Waimalu Chop Suey

Ordered take out a couple of weeks ago… I noticed some good and bad ratings… but due to the fact that it was late and not much options, I tried it since I have not been here before… while waiting, there was a guy who ate at the restaurant who was mad about a dish and was refusing to pay for it but was willing to pay for the other dishes… there were others in line and I could see the cashier/​waitress couldn’t do anything about it but finally some lady from the kitchen came out and I guess wrote it off… so I was already hoping my food would be ok… don’t like onions, so when I ordered asked her to make sure no green/​white onions… she said she would make it in red and big to stand out… good I thought… ordered 3 things… the dinner plate, sweet sour pork and an eggplant dish… I am giving a 4 star because it was overflowing in the take out containers and they wrapped them each with saran wrap which I never have seen done before anywhere… still had some leaking which is irritating, but it was because they gave a lot and it was good where I will probably be back… it is just that the sweet sour pork had onions… but instead of dropping to 3… I will leave at 4 since the others didn’t have onions… and yes the crispy gau gee was the biggest I have ever had which came with the dinner plate.

Don’t laugh, but my definition of good Chinese food is usually «Orange Chicken» or «Chicken Lettuce Wraps,» fried rice and a couple of fortune cookies when it’s time to pay the bill. Stepping into a Chinese restaurant can be a bit overwhelming for me, especially if they don’t have pictures of the 188 options listed on the menu. So, I like to play it safe and order the basics like: Shrimp Fried Rice, Kung Pao Chicken, and Chow Mein. Here we go!
Waimalu Chop Suey is located in the Waimalu Shopping Center. This area can get crazy busy, so we arrived a bit early for dinner to ensure we’d find a space in the parking lot.
The dining room is very spacious, bright and airy. The floors need a little help, but maybe that’s because they get a lot of foot traffic on the daily. There was a large party that took up half of the room, but it still felt like they could accommodate a lot more. Decent place to keep in mind if looking for a place to celebrate with a large party on a smaller budget.
We were greeted immediately and seated at a booth. Menus, ice water, place settings and hot tea followed. There were just a handful of photos, so we kept it basic: Won Ton soup, Shrimp fried rice, House noodles, and a side of green veggies.
My gosh! We over ordered! Good thing the table was large enough. Haha. The serving sizes were pretty hefty. Looks like we’re eating Chinese again tomorrow. My favorite of all was the Shrimp Fried Rice. Lots of egg, rice was light and fluffy, and a good amount of shrimp. But everything was pretty good! No shortage of won ton’s in the soup. Kung Pao had some heat, but not overpowering so we could enjoy it. The noodles were dry/​crispy, covered by veggies and drizzled with gravy.
Service was great. We had one main server, but all of the ladies were nice and gentle. Didn’t feel rushed. They were all very patient, too, because we had a lot of questions. Hehe.
I’d be back! I’d even be interested in some take out or catering. Great place for ‘authentic’ Chinese food if you’re on this side of town.

Here’s my review. we ordered lunch special. I had the fried rice, ginger chicken & sweet sour spareribs… portions were satisfied BUT bf had lunch special fried rice, beef broccoli & shrimp canton… the beef broccoli was such a small portion and shrimp was alot. so we asked one of the ladies if the portion was done right and she said yes. But the dish was cold. oh yea our food took over 20 minutes and we had to ask someone about it and then it came. So we told another clerk the beef broccoli was cold. so they take your whole plate and probably microwaved it. .the exact portion came back… so bf doesn’t want to eat it now.
So we go to the cashier to pay and he said he didn’t eat that portion so hes not paying the entire bill, but cashier said she can’t do anything cuz she’s just the cashier. Then she said that he ate the entire plate but how the hell does she know since she is just the cashier and she said if he doesn’t pay for the entire bill she has to pay the difference. .oh well she shud pay for lying cuz I was there and he didn’t even take a bite of the broccoli. We ended up getting a few bucks off… NOT going back again. On top of that not once did anyone come and ask how was everything or give us more water… strange place. Think they have a new owner cuz the service sucks.

Cyndy’s Bottom Line: The food, service and variety of dishes are great!
We arranged a birthday celebration dinner so we ordered from a preset menu.
The choices of the selected menus were good to choose from.
You will need a reservation with a head count, select your menu and put down a deposit in (5) days advance.
There is an offer for a free lobster when ordering $ 70.00 or more for dining in only.
We really enjoyed the scallop soup and all the flavorful dishes especially the Chinese chicken salad which was the best I have ever eaten.
Service was great and they served a complimentary dessert but we barely good eat another bite.
Please see my pics.

