It’s been a about three decades since I would call China City in St. Pete, order a pint of chicken chow mein and a couple of egg rolls, then hear a woman bark “10 minute!” followed by a hang-up. After a while, I made a game of it to make sure I hung up first. Pickup — never delivery — was similarly graceless.
That cozy wave of nostalgia inspired me to feature Chinese takeout this week. I wanted to try a different dish, though. After perusing some online menus, I decided on chop suey, mostly because I don’t know what it is, other than a stir-fry. Rather than research it online — or plug “the difference between chop suey and chow mein” into ChatGPT — I chose to cut out the middleman and eat it.
The two restaurants I selected are not far from the old China City, which closed in 2016 and is now a Chicken Salad Chick. Great Wall 2 and Asian Wok are a half-mile from each other in northeast St. Pete.
We picked up a pint of vegetable chop suey from each place in one short trip, then brought them back to the FFF Lab (™). We opened the bags to discover packaging that was virtually identical.
GREAT WALL 2
Tucked into a shopping center at 4th Street and 32nd Avenue, between a food service store and a storefront injury clinic, Great Wall 2 is easy to miss. A faded yellow sign doesn’t help matters.
Although the interior had a few basic tables, this was clearly not a dine-in establishment. A man and woman were busily cooking well behind the counter. A young woman, who was playing with two small children, hustled behind the counter and graciously executed the transaction for a total of $6.63.
Appearance
At first blush, kind of gelatinous, most of the vegetables overcooked, especially the onions, which were thin-sliced and congealed.
Texture and Taste
The amorphous sauce, which imbued the entire dish with a shiny glaze, is difficult to describe other than “Chinese takeout flavor.” This version was a bit thicker than I remembered from decades past, adding to a general gloppiness.
Most of the vegetables were limp(ish), save the green squash which provided a modicum of crunch. The clumps of wet onions were off-putting at first, mostly because of their texture, but at a certain point I started to appreciate the tinge of sweetness they added.
The rice was requisitely sticky.
ASIAN WOK
This restaurant resides in more upscale environs than its competitor — in Northeast Park shopping center next to a Publix. Asian Wok, although a bit more well appointed, is not designed for eat-in either.
A genial young fellow handed my bag of food over the counter and charged me $7.22.
Appearance
When compared to that of GW2, this chop suey had more robust color, with larger vegetables — especially the onions — that I hoped would provide some crispness.
Texture and Taste
Looks did not deceive. Asian Wok’s vegetables were passingly crisp, cut large enough that they made an impactful flavor. The sauce, a bit thinner than the competition’s, carried that same hard-to-pin-down Chinese takeout flavor.
What is it about broccoli in these cheap stir-fries? Flaccid — like if you flung it against a wall it would stick. After a small bite, I ignored the rest. The late emergence of a few pea pods added a touch of verve.
The rice was … the rice.
And the Winner of the Chinese Takeout Chop Suey Challenge Is …
Asian Wok.
I did not enjoy either meal, but I can’t be too critical of these establishments. They are what they are: places to get very inexpensive food very quickly, and you can call it in rather than filling out an online order. Pick-up or delivery. These eateries fill a need, just not one of my needs.
Aggh, it just occurred to me: I forgot the egg rolls.
Postscript: I asked people at each restaurant the difference between chop suey and chow mein, and their answers were the same, and simple: chop suey has a bigger variety of vegetables.
