China Stix Kitchen

China Stix Kitchen
1661 E Monte Vista Ave
Vacaville, CA 95688
707-448-8873

China Stix Kitchen was the first restaurant in Vacaville, CA, that I went to after doing an online search.  It was a bit tricky to find, in a big shopping center that has a merry-go-round and a mini train!  Shanghai Express was the other restaurant I found online.

Shrimp chow mein, $8.50.  A good sized portion of noodles, but not many shrimp-though the shrimp was fresh.  A good dish with a lot of flavor. 

Prawns with garlic sauce, $11.50, with carrots, celery, broccoli, and onions.  A very good dish with about 10 prawns.  The sauce was flavorful and had a bit of heat.  The veggies were crispy and fresh.

Service is good but a bit slow.  It was lunch and while there were only about six people there, my order took a very long time.  You can see the kitchen from the counter and there was only one chef prepare all the dishes.

I like China Stix Kitchen better than Shanghai Express.  But, prepare to wait for your food!

Shanghai Express

Shanghai Express
500 Elmira Rd
Vacaville, CA 95687
707-451-3388

So I'm in Vacaville, CA and don't know the area at all.  But, I'm hungry and searched online and found two restaurants, China Stix Kitchen and Shanghai Express.  I went to Shanghai Express since it was only a short drive from where I was staying.

This is a fast casual restaurant.  They have a steam table full of food.  Or you can order something off their menu.  I decided to order off the menu.  The restaurant is small with about 8-10 tables.  One sloppy family just finished eating and they made a mess, there was only one child in that family, who was maybe 10 years old.  The lady didn't even clean up the area the entire time I was there, maybe 15 minutes.

Garlic prawns-$9.25 large order.  This was an ok dish.  Good portion with about a dozen medium sized prawns.  I wasn't expecting a bunch of bamboo shoots but they were fine.  The garlic sauce was flavorful.  But, the prawns themselves were a bit tough and didn't taste as though they were that fresh.

Vegetable chow mein-$5.75 large order.  This was a good dish.  Not much in terms of veggies, a few pieces of carrots, some chopped up celery and some green onions.  But, there were a lot of noodles and they were well seasoned and cooked.  Portion size was great and a great value!

Service was friendly.  But, the lady helping me, must have been new because she didn't know the prices-she had to look at the menu for the prices.  She also didn't clean up the mess made by that family.

Shanghai Express is one step up from a Panda Express.  I wouldn't go rush back but wouldn't mind giving them another chance.  The prawns, if they were fresh, could be a good dish!