Bites Nearby: Take a 'Wok' on the Wild Side!

is a new addition to the impressive repertoire of restaurants lining the streets of Honolulu Avenue, and they offer up a myriad of daily lunch specials and reasonably-priced dinners.

The bare brick walls and minimalistic decor create simplistic ambiance that complements their Chinese cuisine. Chefs prepare house favorites like shrimp in lobster sauce and beef with broccoli as soon as they are ordered. This is definitely not your typical Chinese restaurant! 

An impressively long list of over 30 lunch specials make decision making difficult. Choices such as Hunan Chicken, Moo-Goo-Gai-Pan, and scallops with peapods range in price from $6.50-$7.95. Lunch specials include a choice of hot and sour or egg drop soup, a fried wonton, salad, and a side of rice.

The hot and sour soup contains both "heat" from chili peppers and "sourness" from the white vinegar it is cooked with. The flavors complement each other and the tofu, bamboo shoots, and other spices make this soup an excellent choice. The egg flower soup is also good, but does not offer the "taste bud tickle" of the hot and sour soup.

The salad is a typical iceberg lettuce based salad sprinkled with a few carrots and a mild vinaigrette. The Kung Pao shrimp is an exceptional dish with a sauce that makes one contemplate licking the plate clean.

Shrimp and Chestnuts

The shrimp are swimming in a sea of water chestnuts, onions, and crisp bell peppers. Choices of brown, white, or fried rice come with the meal and the fried rice is full of flavor with just the right amount of vegetables.

The wait staff is friendly, quick, and enthusiastically helps patrons make the best choice for their meal. The staff is also very quick to refill drinks and bring anything you might ask for. If there are leftovers, Wacky Wok offers "eco friendly" paper boxes and brown paper sacks instead of the traditional Styrofoam boxes and plastic bags.

Dinner is served daily from and the portions are much larger and the menu is set up for a more "family style" eating experience. Meals range in price from $7.95 to & 15.95 and include customer favorites like the Wacky Wok chicken, honey walnut chicken, and Buddha's Feast.

Dim Sum and a plentitude of appetizers, salads, and soups complement the dinner entrees which are categorized according to poultry, beef, pork, and seafood choices. Noodle dishes such as chow mein, lo mein, and chow fon, which is a soft rice noodle, and mu shu pancakes are make according to each customers preferences. Vegetarian and gluten-free dishes are also available.

Wacky Wok is open 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday through Saturday for lunch, and 5 p.m.-9:30 p.m. for dinner. It is also open on Sundays from 4 p.m.-9 p.m. Wacky Wok is located at 2263 Honolulu Ave. You can call them at 818-249-9889 or visit their website.