Comments on: wokcano: firing on all cylinders

By: Nancy-Jean

Nancy-Jean — Fri, 23 May 2008 02:56:57 +0000

I had to chime in on this one…I ordered food from Wokcano yesterday: Pad Thai, Kung Pao Chicken and Orange Chicken. It was absolutely inedible! I have eaten at other Wokcanos and found the food to be above “okay” for a chain. Nothing too mind blowing. But the Downtown home delivery I received yesterday was something I chucked in the trash. The Kung Pao was as bland as can be, even though the menu said it was “spicy”. I’m not one of those people who need their food so hot you can’t taste it, but I certainly expected SOME flavor. The Pad Thai was a bland, coagulated ball of tasteless noodles with an overcooked scrambled egg on top. The whole thing was dry and horrible. Moving on to the Orange Chicken, or should I say, Orange Jerky. It was dried up chunks of chicken that were so hard, when I tried to eat one, I looked like I was going to town on a rawhide bone! I was so disappointed that I called to talk to the Manager. He was very polite and offered me a credit for the next time I came there. I told him I wouldn’t use it because I was never going to go there again. I politely explained that I have eaten at other Wokcanos and that his was not even in the ball park. He then told me he would credit my credit card for two of the items. That was a fair resolution I felt. So, unfortunately I can’t recommend the Downtown one at all. Oh, the brown rice was good. (Always end on a positive note!)

By: MeAndroo

MeAndroo — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:32:28 +0000

It certainly sounds like a positive experience, which would be a welcome change from the Wokcano off of 3rd and Bixel. I wasn’t a fan of any of the 6 Chinese dishes I tried, but I may be spoiled from living in Chinatown and occasionally playing golf in Monterey Park. I suppose I should try some of the crazy rolls folks seem to enjoy…

By: Vero Queero

Vero Queero — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:20:01 +0000

I’ve dined there twice and both times were met with good service and very good food. I’m not a sushi person and I approach it as a general Asian restaurant, which probably helps my outlook. For not liking sushi, I experimented and tried one of their signature rolls (can’t remember what it was called) but I liked it–this is a good place to bring that friend that doesn’t care for, or won’t try, sushi. The dumplings and a beef dish were great. The prices were not as high as I had expected. The only drawback, which seems de rigeur for any new, modern space is the noise level–bad acoustics go hand-in-hand with modern architecture. I love that happy hour office workers go there but I really don’t need to hear them way up front while I’m sitting way in the back. The 3 of us had to yell across the table to be heard, which wasn’t really so bad because we enjoy energy, but it kind of wrecks the whole zen thing.

By: unico

unico — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 22:24:07 +0000

i ate there expecting but hoping it didnt have the pasadena vibe, and i was not disapointed. the food was delishusssss, initial service was a lil slow, but once our order was taken the food came pretty quick. it was very tasty and the decor was nice, tho a lil too dark. i will def go back and take friends. ummm triangle roll! try that one it wil blow you away.

By: buzz

buzz — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 07:29:54 +0000

i agree with the above comment – the sushi leaves a lot to be desired. if you’re accustomed to sushi on ventura blvd. [katsu-ya anyone?], this won’t come close. but the thing i like about wokano is that they have chinese as well, which wasn’t too shabby. again, no yang chow, but since i can call and order and walk there to pick up, i’ll be a semi-regular visitor.

By: ipsedixit

ipsedixit — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 05:07:43 +0000

I’ve never been impressed with any of the offerings at Wockano. Most of the sashimi is paste-y and has that “day-old” feel to it. Maybe that’s why all the rolls are dressed in such heavy sauces and spices.

By: celia

celia — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 03:25:30 +0000

uh, jim, they do deliver – we�ve ordered delivery from them for dinner since that first time we called.

now get off the computer and go fix dinner!

By: shannon

shannon — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:35:48 +0000

yum. i could eat there tonight…

By: jim

jim — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:02:41 +0000

i wonder if they’ve actually started delivery yet. we tried to order after getting a mailer trumpeting their delivery, but then called and they were not actually delivering. oops!