Where to eat – Backpack Bees

Typically I brown bag it everyday at work, however a building mate asked me if I’d like to join him for lunch nearby at a friends restaurant. Although my peanut-butter, banana, topped off with local honey on whole wheat sounded very satisfying, lol, I said sure!

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So we went to Charlie’s Wok, an American Chinese restaurant, where I was introduced the main man himself, Charlie.

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The restaurant is located off the Main Street and tucked away in an alley near the Bosan subway station and US Army installation Camp Casey. When we pulled up to park, I quickly realized why I had never seen the restaurant before, it was because of the discreet location.

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Don’t let the unassuming exterior and location fool you, once we stepped inside my nose immediately told my belly that I was in for a treat. I learned that the food is always freshly made after you order, so be prepared for a bit of wait. You do have the option to place a take out order, as well as call ahead to place your order to eat dine in. If Charlie isn’t available, the restaurant does not open, it is a one man wok show. You see the pride Charlie takes in his food quality, the prices are very reasonable and you are served generous portions.

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I ordered a 2 entrée combo meal because I couldn’t decide between the beef with broccoli, and General Tso’s chicken. With the combo you also decide if you’d like fried rice, or chow mien. I ordered chow mien based off of recommendation. The recommendation was spot on!

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^Building mate’s garlic chicken and General Tso’s chicken

Overall, I was pleasantly pleased with my order. The menu offers a small variety of standard Chinese American staple choices and price points. Sure, this isn’t a gourmet 5 star restaurant, but it definitely is a great little neighborhood find!

Enjoy!

Give Charlie a call! 031-866-8656

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From what my good Korean friend tells me, Palga is a famous family owned and operated Chinese restaurant located in Uijeongbu city, that is well-known for its Koreanized sweet and sour glutinous rice pork, also known locally as Tangsuyuk (Korean: 탕수육, Chinese: 糖醋肉). Mmmm lets talk about the word “glutinous”. It doesn’t sound appetizing but it taste oh so good! If pork isn’t your thing you can swap the meat out for beef, or even shrimp.

I know if family is reading this post, they are a bit shocked I’m even writing about a Chinese restaurant. Why? When living stateside, every single time we’d order Chinese, or go to a restaurant, I’d get ill and have all sorts of stomach issues. Later it was determined that it was because of MSG. Anywho, if you are like me, you’ll be glad to know that this restaurant passed with flying colors. Thankfully no upset stomach to report back on.

The restaurant sits out on the Main Street and is very easy to recognize with its Chinese style that starts on the outside and continues on into the dining area. When we walked inside, the decor made me feel like we were back in China for the afternoon, possibly visiting a traditional tea shop. The wood furnishings were beautiful and overall the restaurant was very clean. There are 104 items on the menu and each one is also translated into English in case you cannot read Korean. The staff was not overly welcoming, but they were quick and attentive to us. The prices were fair and the portions plenty, so much so we couldn’t eat everything we ordered. I think it was a serious case of our eyes being bigger than our stomach.

So what did our eyes order? Of course a plate of Tangsuyuk, Jajangmyeon (Korean: 자장면, Chinese: 炸醬麵) – steamed noodles served under black bean paste (if you recall we ordered when we were moving into our new place last summer). Jjamppong (Korean: 짬뽕, Chinese name: 炒碼麵) – spicy noodle soup flavoured with onions and chili oil and various seafood and creatures (we eat this often when Mr.B is scuba diving on the east coast). Oh! can’t forget the FREE banchan! You know, the free little side dishes served in Korea that make it feel like Christmas when they are sat on your table. We had pickled radish and toasted peanuts, both dishes equally addicting!

If you are ever in the area and Chinese is striking your fancy that day… stop in and give it a try.