I spent about five years in Albuquerque during the 1990s and thrilled to two types of restaurants that seemed to decorate every other block in the city, and which I hadn’t before encountered. One was the New Mexican cafe, complete with carne adovada (red-chile marinated pork), green chile on everything, and sopaipillas; the other, Japanese fast food, featuring bowls of white rice with steamed vegetables and teriyaki meat.
After Albuquerque? South Florida. Then Washington, D.C. Then Baltimore. No New Mexican cafe, no Japanese fast food. Now Colorado, and I’m back in business.
Neither type of restaurant runs as rampant in Colorado’s cities as in Albuquerque, but they at least make appearances.
Boulder supports several of the Japanese joints (although I haven’t found a good New Mexican spot), and one of the Boulder standbys, Wok & Roll Teriyaki, just opened a new place in a strip mall in the southeast part of town.
I live around the corner.
This makes me very happy.
Wok & Roll Teriyaki is a step above the utilitarian fare – Styrofoam bowl, mound of white rice, scattering of protein and fiber, splash of sauce – that I scarfed during my Albuquerque sojourn.
Consider the Kyoto Noodle Bowl ($7.99), a tangle of rice noodles studded with steamed vegetables and yakitori chicken (grilled chicken) and slicked with a potent chile garlic sauce. I was glad the kids don’t much care for chile-pumped food; I didn’t have to share.
The Fresh Ginger Bowl ($7.99) was another winner, with teriyaki chicken (chicken grilled in a sweet soy sauce) on a pile of white rice and steamed vegetables and laced with a most gingery teriyaki sauce. The ginger was extremely pronounced, and this I applauded, because I embrace the flavor of the root.
The Vegetarian Combo ($6.99) included tofu, broccoli, baby corn, snow peas chestnuts, edamame (soybeans), and carrots. We selected the wasabi guacamole sauce (other sauce choices are Thai peanut, teriyaki pineapple and fresh mango salsa). The veggies were steamed properly, and the sauce reveled in its avocado flavor. The wasabi, though, appeared as a small whisper, when we expected something more like a shout.
The veggie sushi roll? If you’re hungry for such a thing, it won’t disappoint, although it likely won’t excite, either.
Skip the Honey Wheat Wrap with teriyaki beef ($1.89). It looked like a miniature burrito, felt like rubber, and tasted weird. In a similarly unfortunate vein, the coconut almond tempura shrimp ($6.99) was tough, the breading tasted nothing like coconut or almond.
Do try the soft shell crab ($6.99) with fresh lime and remoulade. The crustacean was crisp, the flavors right on.
The place has an expansive menu – for a Japanese fast food restaurant – and based on my first meal, I’m guessing we’ll sample the whole thing by this time next year.
Staff Writer Douglas Brown can be reached at 303-954-1395 or djbrown@denverpost.com
Wok & Roll Teriyaki
Japanese|4800 Baseline Road, A-104 (Baseline and Foothills Parkway Safeway Center),
Boulder; 720-274-0904|$1.49-
$10.99|Monday-Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m.; MC, Visa, AMEX; parking; other locations in Fort Collins, Arvada and a second in Boulder.
Front burner: Large and inventive menu.
Back burner: Hit or miss with some appetizers; if you’re looking for cozy, this isn’t the place.
