They are hardly ever open. Hours start at like 4pm, what about people who want lunch or something to eat earlier? Not the best hours of operation.
Brian
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. ( NEWS10 ) – On Friday, a Niskayuna business owner pleaded guilty to labor trafficking before a judge in Schenectady County Court. Piyamas Demasi, 45, owner of Thai Thai Bistro and Karma Bistro pleaded guilty to a top count of a thirteen-count alleged indictment.
Ronald Doyle
Everything!!! Food - staff -location
MAXWELL PIGLIAVENTO
The person working the phone did a great job and got me what I wanted.
Wendy Alvira
Good sushi and even better staff. Cozy atmosphere I would recommend all the time! Greatest experience ever
Manager NC Properties
I ordered from Karma for takeout during Covid-19 - tonkatsu ramen and salmon poke. The food was okay but generous but a bit lack luster which I thought it is because of takeout and wait time. So, when Karma opened up for dine in, I paid another visit. Ordered the same tonkatsu ramen and salmon poke. Nah... Soup is quite salty and maybe the shiitake mushroom or else gave a strong bitter taste to the soup. The temperature of the ramen is a non-passing grade which is barely hot. If you are familiar with Ramen, you know the food temp is crucial. The pork belly was okay but nothing to write home about. The food is consistent regardless of take out vs dine in. I was disappointed that there is not a single decent ramen restaurant in town.
Joel M.
The Capital Region has no shortage of Asian Style eateries and I could not be happier about that. Karma Bistro is one of the newest options and it should definitely be added to your rotation. I am lucky because it is less than a mile from my house!Located in the Niskayuna Shop Rite plaza the colorful storefront lures you in. They keep interesting hours. Lunch is not an option here. The inside is trendy and fits the bistro description. They also have outdoor seating if you don't mind the view of a supermarket parking lot. The have wine available but nothing else currently. On my most recent visit the young man working as my server seemed more interested in his phone than his job. He did eventually get me everything I needed. I have sampled a few items here. On my first trip it was during the early quarantine months. I ate my food on the tailgate of my car. I ordered the poke bowl. You can craft your own. The tuna was fresh as were all of the ingredients. They have lots of bowl options which are sure to meet your needs. I also tried the Chicken Katsu Buns and they were delicious. Crispy, well seasoned chicken with a wonderful slaw and spicy sauce served in a fluffy bun. Such a delicious bite. On my second trip I tried the same type of buns but with Peking Duck. Similar in composition, the slaw and hot sauce tied everything together. The duck was crispy and cooked perfectly. I did take issue with the price. 2 buns for 12 dollars. Yikes!! I know a local place that will sell you a half Peking Duck with the buns and traditional accompaniments for 20 dollars. I made a comment to the owner who seemed receptive to my comment. I am a huge ramen fan and I already have a local favorite. I had to give the Karma Bistro version a try. My diagnosis? It was fabulous! I tried the tonkatsu ramen. It had some serious depth of flavor. The broth was magical for sure. You could pick the protein you wanted and I went with pork belly. It also included a very well seasoned soft boiled egg. I have never experienced that before and it was a pleasant addition. The noodles were also fantastic. If I were to provide any criticism it would be that more veggies could be included in the ramen. I could also accept the argument that simplicity is better here. Was it better than my favorite? It some ways yes. There is nothing wrong with having more than one option for great Ramen that is for sure. It is so close to my place I am sure I will be back soon. Maybe I will see you there :)
Jason H.
Ordered over the phone for takeout. Tuna poke x2, non-spicy yellowtail/cucumber roll, and sweet taro rolls. The rice was quite hot so the tuna was no longer raw. It was half cooked. I'm used to tuna poke being marinated or coated ponzu sauce or similar. Nope. Plain tuna, pretty tasteless. And half cooked. The rest of the ingredients were fresh and plentiful. I requested mushrooms to be added. They forgot. Also ordered a non-spicy yellowtail and cucumber roll. Looked great. They put wasabi inside the roll. Inside. Kind of goes against the point of non-spicy. My partner couldn't eat it. Sweet taro rolls were also ordered and left out of the order. Didn't realize until after I left. Wasn't charged for them at least.Meh.
Spiral Lightning
Natural poke tasty. Shoyu ramen mixed review.Why would you use raw shiitake? Yuck! I found it kinda tasty otherwise.Japanese mother said the broth was bad and they used udon noodle instead of Chinese ramen noodles. She will not return.Fast service, pricey.
Justin Serpico
Food was good, but kind of pricey for the portion sizes. So, I liked it, but value could have been a bit better. Also, my order was wrong, but what I got was good (and acceptable) so I didn't send it back (it was take-out and I didn't want to wait again). Overall, I kind of prefer Corelife poke bowls a bit more, but I would eat here again.
