE. The service was pretty good for the most part and the cashier was helpful with helping me choose what to order. I cannot wait to come back and try more delicious things on Balo's menu!
I've ordered a couple of items here already and it's really good for the most part! Except this day was not the day. The new addition item was bland! The papaya salad! I was soo shocked how bland it was. I barely taste the dressing, the pineapple, just bland. They did messed up on my chicken banh mi because, unfortunately, I'm not allowed to have any pate during pregnancy. But they did make it up and I was very pleased. The sandwich tasted good even without pate! Overall the service was fast and friendly. The prices are fair and there's always options if looking for cheap eats. Until then they will see me again!
The wok fried beef dish I ordered tasted great and all the flavours were perfectly balanced. The staff are friendly. Price is a little on the high end though.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is not very good about dietary restrictions and will not work with you to accommodate. Also, they do not allow substitutions - so if you cannot eat a component of your meal, they will not accommodate. The food itself is good though.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Ordered a bowl of garlic butter parmesan lomein noodles with pork - garlic butter Parmesan itself bring some surprise element to a Chinese dish. It was enjoyable and filling! Love to see some fusion and it didn't over empowering the lomein noodles. I'd love to try other flavor to see how it turns out. The price wasn't so bad for amount of noodles and meat in a bowl! Service was quick and friendly as the cashier was very welcoming as we were deciding on which dish. The Block itself was packed with people and good vibes as they were here to socialize and grab a quick bite or a quick refreshing drink.
Balo Kitchen has the best Pork Belly I've ever tried! Seasoned and cooked to perfection. The staff was nice and friendly! The restaurant was clean and cozy.
I got the laksa curry noodle soup and they only gave me half the broth. I like this soup, but not getting stiffed on half the order that costs $25.
I can't believe i haven't been back, I'll blame it on not having time, cause this place is so worth it. The pork belly bowls are just full of flavors and the fusion of taste makes for every dish a plus to order. This place is in what I like to call a food hall named The Block. It shares space with other vendors so you do not always find a place to sit, therefore I mostly take my food to go. The service is pretty quick and employees always have a smile,
The food is always good here. The place is like a food hall with many different places. So one has more options. Love The Block!
Food was ok but service was terrible. Messed up one order and forgot to put in the other order until we inquired after 15mins. Owner lady was rude about messing up the order and was clearly did not have a good system to manage orders.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Garlic Noodles
I love this place every time I go. There's always at least 5 things I want, mostly based off what I see on other people's plates as they walk away. This time we tried the chow fun, with basil and pork belly. The pork belly was perfectly crispy and melted in your mouth like butter. The street corn- I'm undecided. The corn itself was small and felt overcooked. The flavor was interesting- almost just like Mexican elote... couldn't quite taste too much of a different Balo flavor. Always would recommend and go back.
Restaurantji Recommends
Bala Kitchen used to be my 5-star go-to place at The Block when they opened a few years ago (before COVID). A flavorful, unique menu so consistently good that your tastebuds were in for a treat no matter what you ordered. Their crispy Brussel Sprouts with caramel fish sauce and Laksa Curry Noodle Soup were two of my favorites. At some point during COVID, I noticed the brussell sprouts were way saltier than before--too salty for me, so I started gravitating to other places. I went back earlier this week after a long absence and decided to go for the Laksa Curry Noodle Soup that used to be such a creamy, flavorful medley of broth, noodles, vegetables (bean sprouts, cilantro, scallion, and fried shallots) plus pork belly or the chicken, shrimp, tofu combo. Balo, what happened? The broth was more watery and less flavorful. The noodles were basically like overcooked, instant ramen. I ordered the chicken, shrimp, tofu combo. But the chicken tasted like--boiled chicken and the tofu was tough on the outside (overcooked?). I don't know why, but all three were relatively tasteless, like they hadn't had a chance to soak in the broth or something? And if there were any vegetables in there, I don't remember seeing them. To top all that off, my spice level 3 was definitely more level 2 compared to what I remember. I don't want to give up on Balo Kitchen so easily. Maybe I could try the thick vermicelli noodles and spice level 4. Also, I remember being able to add bok choy, but I don't know if that option is still available. I'm just not sure I want to try the LCN Soup again with Kimen Ramen and other great ramen places nearby. I may try some other menu items though to see if any of them are as good as I remember.
Roti fried chicken tacos blew us away. Chicken nuggets pretty tasty. Wings really good! Spicy basil chow fun was so good, the mild was only ok when i went a different day.
They flip the iPad with the annoying tip screen after they take your order. My friend and I ordered the same thing, he left 10% tip and I left no tip. His food is ready in 5 minutes. My order gets "lost" and 30 minutes later when everyone else is done eating my order is ready.
Food: 3
WARNING and BE AWARE!!!This place has good food; however, CHECK YOUR RECEIPT!!!I would give more stars but this is ridiculous!I clicked 'NO TIP' and my receipt still showed a tip. That's the 2nd time, YES!!! The second time now! I called them out on it and didn't have an explanation.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 2
Balo is going to be a new staple restaurant in the area for me! It's located in The Block, which is this nice food hall in Annandale. I ordered the chicken cutlet with rice and it was delicious! The chicken was a perfect crispy texture, the curry sauce was yummy and flavorful, and the portion size was HUGE. The service was pretty good for the most part and the cashier was helpful with helping me choose what to order. I cannot wait to come back and try more delicious things on Balo's menu!