hao wah
mattIf you go to a buffet restaurant thinking “quantity over quality”, you’re much less likely to be disappointed with the experience. Such was the case with our recent visit to Hao Wah, a Chinese restaurant with a buffet-focus on S. Dale Mabry. We were in the mood for Chinese this past Friday night, but didn’t feel like doing take-out or delivery. Instead, we were looking for more of a sit-down place. Hao Wah the closest place we knew of by our house so off we went.
Hao Wah looks like your typical Chinese buffet place from the inside - lots of seating and generic Chinese decorations. The interior appears well maintained, our table was clean, and our server was friendly, which is more than I can say for most of these places. I decided to go with the buffet, while Traci ordered off the menu. In addition to the normal Chinese fare, Hao Wah also has Vietnamese dishes (pho beef noodle soups, mi-egg noddles etc) available off the menu. Traci ordered sweet and sour chicken and chicken fried rice (there was only pork rice on the buffet).
For around ten bucks per person for dinner, it’s hard to argue with Hao Wah’s buffet. Yes, some of the items tasted a little dried out and had probably been sitting out for too long, but you get what you pay for. Like it or not, buffets generally require a “quantity over quality” mindset. Indeed, if I had paid fifteen or twenty bucks for the buffet, I probably wouldn’t have been a happy camper. I’ve been to Chinese buffets before with bigger selections (I still miss the Chinese buffet place near where I used to live in Altamonte Springs), but Hao Wah is solid. Based on my sampling of what Traci ordered, the food off the menu does appear to be a cut above the buffet, as you’d expect.
I’d put Hao Wah in the same category as I do Jimbo’s on Kennedy for barbecue - not a bad choice in a pinch, but not the best in town either. To Hao Wah’s credit, I did think their buffet was better than China Garden Super Buffet in Britton Plaza off Dale Mabry. We went there once a year ago and said never again. Local Chinese restaurants I’ve seen mentioned highly include China Yuan on Armenia and the more upscale TC Choy’s on SOHO for dim sum on Sundays.
So what’s your favorite local Chinese place? A chain everyone already knows about like PF Chang’s doesn’t count and no lectures please on how Chinese buffets are all a waste and unhealthy! 
As a side note, I couldn’t locate a health inspection report on Hao Wah, which is probably just as well. Even well-regarded TC Choy’s had a whopping 14 critical violations on its last inspection!
Bottom-line: Hao Wah is certainly not gourmet, but if you’re in the mood for inexpensive Chinese food, this place isn’t a bad choice. The focus is on the buffet, but you can also order off a menu.
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February 28th, 2007 at 6:04 pm
Hao Wah’s is my own personal favorite. It’s gone a little downhill over the years, but the mongolian barbeque is still the way to go. *thumbs up*
February 28th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
Try Peking Restaurant on Manhattan and El Prado for that good old new york style chinese take out.
February 28th, 2007 at 6:58 pm
i too rate the hao wah menu food 2-3 cuts above the buffet. and for the same price, really, you get a better, certainly far more freshly made dish, usually.
i have tried their menu sushi and found it to be decent, but im not a sushi conoisseur.
hao wah is clean, or at least tries to look so in the dining room. who knows what goes down out back.
still, i think their buffet is better than britton plaza, though brittan plaza’s buffet is only half the price. if you pick and choose carefully, you can scrape together a decent lunch there. i wouldnt shell out 10 bucks for a chinese buffet anyway.
im highly unimpressed with the joint on soho which everyone usually thinks is good. no flavor. at least the times i went. thats unforgiveable for chinois.
i cant really recommend a chi joint in tampa. the davis island takeout place, plum something, is okay as far as it goes, i guess. i dont know why the chinese restaurateurs here dont cook decent grub. i know they know how. i can only surmise they think the locals cant handle it.
February 28th, 2007 at 7:40 pm
Great Wall II on 4th and 38th.
February 28th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
I dunno, I ate Hao Wah takeout and it was pretty bland. Some people might balk, but I dig Jade Garden, the dingey drive through joint on Kennedy.
February 28th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
I like Ho Ho’s on Armenia and Columbus (used to be where Chipotle is on South Howard). It’s primarily takeout, but there are a few seats for dining in. You get a lot of food for the money.l
February 28th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
Speaking of Peking, we just got a flier from them on our door last week I think. We usually get takeout from a little place on Westshore next to Zaem Palace (sp?) - nothing great, but fast and convenient location for us.
dreaming - we probably don’t want to see the kitchen of any chinese place (unless maybe a more sanitized upscale chain like a PF Changs). I thought the fact that even TC Choy’s had that many critical violations was eye opening.
Thanks also for the Ho Ho and Jade Garden suggestions…
March 1st, 2007 at 11:04 am
My recommendation for Chinese in Tampa is to shop at Oceanic and make your own.
March 1st, 2007 at 11:33 am
That’s a good idea. Oceanic was also suggested on my blog and I want to check it out.
thx-
March 1st, 2007 at 1:01 pm
Try the Golden Phoenix (Vietnamese & Hong Kong)on N. Dale Mabry. No buffet, but the food is about the best I have had in the area. I have a pest exterminator friend who says that he has seen many chinese restaurant kitchens in the area, and the only one he will eat food out of, is TC Choy.
March 1st, 2007 at 1:51 pm
Laugh if you must, but I can’t find crab rangoon that makes me happier than Hao Wah’s crab rangoon.
March 1st, 2007 at 1:55 pm
the guilty pleasure of hao wah is revealed
March 1st, 2007 at 3:40 pm
My favorite spot is Ho Ho Choys on Fletcher ave. They have great dim sum, pan fried noodles, and salted fish&chicken fried rice.
March 1st, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Other than Oceanic I have found no great place for Chinese food in Tampa, honestly I am a little afraid to try most places. Thanks to a good friend I did find Sunee’s, the best Thai resturant I have ever been to. Sunee’s is on South Dale Mabry, just south of Gandy. Not a fancy place but I highly recommned it.
March 1st, 2007 at 6:28 pm
thanks for the suggestion of Sunee’s- that’s right around where we live.
March 2nd, 2007 at 10:34 am
I can confirm that Sunee’s is the best Thai in Tampa. Don’t ever leave without having their homemade coconut ice cream for dessert!
March 5th, 2007 at 4:40 pm
I like HoHo’s. Yes they have Great food and unbelievably cheap prices. They also deliver almost everywhere. BUT they also were our first advertiser on SOHOTAMPA.COM. Tell Victor hello and thanks for supporting internet sites.
September 22nd, 2007 at 4:15 pm
I love TC Choy’s! Before that, it was Ho Ho Choy. I find TC Choy’s to offer the most authentic Chinese food in Tampa. Incidentally, I believe the owners of OCEANIC supermarket also own TC Choy’s.
December 28th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Yummy House on West Waters and China Yuan on Armenia are authentic and excellent.
http://www.chinayuanrestaurant.com/