[City of Industry] [Fusion] Wonton Forest (CLOSED)

Wonton Forest
18230 Gale Ave
City of Industry, CA 91748
(626) 435-1430
(CLOSED)

I've known Paul for 5 or 6 years.  Paul graduated from UCLA.  His family has a restaurant in Hawaii, where he went to work/live for awhile.  He's super funny, especially after a few drinks.  He has an adorable girlfriend.  So I thought I know Paul pretty well, but I never knew Paul can cook.  I remember Paul talking about his goal on life is to open his own restaurant a few years back.  And he did it!  Wonton Forest was born 8 month ago.



Wonton Forest is located inside the then Hot Gossip now Starbucks plaza.  (Man, I still remember the Hot Gossip days back then....)  The restaurant isn't big, but it's clean and actually feels pretty spacious.  The deco is modern and had a serene feel to it.  Definitely not your typical hole-in-the-wall type of noodle shop.




There is also a noodle bar where guests can sit, and even chat with Chef Paul.  The restaurant is closed from 3pm to 5pm.  But the privilege of being a friend, we went at 3pm on Saturday and made Paul open the restaurant for us.  Well, the real reason was because I want to chat with Paul and I also want his undivided attention.  haha....



Behind the counter is where Chef Paul makes his super yummy noodles.  Paul moves around in the kitchen almost like dancing.  Moving here, moving there, moving here and there and back here again, noodle is done!  It seems like a lot of work, but at the same time, he masters the noodle-making skill so effortlessly.



Wonton Forest doesn't have a big menu.  Some people might prefer huge menu, like the one at Noodle World, with 120 different types of noodle.  But some people, like me, prefer smaller limited menu.  The dishes are more personal and intimate.  And I know the dishes are all Paul's specialties.  Wonton Forest is more of a "fusion" style restaurant.  There are Chinese, Vietnamese and Japanese influence in Paul's cooking style.


Pork and Shrimp Spring Rolls ($3.50)
Shrimp, sliced pork, lettuce, rice noodle, mint, and cucumber, served with traditional peanut sauce

Our first appetizer was Pork and Shrimp Spring Rolls.  We love the shrimp, crispy lettuce & cucumber, and the fragrant mint.  This was  traditional Vietnamese style spring rolls.


Salmon Nori Cut Roll ($3.95)
Poached salmon, nori, rice noodle, and lettuce, topped with a creamy miso sauce

Then we had the Salmon Nori Cut Roll.  At first glance, I thought it was just regular salmon sushi cut roll.  I put one in my mouth, and immediately noticed it wasn't your regular sushi roll.



The roll was wrapped with rice paper and nori seaweed.  Instead of sushi rice, it was Vietnamese rice noodle.  The creamy salmon and miso sauce was yummy.  This dish was so unique and so good!  Love it!


Salmon Tar Tar
Poached salmon and seared onion mixed with creamy miso, topped with nori and green onions on top of a toasted wonton skin

Paul also treated us a sample of Salmon Tar Tar.  It was the same creamy salmon with miso sauce from the cut rolls.  The fish sat on top of crispy wonton skin.  It was pretty good, too.  But I think the cut roll was my favorite appetizer.


Wonton Forest Noodle Soup ($5.95)
Pork and shrimp wontons served with choy sum, sliced pork, flavored egg, topped with roasted garlic and green onions

Dr. P and I ordered 2 noodles to share.  The first one was Wonton Forest Noodle Soup.  The chicken broth tasted very clean.  The thin yellow Cantonese noodle was cooked perfectly.  And the main attraction was the wonton.  Those giant wontons were filled with shrimp and pork.  It made me go "OMG The wonton is so freaking good" after I had one.  There were 5 wontons in a bowl.  Dr. P and I fought for the last wonton, and I WON! There was also 3 slices of melt-in-your-mouth sliced pork, some fresh choy sum vegetable, and half of a soy braised flavored egg. It was like a fusion of Chinese wonton noodle with a bit of Japanese ramen elements in there. Yum!


Garlic Chili Sauce (with Hoisin Sauce)

If you like spicy, definitely try dipping the wontons in some Chef Paul's http://www.eileenlikestoeat.commade garlic chili sauce.  It was quite spicy, but so addictive.  Per the chef's suggestion, I tried it with a little Hoisin sauce.  A little spicy, a little sweet.  Perfect with wontons.  We like the garlic chili sauce so much that we got 2 orders for to go.  My dad tried it at http://www.eileenlikestoeat.com and LOVES it, too.  I begged Paul for the recipe, but he's stubborn and wouldn't give in.  I guess I'll just have to get him drunk next time.


Chiu Chow Noodle Soup ($5.95)
Thick rice noodle in soup served with minced pork, shredded chicken, shrimp, and fishballs, topped with green onions

We also tried the Chiu Chow Noodle Soup.  It was made with Paul's family secret recipe.  Comparing to the wonton noodle soup, the flavor was lighter.  I really like their broth.  It tasted so clean and pure.  In the bowl, there were pork, chicken shrimp and fishballs.  Tons of stuffs.  I like to put a little bit of the garlic chili sauce on the thick flat rice noodle to eat.  Another excellent bowl of noodle soup.



Let me warn you, the portion is HUGE!  1/2 bowl and we were both full.  But the noodles were so good so we still finished them.  We walked out the restaurant like we were both 3 month pregnant.  Price is very reasonable for the amount of food, quality of the food, and of course, the service received.



I asked Paul to let me take a picture of him.  He said he was camera shy.  Yeah right!  So I am "forced" to post an old picture of Paul.  haha....  Paul claims that his eyes are as big as those pork balls.  Are they?  Well, you'll have to go to Wonton Forest to find out.  Puhahaha....

I highly highly recommend this restaurant.  Not just because it's my friend's restaurant, but I really LOVE the food there.  Dr. P also raved about it.  He even tried to convinced Paul to open a restaurant in the Westside.  If you do visit Wonton Forest, remember to say hi to Chef Paul (and tell him he has big eyes).  ^^

[ad#ad-unit]