Jack in the Box and their bowls

Why Jack has obsession with bowls is beyond me.

Though I haven't tried the breakfast bowl meals offering basically a breakfast burrito without the tortilla and with a spoon, I was willing to try the new Teriyaki bowls.

Actually, they're not new. Apparently the teriyaki bowl was first introduced by the restaurant chain in 1993 and were a hit to many guests but was removed from the menu in 2003.

As much as I love Jack in the Box, I wasn't expecting too much from these new versions of the meal, which may or may not end up being a fad again.

The teriyaki bowls come with steamed white rice topped with broccoli and thinly sliced carrots, and your choice of strips of chicken or sirloin steak, and all covered with a teriyaki sauce.  

One weekday lunch I decided to try the sirloin steak bowl and I was happily surprised.

Yes, I know, it's just Jack in the Box, but the tasty and tangy teriyaki sauce did not overwhelm the fresh taste of the vegetables and the nicely grilled generous portions of steak, and the rice was soft and not bland.

I've never been a fan of Yoshinoya, but if I were them, I would think twice about my business if Jack in the Box is able to perfect a teriyaki bowl in their very diverse menu and they can't even perfect it as their main staple in their menu.

Even though I still wanted more, I had to convince my stomach that it was plenty. Especially with the egg roll that came with the meal.

I think its a great deal for the suggested prices, excluding tax, of $4.29 for chicken and $4.79 for sirloin steak. My combo, which included a warm, crunchy egg roll, and small drink added up to $6.92 total with taxes.

I still don't know if I'm ready to take the plunge into the breakfast bowl yet, though.