Poki Bowl

Between the small chains Poke Dot and Uroko Cafe, and medium-sized chains such as Poke Tiki, Orange County has no shortage of good to great locally founded poke restaurants, particularly in north and central OC. Founded in San Jose, the Poki Bowl chain has since expanded to include nearly 20 locations – more than half in California, clustered in the Bay Area and Inland Empire. The original vision was to bring an Asian-influenced version of the Hawaiian dish to San Jose, with macaron ice cream available as a sweet treat at some locations, and a basic fridge-based selection of drinks; that’s it.

Poki Bowl’s single location in Irvine has operated somewhat under the radar since its May 2024 opening, predating the arrival of Persian supermarket Super Irvine and Japanese shaved ice parlor Kiyoraka Kakigori by a year. Lightly staffed and modestly appointed inside, with an oversized poke bowl prep counter and seating for around 20 people, it offers three bowl size choices – two protein-scoop “small” ($16.75), three-scoop regular ($19), and four-scoop “large” ($21), notably higher than its aforementioned competitors even before considering Poki Bowl’s $1.50 upcharges for seaweed salad or edamame. Extra scoops of protein are $2.50; extra scoops of avocado, crab meat, or masago eggs are $1.50. Miso soup ($3), spam musubi ($3.50/1 roll, $6/2) and potato chips ($2.50) are the only “side” options here; macaron ice cream desserts aren’t available at this location.