Big Bowl Noodle House

This was my favorite place to eat during undergrad. I came back to visit this week for Homecoming and this place hasn’t lost a beat! The food was delicious as always! This is a State College hidden gem

We were recommended to this place by a local and it did not miss. Food was fresh and portions large. Service was fast and friendly. Honestly, not sure what else you could ask for. There were plenty of options to choose from. I ordered the Singapore noodles and steamed veg dumplings.

Authentic food. College student friendly. Friendly service. Located below street level. Tip: try the fried tofu.

Don’t let the creepy entrance or bland decor throw you off—Big Bowl Noodle is all about the food. This was my second time eating here, thanks to a Penn State alum buddy who insisted I try the congee. I’m glad I listened. The congee is absolutely top-tier: warm, creamy, with a subtle toastiness that gives it depth. I kicked mine up with a little spice, and the pork was sliced just right—tender, flavorful, and perfectly cooked. This is the kind of congee that sticks with you. If you know, you know. I couldn’t recommend it more.

Passed through the area on a roadtrip and stopped for some Chinese/Taiwanese food. Really pleasantly surprised by how good it was! We had: Pork and Century Egg Congee 5/5 This was a classic and really delicious congee. It definitely hit the spot after driving for a while. Big portion but it was so good I scarfed it down in no time. Wonton Soup 5/5 Wontons good, soup good. What more can you ask for? Chicken Fried Rice (takeout) 4/5 Chicken fillet was crispy and fried rice is just your average fried rice. Perfectly fine, but nothing stand out. Probably wouldn't get it again, not because it was bad but just because the other dishes were so good. Also got jasmine milk tea with boba which was good too. Sweetness level was just right, not too sweet. Plenty of street parking. Service was quick and efficient. Staff was super nice and very friendly even though we arrived and dined in later at night. Talked with them and learned that they've been open for 20 years! And I can see why. Portions are big, the food is great, and for the price it's amazing. Will definitely be back when we're in State College. Highly recommend.

Food was delicious! Great , great portions. Every bite was a pleasure trip . Will 1000% recommend

I stopped by here with my partner during a long roadtrip and was pleasantly surprised by how good the food was. We talked briefly with some of the workers who spoke Chinese and learned that they have been here for 20 years. Portion sizes are big for the price (very worth) and the honey green tea is delicious (not too sweet, no need for adjustments). We ordered the pork and shrimp wonton noodle soup and pork and thousand egg congee. Needless to say, we finished it within minutes and ordered a chicken fried rice to go. Their food definitely hit the spot and we hope to come back soon!

I stopped here randomly, looking to grab a small dish to satisfy my munchies. Ordered the sesame noodles which price wise should have been a small dish. Well, it was huge! Served very fast, fresh and flavorful, not to mention, the chilly oil is fire!!! Will be coming back!

Not that Big Bowls needs more positive reviews, but I've been a faithful customer since college years (2005). Twenty years later when my hubby and friends visit State College, one must-stop is still Big Bowls! Glad to see Wayne and other staff members' familiar faces every time. Food never disappoints. My go-to is Singapore rice noodles. This time I also got red hot chili oil wonton, mistakenly thought it was an appetizer, but the time I was half way through, I was 75% full! I guess it's in the name "Big Bowl". Ambiance is relaxed, as it always has been. Pick up your food at the counter, carry it yourself to a table of your liking. The sauces and water are also self serve. When finished, discard the food waste and separate the tableware and the tray. It's hard for restaurants to stay open for years, through the pandemic, especially. But once you try it, you'll see why it was able to do it.

A Must-Stop Every Time I'm in Town I've been coming to Big Bowl since 2007 when I was a student at Penn State, and it's been my go-to spot ever since. No matter where life takes me, I always make a point to stop by whenever I'm visiting or passing through State College. My order is the same every time--crispy tender chicken with fried rice and beef ho fun. It never disappoints. The chicken is perfectly crispy, the rice is flavorful, and the beef ho fun has that smoky wok hei that's tough to find. The food always tastes like a home-cooked meal, and the prices are super reasonable, especially for the quality and portion sizes. Even my wife, who's a tough critic when it comes to food, loves it here too. The consistency, flavor, and value make this place a hidden gem in town. If you know, you know. And if you don't--go find out.

Start off on a positive.... staff was very friendly and welcoming! Food left a lot to be desired. I got the black pepper beef with fried rice. The rice tasted like actual 'nothing'.. like honestly couldn't even taste the peaness of a pea, carrots tastes like air and I didn't even realize there was egg in it until my daughter pointed it out. The pepper beaf ONLY tasted like black pepper. Just a soupy glaze of black pepper. My daughter's boyfriend got chicken fried rice. He was like guys I think my tastebuds are broken because I don't taste anything. My daughter actually enjoyed her chicken teriyaki and white rice so that's good! Again, staff was great which made up for the bland food.

