Flying Wok — Restaurant in Sacramento

REVIEW UPDATE: I just went back to Flying Wok for lunch, a year later, and the food is still great. I had the same map tofu dish, it tasted excellent and fresh. The owner was friendly as he had been despite the hardships of Covid. I love this restaurant.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: I was lucky enough to try Flying Wok out on a short trip to Sac. I lived in China for a while and I am always looking for genuine Chinese food. This is what I got here. I ordered a dish of Mapo Tofu and 1/2 a bowl of Thai soup. The soup spici-licious, flavorful. The mapo dof dish came while I was finishing my soup, no wait at all. The dish was prepared differently from what I was used to in Beijing. The owners are from Southern China, so they use a lot more veggies and a spicy sauce, but not the red chili sauce used in the north. As I started to eat, my concerns were immediately allayed: their mapo dof is absolutely delicious. The veggies add different flavors to the dish, and though there is no ground meat in this preparation (an ingredient used in the chili sauce in the north), I didn't miss it at all because of all the additional ingredients. Masterful preparation, great taste and textures, spicy like I wanted (the owner asks you how spicy you want the dish to be, at the time of ordering -- so if you like mild dishes, ask for it). Overall, a very satisfactory experience for the taste buds, and the owner was very friendly. We reminisced of China, as he was born and raised there in Guanzhou (Canton). I will definitely return to Flying Wok on my next trip to Sac, and I highly recommend this humble, unassuming place. It's a hidden gem for the Chinese...

I'm torn on this place. The service was exceptional. Very friendly staff, but I have mixed feelings on the food. I ordered the beef broccoli, and my son ordered the orange chicken. I tried a piece of my son orange chicken, I wouldn't say the chicken was undercooked or raw, but it didn't seem it was fried completely. The batter was pale, and while I understand the sauce would cause it to lose some of its fried crunch, it didn't seem it even started with a crunchy shell to the fried chicken and talking about the sauce, it was very watery and wasn't a thick sauce you would expect plus it unflavorful. Luckily, my son will eat just about anything. My beef broccoli wasn't nearly as disappointing, but still, the sauce was very watery, like my son's orange chicken. It had a little more flavor to it, though, and the beef was tender and not tough at all. Perfectly cooked beef strips, and the broccoli tasted fresh. Both of our plates had chow mein has the side option to our combo plates, this is where the disappointment kicks in again. The chow mein did not appear to be or taste authentic. It had no vegetables or meat mixed in, and it appeared not to be chow mein noodles but instead spaghetti noodles flavored with teriyaki sauce, which again was a very watery sauce. As far as its atmosphere, it's a tiny hole in the wall restaurant which, when you first walk in, doesn't even feel like a restaurant, but you are greeted very fast.

Based on what I tried on my visit, I would recommend the beef broccoli if you go. But if you're expecting authentic Chinese food, you won't find it here, but a few...

Beback rating- yeah

I used to work around this area a few years ago. On one occasion I decided to try their food. I was not disappointed with their shrimp fried rice the most and have visited them a few more times.

Today I was I. The area for another reason. Their sign said open from 10am till 9pm. Well, the owner pops in a little past 11am. Not good normally, but I do remember two older people running the place. So, a little grace was needed. Plus, knowing my past experiences with their food., I didn’t get irritated. Yes, this is truly a mom and pop kinda place!

I’m glad I was patient as the fried rice was savory as usual, one of the best around town. This is one of those places where you get rewarded for not judging a book...