Sam Woo Restaurant
| Address: | 15333 Culver Dr #720, Irvine, CA 92606, USA |
| Phone: | +1 949-262-0688 |
| Site: | samwooirvine.com |
| Rating: | 4 |
| Working: | 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
LU
Luis Patron
We went on June 30, 2014 in the evening. As many now, there are two Sam Woo Restaurants side to side. One is the Express and the other is a sit down with full service, a more upscale version to be sure. We had the following dishes in no particular order: Fried Shrimp Balls $4.95, as the title says 4 shrimp balls arrive, with a sweet sauce on the side. They are very hot, or should be so, and not a bad appetizer all things considered. 4 Stars. Deep Fried Fish Fillet W Special Fish Sauce $12.95. This one was a nice size fillet, with a very intriguing and appetizing sauce. Very easy to like, and cooked just right. 4.5 Stars. Shrimp Fried Rice W Chinese Sausage, $11?, this is a fried rice with nice size shrimps, and Chinese sausage, which really was hard to tell it was sausage, it could have easily been bbq pork diced in very small pieces. 3.5 Stars. Wor Won Ton Soup $9.95, not a very large bowl but it was jammed with chunky won tons, chicken, some shrimp, crispy veggies. The broth very murky, not a refined attempt at all, but the overall dish very tasty. 4 Stars. Pan Fried Whole Scallops $17.95. Word to the wise: skip this dish altogether. Not that is bad for scallops are always tasty, but the dish we got served consisted of 4 scallops, not particularly big but yet not small, on a light batter and a light brown sauce on top. Seriously folks, we expected first of all the whole scallop, which some of you may have seen, and it includes the white part and a red part, etc. No. These were 4 scallops at the price of $4.50 a piece, cooked in a way that was nothing special, but charged as if they were something out of this world. Bland, basic scallop flavor for a price that made us grind our teeth collectively. 3.5 Stars. Sam Woo Roast Duck $12.95, this duck must have walked a 100 miles before it was roasted. Skinny, bones galore, and the little parts that had some meat overly greasy. Another dish that is best to pass, even though on the other Sam Woo next door sometimes you get some that are delicious and less expensive. 3 Stars. Hong Kong Crispy Chicken $12.95, much more meat than his duck cousin, and served hot and crispy, it really satisfies the hungry crowd. 4 Stars. Service was very nice, everyone in the staff very personable and eager to please. 4.5 Stars! Water and Tea very tasty! Total: $93+, with 15% gratuity around $105. The Sam Woo next door has also great food for a significant less amount, but they do not accept credit cards, strictly cash. 4 Stars!
JA
Jason Lum
Awww Yeah Sam Woo BBQ Express!! Also known as Wooo Wu WOOO according to my friend. Since Sam Woo is a very well known restaurant chain I have been trying to avoid writing a review, because there are so many locations, because I take pride trying to find lesser known restaurants.... but Sam Woo Wu Woo! You deserve a review! Reasons: 1. I recently had lunch here 3 times in one week. 2. I have often said and heard the words "There is no good Chinese Food in Irvine". 3. I have already converted nearly my whole department in to SW Express fans. 4. Not a fan of Cash only, but I have driven to the bank to get cash many times to eat here and never once complained. 5. A co-worker asked me once... "Isnt Sam Woo American food like the PF Changs of Chinese Food?" ... wow that is harsh. 6. My Elite Badge semi-depends on it. Yes, Sam Woo BBQ Express is a well known restaurant chain, but unlike Panda Express and Capital Seafood for the most part your experience will good at most locations. I stake my yelp career on it! Sometimes you want Cantonese food and you do not live in San Francisco/ Oakland Chinatown area. The food quality is pretty good. Not just by Irvine standards. The taste good may be a little salty or grease compared to other places, but it will fill your craving. A few small tweaks in their recipes could make it the best food around. My recommendations: 1. Beef Chow Fun with Black Bean Sauce- This is legit!! I personally like spare ribs with Black Bean Sauce, but after trying this dish. Sam Woo Express makes it very well. 2. Beef Wonton Noodle Soup- yum!!! There is nothing like soup on a rainning day. If you are all Phod out give this a try. It will never beat my favorite places in the Bay Area, but a very good 2nd or 3rd place. Highly Recommended!!! Not everyone will like Sam Woo which is okay. If are a UCI student that wants the feeling of home, away from home, eat here. I recommend keeping cash on hand just for SW Express. Also, you can view the FULL "Express" MENU online and call in your orders so the food will be ready within 10 minutes or less. Put down your Subway and other crap. EAT MORE SW Express. The Express side is better because it will save you a few bucks and has the exact same food as the main restaurant . Youre Welcome =)
DA
David Kim
I cant give it higher stars because you cant really know what youre ordering unless youve been here before because there arent any pictures anywhere. You might think this isnt a problem until, like me, you order food thinking its one thing and then get something completely different. I ordered the beef egg and tomato dish. This was my favorite dish from when I was in China so I decided I would get it again. There werent any pictures but I knew generally what it was because Ive seen it before, minus the beef part, so I thought it was a safe bet. Turns out it was a safe bet because that beef part that I was unsure about wasnt present. I ordered the beef tomato and egg dish but there was no beef. I honestly thought they could have cooked the tomatoes a little longer too, they are soft but still holding onto much of their shape. I prefer it mushier. The second dish ordered was a sort of chicken fried rice. Another safe dish that I thought didnt provide much room for creative interpretation. I was wrong. When the dish came, we expected a dry dish but this was completely wet! The rice and vegetables didnt taste fried at all and the chicken looked like pieces of intestines. At least those chicken pieces tasted like chicken or else I wouldnt have known it was chicken. They also only take cash.
TE
Terry Harris
Pretty crowded. I went for the side with the hanging ducks. You have to be quick with your order or the lady will scold you. It reminds me of the Soup nazi in Seinfeld. She told me I was too slow in whipping my money out of my wallet. They have 2 weighing scales. The scale located in the middle of counter was printing heavier than the actual weight, and the customer before me told them, so the lady moved to the second scale near the cashier. She did not know I was observing her, when it came to my order, she used the broken scale. I told her I knew it was broken. She giggled and used the other scale. However, while I was paying, she went back to using the broken scale and the line of people went out the door.They must have made tons of money that day. I suggest you guys really watch your orders and check the weight and price. Dont assume, lean on the side and stare at your phone.
AR
Arthur Wong
Surprisingly there arent two different places to review for this place. Altogether its a sam woo restaurant but it shares itself with a bbq place sam woo and the other half is the sam woo restaurant. What differs is that the sam woo bbq is pretty much like any other sam woo bbq in California. Its a fast-paced place. The Sam Woo Restaurant is more elegant and classy. If you are definitely seeking a place to take the family with some elegance then go to Sam Woo Restaurant. But if you dont mind how comfy the chairs are and just want food.. go to Sam Woo bbq. They do have a special on milk ice tea and thai ice tea.. Look out for that special. In my opinion, I like either or. Sam Woo Restaurant serves more of the seafood type dishes. Whereas the Sam woo BBQ will serve you duck, chicken served on rice, etc.
