Description
California Wok specializes in the Chinese food you remember your grandfather eating, especially if you happen to be of Semitic extraction -- Sino-Yiddish ties run deep. Worn vinyl booths flank a fluorescent-lit dining room decorated with a few token items of Asian kitsch. A roster of stock Americo-Cantonese dishes and lunch specials--with requisite rice, egg roll, soup and "Chinese salad"--are brought to your table by tuxedo-shirted waiters. You'll need to remind them to refresh your tea. This mini-chain positions itself as a healthy alternative to typical Chinese. The happy faces on the menu indicate dishes low in carbs or fat, and you'd be wise not to stray from Mr. Smiley. The low-cal items at the Bundy and Wilshire location--every one exceedingly mild and desperate for a shot of dark soy or chili oil--are light and freshly prepared. Recommended: garlic chicken, asparagus chicken and scallop with mushroom. The bean curd with spinach in brown gravy is especially vibrant, and steamed rice comes free with every a la carte order. Noodle and beef dishes disappoint. Avoid the sodden lo mein and the acrid crispy tangerine beef -- carbonized whole chili does not a "Szechuan sauce" make.
