It was a busy opening day for Chopstix, but we had mixed thoughts on the quality of the food
Pan-Asian fast-food chain Chopstix has opened its first branch in Hull. Founded in 2002 with a noodle bar in London’s Covent Garden, Chopstix are now popping up all over the country, including in King Edward Street.
There was a lot of buzz when the news was first announced in planning documents. And the excitement was still apparent with a queue almost snaking out the door when we ordered a takeaway shortly after it first opened.
Despite how dauntingly busy it was, I nonetheless joined the line. The wait to order on the touchscreen was about five minutes and it was only a couple more minutes of faffing to work out the menu system and pay.
While I waited to pick up the order, I soaked up the ambience. The walls are decorated in lime green and orange, with stark white countertops, and everything is very shiny.
It was busy, but I managed to find a chair to sit on while I waited. Because of the crowds, it was tricky for customers to reach the drink refills machine which was by the waiting area, but that was a minor quibble.
My order was number fifty-something and, as with many modern fast food joints, a large screen behind the counter shows if your order is ready or still being prepared. I was sceptical it would be quick – the staff were really out of the frying pan and into the fire with a frantic lunch hour – but it only took 11 minutes.
The kitchen was rushed off their feet, so it was commendable staff managed to hold the fort so well. When I picked up the food, the order numbers had already climbed into the eighties and the queue was even longer.
We ordered a chicken katsu curry with egg-fried rice, noodles with salt n pepper chicken, and a “skinny rice” with no-beef teriyaki (one of the vegan/vegetarian options). Nothing was missing, so we were off to a good start.
The noodles were hands-down the tastiest of the “bases” you could choose from. The egg-fried rice was ok, but we felt a little greasy and not quite packing enough flavour. However, despite its low calorific content, the cauliflower “skinny rice” was decent.
Starting with the katsu, the chicken itself was good, but we found the sauce was a little underwhelming. Special mention must go to the bell peppers in the no-beef teriyaki, which were cooked to perfection – sweet and slightly charred.
Moving onto the sweet and sour, this was good and had a sharper taste than most other places we have tried. Overall, not a bad first impression.
Chopstix is not the first pan-Asian takeaway in the city centre. Hull Daily Mail has previously visited independently-owned Wok Asia in Story Street, about a one-minute walk away, and we were deeply impressed with the food offering.
Another independent takeaway that felt like a real lunchtime treat was Loaded by Grubb in Paragon Arcade. We tried Korean chicken loaded fries and a vegan katsu loaded fries and both were pure bliss.