Got 2 shoyu ramens, 1 Thai curry ramen, and 1 tuna poke bowl for takeout. Quickly went to pick it up and quickly returned home to minimize deterioration of food quality and temperature. The shoyu ramen broth lacks depth in flavor and was the only remotely warm component. The soy marinated egg was cold. The mushrooms seemed like they just bought mushrooms next door from shop rite, sliced it up, and tossed them into the mix without any prep -- also cold. When you threw the ingredients into a bowl to enjoy, the cold solids immediately reduced the temperature of the entire dish. None of us were able to finish our ramen. The poke bowl was okay; nothing worth noting.
Edward Zampella
I'd like to support locally owned restaurants, but this take-out order was really frustrating.THE MENU OFFERS GLUTEN FREE. And it shouldn't be hard to make a bowl of rice or rice noodles gluten-free anyway. Yet, I was eventually told nothing was gluten free. Getting that answer took a bit of a back and forth and two check-ins with the chef.Look, I don't like being gluten free. It'd be a helluva lot more enjoyable to be able to eat anywhere/anything. So please, take that extra step to be clear with your staff and on the menu about what you offer. This shouldn't have been a hassle.
jace patrick
The pork belly bao may be the best thing I ever ate
Crystal D.
First time getting food from here and I'm quite impressed. My boyfriend and I ordered the tuna poke, pork belly poke, the shrimp and lobster dumplings for an appetizer, and a peach Ramune soda for pick-up. We split everything. Everything was very fresh, excellent quality veggies. The tuna poke was amazing! Delicious blend of flavors. I'll be sure to order this again. The tuna was soft and flavorful. I also really enjoyed the hearts of palm and the avocado! The pork belly poke was completely different and just as delicious. I got a few too many hot peppers in my half (thanks, boyfriend), but other than that, it was excellent. My favorite part was the shimeji mushrooms. The shrimp and lobster dumplings were absolutely delicious. I loved the dipping sauce they came with. Wish there were more! My only issue was that although I ordered a Lychee Ramune, I got home to find out I had an Original flavored one. Not the biggest of deals. I checked the rest of my order before leaving, but I got to talking with the girl who was helping me and apparently missed the soda. Hopefully we can go back to dining in at restaurants and then this won't be a problem. I've never been a fan of takeout...and incorrect orders is one of the big reasons why.
They are hardly ever open. Hours start at like 4pm, what about people who want lunch or something to eat earlier? Not the best hours of operation.
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. ( NEWS10 ) – On Friday, a Niskayuna business owner pleaded guilty to labor trafficking before a judge in Schenectady County Court. Piyamas Demasi, 45, owner of Thai Thai Bistro and Karma Bistro pleaded guilty to a top count of a thirteen-count alleged indictment.
Everything!!! Food - staff -location
The person working the phone did a great job and got me what I wanted.
Good sushi and even better staff. Cozy atmosphere I would recommend all the time! Greatest experience ever
I ordered from Karma for takeout during Covid-19 - tonkatsu ramen and salmon poke. The food was okay but generous but a bit lack luster which I thought it is because of takeout and wait time. So, when Karma opened up for dine in, I paid another visit. Ordered the same tonkatsu ramen and salmon poke. Nah... Soup is quite salty and maybe the shiitake mushroom or else gave a strong bitter taste to the soup. The temperature of the ramen is a non-passing grade which is barely hot. If you are familiar with Ramen, you know the food temp is crucial. The pork belly was okay but nothing to write home about. The food is consistent regardless of take out vs dine in. I was disappointed that there is not a single decent ramen restaurant in town.
