CHINATOWN needs another Chinese -- or Thai or Vietnamese -- restaurant like we need more taxes, more cars on the freeway and a longer work week. Fine Chinese dining
comes to WaipahuNah, it's not that bad. If there are too many similar restaurants, patrons have the option of frequenting a few favorites -- whereas there's no escape from the tax man, traffic jams or the boss' whims.
Still, Wo Mo, whose lifelong dream was to open his own Chinese restaurant, looked around Chinatown and decided his chances of being noticed amid the blur of dim sum, noodle and seafood houses were pretty slim.
So he did the rogue thing and headed West, to probably the last place you'd expect to find a Hong Kong-style restaurant, Waipahu. I should know. I grew up there on the likes of dry chow fun dotted with unidentifiable green stuff and beef broccoli served up at many a chop suey house. Lemme, tell you, I didn't eat much in those days.
To make it even clearer, "junk" is how Mo's son Ken described restaurants they visited before deciding Waipahu was in need of a good Chinese restaurant. Now the family, including grandad and mom, make the commute from Chinatown every day.
Since Wo Kee Seafood Chinese Restaurant opened in March, Leeward residents who hunger for Chinese food haven't had to settle for plain old Crispy Gau Gee or Lemon Chicken. Yes, these are on the menu, at prices of $3.20 and $4.75 respectively, but diners can also feast on specialties such as Shrimp with Honey Glaze Walnuts ($7.50), Clams with Black Bean Sauce ($7) and live Dungeness crab (market price, with two-day notice).
What's more, it's as if the family shaved 10 years off the prices, so that four can dine well for less than $30. I thought $4.75 entrees were a thing of the past.
STILL, business is not as brisk as it should be. After years of chop suey, it's hard to convince residents that Wo Kee is different. Inside and out, it looks like any of hundreds of unremarkable strip-mall eateries. There is room for 30 to 40 patrons in old-fashioned booths and on two large tables that will seat eight and 10.While other patrons have praised Wo Kee's Shrimp with Garlic and Butter Sauce ($7.50), I found it rather bland, preferring instead the yin and yang of delicate Sea Bass ($7.50) steamed with potent strips of ginger and onion.
A dish of Lobster with Vegetables ($8.75) features fair-sized chunks of the shellfish, although any restaurant would have trouble beating the best lobster deal of all -- China House's dinner special (whole lobsters for $4.99 apiece, at one per person, no take-out, through the end of July).
Back to Wo Kee: Black Pepper Steak ($5.95) is one of my family's favorite dishes, thanks to Wo Mo's uninhibited way with a pepper shaker. Even when it turns out stringy and chewy, we keep coming back for more. Maybe it's the nostalgia for the kind of food we grew up with.
A catering menu is available, with items such as Sweet & Sour Spareribs or Crispy Chicken available for $27.50 to feed up to 15 people, or $43.75 to $49.50 to feed up to 35.
While the Mos wait for business to pick up, a complimentary dessert of Almond Float awaits dinner customers as a neighborly gesture. Now it's up to the community to decide if it wants to welcome the newcomers. I think they deserve a hello.
Wo Kee Seafood
Chinese RestaurantWhere: 94-366 Pupupani St., Waipahu (Westgate Center)
Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily
Prices: About $30 for four
Call: 671-1818
Nadine Kam's restaurant reviews run on Thursdays. Reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Bulletin. Star ratings are based on comparisons of similar restaurants:
To recommend a restaurant, write: The Weekly Eater, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or send e-mail to features@starbulletin.com-- excellent;
