Last summer, a three-alarm fire broke out at China Way Restaurant in Santa Clara and burned the place down. China Way was a place for serving Shandong noodles and other Korean-Chinese dishes popular with the local Korean and Chinese population alike. They were one of the two Shandong-style restaurants on El Camino Real in Santa Clara, the other one being Tong Soon Garden. This stretch of El Camino Real has been called by some as the Koreantown due to the many Korean restaurants, shops and businesses, not to mention the many Korean supermarkets in the close vicinity.

While they are slowly re-building the new building, inside sources have informed me that the original chef/owners of China Way are actually now cooking up the goodies at a Chinese fast food place called Fortune Cookie Fast Food in San Jose, near SJSU (San Jose State University).

I’ve not had a chance to visit, but a glance at the menu reveals a more generic menu than the full menu at the old China Way. Perhaps this is due to the smaller scale operation of Fortune Cookie. However, the classic Zha Jiang Mian (炸醬麵) and Chao Ma Mian (炒碼麵) are still on the menu, though under more generic names.

ZhaJiangMian is listed under the Noodle Soups section as #6 Noodle in Black Bean Sauce. ChaoMaMian is listed as #5 Combination Spicy Noodle Soup. I’m sure the other items such as Gan Pong Chicken (乾烹雞) or Tang Soo Yuk (糖醋肉) can be ordered even though they don’t show up on the menu just by asking.

The construction on the new China Way won’t be done for several more months, but in the meantime, it’s good to know those who miss it can still get their food.

Fortune Cookie Fast Food (李叔叔快餐)

(408) 286-1488

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