Magic Wok a longtime favorite on the west side

Few west-side restaurants can say they’ve been around for 35 years. But in July, the Magic Wok at 9504 W. Central celebrated its 35th birthday and the fact that it has been in the original location since its debut. Owned by Mary Weinman, Magic Wok serves Chinese, Korean and American dishes.

We recently visited the restaurant for lunch, and with more than 30 options on the lunch menu, it took us awhile to make our selections. We ordered crab rangoon, followed by our lunch entrees: Imperial Chicken with hot seasoning and Triple Delicacies (beef, shrimp, and chicken) with hot seasoning.

Our order of crab rangoon included four generously-filled crab and cream cheese wontons fried to a light golden brown. The Imperial Chicken was lightly breaded and mixed with broccoli, carrots, peppers and celery in a flavorful, spicy brown sauce. Triple Delicacies was stir fried beef, chicken and shrimp mixed with broccoli, bamboo shoots, carrots, celery, onion, water chestnuts and cabbage in a spicy brown sauce.

Each dish was served with a generous amount of meat and vegetables and included fried rice, egg roll and mandu, a fried Korean dumpling filled with meat and vegetables. The spice in the Triple Delicacies sauce didn’t stand out like the spice in the Imperial Chicken sauce did. And although I prefer stir fry Chinese dishes, I would order the Imperial Chicken next time since the breading was light and the sauce was delicious.

We did have a few service issues. Although the hostess was pleasant and attentive, our server was largely absent and appeared so rushed that she removed our menus before we could order our appetizer, and she never refilled our drinks or removed our empty plates.

Starters at Magic Wok include egg rolls, fried shrimp and crab rangoon. The restaurant also serves egg drop, wonton, bean curd, and hot and sour soup. There are 16 dishes offered for dinner that are served with fried rice and fresh dinner rolls and range from $8.95 to $12.95. American cuisine entrees like steak, chicken, and seafood are available for $14.95 to $16.95 and include salad, fried rice and choice of vegetable.

Magic Wok provides seating for 104 people and can host private parties for 20-30 people. The décor inside is outdated with its dim lighting, dark wood paneling, worn carpet and booths. However, many customers must not mind because Magic Wok is still a favorite on the west side.

This story was originally published September 23, 2016 at 11:35 AM with the headline "Magic Wok a longtime favorite on the west side."