KAOKAO Grill

The food is spectacular for a small local place. There are so few items on the menu that each one has been perfected. They recently added noodle dishes and so far we’ve tried three of them . The noodles have great chew and lots of flavor. The grilled meats are so smoky, tender and flavorful. This is my favorite place on College Ave and I really wish other people would discover it. One note: it takes a while (not a long time) to get the food. It’s casual so it feels like the food should be out faster, but it’s got restaurant pacing. It’s not fast casual. It takes a reasonable amount of time to make food that good.

Amazing flavors and technique served in a sweet, if straightforward, restaurant seating area. We had the pork dish with rice and cucumber, which has a complex preparation and a sweet, salty, crunchy taste. We also had the eggplant salad; incredibly good. My partner had the noodles and brisket dish which he loved; brisket disappeared pretty fast and he said he liked the springy, chewy noodles.

Other than the wait being a tad long, food is good. (Char Sui bowl, recc ordering a cucumber salad to cut through the sweet and grease.)

We went a little late and they were out of their popular chicken dishes so we defaulted to the pork. The ‘char siew’ pork was very well done - tender, juicy with a nice shiny glaze on the outside. The cold cucumber salad was also good but could have used a little bit more marinading time.

Got the brisket noodle soup and char siu rice. Food was surprisingly really good, despite the look of the restaurant (very hole in the wall vibe, very barebone). Meats were really juicy and flavorful but not too salty. The noodle was very good, firm and chewy. Soup was delicious. no chopsticks available which is super unusual, but forks for noodles works too so that’s fine. I’d come back again for the food!

This unpretentious restaurant will blow your socks off! The food is made with so much love and it shows… the taste of every dish is so flavorful and it has a presentation to match. Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed!

Mouth-watering smoked charsiu pork and South Asian-flavored chicken. Generous portions, nice accompaniments for each, delicious house soda. I will definitely visit regularly. Their flavor profiles are so fresh, attention-grabbing, and savory.

Char Siu pork plate was decent but not phenomenal. I like the juiciness of the pork and a lil crunch on the skin. Decoration was cute, cucumber pickles were rotten/had a bit of foul smell. Not sure if it’s worth $23-24 after tax. I can easily get this dish at a Chinese restaurant or Chinatown for cheaper. I also wish the eggplant salad had less sauce because the aroma of star anise or sth was too much for me.