Closed AGAIN for rennovations. The Yee wonton and rock cod with chinese greens will never be the same. Can someone in the know message me a good place for yee wonton? I need it man…*slaps inner arm*…
Ardella O.
Rating des Ortes: 2 San Leandro, CA
I was thoroughly disappointed with the food. The menu looked the same, but the taste of the dishes was lacking. I may just be biased because the last 25+ years, I grew up to the original King Wah’s food. In my humble opinion, if you ate at the original King Wah prior to eating at the new King Wah, I would definitely tell you to avoid it at all cost. The food no longer taste the same. If you want to give them a shot, by all means, do so. But by the end of your meal, you’ll be left thinking, «Hey! This doesn’t taste the same as it did a year and a half ago. I should have gone elsewhere to get my Chinese food fix.» Yeah, they changed the décor of the place and the bathroom is cleaner(they took out the second toilet in the Women’s bathroom and made it a single), but it still doesn’t change the fact things aren’t the same as it was with the original cooks/owners.
David q.
Rating des Ortes: 1 College Park, MD
Have to say, this seems like a very binary set of ratings. I guess we must have had the bad chef. All that was ordered was steamed pork with salted egg and a snow pea dish, to go. Snow peas: a bit over-cooked perhaps and a tad underflavored, but passable. Steamed pork: fail. Big fail. The consistency of wet dog food, it seemed as though they hadn’t added binder – it was just finely ground up pork, which gave the dish a mealy texture. Not sure if the person who’d made it had ever even seen it in its proper final form before. Quite sad. Waiting 30 minutes for the take-out did give me time to reminisce about how things used to be though – dingy, dirty, and down right tasty… ahhh, good times.
Tiffany N.
Rating des Ortes: 4 San Francisco, CA
I really enjoy coming here with my family because the staff is efficient and food comes in a timely matter. The new renovations are a plus since cleanliness is a big factor. I really enjoyed their fried crab dish that has chunks of fried taro and sweet potato. Portions are big and well worth the price. The soft tofu dish is also really good. its so smooth it kind of melts in my mouth.
Elena H.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Pinole, CA
We have been here twice. Their baozi tofu(fry Tofu with haishin sauce) and meat sauce Yee noodle are great! These are unique dishes that we haven’t found any where else. As others have mentioned, their portions are huge. Also unusual for a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown, their bathrooms are very clean. It looks like this is going to be our new favorite hangouts.
Abe F.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Lafayette, CA
New King Wah is fantastic! The menu is very basic looking, but the food is outstanding. Portions are large, quality is high, value is great. I will be back.
Paulamertha A.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Suisun City, CA
My family and I have been going to the ORIGINAL King Wah for years, but unfortunately it closed when it’s owners retired & sold the restaurant. It’s now reopened and called«The New King Wah». When I went back there recently to try the«new» restaurant, they tried to keep the menu somewhat similar to the original. My sister asked the waiter if the receipe was still the same for a lot of their dishes and he assured us that it was exactly the same. When we got our«usual» order, everything tasted different and wasn’t delicious like how it use to be under the original owners. The only dish that I thought was still delicious was the Chinese greens w/rock cod, but everything else wasn’t good. The meat/chicken/seafood dishes had little meat and more vegetables than anything else. The sizes of the dishes were pretty small also. I’m pretty sad that it’s nice the same food anymore.
Michelle Y.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Oakland, CA
Put it simple: reasonable price, big portion and yummy!!! I went there today after reading the reviews from Unilocal. First I tried the Fry Tofu with Hai Shin Sauce(but you can choose other sauce like chilli sauce or sweet and sour sauce). It is the best tofu that I ever had!!! Very Silken even through after deep fry. Then I ordered the Fry Rice with dry scallop Hai Shin Sauce. Comparing to those traditional dry fry rice, this is have a sauce on top of it, taste very different and delicious!
Henry D.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Danville, CA
I had been patronizing the original King Wah for over 20 years and was disappointed when Jim and his wife sold the business. However, the new Owners kept a couple of the chefs and I was hoping and praying they would keep the Won Tom recipe since they had the best Won Ton. I use to buy 10 — 12 dozen uncooked won ton to keep in my freezer for those quick meals. However, when they opened as New King Wah I went twice and was disappointed. The broth for the won ton is not as flavorful and kind of murky looking. The won ton does not have the right mix of pork, shrimp and seasoning and it is not chopped as fine so a little more chunky. The Chicken Chow Mein was actually better than the original King Wah which is hard to do but the 2nd time they changed the noodles and it was disappointing. The Fried Rice recipe changed and they added carrots which really changes the taste. I will try one more time and hope they let the old cooks make the Won Ton(which I really miss) and hopefully they go back to using the noodles for the chow mein that they used first week they opened. But 3 strikes and they are out so I hope for an improvement over the last two times and they stick to some of the old recipes because the new style of cooking is not an improvement.
TC C.
Rating des Ortes: 1 San Leandro, CA
I miss the old king wah because there food tasted better. this new place is ok not all that good. I don’t know if i would go back here. I bought clams with black bean sauce and it wasn’t too good. The fried rice was dry I had to go home and re cook it to add more flavor.
