Santa Monica's Novel Cafe Reformats, Adds Vietnamese Flavors as Bowl House Kitchen

Santa Monica’s Novel Cafe is going under the knife, with plans to reemerge as as a new concept called Bowl House Kitchen.

A call to the cafe confirms the new details, with reps on site telling Eater that the new bowls options are already being phased in, as Novel Cafe slowly goes away. Funny enough, they're even currently answering the phone as "Novel House Cafe Bowl Kitchen," which is one seriously stupefying tongue twister.

What’s that mean for the average diner? A proliferation of Vietnamese favorites, from banh mi sandwiches to pho, with grain bowls and other bowl-ified options emerging in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, much of Novel Cafe’s menu has already been scrubbed, though a few classic options remain — along with their coffee, of course.

There's also been an adjustment to the hours, with a later opening (8 a.m.) and all-day service running until 9 p.m. Bowl House is also adding Sunday hours, something Novel Cafe never had.

The restaurant redo has already hit the signage outside, as well, with The Novel Cafe logo being replaced by a Bowl House Kitchen look. Want to get in on the ground floor of the switcheroo? Turns out they’re hiring now for Bowl House positions. To apply, just drop off a resume.

Novel Cafe/Bowl House Kitchen
2127 Lincoln Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA