Bubbaloo Cafe

My first time, the staff was so friendly and helped me check in. The food came in 5 minutes...super fast. My first bite was an explosion of delicious bacon and egg. My second bite was potato and salsa! The salsa was fresh and just the right amount of spice. I like the ambiance and the vibe here is so positive. Definitely coming back.

Really wanted to like this place. The lady at the front was so sweet and the ambience here is super cool. It's right next to a couple of charter schools, so it's a great spot for kids to come by and grab a snack or drink.

We ordered the chorizo breakfast and the sisig breakfast, however both were lackluster and rather disappointing. We ate about a 1/3 of the meal and then disposed of the rest. It wasn't something we would eat later on or were willing to save.

This place would be a great WiFi spot to have a snack and drink at. Not convinced on the kitchen ordered food.

Breakfast burritos are ! Great breakfast spot. Burritos are huge and good bang for your buck. Quick service. Nice location right along the bay. Overall ambiance is great because it's next the water. I highly recommend the breakfast burritos. This place crushes those. Besides the burritos I would say the food is decent overall. Sandwiches are solid on the lunch menu. Not the most amazing on the planet but they are pretty good.

I'm the type that sits shotgun in a car on a cross-country trip and shouts out the brand names on the billboards we pass by. Old habits never die. I was walking on the concrete walkway around the Richmond Marina and saw the headline providing direction to this spot. It said "Hungry?" and I said it out loud like I was back in my dad's Rambler station wagon (photo: https://yelp.to/UAKfSrqAzf).

The cafe was in an oddly out-of-the-way location since there was no retail businesses surrounding it. I mentally referred back to the sign and admitted to myself, "Yes, I am hungry. Stop judging me." I decided to order the $12.75 Cheeseburger with a slice of good ol' American cheese and a huge side of fries that I had no intention of finishing them (photo: https://yelp.to/qefQ7vsK2U).

After all, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. At least that's what Madonna said when she tried to seduce a disaffected Justin Timberline. Anyway, straight from the grill, that cheeseburger managed to satisfy beyond my meager expectations, and the fries filled in jurisdictions of my stomach with No Trespassing signs. Hungry? I guess I was.

FOOD - 4 stars...just a satisfying burger when I was in the mood for one
AMBIANCE - 3 stars...nothing fancy in here except a big mural
SERVICE - 3.5 stars...attentive enough
TOTAL - 4 stars...Hungry?

RELATED - Exploring Richmond? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/2VyCP18

We've been wanting to try this place for a while. It's only open M-F, and until recently they closed at 3:00, but now their hours have extended to 7:00. Thank goodness!

It's a little hard to find, since it's tucked away in sort of a strip mall, by a charter high school. Plenty of parking,
once you find it, though. They had ample indoor and outdoor seating and fun murals on the walls inside.

The menu was eclectic with dishes from Vietnam, Mexico, Philippines and good old American favs. There was also a nice coffee and tea menu, as well as a cooler for soda.

We had the Loaded Fries, Shaking Beef Salad, Lumpia, an expresso and a Chai iced tea. We ordered at the counter and it was delivered to our table. The salad was amazing with sautéed veggies and tender beef over a bed of mixed greens and raw veggies. It was really good and totally hit the spot. The fries were covered with cheese, crumbled beef, sour cream and salsa, and were crispy in a good way. The Lumpia was also a fun addition to our meal. They were crunchy on the outside with a tasty filling on the inside and served with the traditional sweet and spicy dipping sauce.

We loved this place and are eager to bring the rest of the family by for a dinner meal. It's a fun, hidden away spot, and has something for everyone menu options.

Bubbaloo cafe has been one of our favorite spots to grab lunch in the local Richmond/marina area. It's located near a beautiful water front view and there is plenty of parking. This place is truly a hidden gem. The service I've receive when dining in or doing take out is truly amazing and very consistent.

They use very fresh ingredients and their food is packed with flavor. My go to choices are the filet salmon salad, the honey Sriracha wings, and the teriyaki chicken sandwich is a must have. They also have an amazing shaken beef salad, I mean the meat literally melts in your mouth it's so delicious and tender.