The Capital Region has no shortage of Asian Style eateries and I could not be happier about that. Karma Bistro is one of the newest options and it should definitely be added to your rotation. I am lucky because it is less than a mile from my house!Located in the Niskayuna Shop Rite plaza the colorful storefront lures you in. They keep interesting hours. Lunch is not an option here. The inside is trendy and fits the bistro description. They also have outdoor seating if you don't mind the view of a supermarket parking lot. The have wine available but nothing else currently. On my most recent visit the young man working as my server seemed more interested in his phone than his job. He did eventually get me everything I needed. I have sampled a few items here. On my first trip it was during the early quarantine months. I ate my food on the tailgate of my car. I ordered the poke bowl. You can craft your own. The tuna was fresh as were all of the ingredients. They have lots of bowl options which are sure to meet your needs. I also tried the Chicken Katsu Buns and they were delicious. Crispy, well seasoned chicken with a wonderful slaw and spicy sauce served in a fluffy bun. Such a delicious bite. On my second trip I tried the same type of buns but with Peking Duck. Similar in composition, the slaw and hot sauce tied everything together. The duck was crispy and cooked perfectly. I did take issue with the price. 2 buns for 12 dollars. Yikes!! I know a local place that will sell you a half Peking Duck with the buns and traditional accompaniments for 20 dollars. I made a comment to the owner who seemed receptive to my comment. I am a huge ramen fan and I already have a local favorite. I had to give the Karma Bistro version a try. My diagnosis? It was fabulous! I tried the tonkatsu ramen. It had some serious depth of flavor. The broth was magical for sure. You could pick the protein you wanted and I went with pork belly. It also included a very well seasoned soft boiled egg. I have never experienced that before and it was a pleasant addition. The noodles were also fantastic. If I were to provide any criticism it would be that more veggies could be included in the ramen. I could also accept the argument that simplicity is better here. Was it better than my favorite? It some ways yes. There is nothing wrong with having more than one option for great Ramen that is for sure. It is so close to my place I am sure I will be back soon. Maybe I will see you there :)
Ordered over the phone for takeout. Tuna poke x2, non-spicy yellowtail/cucumber roll, and sweet taro rolls. The rice was quite hot so the tuna was no longer raw. It was half cooked. I'm used to tuna poke being marinated or coated ponzu sauce or similar. Nope. Plain tuna, pretty tasteless. And half cooked. The rest of the ingredients were fresh and plentiful. I requested mushrooms to be added. They forgot. Also ordered a non-spicy yellowtail and cucumber roll. Looked great. They put wasabi inside the roll. Inside. Kind of goes against the point of non-spicy. My partner couldn't eat it. Sweet taro rolls were also ordered and left out of the order. Didn't realize until after I left. Wasn't charged for them at least.Meh.
Natural poke tasty. Shoyu ramen mixed review.Why would you use raw shiitake? Yuck! I found it kinda tasty otherwise.Japanese mother said the broth was bad and they used udon noodle instead of Chinese ramen noodles. She will not return.Fast service, pricey.
Food was good, but kind of pricey for the portion sizes. So, I liked it, but value could have been a bit better. Also, my order was wrong, but what I got was good (and acceptable) so I didn't send it back (it was take-out and I didn't want to wait again). Overall, I kind of prefer Corelife poke bowls a bit more, but I would eat here again.
Restaurantji Recommends
Got 2 shoyu ramens, 1 Thai curry ramen, and 1 tuna poke bowl for takeout. Quickly went to pick it up and quickly returned home to minimize deterioration of food quality and temperature. The shoyu ramen broth lacks depth in flavor and was the only remotely warm component. The soy marinated egg was cold. The mushrooms seemed like they just bought mushrooms next door from shop rite, sliced it up, and tossed them into the mix without any prep -- also cold. When you threw the ingredients into a bowl to enjoy, the cold solids immediately reduced the temperature of the entire dish. None of us were able to finish our ramen. The poke bowl was okay; nothing worth noting.
I'd like to support locally owned restaurants, but this take-out order was really frustrating.THE MENU OFFERS GLUTEN FREE. And it shouldn't be hard to make a bowl of rice or rice noodles gluten-free anyway. Yet, I was eventually told nothing was gluten free. Getting that answer took a bit of a back and forth and two check-ins with the chef.Look, I don't like being gluten free. It'd be a helluva lot more enjoyable to be able to eat anywhere/anything. So please, take that extra step to be clear with your staff and on the menu about what you offer. This shouldn't have been a hassle.
The pork belly bao may be the best thing I ever ate
First time getting food from here and I'm quite impressed. My boyfriend and I ordered the tuna poke, pork belly poke, the shrimp and lobster dumplings for an appetizer, and a peach Ramune soda for pick-up. We split everything. Everything was very fresh, excellent quality veggies. The tuna poke was amazing! Delicious blend of flavors. I'll be sure to order this again. The tuna was soft and flavorful. I also really enjoyed the hearts of palm and the avocado! The pork belly poke was completely different and just as delicious. I got a few too many hot peppers in my half (thanks, boyfriend), but other than that, it was excellent. My favorite part was the shimeji mushrooms. The shrimp and lobster dumplings were absolutely delicious. I loved the dipping sauce they came with. Wish there were more! My only issue was that although I ordered a Lychee Ramune, I got home to find out I had an Original flavored one. Not the biggest of deals. I checked the rest of my order before leaving, but I got to talking with the girl who was helping me and apparently missed the soda. Hopefully we can go back to dining in at restaurants and then this won't be a problem. I've never been a fan of takeout...and incorrect orders is one of the big reasons why.
Amazing food, super helpful staff.