First Wok — Restaurant in Sunnyvale

6/4/2025

First Wok 653 S. Bernardo Avenue Sunnyvale, CA 94087

I went there on a Wednesday evening to try their chow mein. It's at the back of the Safeway/Cherry Chase Center, lots of parking. It looks like a mostly take out place, nobody was there dining in. It's a clean table and chair setup with a slight Asian temple incense odor from an arrangement at the back of the restaurant. They have a large assortment of entrees in their steam table pans for the Express Line meals.

I ordered the House Special Combination Pan Fried Noodle to go, since I didn't want to be the only guy eating there. My food was ready in about 10 minutes and the bag felt heavy, good value. The noodles were crispy and got chewier as the gravy soaked in. The combination consisted of shrimp, beef, chicken, pork, broccoli, celery, mushroom, cabbage, green onion and onion in a mild and tasty gravy.

I was happy with my chow mein (good for 2+ meals) and would repeat for their other...

You know what you're getting into when you get Chinese Fast Food. You understand that you're going to have a basic menu including rice, chow mein, and some meats. And the question is, how good is that selection? With First Wok, it's superlative.

I've been coming here for years and it's never let me down. The basic 3 item combo is very filling - I recommend the chow mein, their house garlic chicken, and their salt and pepper fish, though their mapo tofu is also good. But if you're of a mind to sit down, their braised tofu is solid, and their wonton soup (again, you must order this from the menu) is divine. Their egg flower and hot and sour soups are also lovely - having a perfect thickness and flavor.

It's not a particularly fancy place - it might not be my first choice for a date - but for a quick fix of delicious Chinese, First Wok...

I stopped by around 5:30 on 12/10/21, totally craving Chinese and hoping First Wok survived the shutdown. Not only were they open, I saw several folks inside eating. Very good sign! I used to only come here for take out at lunch time and never had to wait. Tonight I had time to look at the menu while I was in line. I'm glad I did because they have Ginger Beef! I also ordered 2 of my usuals from the heaping ready hot trays - Vegetable Rice Noodles (thin rice vermicelli) and String Bean Chicken. I used to get their unusually yummy Broccoli Beef, but I am now addicted to their Ginger Beef, which is beef with green onion greens and bits of fresh slivered ginger. Like Mongolian Beef with no chilis. And Kudos for still having paper take out boxes available! I hate flat plastic flip up trays. Which ALWAYS spill and are not...