Big Bowl Noodle House is a State College staple. The staff are friendly, the food is affordable and tasty. The interior isn't anything fancy, but they are here to serve good food, and they do it well. I've never heard of any complaints from any of my friends.

In town for a couple days, discover this authentic amazing Taiwanese restaurant. First night dinned in , saw most people there are asian which tells us the food must be authentic. Second the price is really good. Enjoy every bite of the dishes, it was so good that we went back for the second day! Definitely going back again if we are in town.

i think i would've rated this place better if i ordered the fried rice instead. i was craving spicy beef tendon soup, so i ordered it.. but it was just ok. there wast barely any protein and the soup was a little bland. and not that spicy as i thought. my boyfriend's chicken fried rice was REALLY good though. but i only had a few bites he offered to share. the crab rangoons are almost like any other fried rangoons you may find at chinese restaurants, but these were actually pretty filled and good. it pairs well with the duck sauce. my favorite! the portions are HUGE. so if you don't eat a lot, share with someone. or order take out and split the portions at home. service was very quick and the staff was also very welcoming and efficient :))

Good food! So happy on our trip we found a good Asian restaurant. I know my daughter will not starve lol after we ate there I felt comforted leaving her at Penn. Peace of mind and good food.

shrimp pad thai is bland.no taste. chicken wings i guess they marinate in food color fried rice is alright same thing on chicken and broccoli.the serving is pretty good big for one order.

One of the better Chinese restaurants in downtown State College, but not great. I've gone here many times with friends or after church service. I never have a go-to, because none of the dishes left me going "Wow! I would totally eat this again." Some of the dishes I've tried include Pad Thai which was verrrryyy inauthentic to the point of a different noodle being used and taste as well. The colors were orange...so I'm not sure what kind of seasonings/sauces they used. Their Scrambled Egg with Tomato (+ your choice of protein) was an omelette on a bed of white rice which was disappointing. I expected scrambled eggs in a thick tomato sauce with sliced tomatoes (a traditional & homey Cantonese dish that was simply not replicated here). Stir fried noodles are overly oily which is a turnoff for me. Their Vegetable Noodle Soup is lacking flavor in my opinion, but many of my friends enjoy their Braised Beef Noodle Soup, so that is worth a try. When I don't feel well, I get the Preserved Century Egg and Pork Congee that is decent. Not super flavorful but hits the spot when you're sick. Overall, I don't love this place to be quite honest. Granted, the prices of the items are not bad for the quantity you receive. So I would recommend this place if you have a craving for Chinese food and don't want to spend too much.

Big bowl has been around for years. For some reason I have just recently discovered it. Several of my favorite chinese restaurants have declined, due to the pandemic?, or have shut down in recent years. So we started to branch out and gave the Bowl a try. I've only tried a few menu items but here's my initial take. The portions are big! They are not shy with the sauce. Everything had good flavor. The chicken was pre fried and then sauced per order. The white rice was moist and fresh. For now this is our go to for fast food chinese stop. I've had better but I'm happy with their offerings.

Wow. Food here is amazing with a great price too. Definitely going back monthly. Prices and taste is too good to miss. Definitely got 2 meals out of my order. Servers were kind and although the restaurant is pretty cluttered, we really enjoyed our time here.

Good food, fast service and large portions. Great place to stop while driving through the area

This place declined after pandemic but seems on the rebound. Good place if you like cold sesame noodles. Ambiance not great for dine-in and dark downstairs location not accessible. No reliable parking nearby as middle of college town. Service is prompt.

Possibly the best restaurant in the US outside of New York. Every single dish is masterful. It's shockingly cheap but stunningly delicious. This place should have a Michelin Star. I will never stop dreaming about Big Bowl, my absolute favorite restaurant on Earth.

Don't be intimidated by the interior this is might've been the best Asian food I've ever had. I feel like the prices are reasonable. Service is fast too.

Every time I visit State College I stop here. Amazing food huge portions great prices.

Don't listen to the haters here. This is an absolute stable for Penn state college students. You'll get the best bang for your buck and the food is great

I've been coming to big bowl for years now and I'm glad it's still around. Definitely bring cash. The food is authentic and you can't go wrong, but I really liked eggs and tomatoes, the congee and fish, and the eggplant with ground pork.

A State College institution! Affordable and reliably delicious with generous servings. The owners are so friendly!