B. H.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Oakland, CA
King Wah has reopened! We tried other local Chinatown restaurants while King Wah was closed but none of them were close to what we like. After the remodel and partial change in ownership we appreciate the new look. The new owner is so friendly and accomodating. Love the food. One of the two original chefs is still there. We’re so happy to have our favorite open again.
Anita W.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Oakland, CA
the restaurant gets packed around dinner time on the weekends, and it gets empty quick after 8p from what i have observed. servers frequent the table asking if the food is good. i would suggest sticking to the basics like fried rice and noodle plates. they come in generous portions. the chef at the new king wah likes to experiment with dishes; some come out okay, others not so okay. interesting desserts, like the fried durian pastries(only recommended for those who like durian). will come back to try other dishes.
Marsha l.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Oakland, CA
My family has been coming to the old king wah for 30 plus years. We were so disappointed when they were closed for 6 months. Once they re-opened we came to check it out. I see some of the old chefs but Jim and his wife are no longer there. We didn’t really care about how the restaurant looked but more on if the food tasted the same. The dried fried ribs tasted the same but the beef wonton soup is nothing like it used to be. It was such a disappointment, I dont think that we will be going back. It is so sad that the soup is no longer the same. Im kind of afraid to try anything else. my kids were shaking there head as they tasted their soup. The old king wah had one of the best wonton soups.
Kathryn K.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Alameda, CA
I tried an old King Wah dish and have to say it wasn’t even close. King Wah Mon Yee won ton. It was soup not gravy and had zero flavor and after giving it a try I threw it away. Until I hear the old chef returned or the food improves I won’t return. I’m saddened as I went to the original King Wah for 20 years. The new look is nice but don’t let it suck you in just yet
Stephanie D.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Alameda, CA
With high hopes we can to the New King Wah. Meh, probably was our first & last visit. All dishes averaged about $ 8& up. They weren’t small but weren’t very plentiful either. We ordered our normal Cantonese dishes steamed pork hash, chinese greens, twice cooked pork, pressed duck, & few others I can’t remember. Goes to show you that it wasn’t a very impressionable meal. Everything is a hit or miss. And this is definitely a miss for the family & I.
Kelly W.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Oakland, CA
My mom and I decided to give this restaurant a try since it was new. We were seated right away when we entered. We tried this pork chow fun and some porridge. When one of the waiters took out the chow fun, he said it was beef chow fun, so we were like«Oh, we didn’t order this.» Then, I guess one of the waiters scolded him for not paying attention. The chow fun was soooo oily. It was disgusting. I felt like there were heavy amounts of oil sitting on my stomach. The porridge was so watery. They did not even give a lot of amount of meat, and the porridge was like 8.50?! I don’t think I’ll be back …
Doctor G.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Alameda County, CA
The food here seemed pretty ordinary. The menu wasn’t as extensive as I had hoped. Portions were good. Seemed like a very ordinary Chinatown restaurant — nothing unusual about it. The most distinctive thing about this place is the fact that they opened up the windows and gutted the entire interior. It’s a lot brighter and a heck of a lot cleaner than before(of course, the bar for that was pretty low).
Steven C.
Rating des Ortes: 3 East Bay
So I decided to check out the new King Wah… I went with my fingers crossed, hoping for the best and expecting the worst… I walked in right when they opened, sat down and ordered a bowl of beef wonton and some dry fried spareribs… let’s just say it was a very sad day for me as one of my childhood connections was officially gone forever… How to describe my experience and emotions??? Sh-t was like New Coke… For those of you that never lived in the 80s let me explain. Not that I want to put a date on myself, but when I was 5 years old Coke Cola decided to come out with a new and improved Coke. They repackaged and re-marketed a new tasting Coke with a new logo, new can, and new slogan. They assumed they would maintain their existing consumer base while trying to appeal to a new generation. But unlike that epic risk/fail(actually it was genius because when they brought back Coke Classic a couple of months after pulling it people went ape sh-t for it) there will not be a King Wah Classic to satisfy and save the generations of King Wah patrons that crave the wok charred goodness that once was… New King Wah = Chinese Food Old King Wah = Chinese American Soul Food For me, the New King Wah is missing soul… it’s now just another Chinese restaurant…
Victor G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Oakland, CA
King Wah has reopened and the gloomy dark interior is gone. in it’s place are creamy walls accented by bright lights. in the right corner is a chinese deli section with the usual roast duck, bbq pork, and soy sauce chicken. precooked items are in the trays ready to go. the menu looks like the traditional chinese menu with specials of the day(6.99), chow mein, won ton soups, etc. daily white boards specials(written in chinese) are available.(5.99) i opted for a regular tomato beef chow mein with pan fried noodles(7.50) the waitress told me she would discount the price. i didn’t see it on the white board special. i looked again. there was a tomoto beef over rice(5.99). looks like unofficial opening specials are in effect. the tomato beef chow mein pales when compared with economy’s. king wah’s sauce is too starchy, the noodles too tuff, and the meat isn’t as tender. nevertheless, portions are very generous. welcome back King Wah! looking forward to trying other items on your menu. service is pretty good here with multiple checkins by various parties.