The Borscht Bowl

After going there for lunch it wasn't clear to us why this place is so highly rated. Borscht was decent - 7.5/10. Pirogies (or their russian equivalent) were bland - 2/10. It is very expensive. When I told my wife that our bill was $48 for lunch she made me show her the bill because she couldn't believe it was that much. She had a bowl of soup and a slice of bread, and I had the "special", which added on a couple of the russian pirogies to the soup and bread. The setup is a bit weird too. All the menu is on chalk boards near the entrance, but no one tells you that there are no paper menus at the tables and that you better decide what you want as you walk in the door. As we were leaving the server said that we were lucky, this was the last day that the "summer special" was available. Feeling hopeful that the "fall special" might be something better I asked what it was.and it is the same thing (bland pirogies and borscht) they just change the name.

Excellent service and food. Stopped in for something different and knew it was the spot as soon as we walked in the door and was overwhelmed with the smell! Had the summer special which came with home made borscht and greasy baked bread as well as two very large vareniki, so good. Will definitely make this stop again. Thank you!

Arrived after 1 pm and there was lots of room and choice of table. Of course their borscht was delicious. The grilled cheese was also great with extra thick bread slices and a mix of cheese. Their house drinks seem always interesting and refreshing. I had the pear ginger which was perfect. The service was warm, attentive, and very friendly. They have a selection of interesting art for sale on display as well. I will definitely come here every time I visit Grand Forks.

I am rating the food based on two people with me. They got large portions. I got a salad. Very little dressing. Server was horrible. She kept walking away without excusing herself. Snapped at me when I asked if there was any borscht without the cream. I have a serious dairy allergy. I also make borscht and cream is added at the end. She plunked this huge delish looking salad in front of me with enough dressing on the side to cover two cucumber slices. After 4 bites, I felt I was eating grass. She never came near our table again except to drop off the bill. I left to go find a food venue that would get me a meal. My mother in law said the borscht was very good. My husband loved the meat perogi. They both hated the service. No water until the end. My mother in law never got her tea.

There were lots of great reviews for this restaurant so we stopped in on our travels. The borscht was very good. It was accompanied with buttered bread and one cucumber slice. I'm glad we stopped in but would have liked a little more on the plate for the price.

The food is still excellent, and simple.
The decor, had changed from years ago.its not a cozy vibe anymore.

Big Perogies and borscht were really, really good. We did take out. The Perogies are bigger than normal so they cost more which seemed fine however once we got 8 at $6 each it wasn't so good. Really yummy though just a lot for Perogies being an avid perogy girl from Winnipeg.

The Borscht Bowl is about as authentic as you can get when it comes to Borchst and other Doukhobor specialities like pyrahi. We tried a delicious bowl of the soup, and a freshly made pyrahi
which is a pastry filled with vegetables (in my case, potatoes) and topped with butter and sour cream. I was in heaven! Service was quick, and the atmosphere was homey.

As they say, good food takes time and at th Borscht Bowl you should prepare to wait, and is it ever worth it! You won't find many places serving food like here. Traditional Doukhobor food is vegetarian but often heavy on the dairy and baked goods. The borscht is not the beet-heavy Ukrainian classic, but is loaded with cabbage, tomatoes and a good dollop of cream, making it more orange then red. Did I mention the dill? Never forget the dill

Nice place. Great waitress. My wife asked for no dairy said I'm vegan so cook puts cheese on her food. When we pointed it out waitress apologized but the cook came out madder saying we should let people know they are vegan so they don't waste food. Waitress said she told her. For that we are not going back