Wonton King Takeaway. You'll never want for more at Wonton King. It was the first Chinese restaurant we visited in St. Louis five years ago. A solid 7.2 / 10 for what I would call "American" style Chinese food. With good chicken in garlic sauce, fried rice, hot and sour soup, and moo-shoo pork ($17.95), it would be the go-to in any medium-sized town in the country. Prices have continued to rise like all the other restaurants on Olive, but the portion sizes still provide enough for two meals.
Picture a Chinese food restaurant in your head. Ok, got it? That's Wonton King. Fish tank in the front, Chinese decorations all over, and a TV going in the corner. It's the quintessential Chinese restaurant atmosphere. The service is fast and friendly. Our food is always ready when we go to pick it up. And the owner is always ready with a joke or story. She's a talker, so be ready. Parking is really easy right outside in a big, dedicated parking lot.
Wonton King Experience Summary
Wonton King is one of the hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurants on Olive that I've been going to since I moved here five years ago. It has a special place in my heart because it was the first Chinese restaurant we visited in St. Louis.
Overall, Wonton King serves good but not great Chinese food relative to its amazing neighbors like Cate Zone, Chilispot, and STL Soup Dumplings. At 7.2 / 10, it would be a go-to place in any neighborhood in America. It's hard for anyone to compete against the flavor powerhouses next door.
Wonton King serves what I call American Chinese food. It doesn't have anything crazy spicy, and the menu is chock full of standards like chicken with garlic sauce, pot stickers, low mein, and sesame chicken. You won't find any off-the-wall Chinese or more niche offerings.
However, we still go there once or twice yearly for old-time's sake and on Christmas Eve.
Every Chinese Olive restaurant has become more expensive over the last five years. We got a takeout menu from our first visit in 2019. The prices are up 40 to 60% depending on the item on the menu in five years. That makes sense with the inflation that's gone on generally, but it does remove any "value" feel to their large portions.
Expect top-notch service with food prepped and ready at the pickup time they give you.
The Food At Wonton King
I've had over ten dishes at Wonton King throughout the years, from the hot and sour soup, a favorite of mine, to the sliced beef with black bean sauce. My go-to would be the dry sauteed green beans for veggies and the chicken in garlic sauce for protein. My wife and I also really enjoy the Yu-Shing eggplant and bok choy in garlic sauce.
On this particular visit, my mom was visiting, so we had the following:
All of the portions are huge. This is enough food for eight adults, so we get about two full meals from it.
Starting with my favorite, the dry sauteed greens beans. These guys are browned perfectly in a brown sauce. They have a satisfying crunch while still being soft in the middle. It's exactly how I like my green beans cooked. The brown sauce flavor compliments the lightly fried beans.
The pot stickers can stick around in my book. They too, have a satisfying crunch on the bottom with a nice chew to the dough and a ton of meat. No one aspect is quite as good as Corner 17, but a welcome addition to any meal.
I lump the Moo Shu pork and Chicken Lo Mein into the same bucket of mediocre Americanized Chinese food. My mom is a lo mein fan and my wife loves moo shu, so we ordered these more for them than me. I typically think of the pancake as the best part of Moo Shu, but Wonton doesn't offer anything memorable in that department.
Lastly, we had the Egg Roll, which my wife ate. I took a bite, but not my favorite item on the menu.
Quick Tip: If you're looking for some value, the healthy menu offers solid choices for the price but with less flavor because they're healthy.
My favorite memory of eating here came last year when I visited by myself while my family was out of town. I was chatting with the owner and ordered: "whatever you'll have for dinner." She returned with sliced beef in a black bean sauce, which is the best thing I've had here…
As well as the most expensive.
Wonton King Atmosphere And Miscellaneous
Wonton King has the comfortable Chinese restaurant atmosphere you'd expect.
You walk in through the vestibule to be greeted by a big fish tank overlooking an open-concept eating area. Wall-to-wall decorations fill your field of vision with searing against one wall, the front desk across the aisle, and a glimpse of the kitchen in the back.
The service is great. They'll get you your food and water in no time flat. In the six times we've eaten there, I've never had to wait for a seat.
For the dozen-plus times we've gotten takeout, the food has always been ready on time.
I began by calling in orders, but now you can order online, which makes that even easier. The food takes twenty to thirty minutes to prepare. Even when we've been taken out on New Year's Eve, it's on time, but maybe with a 45-minute to one-hour prep time.
They've never missed a deadline.
One of the best parts of eating at Wonton King is interacting with the owner. At least, I think she's the owner.
She has a huge personality and will chat you up for ten minutes if you let her. She's quick with a joke and a true St. Louis gem.
Parking At Wonton King
Parking is not an issue. Wonton King has its own dedicated parking lot, and I've never had an issue with finding a spot. The lot is rather large.
Turning left out of the parking lot can be tricky during rush hour, around six or seven o'clock, but you'll survive, no problem. Just wait for a hole in the traffic.
Wonton King Receipt
