Ballston Cafe

Something for everyone! They have two hot bars filled with a variety of foods, grill for hamburgers and paninis, snacks and candy galore and two juice/​soda fridges. Service can be slow at times due to limited staff, but the price is right.

A solid lunch place that serves both pick your own buffet style for very cheap as well as custom made sandwiches and salads. I had their Turkey panini the other day and it was tasty and definitely for the $ 7 I paid for it.

This is my favorite local place to eat. At work we call it the secret place because it is hidden in the first floor of a commercial /​office building.
At work people have different opinion about this place so let me tell you what’s the secret of the secret place:
First, you should go there early if you want to find hot and good quality food. The sushi doesn’t last long and is almost gone around 12:30. If you go there around 2, you just get really bad leftovers.
Second, if you think you are paying way too much, consider choosing lighter foods. Yes, it’s a buffet and you pay by weight so don’t load your plate with mac and cheese or heavy potatoes or to much salad dressing. Choose smart and pay less ;)
Last but not least, what I really like about this place is the variety of food. You can find anything from american, to indian, to asian and chinese. You love salad or veggie food? You wont get disappointed.
Also, this is not a place I would go everyday because I’ll end up adding wights. That’s the bad things about buffet places. But I’d go whenI have a craving of something.

Great selection of food from Asian to standard American fare. Chose the buffet selection in that I only paid for what I can eat nothing more. Mike, the owner, is a real nice person to talk to… talk about golf!

Above average bottom-​of-​building café[teria] food. Better breakfast and lunch options than the other place that serves café-​style food on the same block.

This café provides a large variety of hot, fresh and delicious food. Every time I come by, they have something I’ve never seen before. Doesn’t mean I’ll try it, but it never hurts to have the option there. The service is also friendly and efficient. I would rather come here than Booeymonger’s for a quick to-​go lunch.

HUGE selection for lunchtime. Usually a fair selection of asian foods and then some standard american fair as well with a great salad selection. I have yet to have anything that wasn’t totally delicious. They usually have a really lightly grilled teriyaki chicken that is fantastic.
I can’t speak to the breakfast bar or the sandwich counter, however, the lunch buffet is more than worth it.

I’m quite surprised that this place is getting stars docked for having «unhealthy» food. That’s like walking into JiffyLube and demanding that they service your transmission at the threat of losing a Unilocal star. You won’t see me walking in to a butt-doctor’s to have my head examined, so I won’t comment on the health factor here. Folks, Ballston Café provides a clean environment, a nice variety at the hot bar as well as the breakfast bar, and the staff is friendly too. It’s convenient if you work around the block or so, but I wouldn’t make it a grand lunch destination (that would be Chipotle or Uncle Julio’s for me). Happy eating!
One more thing. As someone already mentioned they now take credit cards ($ 5 min), but they do not take American Express. This vexes me.
Update 04÷17÷12: Up until now I didn’t pay much attention to the salad bar so I could not really comment. Now that I have tried it, I have to say that the variety is impressive and most everything brings a smile to me face.
Update 07÷24÷12: I go here way too much, and I love the people that work there. Good folks. However, with this much frequency I’ll run into the occasional «what is this dish?!» …literally. Before the post-​it comes around 1130-​noon (often hilariously misspelled), I’ll buy the item and risk, on a rare occasion, a mild cringe. Not sure if these rare gems (sarcasm) are culinary faux pas or leftovers concocted into dietary weird science experiments. Nonetheless, stick to the mainstream and you’ll be ok.

Really great mom and pops office building lunch and breakfast spot. i have been here at least 50 times in the past 5 years.
This place has a variety of items on the hot bar. The owners are Korean and offer a variety of Korean influenced dishes in the hot bar, that is sold by the pound. plus the traditional hot bar food.
There is also a sandwich selection menu.
I prefer to get the half sandwich and soup for typically $ 5.50. Best deal in Arlington.

The joke around here is that this is actually called the International Café.
The food is decent for a cafeteria. The Specials keep it interesting. Taco Salad is good. Gyro is good.
Soup and half sandwich combo is thrifty and filling. Majority of it is very unhealthy.
It could be a lot worse for a cafeteria of this sort. Now takes credit card with $ 5 minimum.

Scary roast beef, lethal terriyaki chicken. Chicken noodle soup has too many onions.

As cafeterias go, this is pretty darn good. Wide selection, usually pretty fresh. Nothing fancy, but a good lunch option if you happen to work in the area.

Pros: Large variety of food
Cons: Danger to your health
Overall: Good for one of those «I want to destroy my body/​I need to create a grease barrier for alochol» Fridays
Even though I am giving this place 2 stars, I do go here maybe once a week bc of my coworkers.
There is plenty of variety here with their buffet, but it’s all pretty bad for your health. Everything is far above the average index of oiliness and greasiness for Korean-​cooked food.
The part I hate most is that it’s cash-​only. If you’re going to cheat taxes, at least hook me up a little bit on pricing for contributing.
I’ve not tried the Deli here, as I’d rather pay the same price for a sandwich and get a bunch of other things.

I just paid a visit to my good friend Ken P at his job in Ballston. Ken P is one of the backup Rhymers (and funky bass) in my DC Hip Hop Band «Funk You». He took me to his favorite Weigh and Pay called the «Ballston Café». This place was MESSED UP. The food did not look good one bit. I told Ken P that they need a new Executive Chef.
Please Note: Bill Y was there too.