King Doh has been around for 31 years in its Warson Woods space, which makes it one of the longer-running Chinese restaurants in the community. It proudly displays a large handful of reviews, including a couple of very old ones from a former Post-Dispatch critic. Only a few people read them, we’d guess, but we did, curious to see how the place has aged, and we’re happy to report that it seems to have aged well.
The interior, with dark wood, walls painted a pale mauve and three fish tanks whose occupants are decorative rather than functional, has been updated, and so, of course, have the prices. But the menu doesn’t seem to have changed much. This is the Chinese food that most St. Louisans grew up with, and sometimes that’s just exactly what one craves. But King Doh’s kitchen has not settled into the sort of boring, second-rate routine that so often occurs at a certain age. In addition, King Doh has a sense of dining-out style. Over the years, we’ve chided restaurants,mostly Asian, for setting the table with only one fork, forcing servers to take the fork from the used plate and put it back on the tablecloth. King Doh is a two-fork restaurant.
A busy evening of carryout business meant that on one visit, we waited a looong time for our potstickers when the kitchen was suddenly slammed. Servers flew by. Ours quickly explained the delay, and we nibbled at some sesame noodles, trying to pace ourselves for the rest of the meal. They were good, a little sweeter than we’re accustomed to, the sesame notes clearly from oil rather than peanut butter, since they didn’t have the tendency to remain glued together, and it was hard not to make a meal of them. When the potstickers arrived, the server drizzled a little vinegar and a little soy sauce over them, and left the containers on the table in case we wanted more. The dumplings were outstanding, tender-skinned and with a meaty filling that was firm but not gelatinous. The bottoms were elegantly crisp and the whole dish was clearly fresh from the pot. A first-rate dumpling, to be sure, one we can enthusiastically recommend, and one that, in violation of our usual habit, we ordered on our next visit to enjoy again. (That’s a double order in the picture; they’re six to an order.)
Hot and sour soup, served in individual bowls rather than the family-size basins, was tart and pungent. And in honor of the retro feel of things, we ordered something we haven’t had in years, shrimp toast. Shrimp toast involves squares or triangles of bread spread with chopped, seasoned shrimp held together with some egg and then deep fried. Yes, sure, dietarily shocking, but done right, it’s so good, crunchy and shrimp-y. King Doh’s version had some of the shrimp left in chunks, and that made it even more charming.
Several proteins are offered “yu shian” which shows a spicy sauce packed with ginger and carrying a little heat, along with water chestnuts, bamboo shoots and mushrooms, plus a few other vegetables. We chose scallops, which were properly cooked, if looking a little ragged, but it was generally a big-flavor dish. Beef with black mushrooms showed off tender lean meat whose beefiness bounced around with the mushrooms and was all the better for it.
Green beans with very slender strips of pork (or as the old critic crowed, “Pork ‘n beans!”), arrived with the beans slightly blackened from the heat of the stir-fry in the wok, quite traditional, and with such a generous amount of pork that it should have been listed in the pork section of the menu rather than the one for vegetables. Peking lamb? That was a new one to us. Plenty of garlic and green onions reminded us of what Mongolian beef used to be when it was a new dish in town. (And on our next visit, we’ll order Mongolian beef and garlic chicken to return to those glorious days of yesteryear,) And the “special” moo shu contained chicken, shrimp, beef and pork, along with the vegetables. Four Chinese pancakes (much like crepes, for those not familiar) and the hoisin sauce arrived on a cart with the meat and vegetables, and our server wrapped large burrito-esque packets for us. The extra filling and the hoisin sauce remained after the cart and the pancake plate returned to the kitchen. Like the rest of the meal, the freshness and the temperature of the dish, despite the time needed for the tableside preparation, impressed considerably.
Aside from the long wait for the potstickers on the earlier visit, dishes seem to emerge from the kitchen quickly. Diners, both those picking up dinner to take home and those in family groups, indicated many regulars, a good sign in the dining room. Our server had enough English to manage and a cheerful demeanor that made for a pleasant visit.
Very good American-Chinese comfort food, that’s what King Doh serves, and well, too.
King Doh
10045 Manchester Rd., Warson Woods
314-821-6988
Lunch Tues.-Fri., Dinner Tues.-Sun
Credit cards: Yes
Wheelchair access: Fair
Smoking: No
Entrees: $7-$16
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Great to hear. It’s close and I haven’t been in years.