The Whole Bowl — Restaurant in Portland

THE WHOLE BOWL RUINED MY LIFE

Let me explain...

My boyfriend and I have been road tripping for about about a month, tomorrow we return home. We stayed for a few days in Portland and decided to spend one evening at an Ethiopian restaurant near our airbnb. (Neither of us have had Ethiopian before.) On our walk there, we passed by The Whole Bowl. The Ethiopian place was still a ways away and we were pretty hungry. My boyfriend asked, "Wanna just eat here instead?" I had heard they had only one menu item. I was intruiged, so we entered.

We both ordered our bowls as they came. My boyfriend, who hates sour cream, did not mention he did not want it. I was a tad surprised, but as an avid sour scream lover I figured I would be scooping it from his bowl into my own.

We chatted with Travis as he prepared our bowls. He gave us recommendations of things to do in Portland and also mentioned some beach towns as we told him we were planning on visiting the coast. During the conversation, talk about Kansas came up, and I spoke very bluntly about how much I thought Kansas sucks, learning soon after that Kansas was Travis' home state. Despite making an butt of myself and insulting his place of origin, Travis was very patient, gracious, and friendly with us.

Our bowls were ready. We sat across from each other next to the window. What happened next was a blur of euphoric bliss. Every bite was so flavorful, so full of life and vivacity. I couldn't tell which way was up. Was I high? Ok a little. But still. Dang delicious.

Before I knew it, both of our bowls were empty. Frowny face. But wait... this doesn't make sense... my boyfriend didn't have a glop of sour cream left in his bowl.... he ... omg... he... ATE IT?!?!?!?!

Because of The Whole Bowl, my boyfriend enjoys sour cream now. Gone are the days I could steal his portions of creamy delight, for now, he wants them for himself. Gone are the days I can buy sour scream from the store and know that I will be the sole consumer of the entire tub!

Jk but forreal tho this place is da bomb. Bf and I both agree this little vegetarian place gave us our favorite meal while in Portland, and my boyfriend is a hardcore meat lover. It's a...

This restaurant sounds great and it's a good idea, I like vegetarian options. I just tried the location in the food court off of Powell Street. The gentleman described the food to me and said it had a tangy sauce. I told him I did not want the tangy sauce because of not knowing what the ingredients were. He didn't know what the ingredients were so I didn't want to take a chance because of allergy problems. I only wanted the beans, cheese, avocado and sour cream with a twig of cilantro. And he talked to me into buying the larger bowl. Unfortunately when I got home with the food, there was no avocado but there was a tangy sauce in the beans. I couldn't eat the food and neither could my roommate. I'll give them another try at this food court but this time I will tell them please no tangy sauce and I will check the food before I leave. Please, listen to the customer especially when they say they have severe allergies. It's frustrating trying to explain autoimmune disorders and it's hard enough to be traveling looking for food to eat that is healthy. Thank you.

P.S. I did just look up the ingredients for the tangy sauce. I will post it here. Unfortunately, I am allergic to garlic and lemon. Thank you. I hope this review helps others in the future..

"The Whole Bowl's signature "Tali Sauce" is a tangy and creamy sauce made with a blend of ingredients that includes nutritional yeast, lemon juice, garlic, and various spices, according to Sweetphi and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. It's a key component of the "Whole Bowl" dish, which also features brown rice, black beans, avocado, salsa, and other toppings. While the exact recipe is a secret, many have tried to replicate it, and some common ingredients found in those recipes include olive oil, chickpeas, mustard...

We love Whole Bowl! Their name is really what you get! They offer 3 sizes of their one entree which is a satisfying, yummy, complete and customizable whole vegetarian (and able to be made into vegan) meal in a bowl.

Whole Bowl was first born as a food cart and most locations are now brick and mortar, small, basically window-service situations with napkins, wooden forks, and condiments out front. Most often there is a small line, but it moves pretty quickly since they only serve one thing and have it down.

This location recently moved to the other side of the street on Hawthorne. I like their new space, feels like it's always been there even though they just moved! Seems like there are more spaces to park out front or down a side street. It was very easy to find a space and driving around the block on that side of the street was also much easier. I found a spot right out front and walked around the block before ordering - good area for a nice walk! This is a great place to meet a friend for a walk and a yummy easy to carry meal for before or after your walk.

This location is open later than the others (open until 9pm!) and their bowls are great for lunch or dinner! Keep you full and happy for quite a while!

They are dog friendly and have biscuits for...