water bubbles and teriyaki bowl, 2600 oswell st, bakersfield ca 93306

water bubbles, rating 3.5/5, price $; teriyaki bowl, rating 4/5, price $. (both businesses are located at the nw corner of oswell & bernard, south of 178.) my 12 year old niece, like many kids, is obsessed with japanese and asian pop culture, so she was excited to stop off at teriyaki bowl when we picked her up for the evening. teriyaki bowl has been in town about 15 years, with locations on ming west of the plaza and panama lane, too. it used to sell solely japanese fast food, but now has a lot of chinese fast food, too. it's in a tiny storefront, decorated with orientalia. price are still quite cheap, with various types of rice bowls in the $2.50-$3 range. they also sell miso (the fishy-tasting variety), a good glutinous egg flower soup, & limited sushi (california rolls, when we were there). i usually get rice and egg flower soup, but others say they enjoy the teriyaki and curry bowls. you can choose different meats to top your bowl, but there are no specifically vegetarian options. this is a convenient spot to grab a filling meal en route to home from work or bc, or just a place to stop for something cheap and tasty, if you're a northeaster or east-sider. (tip! if you go to the teriyaki bowl on ming, get your food, then get your drink and extras at the adjacent asia market, which is a wonderful place to get cold teas and all kinds of specialized groceries. their chao siu bao (bbq pork rolls) are delicious!)
at the opposite end of this same strip mall-let is water bubbles: boba and exotics drinks, a brightly painted shop selling purified water, electronics, and "boba + slushies + coffee." the very cheerful man working the counter told me business was slow the first year, but is "doing better now." the drink selection is smaller and the prices a tad higher than at boba buck on union. he laughed heartily when i asked if he was the owner and was very friendly. this always counts for a lot with me!
adding boba (starchy, slightly sweet, chewy tapioca balls) to your "indulge drink" is 30 cents extra, although free at boba buck. "indulge drinks" come in more common to westerners fruit flavors and also lychee, star fruit, and taro. under blended drinks, you can choose the regular flavors as well as blended thai tea, which my spouse REALLY liked. other special add-ins (coconut jelly, green mango bits, oreo, caramel) also add 30 cents to your drink price. hot drinks include cocoa, tea, coffee, and french coffee. i would go back to support this business because of the counterman's friendliness. the drinks, too, were quite tasty, as you'd imagine. the fellow insisted on giving my fourth, free drink, although i hadn't quite earned it yet. water bubbles offers a "buy 3, get one free" drink deal, pretty generous compared to many specialty beverage places. i'd go back. the dessertish drinks complement teriyaki bowl's food pretty well, together making for quite a heavy, indulgent, though less-greasy-than-other-possibilities fast food meal.

a couple of "ehs" - ralene's filipino cuisine & juice it up

ralene's filipino cuisine, 704 oak st, bakersfield, CA 93304, (661) 322-9200: rating: 3/5; price: $. i don't know much about filipino food except for the lumpia that sometimes would show up at our grandparents' house in delano when one of my aunts returned from harvest holidays or some other special event... i think the flavors are an acquired taste to a stranger to this type of chow, sort of like the cow-hoof-flavored dessert at saigon restaurant.
the interior of ralene's is colorful, cheerful, & diners seemed happy. you pick your food from a buffet line. the young man behind the counter was VERY helpful & friendly, letting us sample various dishes before choosing. the food textures were in general mushy & the food itself not at all spicy. i had a whole, dried milk fish, which he said was only available on special days, along with a plate of mung beans, which were hearty-tasty... the fish, eyeball & all, was very salty & pretty good, but my spouse wasn't able to eat his mixed vegetables, which were greasy-waxy & sweet-spiced. if you're someone who didn't grow up eating it, the vegetables must be some "acquired taste" plate, is what i think.
i suppose this is kind of filipino soul food & that if you already enjoy filipino food, you'll like ralene's. if this kind of fare is unfamiliar to you, but you seek out novel dining experiences, why not go to ralene's? who knows - you might enjoy it more than we did. the friendly young man certainly makes it worth at least one trip.
juice it up, village marketplace, 24th & L sts., bakersfield CA 93301. rating: 2/5; price: $$. this is basically jamba juice in central bakersfield, but the drinks are not as cold. it's located in the new shopping center at the western end of hwy 178, the side that dumps into downtown from the eastside. eateries already here are the excellent flame & skewer (middle eastern fast food); starbuck's; hawaiian bbq; & probably more. the drinks i've had here haven't been cold enough for my liking. when i let my guard down & spend 4-5 bucks for a shake-like drink, i want it to be ice-cold, at least, but these haven't been. kind of puzzling!
in addition to the dairy- and non-dairy-based juice beverages, juice it up sells wheat grass, tea, cocoa, & "free boosts," like jamba juice does - vitamins & herbs that can be added to your drink, depending on whether you want more energy, memory, fat burning, calcium, or etc. they have some food items, like muffins and healthy snack bars. the interior is small, cute & cool & there's a chalkboard you can write on. the blended juice drinks are calorie-heavy, enough for a full meal, but the ones at jamba juice seem heartier and more filling. for my money, i'd go someplace else, though certainly if you want healthy, juice it up offers that.