Came here for a baby shower dinner. There were three ladies at a back table making their infamous ginormous gau gee. One lady welcomed me and sat me at a table. While I was still waiting for the rest of my party to arrive, I had to use the bathroom which the same lady directed me to. The bathroom looks old and dingy, but it smelled great like strawberries. You need to close the door to the whole bathroom because there’s no door for the bathroom stall.
Food-​wise, here’s my take:
Very salty foods: roast duck and cold ginger chicken (super disappointed these two were super salty since they are my favorites)
Never again: stuffed eggplant (eggplant tasted almost raw)
Okay: crispy chicken, scallop soup, house cake noodle, and ginormous gau gee (gau gee generous meaty filling very tasty; removed the wrapper to enjoy filling more)
Nice ending: almond milk dessert with tapioca balls
Service-​wise, the ladies were friendly and attentive; I didn’t feel like we were neglected.
Would I return anytime soon? Probably not. This place has been around for a long time in this location and even bounced back from a fire a while back, but Chinese restaurants are a dime a dozen on this rock and sadly, even though they have their gigantic gau gee going for them, the salty roast duck and cold ginger chicken killed my tastebuds.

I usually get my Chinese food from House of Dragon in Pearl City and after eating here I remembered why. I ordered the special plate but it did not taste as good as I expected. The rice had a funny taste to it and the meat was dry. Don’t think I’ll be eating here again.

I enjoy visiting this place because it’s out of the way and the food is always reasonably priced. It’s tucked away in a line of restuarants at Waimalu shopping center just a few doors down from Chun Wah. The restaurant is usually not crowded with a generous number of tables and booths to select from. The one thing that keeps me coming back is their gau-​gee. You haven’t seen large gau-​gee till you’ve seen theirs! It’s always served hot and the filling is tasty, loaded with pork. For those who are on a budget, there’s a plethora of different plate you can select from their lunch special (house noodles, two won ton, sweet sour spare ribs, kau yuk, rice and almond float for dessert) for less than $ 8 or their mixed plate or dinner plate or lunch special where you get to select two entrees from a list. They also have a wide variety of ala cart items to choose from. The service is excellent and folks are constantly stopping by to refill water or remove dirty plates. If nothing else, come by to try the best gaugee on the island!

I have been wanting to come here for a while, and I’m glad to say I finally did. Their portions are BIG and their service is quick. There are abou 200 things to order from on the menu, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find something you like. I ordered the beef chow fun and the wor gauge min. Both were very good and the price wasn’t bad. their gauge is big and tasty, but the ones in the soup are better. If you are in the area and are looking for a good sit down Chinese place, give this place a try.

Their food is still good after all these years, the price can be a little high for Chinese food but, I must say that they are pretty nice compared to most Chinese Restaurants. Actually friendly. LOL!
They are known for have delicious and huge Gau Gee, great to take to parties cause it’s always a big hit!
Would I recommend them to my friends? Yes
Would I return? Yes

For the price, you can’t beat the food! I always enjoy the food, but this last time while all the flavors were delicious, it was just a hint too salty. The hot tea helped cut the salt. I am sensative to salt, because the man said it was great!
We had the crispy gau gee mein with crispy noodles, which was served all separate so that the gau gee and noodles didn’t get soggy, the duck with steamed buns (bao), and spicy eggplant. Everything was fresh and served hot. There was enough food left over for two more meals for the two of us!

To be honest with you the food there is pretty good however the people that work there have a personal problem. went there to eat with my husband while he was outside smoking I went in with my Walker which incidentally your bathroom is not need for a handicapped person to walk in the wheelchair very disappointing on my way to the restroom the lady came running after me as though I was going to set the building on fire and I had said to her when I walked in the door that I was going to the restroom first and then I was going to sit to eat it was such an embarrassing situation and I was so upset I just left without eating that was extremely rude and thoughtless on their part

man… hate to leave a bad review but the place needs improvements. Dirty floors, tiles misaligned, paper signs on the wall (ghetto), mop left out, shirts untucked, hair down, food was ok, water from tap, rice mooshy, servers hands wet, touching inside bowl too.
If i were owner, id renovate & set some standards. lots of potential tho.
Good location, prices good and parking.
Lady was nice tho. bagged the food.

Great place in this area for your Chinese food cravings! Lots of seating and tables and great for family dinners or parties. I love their Mapo tofu here! When I went there to order take out, it was rather warm inside because I think the AC was off. Other than that staff are friendly and there is lots of parking where they are located.

