Balo Kitchen

Ok. Clearly, this place is not at a deficit for good reviews and rightfully so! I have eaten here three times and never been disappointed. Twice I've had the Laksa Noodle Soup with Pork Belly as a protein and the other time I came I had the Beef Stew (Bò Kho) because the first time I was jealous of my buddy's entree. Thus, on my second visit, I switched it up and tried it. 3rd visit, back to the favorite, Laksa Curry and this most recent time I added fried egg on top for a little extra oompf! Although this place is one of several choices in this food hall, and in the local are, I literally make a special point to battle the DMV traffic and pick up a meal there anytime I'm in town. The service is quick and the food is delicious - spice levels appropriately scaled, the quantity of protein in the dish was generous for the portion size, the temperature was hot (not unbearable) and held its heat for decent amount of time while consuming this deliciousness. The vibe of the food hall varies by the day. Some days the tv's by the bar are showing sports games, other nights there may be trivia, and once there was a cool dj. This place is buzzing with a nice vibe no matter the day (of the three days I've been there, lol). This place is a new definition of a value meal. Solid quality, filling, clean tasting. All for about $20. I'll take it.

Balo Kitchen is serving up Asian comfort food and they are definitely hitting the mark because every single thing that I had here was delicious. They are nestled in the "The Block" -- a food court in Annandale. On a Thursday night this place was comfortably full with people enjoying their meals at every table. When we got our food it was hot and fresh. I first tried their fried chicken tacos on roti. So unique to add the roti in there and I liked how it was able to hold up and also not be too heavy. I was pretty full after just 1. Then I tried the lemon pepper lime wings, also delicious. The lime initially kind of through me off but quickly began to grow on me. And then my all time favorite were the garlic Lo mein noodles with beef added. My oh my. I would drive to VA just for these if I was craving them. I haven't had good noodles like this since I was in California. And I don't think I mentioned it earlier but the service was spectacular. Everyone is so kind in here! Check it out.

I got the Pork + Rice with the Crackling Pork Belly and the pork was delicious! I was worried the Crackling pork belly would be too chewy but it arrived very crispy and worth the $0.75 cent up charge. I also got the pineapple soy sauce and recommend it. It was not too sweet at all. Mostly salt with the right amount of sweetness and umami. Now, my partner got the chow fun wide rice noodles with tofu and those were delicious!!! I kept stealing hers, so next time I plan to get the chow fun wide rice noodles with crispy pork belly. Our friend got the wok-fried steak and rice and also enjoyed it. He has peanut allergies but was okay with this dish. My order was ready very quickly after ordering via the QR code. Balo kitchen shares a wall with another restaurant inside The Block so make sure to go to the correct pickup counter on the right. There was plenty of seating in The Block and Ball's food hit the spot!

The food hall is nice, I got the wings in the 3/5 spice level in a flavor, it was a little greasy and its taste and spice was missing. The employee was nice tho

This place used to be decent -- it's become a total rip off -- came in ordered steak and rice with extra meat $7.99 extra got and took it home and it's the same amount of meat as a regular portion -- the bowl has more rice than meat -- and the lakasa noodles definitely taste rotten with the tofu not eatable -- waste of money forreal -- avoid this place like the plague unless you like getting ripped off and get shitty food -- service was good nothing to complain about that -- but the food and prices total rip off --never again.

My all time favorite meal is the lemongrass chicken with fish sauce! It's my ideal comfort food when I'm missing my mom's home cooking! The chicken is always so tender, and I love their pickled veggies with scallion sauce. The fish sauce makes it so so good! Service is always quick, and they serve it in a plastic take out container, so whatever you don't finish, just ask for a lid to take it home! It's located inside the block Foodhall, and there's a lot of seating inside and outside!

Realllly good food! We tried the chicken and rice dish, I got the soy glaze flavor. If came with pickled veggies and ginger scallion oil and it was sooooo good. The second dish was chow fun noodles with crispy pork belly and let me tell you it was cooked to perfection. The noodles had a nice wok flavor and the pork belly was crispy and tender. Even after we saved some for left overs it was stillCrispy! We will be back to try other food.

I love Balo's menu!! It has a great variety of dishes to choose from with different asian-southeast Asian inspired cuisine. If you're looking for something more of a variety, this is the spot. I definitely enjoyed the small tapas such as the chicken wings, grilled corn, and Dan Dan fries. I do Not Recommend the papya salad. It was brand, very very dry and bland. No sauce or taste. The roti tacos omg! My fave! And my husband is obsessed with their lo mein version. Saucy, flavored and portioned well. Let's talk about service because there's always room for improvement. They have in several times gotten my order wrong and wouldn't correct it. They would repeat the order but give the wrong dish. It got to the point they would repeat my order verbally but input the wrong order. And of course, would need to pay another dish..My advice, speak loudly to them and have them repeat your order twice out loud. Overall, great go to place in The Block. Good vibes and good food.

Tried this spot out on the block in Annandale. The block is known for being a typical hangout spot in the dmv and there was a good mix of people from high schoolers to adults in their 30s. The food was good but was slightly overpriced. The pork belly on the rice was crispy and more flavorful than the one in the fries.

I've always preferred to address issues directly with businesses, giving them a chance to rectify them. Recently, I ordered a crispy pork bowl with rice and chicken soup through Toast. Unfortunately, they called me 15 minutes later to inform me they didn't have the soup. That was fine, and I asked them to cancel it.When I picked up my order, I was disappointed. The meat and rice were cold, which is strange coming from an Asian restaurant. I inquired about the reduced portion of pork belly, which I noticed hadn't been reflected in the price. The employee apologized and said there was nothing she could do as they did in fact change the quantity recently. I'm surprised, as I had a great experience there just a month ago. I'm not sure what caused the decline in quality