Wok-In Cafeteria....yes, that's their name! Don't wear it out!

Well, this is interesting. And if by interesting you mean totally random buffet cafeteria style no-frills restaurant located in an industrial park somewhere between Dogpatch and Bayview, then yeah, totally interesting. I stumbled upon Wok-In Cafeteria while out for one of my runs down around Cargo Way towards Heron Point Park. I kept running by it thinking I should really get by here to see what it is like since it says on their wooden sign out front they got an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. I mean, I am so totally down for the all-you-can-eat part, duh.

I didn’t really wanna go by myself and since I was still on my late Monday schedule, I convinced the SO to come along with me for lunch before work. Because we are both totally down for an all-you-can-eat buffet. Didn’t I say that already?

Honestly, this is one of those places you either know about or don’t. Nondescript encompasses everything from the outside of the plain warehouse like building to their decorating style inside. Just take a look

I can’t decide if it is the “exposed beams” the dangly fluorescent lighting or the stained linoleum that really sets this place off. Maybe the wainscot paneling? Or the random Chinese image decorations? Hmm, seems a sign nearby says you can rent the place out for weddings and events! I smell company holiday party! Or maybe that is the buffet bar, which is what we are really here for.

And true to form, it is all-you-can-eat for $12.95. The buffet bar includes an array of standard Chinese restaurant dishes in all the shades of brown, beige and green you can stand.

Fried rice, noodles, different meats with veggies and a number of deep fried things like shrimp, fish, chicken bits and egg rolls. So disregard the dirty yellow rag and the food stains on the edge, they did at least have a sneeze guard at people height. I purposely came hungry, the SO, not so much, something about going to the gym later, blah, blah. I’m here to load up and decide to take a spoon or two of things that look they just got put out as there is a continual flow from the kitchen for the lunch rush. That’s right, I said rush as while we were eating, there was a steady flow of construction workers, USPS folks (they are a few blocks away), a few police and the warehouse worker set. Seems they have a niche of a following from the surrounding warehouses. But back to the food.

Yep, all the fried brown stuff first with a splash of sriracha to liven it all up. The pot stickers were pretty good and surprisingly, so were the salt and pepper shrimp. The other fried things kind of tasted like they’d all been fried in the same oil, for the last several days. But you know, still not all that bad.

Hey, some fried fish they just put out which was still crunchy and not all fishy tasting. Some sesame chicken which was super sweet. Chicken with peppers and chicken with green beans since I gotta get some veggies in my diet. Or maybe that was beef with string beans? Think I didn’t care for the beef part but the green beans were crisp and good. The peppers were kind of mush. Standard Chinese fare.

Okay, so a third plate was probably too much but all-you-can-eat!! Similar veggies just different meat combinations. More fried shrimp—with heads! And eyes? Sliced pork and chicken nuggets they just put out. Which, to be honest, is the key here. Getting stuff when it first hits the hot bar. Once it is sat for a while, you can see the beans turn a darker not so fresh looking color and the some others get a little too soft. Plus, some of the sauces, be they brown or white get thick and goopy. Though, unless it is some high end place, I’m pretty sure that is the curse of buffets—things that sit too long and continue to cook from the heat lamp on top and the hot water underneath making them not the most pleasant of mushy textures.

I mean, overall is it great food? Eh, it is okay and good enough food. Sure there is better Chinese food in this town, but many spots are not gonna have a buffet and you’ll probably pay $12.95 just for one entree. Which is kind of what makes this place a find if you want search for it. Even with his one plate, the SO did like it enough like me to say we might actually try to get by again, maybe. (Though, the best laid plans as they say) Some things you will need to set aside if you go are decor and ambiance expectations, the smell of grease, maybe a few flies hanging out by the door and the general feel of slightly sticky linoleum floors in an industrial warehouse cafeteria. If any of that is unappealing to you, well, you’ll need to pass, but you might also miss out.

While I can’t say you need to chow down here, if you are a long time San Franciscan and want to try something way off the map that only locals know, then walk in to the Wok-In Cafeteria (get it! So punny!) and strap your feed bag on. You won’t love it, you won’t hate it, but you’ll definitely fill your stomach up.

One final note—the buffet is only at lunch and stops serving around 2:30pm and the closer it gets to that, the slimmer the pickings get. (I turned a couple co-workers onto the place and one day they showed up at the end but the manager was nice enough to offer up whatever was left to them for $5—so I can only imagine—but they were good with that) They also have a standard take out menu of stuff too but it isn’t quite the bargain the eat in buffet is so know before you go, or at least go hungry.