Taste The 518: Bol Mediterranean Grill

Happy Thursday, Capital District! Today, we’re taking you to a strip mall in Colonie for tasty fast-casual Mediterranean fare at Bol. Plus, get your guide to the weekend with our Top 5 Picks!

—Phat X. Chiem & Karley Sullivan

Taste The 518: Bol Mediterranean Grill

Located in a Colonie strip mall, Bol has the vibes of a Sweetgreen, the recipes of a family-run restaurant, and the delectable flavors of the Mediterranean—tzatziki, tabbouleh, sumac, mint and garlic.

It’s a winning combination. We visited Bol this week for dinner and discovered an elevated experience at what’s meant to be a fast-casual restaurant. For starters, the place is spotless—every surface just gleams. There are comfortable booths for seating, and a large communal table with big, padded chairs. If you dine-in, you’ll get plates and silverware.

As geeks for good branding, we also loved the look and feel of the restaurant, from the color scheme to the neon signage (“taste the sun,” says one). Bol is essentially a mom-and-pop place, but it feels like it could be a national franchise.

In fact, owner Saber Seraj calls it "Chipotle but with Mediterranean ingredients." Except it’s better. The ingredients taste fresher, and the dishes are made to order. It’s not as fast as Chipotle either—in a good way because you know the food is being cooked with care.

The menu is broken into 3 buckets: Signature Bols, Signature Pitas, and Build Your Own Bol. We ordered the Grilled Chicken Bol, which comes with white rice, tomatoes, cucumbers, sumac onions, romaine and the signature white sauce. We also made our own bowl with falafel, brown basmati rice, hummus, sumac onions, kale tabbouleh, and garlic sauce.

Both were quite tasty, and the portions were generous. The grilled chicken came with warm spice notes and a tangy white sauce. It was heavily sauced, so order it on the side if you want to moderate your sauce intake. The falafel was also pretty good, although maybe a bit mushy for our taste. We didn’t get the kabobs, but from the online reviews, that might have been the best thing to order.

You can tell that each ingredient is carefully prepared. All of the food is halal, meaning it’s prepared in accordance with Islamic law. Seraj says many of the dishes come from family recipes; they used to run the Mazadar Mediterranean Kitchen in Colonie.

Give Bol a try… you just might be Bol-ed over 🤣 

The deets: Bol Mediterranean Grill, 1875 Central Ave, Colonie. Open daily, 11a-9p. Cost of our meal: $29.00 without tip. Btw, if you sign up for their rewards program, you can get a free drink (we opted for one of their house drinks, the cucumber mint lime).

🍁 WEATHER WATCH

A word from our sponsor

Join this Viral Daily Trade Alert Subscription, Free

• Receive daily stock trade alerts sent directly to your phone and email.

• Stay informed with timely market insights and expert analysis.

• Join a community of 150,000+ subscribers benefiting from these alerts

• Stay ahead of market trends and capitalize on emerging opportunities.

Subscribe for Free

🪚 “SAW The Musical: The Unauthorized Parody of Saw” is bringing “queer rom-com energy” to the Cohoes Music Hall, says the Times Union in its preview. The show features “bald caps, catchy melodies, a blow-up doll and an audience splash zone,” writes Katherine Kiessling. Details and tix here.

🍽️ Capital Region Restaurant Roundup: The owners of Siro’s in Saratoga are planning to open an Italian restaurant on Phila Street called Noah’s within the next few months… It’s happening: The new Chick-fil-A location at the corner of Central and Colvin avenues in Albany is under construction now… The Twisted Fiddler in Troy will close at the end of the month, following a recent string of restaurant closures in the city.

👻 A new haunted house concept is opening in Troy, helmed by horror movie aficionado Truemaster Trimingham, also known as DJ Trumastr. For years, he put together the “Haunted Museum of Un-Natural History” at the New York State Museum. The Black Box: 5 Room Haunting Experience will start on Oct. 25 at the Arts Center of the Capital Region’s Black Box Theatre. [News10]

🐝 Bee Side Fest | Thur-Sat, $10-$20. What began in 2018 as a DIY basement event for alternative music fans in Albany has evolved into a 3-night experience. Kicking off on Thursday evening at The Hangar and moving to No Fun for Friday and Saturday, this festival promises to be a local music lover’s fever dream. Read more about the Bee Side Fest at the Times Union.

🥣 14th Annual Mac-N-Cheese Bowl | Sat, 11a-3p, $10-$55. This cheesy, crowd-pleasing event takes over five blocks of historic Remsen Street in Cohoes, rain or shine. Mac-n-cheese ain’t your thing? Get to the Saratoga Wing Off on Saturday, 11a-4p. 

🐕️ Hounds of Halloween | Sat, 11a-3p, free for spectators, $20 to enter contest. Everyone’s favorite trick-or-treating pup parade returns to downtown Albany.

🍻 Drink Albany | Fri, 6-9p, $35-$55 for tasting, $5 designated driver. Pop-up craft beverage market and tasting event by The Capital Craft Beverage Trail, showcasing some of New York’s finest adult beverages in the beloved NYS Museum. Read our story on the event.

🪴 Rocky Horror Picture Show | MONDAY only, 7pm, $33.55. You only get one chance to participate in this cult tradition at Albany’s gorgeous Palace Theatre. Every ticket gets a prop kit and toilet paper! If you know, you know.

🎃 MORE NOTABLE EVENTS

TODAY

Get your history and true crime fix with Murder at Cherry Hill, Thur-Sat until Oct. 26.

NorthEast Theatre Ensemble brings its immersive theatre to the grounds of the Mabee Farm. Join a spooky candlelight walk under the full moon through the orchard and gardens. Showtimes are Thur-Sat. Get tix here.

Also, tix for the Candlelight Tours of the Haunted Stockade are going fast.

FRIDAY

The Halloweentown Debates will pitch Dracula vs. Wolfman for the mayoral race. Expect plenty of hilarity and obscenity. Mopco Theater in Schenectady.

ESPN is nothing compared to being there. Let your fan flag fly as RPI Men’s Hockey confronts Niagara University at the Houston Field House. Don’t miss the Post Skate with the Engineers for an added bonus!

SATURDAY

Washington County Antique Fair looks to be a bonanza of good pickings that comes around just 2x per year. Borrow a truck and check it out this Sat or Sun.

Diwali Festival of Lights brightens up the Empire State Plaza Convention Center with vendors, performances and fireworks. And it’s free!

Join artist-photographer Danny Goodwin for public tours of  “Job Security: Voices and Views of the American Security Industry” at UAlbany’s University Art Museum. Read more about the show at the Times Union and tell Danny we said hello 👋 

EMPAC Building Tour w/ Engineers Stephanie Van Sandt & Eric Brucker. Learn more about the acoustic and supercomputing capabilities of the iconic RPI Performing Arts building with folks in the know.

SUNDAY

Fall Fun at Ellms Family Farm in Saratoga features corn mazes, pumpkins, cider donuts & more family-friendly activities.

A Big Gay Market returns to Washington Park Lakehouse, 10a-3p.

The Way We Were Car Show, postponed last week due to weather, will bring up to 400 vintage cars to the village of Ballston Spa, 9a-4p.

Russell Shorto, author of the bestselling "The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony that Shaped America," will give the Matthew Bender IV Fall Lecture at the NYS Museum. Get tix here.

🎸 LIVE MUSIC & MORE

💌 GET IN TOUCH

Know a cool business, event or local personality we should profile? Reach us directly at [email protected].