The veggie noodles were delicious. Bok Choy, carrots, mushrooms, sprouts, onions & more. Cash only like most places in the area. Big noodle is down stairs and there is outdoor seating available too. Currently doing take out only as of sept 21

Good prices, good food. No complaints! This place is always good. I usually get the same thing, it's tofu (the first thing in their menu I think) there's usually some variation, but I've never had a bad meal here, and the employees are great!

I would give two stars but the price still technically was equal to the quality of food I got. The dining area is not nicely laid out, but the service was pretty helpful and accurate. Menu was clear and to the point. I'm not sure if I would go here again but if I do I'm definitely getting something different off the menu.

Great selection of choices, well made, and always fresh! Love the Thai stir fry! Did pick up as well as used Hungry Panda delivery app.

The food here is great. The people are nice, and it's a hidden spot underground. I highly recommend!

Had fried rice with breaded chicken cutlet. Chicken was perfect. Got rice without soy sauce because the pictures look like way too much soy. Added my own soy and it was good.

CASH ONLY!!!!! Was recommended here by a friend and it was....just okay. I had the chicken fried rice and it was good! I've had better but this was definitely nothing to shake your head about. I've never had peas in my fried rice so that was an unexpected surprise.... I'm not a huge fan of peas.... the chicken should've been cut into smaller pieces because they were not bite sized. The pasta does look really good though! I do have to say that you get a lot of bang for your buck. The portions are large and definitely enough for leftovers.

Delicious food. Great service. Love the seating arrangement. Met my wife here. Love those big bowls

Food is good to very good, a bit heavy, ambience is zero, seems clean but that's just about it... service is fast to very fast, prices are good... perfect for students and not for a date...

Great food, good prices and HUGE portions!! Definitely worth checking out. Glad I was carrying cash & avoided the surcharge they have for debit/credit card users.

This is a must go in State College! The only downside is that you'll be veryyy tired after eating your meal. It's cash only so make sure you take cash! Everything I tried at Big Bowl is so delicious! I usually get the fried chicken with black pepper sauce. You can also ask for the sauce on the side so you dip your chicken in it. Also, make sure you get fried rice instead of white rice! It's extra but definitely worth it. Their mapo tofu is so good as well! Their portion is hugeee so you will have leftovers to take home. They also have specials everyday that is written on the board next to the cashier. If you haven't been, try it! You order at the cashier and they will call your number when the food is ready.

They take cards! Please note that the place is downstairs and due to dark tint on every window, it always looks closed. Their menu is super varied. The pork tonkatsu is what they recommend if you're not familiar with this menu. It's delicious! The beef and broccoli is good. The egg, chicken and tomato dish is OUTSTANDING, so good! Perfect for a sick tummy or hangover. Mild but tasty. General Taos is very good. The mapo tofu is a no for me. Never had it with peas and carrots in it, the carrots were undercooked/crunchy. Very little if any Szechuan pepper. Oh well. I miss their nice big serving bowls, everything is served in styrofoam now. Maybe they only serve soups in the old bowls? Either way it's easy to miss this place, but it's delicious!

Great prices and the food is outstanding. Even my picky grandson ate his fill and asked for more.

I really had a good time here! This is probably the best Chinese food you can find on campus. Just note it's cash only! They have a great selection on the menu and it feels like there's so many things to try. I highly recommend

They have greattt location and the owner couple was so nice. They are cash only. I liked to go there for early lunch. One thing I disliked was their bubble tea that they used the foam cup to contain the hot tea - so that the drink always tasted like foam / plastic. 萝卜排骨米线是我的最爱，特别香。青菜鱼片粥挺好吃的，一般还点根油条吃着玩（别的店都没有）。他家的seasonal菜单都还不错，梅菜扣肉饭好吃。一般seasonal我喜欢的没有了的话我就点炒米粉炒饭啥的。

Big Bowl is a State College staple for me. When I still lived in the area, I would go all the time, especially for hangover meals on the weekends. Everything is very authentic and you can tell because the place is usually packed. My absolute favorite meals are the wonton soup (the best I've ever had and NOTHINGGG like the stuff you get at a Chinese takeout place), fried tofu, crispy tender chicken with udon stir fry, and the black pepper chicken. They only accept cash but there's a PNC ATM next door at McLanahan's. I have yet to find a place that even comes close to Big Bowl where I live now and always make it a point to stop in when I'm visiting Penn State.

I made it a priority to live within a block of Big Bowl for all 4 years at Penn State. This is my go-to place when I'm craving a huge portion of delicious, affordable food -- and depending on what you get, sometimes it's pretty healthy too! Chicken & broccoli is my favorite, but every time I eat here, I'm always tempted to ask the person next to me what they ordered. Everything always looks and smells amazing. Quick service even when they're busy. Pretty good hours. Also really love that they give you nice, real plates when you eat in. CASH ONLY! There's an ATM inside, a PNC ATM in McLanahan's next door, and a BB&T ATM around the corner outside Sharkies.

Their food is really good! Portion is generous and prices are reasonable. I grew up in Asia and their daily special are usually very authentic. The only downside is they only take cash, but I think that changed after covid. They wear masks and also offer contactless pick up (when you arrive you have to call them, and they'll leave the food on the table for you to pick up). I'll definitely miss this place after leaving Penn State!

The food here is good. Probably because of the people I'm going with. Well now they're all good memories.

This is a true classic. There is something at Big Bowl for just about anyone. They have a large array of the typical Chinese take-out options, but the real gems are hidden within their menu and their ever-changing specials menu on the white board. Most of my favorites are part of the rotating specials. Even though in recent years they've been hiking up the prices of their specials, I continue to order them because they're just that good. Big Bowl is cheap to begin with, you will find that specials are a $1-2 more than the regular menu items. However, you will never go wrong with ordering one their specials, but my favorite regular menu option is the Braised Beef Noodle Soup. Delicious on its own or doused with hot chili oil! The place is great because of its large size and ability to accommodate large parties, conveniently downtown, and cheap. I would say my only annoyance with this place is that it is cash-only. However, it's not too big of a problem as the store upstairs/next-door has a few atms available.

Big Bowl and their steamed pork dumpling noodle soup are not to be missed if you're in the State College area. My awesome roommate Katie introduced me to Big Bowl and I've been a huge fan ever since - even my family likes it (meaning this is not your average college-food take out). The menu takes a minute to figure out, as it's on the wall and you typically order a Letter plus a Number (I believe the dumpling soup is "9C," for instance - 9 for the steamed pork dumplings, and C for the noodle soup). These are by far the best dumplings in Centre County - they actually top my list in general - and they're an inexpensive place to dine out, which is an added bonus. Everything's fresh and the variety and quality of food is unexpectedly great. Really, try the dumpling soup!! The wait can be 20 or 30 minutes if you don't call ahead and waltz in there on a Friday night. Also, this place is not to be confused with the fancy, reservations-only eatery you may find online if you google "big bowl:" this is a tiny little place sub-terra just of the main intersection of downtown State College.

I love coming here. I love the food and environment. It's a really tasty place. check it out

This place is hands down my favorite spot to get chinese food. It's quick and delicious. This place never disappoints and it always gives me a taste of home when I am craving a home cooked meal. The prices are affordable and the portions are huge. The only downside is they are cash only. Other than that, it's great and I am here at least once a week.

Good amount for such a low price! It is around $25 for two meals that come in huge takeout containers.

the best comfort food out here in state college. i'm a big fan of the thai stir fry pho noodles with beef. they slap to say the least. the owners are also so sweet!!!

Practically closed now. No dine in. Still cash only I guess. Terrible street parking. Skip it.

Cash only is kinda annoying but once you get past that, you'll love the cheap prices and generous servings. The entrances remind me of many a chinatown restaurant in other places. I have to admit I was extremely skeptical of finding decent chinese food in this part of Pennsylvania but the food here tastes a lot like my mom's. Very simplistic noodle dish but executed well. I got a 103 (ho-fun with black bean sauce) and came out relatively quickly with a lot of noodles, beef and vegetables. That funky black bean sauce permeates the dish and flavors it well. Add some chili sauce to it if that's your kinda thing. Definitely get full off it. The boba here is pretty good too - not too sweet and cheaper than most places I've been to in a while. Jasmine milk tea is my go to and they do it well. A boba and dinner will barely set you back $10. College friendly food at its finest.

Great spot for a quick bite. The flavor is good, everything tasted freshly made. The tofu was lightly breaded and fried. The vege dumpling tasted fresh made in house. It has some mushroom, tofu and cabbage inside of I remember it correctly. Our friend ordered the general Tao chicken, they said it was lightly breaded and loved it as well. Very happy for the choice. The only thing I didn't like was the this is a cash only spot. Although there is an ATM next door, but I don't know if everyone carry their debit card all the time. Bring cash if you plan to check this place out.

Super quick service and really good food!! Definitely have pretty big portion sizes and a lot of different options from seafood to tofu.

The best Asian cuisine around. Better then most take out, lots of vegetarian options and the spring rolls are bomb