Paper Rice - PASADENA

This is an inventive spot that allows you to build your own bowl with asian-inspired flavors. They also allow you to build your own spring rolls, which is cool. I got the bowl which was quite a lot of food, but too many noodles, in my opinion. I would recommend the spring rolls over the bowl.

Third time here and I can’t wait to come again. Coming from South Orange County and I for sure put this on my list when near Pasadena. We came a little before regular dinner time so we could sit inside. We both got the spring rolls, 2 chicken and 1 shrimp for me. Love the traditional citrus sauce. And she got the peanut sauce. The people behind the counter are so nice. They’ll ask what you want on it, I tend to say yes to everything.

This is a cool concept, walked after smelling the food when someone opened the door. I got the 3 spring rolls, shrimp, beef and chicken. Shares with a friend but I would Recommend the beef it was savory and delicious. Shrimp was good too. Over all I loved it, would I come here again if I’m already at downtown Pasadena. Staff was friendly all young men and they did fantastic with questions and getting the line down.

We found this place a couple years ago and ever since, if we are in the area, we always come here. Cons- parking!!! I do not like places that don’t have free parking! No restrooms either. Pros- design your own spring rolls! Yum!! You get 3 per order and pick your protein and then all the inside items you would like. Lots of dipping sauces to choose from as well! Always fresh! Their drinks are great as well and they always let us sample! I love their lychee lemonade! I also tried their Vietnamese coffee today and it was strong. A little too sweet for me but the ice does help it water down. Great meal! Inside seating is also tough so if it’s nice outside, sit in the courtyard on the side! Wish we had 1 closer in the OC!

Went to Paper Rice in Pasadena. This was more of a personal stop because I wanted to walk around Pasadena and kept seeing this place pop up as a highly rated spot for bowls and spring rolls. It was raining and we were craving something warm and fresh, so we figured alright let’s try it. I saw mixed stuff about it online. Some people say it is fire, others say it is way too expensive for what you get, so I went in a little hesitant and honestly I get why now. The food itself was good. I got the beef bowl with rice noodles and mixed greens. Great flavor, super fresh, the citrus dressing they give you pairs really well with everything. So no complaints on taste. It was definitely a solid bowl. But the price for what you get is crazy. Everything is an add on. One dollar here, seventy five cents there, two dollars for this, three dollars for that. I asked for a little bit more beef because the scoop they gave me was honestly pathetic, and they told me it would be extra. For the price of the bowl already, that was wild to me. Same thing when I asked for a little more green onion. Everything was extra. That is where the controversy makes sense. The portion sizes are just not worth the fifteen to twenty dollars you are paying. If someone is paying that much, the bowl should be big and actually filled, not this tiny half filled portion. Flavor wise, they are doing it right. The flavor is there, the chicken tasted good, the beef tasted good, everything was seasoned well. But the value is not there at all. Because of that, this is not a place I would come back to. Too expensive for what you get, even though the food itself was solid.