The inside is beautifully designed, so much color and natural lighting. I love that they have lots of dining room and there is also a fairly new patio with seating which is perfect for a sunny day.

I really enjoy this spot. The food is consistently good, I cannot remember a time I've not enjoyed a meal here-- and I've been coming here for years now.

It is a little more expensive to eat here compared to other lunch spots in the local area-- but trust me once you taste the food you'll understand it's worth it.

Their breakfast burritos are pretty delicious! We came here a couple times as well during the pandemic - back when there was even an egg shortage and bought eggs from here!

For the most part, everything we've had here has been pretty tasty. My favorite so far is probably the breakfast burrito though. It hits the spot. For other dishes we've tried, they were all decent. Only complaint is one of the fried dishes we got - I think it was fries or something came with ranch and it was pretty watered down ranch... but the food was still great enough for us to come back - for all we know it could've just been a bad mix day.

Service is usually pretty quick and the employees are really nice. We usually call in our order and then head in - it takes about 7-10 minutes, super fast. A cool thing here is you can also ask for a pass to the Columbia Employee store when you buy food here! It was great when I needed some snowboarding gear before a weekend trip. I just stopped by to get some dinner and went shopping after! All in all, love this place for a quick bite.

This review was sitting in drafts and should've been sent

I've already posted a review but have been to this spot a number of times since and I am never disappointed. From the pleasant greetings and masked smiles you receive from owners Gio & Candace, to the delicious meals they are putting out, this place deserves the 5 stars. The food is flavorful and ALWAYS HOT which I love. They do not skimp on ensuring you are satisfied as that appears to be one of their main priorities. Gio is so friendly and welcoming with all who enter and he and his wife make a beautiful team together. I am a vegetarian and there are a number of options from fried shrimp, fried fish, beyond burgers and they have breakfast items which I have not yet tried. They are also very accommodating. My friend really enjoys the chicken wings here and yesterday I ordered the fish and chips w/o the fries and lettuce wrapped - hey, I have to cut where I can, trust me I would've preferred it on bread or with the fries but the flavor did not disappoint. Thank you again Gio & Candace, y'all are both doing a wonderful job over there. You know we'll be back soon.

Review is for lunch catering:

One of my colleagues was celebrating 15 years with the Company and he invited a bunch of us for a catered lunch. The restaurant was unknown to me at the time of the lunch. My boss said it was a newish local restaurant who's been catering to other groups in our company. The leftover food that is donated to the community break rooms don't last long!

Turns out the food is from Bubbaloo Cafe, which has mix and match party trays with a variety of food. Our groups seem to favor the following:

Chicken Marsala - creamy, mushroomy chicken breast that's moist.

Eggplant Parmesan - huge disks of eggplants coated with crispy cheese and lovely tomatoey marinara. Enjoy two since its vegetarian.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes - wow even the mashed potatoes are fluffy and so good. I'm wondering if its 33% butter and 67% potato like Joel Robuchon (RIP).

Lumpias - perfect crispy egg rolls excellent with a sweet-sour sauce. Obviously no pictures since these don't last long and there's never leftovers, LOL.

Their dessert menu is pretty limited, but the awesome entrees and apps are definitely 5-stars! I will cater them next time I get the chance to host a lunchtime meeting.

Ahhh! Richmond California!

Not Richmond District. It's Richmond for real in the northeastern side from highway 580.

Glad I found Bubbaloo Café before my friend and I went on a space exploration through VR experience in Craneway Pavilion. My friend absolutely agreed, because we chose this café with a wide variety of American and Vietnamese dishes.

Wouldn't be wise to dine again if there might be some rambunctious customers sitting at their table close to ours. So that's why I dine and be vigilant at the same time. Anyways, It's good that the female server had delivered our food to our table. While my friend wolf down on his breakfast burrito, I started to chow down my tofu/green beans over rice like a heffer. I never usually break a sweat when I consume my Far East entreé. Perhaps they put in the five spice flavor on the beyond pork sung to make half my dish zestier.

Love Bubbaloo Café when it comes to a more spacious interior. Looking at the majority of female staff remind me that it's women owned in an Asian owned café. This was my first time I dined somewhere further throughout the Bay Area.