So easy to call and place an order from this restaurant located in Pearl City at the Waimalu Shopping Center.
Like all great restaurants, they will help you figure out how much food you’ll need for your potluck or party. Yeah; shucks, I always forget the basic fuud calculation formula: P
Today I ordered and picked up a small pan of cold ginger chicken. It was ready when I got there and I was able to pay for it in a snap [yep, they take credit cards, and cash of course ;) ] Only thing I wish is that I checked the container of ginger sauce. Perhaps I shoulda woulda coulda asked for a half or quarter container more of their delicious sauce.
Well, too late: P I’m at my TV-​gate (television tailgate) to watch today’s UH vs. FSU away game lol
But in any case, *everyone* here says, «Jules, the ginger chicken is DELICIOUSSSS!!! :D»
«Awesomeness! :D» is what I say hehe: D
I’ll certainly be back for more. Reviews here say their crispy gau gee is ENORMOUS which I’ll just have to try soon! :)

Agreed this is pretty much the run of the mill local chop suey house. I knew what to expect in the way of food. However I was sorely disappointed with their customer service. Hence 3 stars as the food is decent. Indeed the gau gee are some of the largest around town. But I could have done with out the waitress’ rebuttal that my gau gee was freshly fried. Then why was it cold to the touch & why would I even bring it up? I asked if she could bring me a fresh one. What I got in return was the same bitten gau gee that was re-​fried. This made it not only oilier but crispier to the point it was too hard.
Ok, granted we know Chinese are always looking for the cheapest way out but, really, what would it have cost to give me two fresh gau gee.

We flew to HNL and this was our first stop because it’s one of my mom’s favorite spots to eat crispy gau gee. We got take out crispy gau gee mein.
The ordering over the phone was easy and our order was done right when we requested.
The crispy gau gee was huge and gone in a few minutes! Yum!
A small problem was that the mustard that came with was watery and flavorless.

It seems things are a bit different at WCS. Fewer booths, more four top tables and family size tables of eight. The menu has changed too. However, their war gau gee min is still delectable. HUGE portion. Lots of veggies & noodles. The broth is so good, my husband drank most of it, and he’s a FINE cook!
Check it out. I think you’ll be glad you did. Prices are fair. Huge bowl of war gau gee min was $ 10.75. Plus the waitress brought us each a bowl of light tapioca dessert for free.

Waimalu Chop Suey is no different from your run-​of-​the-​mill neighborhood Chinese restaurant except for one very important thing: CRISPY GAU GEE! If Crispy Gau Gees from every Chinese restaurant on the island had to compete in the Hunger Games, Waimalu Chop Suey’s Gau Gee would survive and win! How exactly? It would eat all the other gau gee! The Crispy Gau Gee at Waimalu Chop Suey is MASSIVE! You could fit two… or maybe even three… other gau gee into it! Crispy, stuffed generously with flavorful pork and veggies, this gau gee can’t be beat!
My family and I often pick up 10 – 12 gau gee for family parties and that is more than enough for 20+ people. We cut them in half so they will be easier to eat, but just half a Waimalu Chop Suey Crispy Gau Gee is more than enough!
Hurry and eat them before they eat you!

I got a tray of their legendary gau-​gee for my birthday party and before I could even blink they were all eaten! My guests were all completely blown away by the size of each gau-​gee anc ries of «it’s so big» followed by giggles of «that’s what she said» were heard throughout the room.
I definitely recommend calling ahead if you’re getting a take out order. Parking can be a little hard to come by in this very busy shopping center especially during peak weekend hours!

Waimalu Chop Suey was one of my all time favorite grind places for Gau Gee Mein! I was 1^st turned on to this place by one of my co-​workers in the late 80’s, and since then, I’ve made the run here for either the soft Gau Gee Mein, or the crispy Gau Gee Mein… a ton of times!
For a few years (10 years) I did boycott this place, as I found a cockaroach in my soft Gau Gee Mein. The worst part about all of this was I had eaten all my my meal, and was fishing for the scraps in my bowl, when I scooped up the roach. Needless to say, I was pretty GROSSED OUT & PISSED!!! When I told the owner about the cockaroach, they asked me if I wanted another? I’m like WTF??? Then I stopped coming here for many years.
Years have passed… and .I still haven’t forgotten about the cockaroach incident, but sometimes you have to let by gone’s, be by gone’s. I finally went back one day & of course the food has not changed… I know recently the original owners had sold this restaurant, and now there is new owners.
Food quality is still the same (see pics)…and of course when I went here, I had to get the crispy Gau Gee Mein! HUGE generous portions… so be ready to EAT!!! Lots of parking, as it is located at the Waimalu Shopping Center. Check ‘em out!!!